|
Peat Extraction On The Somerset Levels
Peat extraction on the Somerset Levels, in South West England has occurred since the area was first drained by the Romans, and continues today on an area of less than 0.5% of the total geography. The modern system in recycling land back to farm use and conservation has resulted in the creation of numerous Sites of Special Scientific Interest. History Large areas of peat were laid down on the Somerset Levels, particularly in the River Brue Valley, during the Quaternary period after the ice sheets melted. Extraction The extraction of peat from the Moors is known to have taken place during Roman times, and has been carried out since the Levels were first drained. After the Romans left Britain, from this period forward, peat extraction was undertaken by hand by the owning or tenanted farmers. By the late Victorian period, the Eclipse Peat Company was the main commercial extractor of peat, operating initially across Shapwick Heath. In June 1961, on opening a new areas for p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peat Works, Somerset - Geograph
Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficient carbon sink on the planet, because peatland plants capture carbon dioxide (CO2) naturally released from the peat, maintaining an equilibrium. In natural peatlands, the "annual rate of Biomass (ecology), biomass production is greater than the rate of decomposition", but it takes "thousands of years for peatlands to develop the deposits of , which is the average depth of the Subarctic climate, boreal [northern] peatlands", which store around 415 gigatonnes (Gt) of carbon (about 46 times 2019 global CO2 emissions). Globally, peat stores up to 550 Gt of carbon, 42% of all soil carbon, which exceeds the carbon stored in all other vegetation types, including the world's forests, although it covers just 3% of the land's surf ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shapwick, Somerset
Shapwick is a village on the Polden Hills overlooking the Somerset Moors, in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, England. It is situated to the west of Glastonbury. History Shapwick is the site of one end of the Sweet Track, an ancient causeway dating from the 39th century BC. In 1998 a hoard of 9,238 silver denarii (the second largest hoard ever found from the Roman Empire, and the largest in the United Kingdom) was discovered in the remains of a previously unknown Roman villa near Shapwick. Following a Treasure Inquest in Taunton, the hoard was valued and acquired in its entirety by Somerset County Museums Service for the sum of £265,000. It became known as the Shapwick Hoard. The parish of Shapwick was part of the Whitley Hundred. Due to the plan of its roads and streets academics have described it as a "typical English village". Shapwick is one of the nine Thankful Villages in Somerset — those that suffered no casualties in World War I. Manor The manor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Somerset And Dorset Joint Railway
The Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, also known as the S&D, SDJR or S&DJR, was an English railway line connecting Bath (in north-east Somerset) and Bournemouth (now in south-east Dorset but then in Hampshire), with a branch from Evercreech Junction to Burnham-on-Sea and Bridgwater. Strictly speaking, the main line ran from Bath Junction to Broadstone, as the line between Broadstone and Bournemouth was owned by the London and South Western Railway, while the line between Bath Junction and Bath was owned by the Midland Railway. The line was used for freight and local passenger traffic over the Mendip Hills, and for weekend holiday traffic to Bournemouth. Criticised as the "Slow and Dirty" or the "Slow and Doubtful", it closed in 1966 as part of the Beeching axe despite protests from the local community. Overview The Somerset and Dorset Railway (S&D) was created in 1862, as an amalgamation of the Somerset Central Railway and the Dorset Central Railway. By the following yea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ashcott Railway Station
Ashcott railway station was a station on the Highbridge branch of the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway. Opened by the Somerset Central Railway in 1856 as Ashcott and Meare, the name changed to Ashcott in 1876. Consisting of a short wooden platform and station building, the station was next to a road level crossing. This was operated with a 10 lever ground frame. History The station was opened by the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, a joint line run by a committee for the Midland Railway and the Southern Railway. The line became a joint operation of the Southern Railway and the London, Midland and Scottish Railway after the grouping of 1923. It was placed in the Western Region when the railways were nationalised in 1948. The station closed when trains were withdrawn during the Beeching Axe, taking effect on 7 March 1966. Eclipse Peat Company west of Ashcott existed ''Alexander Siding'', which allowed exchange between the SD&JR and the Eclipse Peat Works industrial tram ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wells, Somerset
Wells () is a cathedral city and civil parish in the Mendip district of Somerset, located on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills, south-east of Weston-super-Mare, south-west of Bath and south of Bristol. Although the population recorded in the 2011 census was only 10,536, (increased to 12,000 by 2018) and with a built-up area of just , Wells has had city status since medieval times, because of the presence of Wells Cathedral. Often described as England's smallest city, it is actually second smallest to the City of London in area and population, but unlike London it is not part of a larger urban agglomeration. Wells takes its name from three wells dedicated to Saint Andrew, one in the market place and two within the grounds of the Bishop's Palace and cathedral. A small Roman settlement surrounded them, which grew in importance and size under the Anglo-Saxons when King Ine of Wessex founded a minster church there in 704. The community became a trading centre based ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burnham-on-Sea
Burnham-on-Sea is a seaside town in Somerset, England, at the mouth of the River Parrett, upon Bridgwater Bay. Burnham was a small fishing village until the late 18th century when it began to grow because of its popularity as a seaside resort. Burnham-on-Sea forms part of the parish of Burnham-on-Sea and Highbridge and shares a town council with its neighbouring small market town of Highbridge. According to the 2011 census the population of the parish (including Highbridge) was 19,576, of which the most populous wards 'Burnham Central' and 'Burnham North'; totalled 13,601. Burnham-on-Sea is famous for its low lighthouse. The lighthouse was built in 1832 and is a Grade-II listed building with a red and white striped facade. The position of the town on the edge of the Somerset Levels and moors where they meet the Bristol Channel, has resulted in a history dominated by land reclamation and sea defences since Roman times. Burnham was seriously affected by the Bristol Chan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Somerset Central Railway
The Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, also known as the S&D, SDJR or S&DJR, was an English railway line connecting Bath (in north-east Somerset) and Bournemouth (now in south-east Dorset but then in Hampshire), with a branch from Evercreech Junction to Burnham-on-Sea and Bridgwater. Strictly speaking, the main line ran from Bath Junction to Broadstone, as the line between Broadstone and Bournemouth was owned by the London and South Western Railway, while the line between Bath Junction and Bath was owned by the Midland Railway. The line was used for freight and local passenger traffic over the Mendip Hills, and for weekend holiday traffic to Bournemouth. Criticised as the "Slow and Dirty" or the "Slow and Doubtful", it closed in 1966 as part of the Beeching axe despite protests from the local community. Overview The Somerset and Dorset Railway (S&D) was created in 1862, as an amalgamation of the Somerset Central Railway and the Dorset Central Railway. By the followin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glastonbury Canal
The Glastonbury Canal ran for approximately through two locks from Glastonbury to Highbridge in Somerset, England, where it entered the River Parrett and from there the Bristol Channel. The canal was authorised by Parliament in 1827 and opened in 1834. It was operated by The Glastonbury Navigation & Canal Company. Most of it was abandoned as a navigation in 1854, when a railway was built along the towpath. An earlier canal had been built in the Middle Ages to supply Glastonbury Abbey and the town with stone and produce. In the early 19th century a new canal was proposed to improve commerce in Glastonbury and help with drainage of the surrounding area of the Somerset Levels. Several alternative routes were considered and costed before obtaining an Act of Parliament and issuing a prospectus to raise funds for the building of the canal. Construction commenced in the 1820s; however it was more expensive than envisaged and further funds had to be raised. It finally opened in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
JA Prestwich Industries
JA Prestwich Industries, was a British engineering equipment manufacturing company named after founder John Alfred Prestwich, which was formed in 1951 by the amalgamation of J.A.Prestwich and Company Limited and Pencils Ltd. History John Prestwich, an engineer, commenced manufacture of scientific instruments in 1895, when he was 20, initially behind his father's house at 1 Lansdowne Road, Tottenham, London. By 1911 he had moved to new premises in Tariff Road, within the Northumberland Park area of Tottenham, London, anwhich still exists as of 2015 Prestwich was initially best known for his cinematography cameras and projectors. He worked with S.Z. de Ferranti and later the cinema pioneer William Friese-Greene. Circa 1902 J.A.Prestwich and Company began manufacturing motorcycle engines which were used in many motorcycle marques. The motorcycle engines were associated with racing and record success and were used in speedway bikes into the 1960s. Prestwich also made engines for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dursley
Dursley is a market town and civil parish in southern Gloucestershire, England, almost equidistant from the cities of Bristol and Gloucester. It is under the northeast flank of Stinchcombe Hill, and about southeast of the River Severn. The town is adjacent to Cam which, though a village, is a slightly larger community in its own right. The population of Dursley was 7,463 at the 2021 Census. History Dursley once had a castle, built by Roger de Berkeley in 1153.Dursley Location Information Dursley gained status in 1471 and lost it in 1886. From 1837 to 1851 it was the administrative centre of Dursley Regis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
R A Lister And Company
R A Lister & Company was founded in Dursley, Gloucestershire, England, in 1867 by Sir Robert Ashton Lister (1845–1929), to produce agricultural machinery. History 1867–1906: Foundation and growth The founder of R A Lister and Company was Robert Ashton Lister, who was born in 1845. He led the exhibit of the family's products to the Paris Exhibition of 1867, but on return fell out with his father, and in the same year founded R.A.Lister and Company in the former Howard's Lower Mill, Water Street in Dursley to manufacture agricultural machinery. In 1889 Robert acquired the UK rights to manufacture and sell Danish engineer Mikael Pedersen's new cream separator, which through a spinning centrifugal separator allowed the machine to run at a constant speed and hence create a regular consistency of cream. Marketed in the UK and British Empire as "The Alexandra Cream Separator", its success resulted in Pedersen moving to Dursley. In 1899, he founded the Dursley Pedersen Cycle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Broomfield, Somerset
Broomfield is a village and civil parish in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, England, situated about five miles north of Taunton. According to the 2011 census it had a population of 249. The village is the highest village on the Quantock Hills and lies on the Quantock Greenway footpath. History Approximately from the village is the Iron Age hill fort of Ruborough Camp. There was a tunnel, which has now been filled in, which gave the camp safe access to a nearby spring for water. The estate was owned after the Norman Conquest by William de Mohun of Dunster, 1st Earl of Somerset. Broomfield was part of the hundred of Andersfield. Governance The parish council has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council's operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The parish council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, and neighbourhood wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> Peat Works, Somerset - Geograph")
.jpg "Click for more on -> Glastonbury Canal")
