Nailsea
| Nailsea | |
| Somerset | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | ST473703 |
| Location: | 51°25’48"N, 2°45’36"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 17,500 (est.) |
| Post town: | Bristol |
| Postcode: | BS48 |
| Dialling code: | 01275 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | North Somerset |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
North Somerset |
Nailsea is a small town in Somerset, in the Portbury Hundred covering the northernmost part of the county. The town is found some 8 miles southwest of Bristol and 11 miles northeast of the seaside resort of Weston-super-Mare.
Nailsea is largely a commuter town, and it a population estimated at 17,500.[1]
The town was an industrial centre based on coal mining and glass manufacture, which have now been replaced by service industries. The surrounding area of the Northern Somerset Levels provides wildlife habitats including the Tickenham, Nailsea and Kenn Moors biological Site of Special Scientific Interest and Bucklands Pool/Backwell Lake Local Nature Reserve.
Nailsea is close to the M5 motorway and Bristol Airport, and has railway services at Nailsea and Backwell railway station|Nailsea and Backwell station.
Churches in the town include the 14th-century Holy Trinity Church and Christ Church, which was built in 1843.
Name
The name of the town may be derived from the Old English Nægles ieg meaning Nægl's island,[2] after an otherwise unknown progenitoror (nægl means "nail") or a lost Old Welsh root. It has also been found as Naylsey in 1657.[3]
History
Little is known of the area occupied by Nailsea before the coal mining industry began, although it was used as a quarry in Roman times from which pennant sandstone was extracted.[4] There is no other evidence of substantial Roman presence in Nailsea from 40–400 AD, but they left a small villa near Jacklands Bridge.[5]
Nailsea's early economy relied on coal mining, which began as early as the 16th century. The earliest recorded date for coal mining in Nailsea was 1507 when coal was being transported to light fires at Yatton.[6] By the late 1700s the town had a large number of pits. Around this time Nailsea was visited by the social reformer Hannah More who founded a Sunday school for the workers. The Elms Colliery,(Middle Engine Pit), one of the most complete examples of an 18th-century colliery left to us,[7] is now in disrepair. It has been designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument and is included in the Heritage at Risk Register produced by English Heritage.[8] Remains of the old pits are still visible around the town; most of them had closed down by the late 19th century as mining capital migrated to the richer seams of Monmouthshire and Glamorgan.
The coal mines attracted glass manufacturer John Robert Lucas, who in 1788 established a glass works that became the fourth-largest of its kind in the United Kingdom, mostly producing low-grade bottle glass.[9][10] The works closed down in 1873, but "Nailsea" glass (mostly made by glass workers at the end of their shift in Nailsea and at other glass works) is still sought after by collectors around the world.[11] The site of the glass works has been covered by a [supermarket car park. Other parts of the site have been cleared and filled with sand to ensure that the remains of the old glass works are preserved.
The 15th-century Nailsea Court, southwest of the town, is a Grade I listed building.[12]
Geography
The Land Yeo river flows to the east of the town. The North Somerset Levels to the west have been drained and farmed by generations of farmers.[13] Tickenham, Nailsea and Kenn Moors SSSI is a 129.4 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest. The soils in the area include clays of the Allerton and Wentloog Series[14] and peat soils of the Sedgemoor and Godney Series,[14] which are drained by a network of large rhynes and smaller field ditches, which support exceptionally rich plant and invertebrate fauna communities. Exceptional populations of Coleoptera occur, amongst which are at least 12 nationally scarce species and 2 nationally rare species, including Britain’s largest water beetle the Great Silver Water Beetle (Hydrophilus piceus).[14] There are several other local nature reserves.
The Bucklands Pool/Backwell Lake Local Nature Reserve, southeast of the town centre and close to the Nailsea and Backwell railway station, was constructed as a balancing pond in the mid-1970s, and has since become home to various wildfowl and dragonflies and a foraging area for bats. Bird species seen on the reserve include gadwall, shoveller, pochard, tufted duck, grey heron and mute swans.[15]
Churches
- Church of England:
- Holy Trinity (14th century)
- Christ Church (1843[16]
- Baptist: Nailsea Baptist Church
- Independent:
- Southfield Church
- The Community Church
- Methodist: Nailsea Methodist Church, founded in 1789 but since replaced with a modern building
Economy
Primary income often comes from employment in the service sector, including industries such as insurance and banking, defence related employment, retail and management. Larger businesses in Nailsea include GE,[17] and Bristol Wessex Billing Services Ltd., the billing company jointly owned by Bristol Water and Wessex Water.[18] Other businesses are situated at units in the town. Nailsea has three large industrial and business estates located at Southfield road, Blackfriars road and Coates Estate (former site of the local cider making industry).[19] Nailsea's shopping area includes Somerset Square, Crown Glass Place, Colliers Walk, and a high street. There are three supermarket chains in the town and some national banks and estate agents.
Coate's cider factory in Nailsea was first opened in 1788 and was bought by Showerings of Shepton Mallet in 1956.[20] The brand was subsequently merged with Gaymers and absorbed by Matthew Clark Brands. Before Coates, there was Heath Brewery, owned by the Thatcher family, which was situated behind the Friendship Inn. The site of the old factory is now called 'Coates Estate' and is home to a diverse range of both local and national businesses.
Sports
- Cricket: Nailsea Cricket Club, formed in the mid-1850s
- Football:
- AFC Nailsea
- Selkirk United
- Nailsea United FC
- Nailsea Town FC
- Ladies' Hockey: Nailsea Ladies Hockey Club, formed in 1924
- Rugby: Nailsea and Backwell Rugby Football Club
- Croquet: Nailsea and District Croquet Club
The Scotch Horn Centre provides a gymnasium.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Nailsea) |
References
- ↑ "Nailsea Town Council". Baseline Review. http://www.nailseatowncouncil.gov.uk/parish/Nailsea%20Town%20Council%20Baseline%20Review%20Aug%202006.pdf. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
- ↑ "Nailsea". University of Nottingham's Institute for Name-Studies. http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/~aezins//kepn/detailpop.php?placeno=8067. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
- ↑ "A Short History of Nailsea". Nailsea Parish Family History and OPC. http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/ian.sage/Nailsea/nailsea.html. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
- ↑ "History and Heritage". Nailsea Town Council. http://www.nailseatowncouncil.gov.uk/history.php. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
- ↑ "Nailsea OPC page". Nailsea OPC. http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/ian.sage/Nailsea/nailsea.html. Retrieved 28 April 2011.
- ↑ "N&DLHS – Bottle Green & Coal Black". Nailsea and District Local History Society. http://www.ndlhs.org.uk/item-coalblack.html. Retrieved 28 April 2011.
- ↑ "Heritage at risk". Bristol Evening Post. 11 July 2008. http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/news/HERITAGE-RISK/article-217252-detail/article.html. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ↑ "South West England". Heritage at Risk. English Heritage. p. 176. http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/publications/HAR_Register_South_West_2009/southwest-2009-har-register.pdf. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ↑ "Nailsea Glass". Nailsea Parish Family History and OPC Page. http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/ian.sage/Nailsea/glass.html. Retrieved 1 July 2010.
- ↑ Smith, Andrew F. (2004). "The Nailsea Glassworks, Nailsea, North Somerset A Study of the History, Archaeology, Technology and the Human Story". Archaeology Data Service (ADS). http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/library/nailsea_avon_2004/index.cfm?CFID=3871270&CFTOKEN=62749229. Retrieved 1 July 2010.
- ↑ "Bottle Green & Coal Black". Nailsea & District Local History Society. http://www.ndlhs.org.uk/item-coalblack.html. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
- ↑ National Heritage List 1020882: Nailsea Court
- ↑ "North Somerset Levels and Moors Project". North Somerset Levels and Moors Project. Avon Wildlife Trust. http://www.avonwildlifetrust.org.uk/wildlife/project_nslm.htm. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 "SSSI citation for Tickenham, Nailsea and Kenn Moors SSSI". English Nature. http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/2000021.pdf. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
- ↑ "Bucklands Pool/Backwell Lake". Natural England. http://www.lnr.naturalengland.org.uk/special/lnr/lnr_details.asp?themeid=1008788. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ↑ National Heritage List 1019974 Christ Church: Christ Church Nailsea
- ↑ "Nailsea facility". GE Oil and Gas. http://www.geoilandgas.com/businesses/ge_oilandgas/en/literature/en/downloads/nailsea_facility.pdf. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ↑ "Contact". Bristol Water. http://www.bristolwater.co.uk/contact.asp. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ↑ "Coates Estate, Nailsea". JRW Properties Ltd. http://www.jrwproperties.co.uk. Retrieved 3 June 2012.
- ↑ "Village Story — Coates Cider". Abbotsleigh. http://www.abbotsleigh.org.uk/ALCider.html. Retrieved 30 April 2011.