Bridgwater is a large historic
market town
A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...
and
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...
in
Somerset
( en, All The People of Somerset)
, locator_map =
, coordinates =
, region = South West England
, established_date = Ancient
, established_by =
, preceded_by =
, origin =
, lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset
, lord_ ...
, England. Its population currently stands at around 41,276 as of 2022.
Bridgwater is at the edge of the
Somerset Levels
The Somerset Levels are a coastal plain and wetland area of Somerset, England, running south from the Mendip Hills, Mendips to the Blackdown Hills.
The Somerset Levels have an area of about and are bisected by the Polden Hills; the areas to ...
, in level and well-wooded country. The town lies along both sides of the
River Parrett
The River Parrett flows through the counties of Dorset and Somerset in South West England, from its source in the Thorney Mills springs in the hills around Chedington in Dorset. Flowing northwest through Somerset and the Somerset Levels to it ...
; it has been a major inland port and trading centre since the industrial revolution. Most of its industrial bases still stand today. Its larger neighbour,
Taunton
Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...
, is linked to Bridgwater via a canal, the M5 motorway and the
GWR railway line.
Historically, the town had a politically radical tendency. The
Battle of Sedgemoor
The Battle of Sedgemoor was the last and decisive engagement between the Kingdom of England and rebels led by the Duke of Monmouth during the Monmouth rebellion, fought on 6 July 1685, and took place at Westonzoyland near Bridgwater in Somerse ...
, where the
Monmouth Rebellion
The Monmouth Rebellion, also known as the Pitchfork Rebellion, the Revolt of the West or the West Country rebellion, was an attempt to depose James II, who in February 1685 succeeded his brother Charles II as king of England, Scotland and Ir ...
was finally crushed in 1685, was fought nearby. Notable buildings include the
Church of St Mary and
Blake Museum
The Blake Museum is in Bridgwater, Somerset, England at what is believed to be the birthplace of Robert Blake, General at Sea (1598–1657). Since April 2009 it has been run by Bridgwater Town Council with help from the Friends of Blake Museum ...
, which is a largely restored house in Blake Street and was the birthplace of
Admiral Blake in 1598. The town has an arts centre and plays host to the annual
Bridgwater Guy Fawkes Carnival.
Etymology
It is thought that the town was originally called Brigg, meaning ''
quay
A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths (mooring location ...
''. It has been argued that the name may instead come from the
Old English
Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...
''brycg'' (gang plank) or
Old Norse
Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...
''bryggja'' (quay), though this idea has been opposed on etymological grounds.
In the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
the town is listed as Brugie, while Brugia was also used. After the
Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
invasion the land was given to
Walter of Douai
Walter of Douai (Old Norman: ''Wautier de Douai'') (born c.1046, died: c.1107) was a Norman knight, probably at the Battle of Hastings, and a major landowner in South West England after the Norman Conquest, being feudal baron of Bampton in Devon an ...
, hence becoming known variously as Burgh-Walter, Brugg-Walter and Brigg-Walter, eventually corrupted to Bridgwater. An alternative version is that it derives from "Bridge of Walter" (i.e. Walter's Bridge).
History
Bridgwater proper
Bridgwater is mentioned both in the ''
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
'' and in the earlier ''
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...
'' dating from around 800, owing its origin as a trade centre to its position at the mouth of the chief river in Somerset. It was formerly part of the
Hundred of North Petherton
The Hundred of North Petherton is one of the 40 historical Hundreds in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England, dating from before the Norman conquest. Although the Hundreds have never been formally abolished, their functions ended with the e ...
. In a legend of
Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great (alt. Ælfred 848/849 – 26 October 899) was King of the West Saxons from 871 to 886, and King of the Anglo-Saxons from 886 until his death in 899. He was the youngest son of King Æthelwulf and his first wife Osburh, who bot ...
, he burnt some cakes while hiding in the marshes of
Athelney
Athelney is a village located between the villages of Burrowbridge and East Lyng in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, England. The name is believed to be derived from the Old English '' æþeling'' meaning "prince" + -''ey'' meaning "isle". Th ...
near Bridgwater, after the
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
invasion in 875, while in 878 the major engagement of the
Battle of Cynwit
The Battle of Cynwit, was a battle between West Saxons and Vikings in 878 at a fort which Asser calls ''Cynwit''. The location of the battle is not known for sure but probably was at Countisbury Hill, near Countisbury, Devon.
Prelude
The Vikin ...
may have been at nearby
Cannington.
William Briwere
William Briwere (died 1244) was a medieval Bishop of Exeter.
Early life
Briwere was the nephew of William Brewer, a baron and political leader during King Henry III of England's minority.Vincent ''Peter des Roches'' p. 213 Nothing else is kn ...
was granted the
lordship
A lordship is a territory held by a lord. It was a landed estate that served as the lowest administrative and judicial unit in rural areas. It originated as a unit under the feudal system during the Middle Ages. In a lordship, the functions of econ ...
of the
Manor of Bridgwater by
King John in 1201,
and founded
Bridgwater Friary
Bridgwater Friary was a Franciscan monastery in Bridgwater, Somerset, England, established in 1245 and dissolved in 1538.
It was founded by William Briwere and moved from another location. Further buildings were added in 1278 and 1284. The churc ...
. Through Briwere's influence, King John granted three charters in 1200; for the construction of Bridgwater Castle, for the creation of a
borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
In the Middle Ag ...
, and for a market.
Bridgwater Castle was a substantial structure built in
Old Red Sandstone
The Old Red Sandstone is an assemblage of rocks in the North Atlantic region largely of Devonian age. It extends in the east across Great Britain, Ireland and Norway, and in the west along the northeastern seaboard of North America. It also exte ...
, covering a site of 8 or 9 acres (32,000 to 36,000 m
2). A tidal
moat
A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...
, up to wide in places, flowed about along the line of the modern thoroughfares of Fore Street and Castle Moat, and between Northgate and Chandos Street. The main entrance opposite the Cornhill was built with a pair of adjacent gates and
drawbridge
A drawbridge or draw-bridge is a type of moveable bridge typically at the entrance to a castle or tower surrounded by a moat. In some forms of English, including American English, the word ''drawbridge'' commonly refers to all types of moveable ...
s. In addition to a
keep
A keep (from the Middle English ''kype'') is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in c ...
, located at the south-east corner of what is now King Square, documents show that the complex included a
dungeon
A dungeon is a room or cell in which prisoners are held, especially underground. Dungeons are generally associated with medieval castles, though their association with torture probably belongs more to the Renaissance period. An oubliette (from ...
, chapel, stables and a
bell tower
A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tower ...
. Built on the only raised ground in the town, the castle controlled the crossing of the town bridge. A thick portion of the castle wall and water gate can still be seen on West Quay, and the remains of a wall of a building that was probably built within the castle can be viewed in Queen Street. The foundations of the tower forming the north-east corner of the castle are buried beneath Homecastle House. William Briwere also founded St John's
hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...
which, by the time of the
Dissolution of the Monasteries under
Henry VIII
Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...
, was worth the substantial sum of almost 121
pounds, as well as starting the construction of the town's first stone bridge. William Briwere also went on to found the
Franciscan
The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...
Bridgwater Friary
Bridgwater Friary was a Franciscan monastery in Bridgwater, Somerset, England, established in 1245 and dissolved in 1538.
It was founded by William Briwere and moved from another location. Further buildings were added in 1278 and 1284. The churc ...
in the town.
During the 13th century
Second Barons' War
The Second Barons' War (1264–1267) was a civil war in England between the forces of a number of barons led by Simon de Montfort against the royalist forces of King Henry III, led initially by the king himself and later by his son, the fut ...
against
Henry III, Bridgwater was held by the
baron
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...
s against the King. Other charters were granted by Henry III in 1227 (confirmed in 1318, 1370, 1380), which gave Bridgwater a guild merchant which was important for the regulation of trade, allowing guild members to trade freely in the town, and to impose payments and restrictions upon others.
Bridgwater's peasants under Nicholas Frampton took part in the
Peasants' Revolt
The Peasants' Revolt, also named Wat Tyler's Rebellion or the Great Rising, was a major uprising across large parts of England in 1381. The revolt had various causes, including the socio-economic and political tensions generated by the Black ...
of 1381, sacking
Sydenham House, murdering the local tax collectors and destroying the records.
![blake statue bridgwater](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/Blake_statue_bridgwater.jpg)
Bridgwater was incorporated by charter of
Edward IV
Edward IV (28 April 1442 – 9 April 1483) was King of England from 4 March 1461 to 3 October 1470, then again from 11 April 1471 until his death in 1483. He was a central figure in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars in England ...
(1468),
confirmed in 1554, 1586, 1629 and 1684. Parliamentary representation as a
borough constituency
In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons.
Within the United Kingdom there are five bodies with members elected by ...
began in 1295 and continued until 1870, when the original borough constituency was disenfranchised for corruption;
from 4 July 1870 the town was incorporated within the
county constituency
In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons.
Within the United Kingdom there are five bodies with members elected by electoral districts called "constituenc ...
of
West Somerset
West Somerset was a local government district in the English county of Somerset. The council covered a largely rural area, with a population of 34,900 in an area of ; it was the least populous non- unitary district in England. According to f ...
. When Parliamentary seats were redistributed for the
1885 general election, a new county division of
Bridgwater
Bridgwater is a large historic market town and civil parish in Somerset, England. Its population currently stands at around 41,276 as of 2022. Bridgwater is at the edge of the Somerset Levels, in level and well-wooded country. The town lies alon ...
was created. A variety of markets were granted to the town during the Middle Ages including a Midsummer fair (on 24 June), one at the beginning of Lent was added in 1468, and one at
Michaelmas
Michaelmas ( ; also known as the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, the Feast of the Archangels, or the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels) is a Christian festival observed in some Western liturgical calendars on 29 September, a ...
. The importance of these markets and fairs for the sale of wool and wine, and later of cloth, declined after medieval times. The shipping trade of the port revived after the construction of the new dock in 1841, and corn and timber have been imported for centuries.
Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby who sought ...
ter
Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes (; 13 April 1570 – 31 January 1606), also known as Guido Fawkes while fighting for the Spanish, was a member of a group of provincial English Catholics involved in the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605. He was born and educated ...
is remembered during the carnival season, including a grand illuminated procession through Bridgwater town centre, which culminates in the
Squibbing. Bridgwater, being staunchly Protestant at the time of the plot celebrated the thwarting of the conspiracy with particular enthusiasm.
In the
English Civil War
The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...
the town and the castle were held by the Royalists under
Colonel Edmund Wyndham, a personal acquaintance of the
King
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
. British history might have been very different had his wife, Lady (Crystabella) Wyndham, been a little more accurate with a musket shot that missed
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...
but killed his aide de camp. Eventually, with many buildings destroyed in the town, the castle and its valuable contents were surrendered to the Parliamentarians on 21 July 1645. The castle itself was deliberately destroyed (
slighted
Slighting is the deliberate damage of high-status buildings to reduce their value as military, administrative or social structures. This destruction of property sometimes extended to the contents of buildings and the surrounding landscape. It is ...
) the following year, while in 1651 Colonel Wyndham made arrangements for
Charles II to
flee to France following the
Battle of Worcester
The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 in and around the city of Worcester, England and was the last major battle of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A Parliamentarian army of around 28,000 under Oliver Cromwell def ...
.
Following the
restoration of the monarchy, in 1663 the
non-conformist Reverend John Norman,
vicar
A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...
from 1647 to 1660, was one of several 'religious
fanatics' confined to their homes by
Lord Stawell's
militia
A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...
. A large religious meeting house, thought to have been
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
, was demolished and its furniture burned on the Cornhill in 1683.
By 1688, matters had calmed down enough for a new chapel, Christ Church, to be founded in Dampiet Street, the congregation of which became
Unitarian in 1815.
In the 1685
Monmouth Rebellion
The Monmouth Rebellion, also known as the Pitchfork Rebellion, the Revolt of the West or the West Country rebellion, was an attempt to depose James II, who in February 1685 succeeded his brother Charles II as king of England, Scotland and Ir ...
, the rebel
Duke of Monmouth
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranked ...
was proclaimed King on the Cornhill in Bridgwater and in other local towns. He eventually led his troops on a night-time attack on the King's position near
Westonzoyland
Westonzoyland is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is situated on the Somerset Levels, south east of Bridgwater.
History
The name of the parish derives from its location on the "island" of Sowy, an area of slightly higher groun ...
. Surprise was lost when a musket was accidentally discharged, and the
Battle of Sedgemoor
The Battle of Sedgemoor was the last and decisive engagement between the Kingdom of England and rebels led by the Duke of Monmouth during the Monmouth rebellion, fought on 6 July 1685, and took place at Westonzoyland near Bridgwater in Somerse ...
resulted in defeat for the Duke. He was later beheaded at the
Tower of London
The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is separa ...
, and nine locals were executed for treason.
The
Chandos Glass Cone was built in 1725 as a glasswork firing kiln by
James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos
James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos, (6 January 16739 August 1744) was an English landowner and politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons from 1698 until 1714, when he succeeded to the peerage as Baron Chandos, and vacated ...
as part of an industrial development. After a short period of use for
glassmaking
Glass production involves two main methods – the float glass process that produces sheet glass, and glassblowing that produces bottles and other containers. It has been done in a variety of ways during the history of glass.
Glass container ...
it was converted for the production of pottery, bricks and tiles, which continued until 1939. The majority of the brickwork cone was demolished in 1943. The bottom has been preserved and scheduled as an
ancient monument
In British law, an ancient monument is an early historical structure or monument (e.g. an archaeological site) worthy of preservation and study due to archaeological or heritage interest. The '' Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 197 ...
.
Bridgwater became the first town in Britain to petition the government to ban
slavery
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
, in 1785.
The population of Bridgwater in 1841 was 9,899.
In 1896, the
trade unionists
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...
of Bridgwater's brick and tile industry were involved a number of strikes. The
Salisbury
Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath.
Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...
government sent troops to the town to clear the barricades by force after the reading of the
Riot Act
The Riot Act (1 Geo.1 St.2 c.5), sometimes called the Riot Act 1714 or the Riot Act 1715, was an act of the Parliament of Great Britain which authorised local authorities to declare any group of 12 or more people to be unlawfully assembled and o ...
.
![Bridgewater map 1946](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Bridgewater_map_1946.jpg)
A
by-election
A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...
in 1938 enabled the town to send a message to the government and
Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and then ...
, when an Independent anti-
appeasement
Appeasement in an international context is a diplomatic policy of making political, material, or territorial concessions to an aggressive power in order to avoid conflict. The term is most often applied to the foreign policy of the UK governm ...
candidate, journalist
Vernon Bartlett
Charles Vernon Oldfield Bartlett, CBE (30 April 1894 – 18 January 1983) was an English journalist, politician and author. He served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1938 to 1950: first as an Independent Progressive advocating a Popular Fron ...
was elected MP.
In
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
the
Bridgwater and Taunton Canal
The Bridgwater and Taunton Canal is a canal in the south-west of England between Bridgwater and Taunton, opened in 1827 and linking the River Tone to the River Parrett. There were a number of abortive schemes to link the Bristol Channel ...
formed part of the
Taunton Stop Line
The Taunton Stop Line was a World War II defensive line in southwest England. It was designed "to stop an enemy's advance from the west and in particular a rapid advance supported by armoured fighting vehicles (up to the size of a German medium ...
, designed to prevent the advance of a
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
invasion. Pillboxes can still be seen along its length. The first bombs fell on Bridgwater on 24 August 1940, destroying houses on Old Taunton Road, and three men, three women and one child were killed. Later a
prisoner of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...
camp was established at Colley Lane, holding
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
prisoners. During the preparations for the
invasion of Europe
Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norm ...
, American troops were based in the town.
The first
council estate
Public housing in the United Kingdom, also known as council estates, council housing, or social housing, provided the majority of rented accommodation until 2011 when the number of households in private rental housing surpassed the number in so ...
to be built was in the 1930s at Kendale Road, followed by those at Bristol Road. The 1950s saw the start of a significant increase in post-war housebuilding, with council house estates being started at Sydenham and Rhode Lane and the former cooperative estate near
Durleigh
Durleigh is a village and civil parish on the outskirts of Bridgwater in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, England. According to the 2011 Census, it had a population of 548. Its nearest town is Bridgwater, which lies approximately north-east fr ...
.
On 4 November 2011 West Quay alongside the
River Parrett
The River Parrett flows through the counties of Dorset and Somerset in South West England, from its source in the Thorney Mills springs in the hills around Chedington in Dorset. Flowing northwest through Somerset and the Somerset Levels to it ...
and 19 adjoining properties were evacuated after a stretch of the retaining wall partially collapsed after heavy rain and flooding. The old hospital in Salmon Parade, which was built in 1813, closed in 2014 and has been replaced with a community hospital in Bower Lane. This provides a maternity unit and 30 inpatient beds. The old hospital site has been sold for development at a price of £1.6 million, and may be turned into a hotel.
Port of Bridgwater
![West Quay, Bridgwater from the old town bridge - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/West_Quay%2C_Bridgwater_from_the_old_town_bridge_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1459534.jpg)
In the medieval period the River Parrett was used to transport
Hamstone
Hamstone is the name given to a honey-coloured building stone from Ham Hill, Somerset, England. It is a well-cemented medium to coarse grained limestone characterised by marked bedding planes of clay inclusions and less well-cemented material w ...
from the quarry at
Ham Hill. Bridgwater was part of the
Port of Bristol
The Port of Bristol comprises the commercial docks situated in and near the city of Bristol in England. They are now operated by the Bristol Port Company, which owns both Avonmouth and Royal Portbury Docks. Until 1991 the Port of Bristol Authori ...
until the Port of Bridgwater was created in 1348,
covering of the Somerset coast line, from the
Devon
Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...
border to the mouth of the
River Axe.
[Lawrence, J.F. (revised and completed by Lawrence, J.C.) (2005). ''A History of Bridgwater''. Chichester: Phillimore. . Chapter 8: "The Medieval Port of Bridgwater".] Under an 1845
Act of Parliament
Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...
the Port of Bridgwater extends from
Brean Down
Brean Down is a promontory off the coast of Somerset, England, standing high and extending into the Bristol Channel at the eastern end of Bridgwater Bay between Weston-super-Mare and Burnham-on-Sea.
Made of Carboniferous Limestone, it is a c ...
to
Hinkley Point
Hinkley Point is a headland on the Bristol Channel coast of Somerset, England, north of Bridgwater and west of Burnham-on-Sea, close to the mouth of the River Parrett.
Excavations in 2014 and 2015, carried out by Cotswold Archaeology and f ...
in
Bridgwater Bay
Bridgwater Bay is on the Bristol Channel, north of Bridgwater in Somerset, England at the mouth of the River Parrett and the end of the River Parrett Trail. It stretches from Minehead at the southwestern end of the bay to Brean Down in the nor ...
, and includes parts of the River Parrett (to Bridgwater),
River Brue
The River Brue originates in the parish of Brewham in Somerset, England, and reaches the sea some west at Burnham-on-Sea. It originally took a different route from Glastonbury to the sea, but this was changed by Glastonbury Abbey in the twelft ...
and the
River Axe.
Historically, the main port on the river was at Bridgwater; the river was bridged at this point: the first bridge was built in 1200.
Quay
A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths (mooring location ...
s were built in 1424; another quay, the ''Langport slip'', was built in 1488 upstream of the Town Bridge.
A
Customs House
A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting c ...
was sited at Bridgwater, on West Quay; and a
dry dock
A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...
, launching slips and a boat yard on East Quay. The river was navigable, with care, to Bridgwater Town Bridge by vessels. By trans-shipping into barges at the Town Bridge the Parrett was navigable as far as
Langport
Langport is a small town and civil parish in Somerset, England, west of Somerton in the South Somerset district. The parish, which covers only part of the town, has a population of 1,081. Langport is contiguous with Huish Episcopi, a separate ...
and (via the
River Yeo) to
Ilchester
Ilchester is a village and civil parish, situated on the River Yeo or Ivel, five miles north of Yeovil, in the English county of Somerset. Originally a Roman town, and later a market town, Ilchester has a rich medieval history and was a notable ...
. After 1827, it was also possible to transfer goods to
Taunton
Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...
via the
Bridgwater and Taunton Canal
The Bridgwater and Taunton Canal is a canal in the south-west of England between Bridgwater and Taunton, opened in 1827 and linking the River Tone to the River Parrett. There were a number of abortive schemes to link the Bristol Channel ...
at Huntworth. A floating harbour was constructed between 1837–1841 and the canal was extended to the harbour.
[Lawrence, J.F. (revised and completed by Lawrence, J.C.) (2005). ''A History of Bridgwater''. Chichester: Phillimore. . Chapter 21: "Victorian Times".] The harbour area contained
flour mill
A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separat ...
s, timber yards and
chandlers
A ship chandler is a retail dealer who specializes in providing supplies or equipment for ships.
Synopsis
For traditional sailing ships, items that could be found in a chandlery
include sail-cloth, rosin, turpentine, tar, pitch, linseed oil, ...
.
Shipping to Bridgwater expanded with the construction of
Bridgwater Docks
The Port of Bridgwater is a port, originally located in the town of Bridgwater, Somerset, England. Created under an 1845 Act of Parliament, it extends from Brean Down to Hinkley Point in Bridgwater Bay, and parts of the rivers Parrett (to Bridg ...
, and reached a peak between 1880 and 1885; with an average of 3,600 ships per year entering the port.
Bridgwater also built some 167 ships; the last one was the ''Irene'', launched in 1907. Peak
tonnage
Tonnage is a measure of the cargo-carrying capacity of a ship, and is commonly used to assess fees on commercial shipping. The term derives from the taxation paid on ''tuns'' or casks of wine. In modern maritime usage, "tonnage" specifically ref ...
occurred in 1857, with 142 vessels totalling .
Dunball
Dunball is a small hamlet west of the village of Puriton and close to the town of Bridgwater, Somerset, England.
Just north of Dunball is Down End which is the site of Down End Castle a motte-and-bailey castle, which has been designated as a Sch ...
wharf was built in 1844 by Bridgwater coal merchants, and was formerly linked to the
Bristol & Exeter Railway
The Bristol & Exeter Railway (B&ER) was an English railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter. It was built on the broad gauge and its engineer was Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It opened in stages between 1841 and 1844. It was allied with t ...
by a rail track which crossed the
A38. In 1875, the local landowner built The Dunball Steam Pottery & Brick & Tile Works adjacent to the wharf.
Although ships no longer dock in the town of Bridgwater, of cargo were handled within the port authority's area in 2006, most of which was stone products via the wharf at Dunball.
It is no longer linked to the railway system. The link was removed as part of the railway closures made as a result of the
Beeching Report Beeching is an English surname. Either a derivative of the old English ''bece'', ''bæce'' "stream", hence "dweller by the stream" or of the old English ''bece'' "beech-tree" hence "dweller by the beech tree".''Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames' ...
in the 1960s.
Dunball railway station
There are 22 disused railway stations in the between and , 12 of which have structures that can still be seen from passing trains. Most were closed in the 1960s but four of them, especially around , were replaced by stations on new sites. 13 s ...
, which had opened in 1873, was closed to both passengers and goods in 1964. All traces of the station, other than "Station Road" have been removed. The wharf is now used for landing stone products, mainly marine sand and gravels dredged in the
Bristol Channel
The Bristol Channel ( cy, Môr Hafren, literal translation: "Severn Sea") is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England. It extends from the lower estuary of the River Seve ...
. Marine sand and gravel accounted for of the total tonnage of using the Port facilities in 2006, with salt products accounting for in the same year.
Sedgemoor District Council
Sedgemoor District Council was a local government district in Somerset, England covering the Sedgemoor district. It was Local Government Act 1972, established in 1974 by the merger of Bridgwater and Burnham-On-Sea Urban District Councils. It was r ...
acts as the Competent Harbour Authority for the port, and has provided
pilotage services for all boats over using the river since 1998, when it took over the service from
Trinity House
"Three In One"
, formation =
, founding_location = Deptford, London, England
, status = Royal Charter corporation and registered charity
, purpose = Maintenance of lighthouses, buoys and beacons
, he ...
. Pilotage is important because of the constant changes in the navigable channel resulting from the large tidal range, which can exceed on spring tides.
Its historic estates include the
manor of Sydenham
Sydenham House, the manor house of the ancient manor of Sydenham in the parish of Wembdon, Somerset, England, is a grade II listed building, constructed in the early 16th century and refronted and rebuilt after 1613. In 1937, British Cellopha ...
.
Governance
![Warmemorialbridgwater (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/Warmemorialbridgwater_%28cropped%29.jpg)
The
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant Acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...
removed the historic status of Bridgwater as a
Borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
In the Middle Ag ...
, as it became part of the district of
Sedgemoor
Sedgemoor is a low-lying area of land in Somerset, England. It lies close to sea level south of the Polden Hills, historically largely marsh (or "moor" in its older sense). The eastern part is known as King's Sedgemoor, and the western part Wes ...
, which has its headquarters in
King Square.
Bridgwater Town Council, which is based at
Bridgwater Town Hall, was created in 2003, with sixteen elected members representing six wards of the town; Bower (three), Eastover (two), Hamp (three), Quantock (three), Sydenham (three) and Victoria (two). With powers or functions over allotments, bus shelters, making of byelaws, cemeteries, clocks, crime prevention, entertainment and arts, highways, litter, public buildings, public conveniences, recreation, street lighting, tourism, traffic calming, community transport and war memorials.
Bridgwater and West Somerset is a
county constituency
In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons.
Within the United Kingdom there are five bodies with members elected by electoral districts called "constituenc ...
represented in the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
of the
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...
. It elects one
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
(MP) by the
first past the post
In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...
system of election. The current MP is
Ian Liddell-Grainger
Ian or Iain is a name of Scottish Gaelic origin, derived from the Hebrew given name (Yohanan, ') and corresponding to the English name John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename ''Iain''. It is a popular name in Sc ...
, a member of the
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
.
In 2018 Diogo Rodrigues became the first Portuguese national to be elected as a Mayor in England, also becoming Bridgwater's youngest ever mayor.
Members of Parliament
The
Bridgwater constituency has been represented in Parliament since 1295. After the voting age was lowered in January 1970, Susan Wallace became the first 18-year-old to vote in the UK, during the 1970 Bridgwater by-election that elected
Tom King, who took the title Baron King of Bridgwater in 2001.
At the 2010 General Election, Bridgwater became part of the new
Bridgwater and West Somerset constituency.
Bridgwater was in the
South West England
South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities and ...
constituency for elections to the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
, prior to
Brexit
Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...
in 2020.
Twinning
Bridgwater is twinned with the following towns and cities:
*
Uherské Hradiště
Uherské Hradiště (; german: Ungarisch Hradisch, hu, Magyarhradis) is a town in the Zlín Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 24,000 inhabitants. The agglomeration with the two neighbouring towns of Staré Město and Kunovice has over ...
, in the Czech Republic, since 1992
*
La Ciotat
La Ciotat (; oc, label= Provençal Occitan, La Ciutat ; in Mistralian spelling ''La Ciéutat''; 'the City') is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southern France. It is the southeasternmo ...
in France, since 1957
*
Homberg, Efze in Germany, since 1992
*
Marsa in Malta, since 2006
*
Priverno Priverno is a town, ''comune'' in the province of Latina, Lazio, central Italy. It was called ''Piperno'' until 1927.
It has a station of the Rome-Naples railway mainline. Nearby is the Monti Lepini chain. It was the birthplace of the canonist Regi ...
in Italy, since 2015
*
Camacha,
Madeira Autonomous Region, Portugal, since 2019
Geology
Bridgwater is centred on an outcrop of
marl
Marl is an earthy material rich in carbonate minerals, clays, and silt. When hardened into rock, this becomes marlstone. It is formed in marine or freshwater environments, often through the activities of algae.
Marl makes up the lower part o ...
in an area dominated by low-lying alluvial deposits. There are local deposits of gravels and sand.
It is situated in a level and well-wooded area, on the edge of the
Somerset Levels
The Somerset Levels are a coastal plain and wetland area of Somerset, England, running south from the Mendip Hills, Mendips to the Blackdown Hills.
The Somerset Levels have an area of about and are bisected by the Polden Hills; the areas to ...
. To the north are the
Mendip range and on the west the
Quantock hills
The Quantock Hills west of Bridgwater in Somerset, England, consist of heathland, oak woodlands, ancient parklands and agricultural land. They were England's first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, designated in 1956.
Natural England have desi ...
. The town lies along both sides of the
River Parrett
The River Parrett flows through the counties of Dorset and Somerset in South West England, from its source in the Thorney Mills springs in the hills around Chedington in Dorset. Flowing northwest through Somerset and the Somerset Levels to it ...
, from its mouth, which then flows to discharge into the
Bridgwater Bay
Bridgwater Bay is on the Bristol Channel, north of Bridgwater in Somerset, England at the mouth of the River Parrett and the end of the River Parrett Trail. It stretches from Minehead at the southwestern end of the bay to Brean Down in the nor ...
National Nature Reserve. It consists of large areas of
mud flat
Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal fl ...
s, saltmarsh, sandflats and shingle ridges, some of which are vegetated. It has been designated as a
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...
since 1989,
and is designated as a wetland of international importance under the
Ramsar Convention
The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands. It i ...
.
The risks to wildlife are highlighted in the local Oil Spill Contingency Plan.
Climate
![Bridgwater-Fore-Street-in-Snow-(1200x800)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Bridgwater-Fore-Street-in-Snow-%281200x800%29.jpg)
Along with the rest of
South West England
South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities and ...
, Bridgwater has a temperate climate which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of the country.
The annual mean temperature is approximately .
Seasonal temperature variation
Seasonal lag is the phenomenon whereby the date of maximum average air temperature at a geographical location on a planet is delayed until some time after the date of maximum insolation (i.e. the summer solstice). This also applies to the minimu ...
is less extreme than most of the United Kingdom because of the adjacent sea temperatures. The summer months of July and August are the warmest with mean daily maxima of approximately . In winter mean minimum temperatures of are common.
In the summer the
Azores
)
, motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace")
, anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores")
, image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg
, map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union
, map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...
high pressure affects the south-west of England, however
convective
Convection is single or multiphase fluid flow that occurs spontaneously due to the combined effects of material property heterogeneity and body forces on a fluid, most commonly density and gravity (see buoyancy). When the cause of the convect ...
cloud sometimes forms inland, reducing the number of hours of sunshine. Annual sunshine rates are slightly less than the regional average of 1,600 hours.
Most of the rainfall in the south-west is caused by
Atlantic depressions or by
convection
Convection is single or multiphase fluid flow that occurs spontaneously due to the combined effects of material property heterogeneity and body forces on a fluid, most commonly density and gravity (see buoyancy). When the cause of the convec ...
. Most of the rainfall in autumn and winter is caused by the Atlantic depressions, which is when they are most active. In summer, a large proportion of the rainfall is caused by sun heating the ground leading to convection and to showers and thunderstorms. Average rainfall is around . About 8–15 days of snowfall is typical. November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, and June to August have the lightest winds. The predominant wind direction is from the south-west.
Demography
Bridgwater had a population of 35,800 according to the 2001 census
(up from 22,718 in 1951, 3,634 in 1801, and 7,807 in 1831).
Economy
![BridgwaterWestQuayAndRiverParrett(PatrickMackie)Apr2006](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0a/BridgwaterWestQuayAndRiverParrett%28PatrickMackie%29Apr2006.jpg)
As early as 1300, the port exported wheat, peas and beans to Ireland, France and Spain, and by 1400 was also exporting cloth from Somerset and the adjoining counties. By 1500 it was the largest port in Somerset, later becoming the fifth largest in England, until eclipsed by
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
in the 18th century.
In its heyday, imports included wine, grain, fish, hemp, coal and timber. Exports included wheat, wool, cloth, cement, bricks and tiles. Unlike Bristol, Bridgwater was never involved in the
slave trade
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
and, in 1785, was the first town in Britain to petition the government to ban it.
The Bridgwater ship the ''Emanuel'' was one of three that took part in
Martin Frobisher
Sir Martin Frobisher (; c. 1535 – 22 November 1594) was an English seaman and privateer who made three voyages to the New World looking for the North-west Passage. He probably sighted Resolution Island near Labrador in north-eastern Canada ...
's 1577 search for the
Northwest Passage
The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the Arct ...
. In 1828, 40 ships were registered in the port, averaging 60 tons each.
Industry
Bridgwater was the leading industrial town in Somerset and remains a major centre for manufacturing. A major manufacturing centre for clay tiles and bricks in the 19th century, including the famous "
Bath brick", were exported through the port.
In the 1890s there were a total of 16 brick and tile companies, and 24 million bricks per annum were exported during that decade alone. These industries are celebrated in the
Somerset Brick and Tile Museum on East Quay.
These industries collapsed in the aftermath of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
due to the failure to introduce
mechanisation
Mechanization is the process of changing from working largely or exclusively by hand or with animals to doing that work with machinery. In an early engineering text a machine is defined as follows:
In some fields, mechanization includes the ...
, although the automated Chilton Tile Factory, which produced up to 5 million tiles each year, lasted until 1968. The importance of the Bath Brick declined with the advent of
detergent
A detergent is a surfactant or a mixture of surfactants with cleansing properties when in dilute solutions. There are a large variety of detergents, a common family being the alkylbenzene sulfonates, which are soap-like compounds that are more ...
s and other cleaning products. Dunware ponds used to make bricks and can still be found along the paths.
During the 19th century,
Castle House
A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but u ...
(originally named Portland Castle after
Portland cement
Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world as a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco, and non-specialty grout. It was developed from other types of hydraulic lime in England in the early 19th c ...
), reputedly the first domestic house in the UK to be built from
concrete
Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wi ...
,
was constructed in 1851 by John Board, a local brick and tile manufacturer. The building is now Grade II*
listed
Listed may refer to:
* Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm
* Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic
* Endangered species in biology
* Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...
, and in 2004 was featured in the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
programme ''
Restoration
Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to:
* Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage
** Audio restoration
** Film restoration
** Image restoration
** Textile restoration
* Restoration ecology
...
''.
In the 19th century, Bridgwater was also home to a number of
iron
Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...
foundries
A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal into a mold, and removing the mold material after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals pr ...
.
George Hennet
George Hennet (1799–1857) was an English railway engineer and contractor. He undertook many contracts for Isambard Kingdom Brunel's broad gauge railways in the South West of England and funded the provision of extra facilities on the South D ...
's Bridgwater Iron Works worked on bridges, railways and machinery for Brunel and
Robert Stephenson
Robert Stephenson Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS HFRSE FRSA Doctor of Civil Law, DCL (16 October 1803 – 12 October 1859) was an English civil engineer and designer of locomotives. The only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railway ...
. This location allowed the import by boat of raw materials from
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
and the dispatch of finished work to south Devon using the
Bristol & Exeter Railway
The Bristol & Exeter Railway (B&ER) was an English railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter. It was built on the broad gauge and its engineer was Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It opened in stages between 1841 and 1844. It was allied with t ...
. The carriage workshops for the latter were on an adjacent site. The works passed to his son and then traded as Hennet, Spink & Else. Some of the ironwork was produced for the
Royal Albert Bridge
The Royal Albert Bridge is a railway bridge which spans the River Tamar in England between Plymouth, Devon and Saltash, Cornwall. Its unique design consists of two lenticular iron trusses above the water, with conventional plate-girder app ...
at
Saltash
Saltash (Cornish: Essa) is a town and civil parish in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It had a population of 16,184 in 2011 census. Saltash faces the city of Plymouth over the River Tamar and is popularly known as "the Gateway to Corn ...
,
Cornwall
Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
. In 1873 it became the Bridgwater Engineering Company Limited but this failed in 1878. W&F Wills Ltd produced
steam locomotives
A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...
and
fingerposts.
At the start of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the government built a factory to manufacture high explosives at
Puriton
Puriton is a village and parish at the westerly end of the Polden Hills, in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, England. The parish has a population of 1,968. The local parish church is dedicated to St Michael and All Angels. A chapel on Woola ...
near Bridgwater.
[Cocroft, Wayne D. (2000). ''Dangerous Energy: The archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture''. Swindon: English Heritage. ] Called
ROF Bridgwater
Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF) Bridgwater was a factory between the villages of Puriton and Woolavington in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, UK that produced high explosives for munitions. It was slightly above sea level, between the 5 an ...
, the plant is today owned by
BAE Systems
BAE Systems plc (BAE) is a British multinational arms, security, and aerospace company based in London, England. It is the largest defence contractor in Europe, and ranked the seventh-largest in the world based on applicable 2021 revenues. ...
and closed after decommissioning was completed in July 2008.
British Cellophane Ltd, a joint venture between La Cellophane SA and
Courtaulds
Courtaulds was a United Kingdom-based manufacturer of fabric, clothing, artificial fibres, and chemicals. It was established in 1794 and became the world's leading man-made fibre production company before being broken up in 1990 into Courtaulds ...
opened a major factory producing
cellophane
Cellophane is a thin, transparent sheet made of regenerated cellulose. Its low permeability to air, oils, greases, bacteria, and liquid water makes it useful for food packaging. Cellophane is highly permeable to water vapour, but may be coated w ...
in Bridgwater 1937. The factory produced
Bailey bridge
A Bailey bridge is a type of portable, pre-fabricated, truss bridge. It was developed in 1940–1941 by the British for military use during the Second World War and saw extensive use by British, Canadian and American military engineering units. A ...
s during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
for the invasion of Europe. Bought by
UCB Films in 1996, the town suffered a blow in 2005 when
Innovia Films closed the
cellophane
Cellophane is a thin, transparent sheet made of regenerated cellulose. Its low permeability to air, oils, greases, bacteria, and liquid water makes it useful for food packaging. Cellophane is highly permeable to water vapour, but may be coated w ...
factory. At one time the factory employed around 3,000 people, although at the time of closure this had been reduced to just 250. However recovery has begun with the establishment of new businesses on the ''Express Park'' business park including the relocation of
Gerber Juice and new enterprises
Toolstation
Travis Perkins plc is a British builders' merchant and home improvement retailer with head offices based in Northampton. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.
History
The company began in 1797, ...
and
Interpet as well as the
Exel
Exel was a supply chain and logistics company operating in North America and Europe, which became a subsidiary of the German firm Deutsche Post in 2005. It reported annual revenues of about $4.2 billion in February 2012.
History
The company ...
centre for the
NHS
The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...
Logistics Authority.
Bridgwater is now a major centre of industry in Somerset, with industries including the production of plastics, engine parts, industrial chemicals, and foods. Bowerings Animal Feed Mill is now the only industry still located at the docks. Being close to the
M5 motorway
The M5 is a motorway in England linking the Midlands with the South West England, South West. It runs from junction 8 of the M6 motorway, M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Brom ...
and halfway between
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
and
Exeter
Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol.
In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
, Bridgwater is also home to two major distribution centres, while retailer
Argos
Argos most often refers to:
* Argos, Peloponnese, a city in Argolis, Greece
** Ancient Argos, the ancient city
* Argos (retailer), a catalogue retailer operating in the United Kingdom and Ireland
Argos or ARGOS may also refer to:
Businesses
...
has a regional distribution centre based at
Huntworth
Huntworth is a small hamlet and farming community (population approximately 50), within the civil parish of North Petherton east of the M5 motorway from Bridgwater, Somerset, England.
Huntworth was in the news on 5/12/19 as it was the epicent ...
. A new £100 m Regional Agricultural Business Centre opened in 2007, following construction which began in 2006.
As of 2021, a commercial development campus named Gravity, targeting the
low-carbon economy
A low-carbon economy (LCE) or decarbonised economy is an economy based on energy sources that produce low levels of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. GHG emissions due to human activity are the dominant cause of observed climate change since the mi ...
, is planned for the former
ROF Bridgwater
Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF) Bridgwater was a factory between the villages of Puriton and Woolavington in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, UK that produced high explosives for munitions. It was slightly above sea level, between the 5 an ...
site north of Bridgwater.
Landmarks
![CastleHouseBridgwater](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/CastleHouseBridgwater.JPG)
Bridgwater is home to the
Somerset Brick and Tile Museum, built on part of the former Barham Brothers site (brick and tile manufacturers between 1857 and 1965).
Castle House
A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but u ...
was built in 1851 and was one of the first to make extensive use of
concrete
Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wi ...
demonstrating "an innovative interpretation of traditional masonry features in concrete".
The
Bridgwater Town Mill, originating in the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
is located at the end of Blake Street, and there are plans to develop it as an extension to the
Blake Museum
The Blake Museum is in Bridgwater, Somerset, England at what is believed to be the birthplace of Robert Blake, General at Sea (1598–1657). Since April 2009 it has been run by Bridgwater Town Council with help from the Friends of Blake Museum ...
A house in Blake Street, largely restored, is believed to be the birthplace of
Robert Blake Robert Blake may refer to:
Sportspeople
* Bob Blake (American football) (1885–1962), American football player
* Robbie Blake (born 1976), English footballer
* Bob Blake (ice hockey) (1914–2008), American ice hockey player
* Rob Blake (born 19 ...
in 1598, and is now the
Blake Museum
The Blake Museum is in Bridgwater, Somerset, England at what is believed to be the birthplace of Robert Blake, General at Sea (1598–1657). Since April 2009 it has been run by Bridgwater Town Council with help from the Friends of Blake Museum ...
. It was built in the late 15th or early 16th century, and has been designated by
English Heritage
English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses.
The charity states that i ...
as a grade II*
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
. His
statue
A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to life-size; a sculpture t ...
from 1898 by
F. W. Pomeroy
Frederick William Pomeroy (9 October 1856 – 26 May 1924) was a prolific British sculptor of architectural and monumental works. He became a leading sculptor in the New Sculpture movement, a group distinguished by a stylistic turn towards Natu ...
has been repositioned from the front of the
Corn Exchange
A corn exchange is a building where merchants trade grains. The word "corn" in British English denotes all cereal grains, such as wheat and barley; in the United States these buildings were called grain exchange. Such trade was common in towns ...
to face down Cornhill. The public library by
E Godfrey Page dates from 1905.
Sydenham House was previously a manor estate built in the early 16th century, which was refronted and rebuilt after 1613. Its owners were on the losing side in the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
and again in the
Monmouth Rebellion
The Monmouth Rebellion, also known as the Pitchfork Rebellion, the Revolt of the West or the West Country rebellion, was an attempt to depose James II, who in February 1685 succeeded his brother Charles II as king of England, Scotland and Ir ...
. It now stands in the grounds of the former
British Cellophane
British Cellophane Ltd (BCL) was a joint venture company formed in 1935 between La Cellophane SA and Courtaulds, when they began building a major factory for producing Cellophane in Bridgwater, Somerset, England.
History
19th century
The proces ...
plant. In 2012
EDF EDF may refer to:
Organisations
* Eclaireurs de France, a French Scouting association
* Education for Development Foundation, a Thai charity
* Électricité de France, a French energy company
** EDF Energy, their British subsidiary
** EDF Luminus, ...
purchased the site, including the Grade II
listed
Listed may refer to:
* Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm
* Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic
* Endangered species in biology
* Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...
16th century building. In 2015 the industrial site was razed to the ground. It is intended for construction of temporary accommodation for 1,000 workers involved in the construction of
Hinkley Point C nuclear power station
Hinkley Point C nuclear power station (HPC) is a two-unit, 3,200MWe EPR nuclear power station under construction in Somerset, England.
The site was one of eight announced by the British government in 2010, and in November 2012 a nuclear site ...
.
Transport
![Bridgwater railway station MMB 09](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d5/Bridgwater_railway_station_MMB_09.jpg)
As trade expanded during the
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
, Bridgwater was linked to
Taunton
Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...
by the
Bridgwater and Taunton Canal
The Bridgwater and Taunton Canal is a canal in the south-west of England between Bridgwater and Taunton, opened in 1827 and linking the River Tone to the River Parrett. There were a number of abortive schemes to link the Bristol Channel ...
(1827), although initially it ran from a
basin south of Bridgwater at
Huntworth
Huntworth is a small hamlet and farming community (population approximately 50), within the civil parish of North Petherton east of the M5 motorway from Bridgwater, Somerset, England.
Huntworth was in the news on 5/12/19 as it was the epicent ...
. As trade grew
docks were built in the town, linked to an extension of the canal, with both opening in 1841. The docks were dredged by a scraper-dredger
Bertha
Bertha is a female Germanic name, from Old High German ''berhta'' meaning "bright one". It was usually a short form of Anglo Saxon names ''Beorhtgifu'' meaning "bright gift" or ''Beorhtwynn'' meaning "bright joy".
The name occurs as a theonym, s ...
similar to the one
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel (; 9 April 1806 – 15 September 1859) was a British civil engineer who is considered "one of the most ingenious and prolific figures in engineering history," "one of the 19th-century engineering giants," and "one ...
had designed for the Bristol Floating Harbour. 14 June 1841 saw the opening of the
Bristol & Exeter Railway
The Bristol & Exeter Railway (B&ER) was an English railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter. It was built on the broad gauge and its engineer was Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It opened in stages between 1841 and 1844. It was allied with t ...
from Bristol to Bridgwater. The railway also opened a coach and wagon works in the town; the last of the buildings was in 2005 scheduled for demolition.
Bridgwater railway station
Bridgwater railway station serves Bridgwater in Somerset, England. It is on the Bristol to Taunton Line and is operated by Great Western Railway. It is from the zero point at via Box.
Originally built to the designs of Isambard Kingdom Brune ...
, designed by Brunel is now a Grade II
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
. An end to the unequal competition between rail and canal came in 1867 when the Bristol & Exeter Railway purchased the canal. A number of local branches were also built, for example to serve the Northgate
Brewery
A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of be ...
(now replaced by a car park north of Angel Crescent) and the former British Cellophane factory. The
Somerset and Dorset branch line
A branch line is a phrase used in railway terminology to denote a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line.
Industrial spur
An industri ...
to
Edington Eddington or Edington may refer to:
People
*Eddington Varmah, Liberian politician
*Eddington (surname), people with the surname
Places
Australia
* Eddington, Victoria
United Kingdom
* Eddington, Berkshire
* Eddington, Cambridge
* Ed ...
was opened in 1890. Its former Bridgwater station is now occupied by
J Sainsbury
J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is the second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, with a 14.6% share of UK supermarket sales.
Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company ...
.
![Bridgwaterdocks68](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Bridgwaterdocks68.jpg)
The importance of shipping and the docks started to decline after 1886, the year in which the opening of the
Severn Tunnel
The Severn Tunnel ( cy, Twnnel Hafren) is a railway tunnel in the United Kingdom, linking South Gloucestershire in the west of England to Monmouthshire in south Wales under the estuary of the River Severn. It was constructed by the Great Western ...
caused a severe drop in coal imports by sea. The situation worsened as the railways were extended into Somerset and beyond, and ships became too big for the port. The last commercial use of the docks was when coal imports ceased on 31 July 1971, and although they now house a marina they are currently little used. The surrounding quays have been developed for housing, although the remains of wooden quays on the riverbank can still be seen. All but a small remnant of the ''mump'' (a huge mound of spoil from the original dock excavations) was removed in the 1980s to make way for the development on the north side of the dock. Due to the port,
ship building
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...
was also an important industry, and around 140 ships were built in the town during the 19th century by companies including David Williams, Joseph Gough, Watsons and William Lowther. F J Carver and Son owned a small
dry dock
A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...
on East Quay and constructed the last ship to be built in the town — the ''Irene''. The former associated industry of
rope
A rope is a group of yarns, plies, fibres, or strands that are twisted or braided together into a larger and stronger form. Ropes have tensile strength and so can be used for dragging and lifting. Rope is thicker and stronger than similarly ...
making is commemorated in
street furnishings
Street furniture is a collective term for objects and pieces of equipment installed along streets and roads for various purposes. It includes bench (furniture), benches, traffic barriers, bollards, post boxes, phone boxes, streetlamps, traff ...
and paving on East Quay and in the name of ''Ropewalk'' street.
The Drove Bridge, which marks the current extent of the Port of Bridgwater is the nearest to the mouth and the newest road bridge to cross the river. With a span of , the bridge was constructed as part of the Bridgwater Northern Distributor road scheme (1992), and provides a navigable channel which is wide with headroom at normal spring high tides.
Upstream of this is the
retractable Telescopic Bridge, built in 1871 to the design of
Sir Francis Fox
Sir Francis Fox (29 June 1844 – 7 January 1927) was an English civil engineer, who was responsible for the bridges over the Victoria Falls of the Zambesi and Sydney Harbour, the Mersey Railway Tunnel and the Liverpool Overhead Railway, and ...
, the engineer for the
Bristol & Exeter Railway
The Bristol & Exeter Railway (B&ER) was an English railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter. It was built on the broad gauge and its engineer was Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It opened in stages between 1841 and 1844. It was allied with t ...
. It carried a railway siding over the river to the docks, but had to be movable, to allow boats to proceed upriver. An section of railway track to the east of the bridge could be moved sideways, so that the main girders could be retracted, creating a navigable channel which was wide.
It was manually operated for the first eight months, and then powered by a steam engine, reverting to manual operation in 1913, when the steam engine failed. The bridge was last opened in 1953, and the traverser section was demolished in 1974, but public outcry at the action resulted in the bridge being listed as a
Scheduled Ancient Monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change.
The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...
, and the rest of the bridge was kept. It was later used as a road crossing, until the construction of the Chandos road bridge alongside it, and is now only used by pedestrians. Parts of the steam engine were moved to
Westonzoyland Pumping Station Museum
The Westonzoyland Pumping Station Museum of Steam Power and Land Drainage is a small industrial heritage museum dedicated to steam powered machinery at Westonzoyland in the English county of Somerset. It is a Grade II* listed building.
The mus ...
in 1977.
[
The next bridge is the Town Bridge. There has been a bridge here since the 13th century, when Bridgwater was granted a charter by King John. The present bridge was designed by R. C. Else and G. B. Laffan, and the ]cast iron
Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...
structure was completed in 1883. It replaced an earlier bridge, which was the first cast iron bridge to be built in Somerset when it was completed in 1797. The stone abutments of that bridge were reused by the later bridge, which formed the only road crossing of the river in Bridgwater until 1958.[ Above the bridge there were two shoals, called The Coals and The Stones, which were a hazard to barge traffic on the river, and bargees had to choose carefully when to navigate the river, to ensure that there was sufficient water to carry them over these obstructions. In March 1958 a new reinforced concrete road bridge, the Blake Bridge, was opened as part of a bypass to take traffic away from the centre of Bridgwater. It now carries the A38 and ]A39 road
The A39 is an A road in south west England. It runs south-west from Bath in Somerset through Wells, Glastonbury, Street and Bridgwater. It then follows the north coast of Somerset, Devon and Cornwall through Williton, Minehead, Porlock, Lynm ...
s. On the southern edge of Bridgwater there is a bridge which carries the Bristol & Exeter Railway across the River Parrett. Isambard Kingdom Brunel designed a brick bridge, known as the Somerset Bridge, with a span but a rise of just . Work started in 1838 and was completed in 1841. Brunel left the scaffold supporting the centre of the bridge in place as the foundations were still settling but was forced to remove it in 1843 to reopen the river for navigation. Brunel demolished the brick arch and had replaced it with a timber arch within six months without interrupting the traffic on the railway. This was in turn replaced in 1904 by a steel girder bridge. Slightly further east is a modern concrete bridge which carries the M5 motorway
The M5 is a motorway in England linking the Midlands with the South West England, South West. It runs from junction 8 of the M6 motorway, M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Brom ...
over both the river and the railway line. It was started in 1971 and opened in 1973.
Bridgwater is served twice daily by Berrys Coaches 'Superfast' service to and from London.
Education
The primary
Primary or primaries may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels
* Primary (band), from Australia
* Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea
* Primary Music, Israeli record label
Works
* ...
and infant
An infant or baby is the very young offspring of human beings. ''Infant'' (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'unable to speak' or 'speechless') is a formal or specialised synonym for the common term ''baby''. The terms may also be used to ...
schools in Bridgwater include: Eastover Community Primary School, Hamp Community Junior School, Sedgemoor Manor School, St John and St Francis Primary School, St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, St Mary's Primary School, Somerset Bridge Primary School, Spaxton Church of England Primary School, Westover Green Primary School and Hamp Nursery and Infants School. Secondary school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...
s include: Robert Blake Science College, Brymore Academy
Brymore Academy (formerly Brymore School) is a boys' secondary school with academy status, located in Cannington, Bridgwater, Somerset, England. It is a day and boarding school for pupils aged 11 to 17 years and had 192 boys on the roll in 201 ...
, Chilton Trinity School, Bridgwater College Academy
Bridgwater College Academy is a mixed all-through Academy which combines both primary and secondary education for pupils aged 3 to 16. The academy, which is sponsored by Bridgwater College, is located in Bridgwater, Somerset, England. It was ...
which was previously known as Sydenham School and is a Performing and Visual Arts College, and Haygrove School which has specialist Language College
Language Colleges were introduced in 1995 as part of the specialist schools programme (SSP) in the United Kingdom. The system enabled secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, modern foreign languages. Schools that successf ...
status. Special school
Special education (known as special-needs education, aided education, exceptional education, alternative provision, exceptional student education, special ed., SDC, or SPED) is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates th ...
s in the town include: Elmwood Special School, New Horizon Centre School and Penrose School.
Bridgwater was selected as the first town in the South West, outside Bristol, to be selected for the UK government's Building Schools for the Future
Building Schools for the Future (BSF) was the name given to the British government's investment programme in secondary school buildings in England in the 2000s. The programme was ambitious in its costs, timescales and objectives, with politicia ...
(BSF) initiative, which aimed to rebuild and renew nearly every secondary school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...
in England. Within Bridgwater, BSF was to redevelop all of the four secondary schools and two special provision schools at an expected cost of around £100 million. This included the complete relocation and rebuilding of a new school combining both the Haygrove and Penrose Schools. In July 2010, several components of the Bridgwater BSF programme were cancelled and others were singled out for further review. Following a meeting with Education Secretary Michael Gove
Michael Andrew Gove (; born Graeme Andrew Logan, 26 August 1967) is a British politician serving as Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations since 2021. He has been Member of Parli ...
, Bridgwater MP Ian Liddell-Grainger
Ian or Iain is a name of Scottish Gaelic origin, derived from the Hebrew given name (Yohanan, ') and corresponding to the English name John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename ''Iain''. It is a popular name in Sc ...
announced that the fate of all six affected schools would be subject to review, including the ones that were cancelled.
Further Education
Further education (often abbreviated FE) in the United Kingdom and Ireland is education in addition to that received at secondary school, that is distinct from the higher education (HE) offered in universities and other academic institutions. I ...
is provided by Bridgwater and Taunton College which was formerly Bridgwater Technical School. In February 2018 the southern hub of the National College for Nuclear was launched at the Bridgwater campus, intended to service the building and operation of the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station
Hinkley Point C nuclear power station (HPC) is a two-unit, 3,200MWe EPR nuclear power station under construction in Somerset, England.
The site was one of eight announced by the British government in 2010, and in November 2012 a nuclear site ...
.
Schools which have since closed include: Bridgwater Grammar School For Boys (originally the Poplar School of Engineering And Navigation, then Dr Morgan's Grammar School For Boys, which became Haygrove School with the Somerset County Council introduction of Comprehensive education), Bridgwater Grammar School For Girls, also in Durleigh, and Westover Senior Council School.
Religious sites
Among several places of worship the chief is the Church of St Mary; this has a north porch and windows dating from the 14th century, besides a slender spire; but it has been much altered by restoration. It possesses a fine painted reredos, and has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses.
The charity states that i ...
as a grade I listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
.
There is also Christ Church Unitarian Chapel on Dampiet Street, built in 1688, it still retains many of its original features from 1688 and its remodeling in 1788. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses.
The charity states that i ...
as a grade II* listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
.
The Church of St John the Baptist in Blake Place was built by the Revd. John More Capes and designed by John Brown John Brown most often refers to:
*John Brown (abolitionist) (1800–1859), American who led an anti-slavery raid in Harpers Ferry, Virginia in 1859
John Brown or Johnny Brown may also refer to:
Academia
* John Brown (educator) (1763–1842), Ir ...
in 1843. Elim Pentecostal Church on Church Street was a public house after being used as a church and is now a shop. There is a Salvation Army
Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...
Citadel located in Moorland Road, on the Sydenham Estate and St Joseph's Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
in Binford Place.
Classes in Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
and meditation
Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally cal ...
were held in the Quaker
Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...
Meeting House on Friarn Street. In 2014 the building was put up for auction and purchased by local Muslims to become Bridgwater Islamic Centre.
Arts
Nearing Bridgwater on the M5 motorway
The M5 is a motorway in England linking the Midlands with the South West England, South West. It runs from junction 8 of the M6 motorway, M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Brom ...
it is possible to see the ''Willow Man
''Willow Man'' is a large outdoor sculpture by Serena de la Hey. It is in a field to the west of the M5 motorway, near Bridgwater in Somerset, South West England, near to the Bristol to Exeter railway line and south of junction 23 of the moto ...
'' sculpture, a striding human figure constructed from willow
Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist s ...
, sometimes called the ''Angel of the South'' (see also ''Angel of the North
The ''Angel of the North'' is a contemporary sculpture by Antony Gormley, located in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England. Completed in 1998, it is believed to be the largest sculpture of an angel in the world and is viewed by an estimated 33 m ...
''). Standing tall, it was created by sculptor
Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
Serena de la Hey
Serena de la Hey (born 1967) is a Kenyan-born British sculptor who has travelled widely but lived in Somerset since the early 1990s. She is best known for her 40-foot high Willow Man near Bridgwater which she completed in the autumn of 2001.
Bi ...
and is the largest known sculpture in willow, a traditional local material.
Bridgwater is the home of Music on the Quantocks, Somerset's most successful music series specialising in world-class classical music. The series also features performance poetry, jazz and folk. Most events are staged in venues such as churches, barns and halls surrounding Bridgwater and attract audiences up to 850 people at an event. Artists featured have included Sir James Galway
Sir James Galway (born 8 December 1939) is an Irish virtuoso flute player from Belfast, nicknamed "The Man with the Golden Flute". He established an international career as a solo flute player. In 2005, he received the Brit Award for Outstand ...
, The Sixteen
The Sixteen are a United Kingdom-based choir and period instrument orchestra; founded by Harry Christophers, they started as an unnamed group of sixteen friends in 1977, giving their first billed concert in 1979.
The group performs early Engl ...
, Nigel Kennedy
Nigel Kennedy (born 28 December 1956) is an English violinist and violist.
His early career was primarily spent performing classical music, and he has since expanded into jazz, klezmer, and other music genres.
Early life and background
Kenn ...
, The Hilliard Ensemble
The Hilliard Ensemble was a British male vocal quartet originally devoted to the performance of early music. The group was named after the Elizabethan miniaturist painter Nicholas Hilliard. Founded in 1974, the group disbanded in 2014.
Although ...
, The Tallis Scholars
The Tallis Scholars is a British professional early music vocal ensemble normally consisting of two singers per part, with a core group of ten singers. They specialise in performing ''a cappella'' sacred vocal music.
History
The group was formed ...
, Roger McGough
Roger Joseph McGough (; born 9 November 1937) is an English poet, performance poet, broadcaster, children's author and playwright. He presents the BBC Radio 4 programme ''Poetry Please'', as well as performing his own poetry. McGough was one o ...
and John Cooper Clarke
John Cooper Clarke (born 25 January 1949) is an English performance poet, who first became famous as a "punk poet" in the late 1970s. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, he released several albums. Around this time, he performed on stage with sev ...
.
The Bridgwater Arts Centre was opened on 10 October 1946, the first community arts centre opened in the UK with financial assistance from the newly established Arts Council of England
The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both ...
. It is situated in a Grade I listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
in the architecturally
Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings ...
protected Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
''Castle Street'', designed by Benjamin Holloway for the Duke of Chandos
The Dukedom of Chandos is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of England. First created as a barony by Edward III in 1337, its second creation in 1554 was due to the Brydges family's service to Mary I during Wyatt's rebellion, wh ...
, and built over the site of the former castle. Holloway was also the architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
of the Baroque
The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
Lions building on West Quay, constructed around 1730. Bridgwater Arts Centre was the venue for the first post-war meeting of the Congres Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne in 1947.
Somerset Film (then Somerset Film & Video) opened their community media centre, The Engine Room, in March 2003. The centre allows the public to drop in and use the computers and equipment for free (on certain days) to teach themselves how to edit video, design websites or screen films at open evenings. Cameras and edit suites can also be hired and day courses on using creative software are run regularly.
Castle Street was used as a location in the 1963 film '' Tom Jones''. Horror writer and film journalist Kim Newman
Kim James Newman (born 31 July 1959) is an English journalist, film critic and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's ''Dracula (1931 ...
was educated at Dr Morgan's school in Bridgwater, and set his 1999 experimental novel ''Life's Lottery'' in a fictionalised version of the town (Sedgwater). A sailor who had sailed "from Bridgwater with bricks" and found "There was lice in that bunk in Bridgwater" features in James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...
's Ulysses
Ulysses is one form of the Roman name for Odysseus, a hero in ancient Greek literature.
Ulysses may also refer to:
People
* Ulysses (given name), including a list of people with this name
Places in the United States
* Ulysses, Kansas
* Ulysse ...
(Chapter 16).
In 2013, community radio station Access FM was launched on 104.2 FM. This was the first truly local radio station for the town since BCR FM was bought by Choice Media in 2006 which eventually became The Breeze. Access FM was initiated as a function of Bridgwater's YMCA
YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...
and as such held the same values as the charity. The community station began with the intentions of providing youth based programming to 16- to 25-year-olds in order to give the younger generation something new and productive to get involved with. Many of the voluntary presenters were aged 16 – 20 and the station acted as the first step into the industry. Access FM had mild success within the community, attending multiple events and marking new ground for local radio in the area. The station was the first in history to provide live broadcast coverage from Bridgwater Guy Fawkes Carnival in 2014.
In October 2015 the station went through a re-branding process under a revised management team, creating Sedgemoor FM, which launched on 4 April 2016. Sedgemoor FM broadcasts on 104.2FM across Bridgwater and the rest of the district, providing listeners with programming specific for the community. Scheduling consists of a variety of informative and entertaining radio shows including Dave Englefield's Breakfast Show, Sedgemoor Life with Jackie Sealy and The Carnival Show with Andy Bennett, along with local and national news coverage, local events guide, The Lowdown, and Just The Job, which highlights current job vacancies in the area.
Annual events
Bridgwater is now best known for the illuminated " Bridgwater Guy Fawkes Carnival" that attracts around 150,000 people from around the country and overseas. Now held annually on the Saturday after the first Friday of November (i.e. - the nearest Saturday to 5 November), it was original held on the first Thursday of November, later moving to the first Friday. It consists of a display of 100 or more entries, many consisting of large vehicles ("Carnival carts") up to long, festooned with dancers (or team member in tableaux
The International Conference on Automated Reasoning with Analytic Tableaux and Related Methods (TABLEAUX) is an annual international academic conference that deals with all aspects of automated reasoning with analytic tableaux. Periodically, it joi ...
) and up to 22,000 lightbulbs, that follows a route over 2 to 3 hours.[It is claimed that the 2011 Bridgwater carnival had 118 entries, 57 of which were illuminated "carts", see ] Later in the evening of the Carnival, there is the simultaneous firing of large firework
Fireworks are a class of low explosive pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a large number of devices in ...
s (known as squibs) in the street outside the town hall, known as "squibbing".
Bridgwater Fair normally takes place in September — it starts on the last Wednesday in September and lasts four days. The fair takes place on St Matthew's Field, better known locally as the Fair Field. The fair is now a funfair
A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks.
Types
Variations of fairs incl ...
, ranked as second largest in England after the Nottingham Goose Fair
The Nottingham Goose Fair is an annual travelling funfair held at the Forest Recreation Ground in Nottingham, England, during the first week of October. Largely provided by travelling Showmen, it is one of three established fairs in the United ...
. It originated in 1249 as a horse and cattle fair
A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks.
Types
Variations of fairs incl ...
, lasting for eight days near St Matthew's day (21 September), giving the venue its name. During the first weekend of July, the annual "Somerfest" arts festival is held in Bridgwater. The event includes an extensive programme of rock, jazz and classical music, dance, drama and visual arts with national and local participants.
A new annual event was launched in 2014, taking place in May each year. The Bridgwater Science Festival
The Bridgwater Science Festival is a science festival which takes place in Bridgwater, in the English county of Somerset in the May half term holiday, contributing to the public awareness of science for the local population.
Introduction and His ...
brings science-related family entertainment and activities to town. The event takes place in the Town Hall, and works with local organisations and the University of the West of England
The University of the West of England (also known as UWE Bristol) is a public research university, located in and around Bristol, England.
The institution was know as the Bristol Polytechnic in 1970; it received university status in 1992 and ...
.
An annual Food and Drink Festival also takes place each year at the Bridgwater Town Hall. The Bridgwater Food and Drink Festival takes place at the beginning of March each year and features the best in local produce with cooking demonstrations taking place from local chefs.
Sport and leisure
Sport
Bridgwater Town F.C.
Bridgwater United Football Club is a football club based in Bridgwater, Somerset, England. Affiliated to the Somerset County FA, they are currently members of the and play at Fairfax Park.
History
Bridgwater Association Football Club were es ...
are a football club based at Fairfax Park. The original version of the club was founded in 1898. The club currently plays in the Southern League Division One South and West
The Southern League is a men's football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from the South and Midlands of England. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven and eight of the Englis ...
.
Bridgwater & Albion are Somerset's highest-placed rugby team, playing in National League 3 South and are based at College Way. It was founded in 1875.
The cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...
club play at The Parks on Durleigh Road.
Bridgwater Hockey
Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...
Club was founded in 1925 and field four men's teams and three women's teams, playing fixtures at 1610 Leisure Centre.
Leisure
East Bridgwater Sports Centre offers badminton courts, outside football pitches, squash courts and a fitness room.
Bridgwater had a series of swimming pools from 1890 until 2009. The first pool, on Old Taunton Road, was replaced by the ''Bridgwater Lido
Lido may refer to:
Geography Africa
* Lido, a district in the city of Fez, Morocco
Asia
* Lido, an area in Chaoyang District, Beijing
* Lido, a cinema theater in Siam Square shopping area in Bangkok
* Lido City, a resort in West Java owned by MN ...
'' on Broadway, which was opened in 1960 by the Mayor, Alderman Mrs A. B. Potterton. The lido, which had three pools, a diving bay and paddling pool, was demolished in the late 1980s to make way for a supermarket and to fund the indoor ''Sedgemoor Splash'' swimming pool in Mount Street, which opened in 1991. In 2009, after the local council were unable to raise the funds needed to upgrade the pool, it was closed and demolished to make way for another supermarket. A new pool was planned as part of the Building Schools for the Future
Building Schools for the Future (BSF) was the name given to the British government's investment programme in secondary school buildings in England in the 2000s. The programme was ambitious in its costs, timescales and objectives, with politicia ...
(BSF) rebuild of Chilton Trinity School,
The town is both on the route of the Samaritans Way South West
Samaritans Way South West is a Long-distance footpath in South West England. It was officially opened on 21 April 2004 by the Ramblers Vice Chairman, the Samaritans (charity) Chief Executive and a farmer from Gloucestershire who headed the Farm ...
and the River Parrett Trail
The River Parrett Trail is a long-distance footpath that can be used for walking, jogging, or running, following the route of the River Parrett in Somerset, England. The trail, which is long, runs from Chedington in Dorset to the mouth of the ...
.
Notable people
* Admiral Robert Blake (1598–1657) was born in Bridgwater, and attended the local grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...
( Bridgwater Grammar School For Boys). His home is now the Blake Museum
The Blake Museum is in Bridgwater, Somerset, England at what is believed to be the birthplace of Robert Blake, General at Sea (1598–1657). Since April 2009 it has been run by Bridgwater Town Council with help from the Friends of Blake Museum ...
and contains details of his career amongst its exhibits of local history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...
and archaeology.
* John Chubb (1746–1818), Bridgwater merchant and amateur artist, who painted portraits of his local contemporaries, as well as a number of paintings of Bridgwater street scenes. His work is in the collection of the Blake Museum
The Blake Museum is in Bridgwater, Somerset, England at what is believed to be the birthplace of Robert Blake, General at Sea (1598–1657). Since April 2009 it has been run by Bridgwater Town Council with help from the Friends of Blake Museum ...
, Bridgwater.
*Donald Crowhurst
Donald Charles Alfred Crowhurst (1932 – July 1969) was a British businessman and amateur sailor who disappeared while competing in the ''Sunday Times'' Golden Globe Race, a single-handed, round-the-world yacht race. Soon after he started th ...
(1932–1969), who tried to fake a round-the-world solo yacht journey, set up his business in Bridgwater and was a borough councillor.
*William Diaper
William Diaper (1685–1717) was an English clergyman, poet and translator of the Augustan era. Having taken the wrong political side at a time of regime change, he lost the patrons who were advancing his career and died in obscurity shortly a ...
(1685–1717), clergyman and innovative poet, was born in Bridgwater.
*Robert Dibble
Robert Dibble (15 November 1882 – 1963) was an English rugby union international who represented England from 1906 to 1912. He also captained the side in 1909 and 1912.
Early life
Robert Dibble was born in 1882 in Bridgwater. His father was ...
(1882–1963), England rugby player, was born in Bridgwater, and played club rugby for Bridgwater & Albion RFC and Newport RFC
Newport Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Casnewydd) is a Welsh rugby union club based in the city of Newport, South Wales. They presently play in the Welsh Premier Division. Until 2021 Newport RFC were based at Rodney Parade situated on t ...
.
*Sir Paul Dukes
Sir Paul Henry Dukes (10 February 1889 – 27 August 1967) was a British MI6 officer and author.
Early life and family
Paul Henry Dukes was born the third of five children on 10 February 1889 in Bridgwater, Somerset, England. He was the ...
(1889–1967) was born in Bridgwater and educated at Caterham School, and went on to be the premier SIS agent in pre-revolution Russia. Known as the "Man with a Hundred Faces", he eluded Bolshevik capture and is still the only man to be knighted based on his exploits as a spy.
*Wayne Goss
Wayne Keith Goss (26 February 1951 – 10 November 2014) was Premier of Queensland from 7 December 1989 until 19 February 1996, becoming the first Labor Premier of the state in over thirty two years. Prior to entering politics, Goss was a solic ...
(b. 1978), makeup artist
A make-up artist, also called a makeup artist, and often shortened to MUA, is an artist whose medium is the human body, applying makeup and prosthetics on others for theatre, television, film, fashion, magazines and other similar productions incl ...
and YouTube personality
A YouTuber is an online personality and/or influencer who produces videos on the video-sharing platform YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 2006.
Influence
Influent ...
, was born in Bridgwater.
*Peter Haggett
Peter Haggett (born 24 January 1933) is a British geographer and academic, Professor Emeritus and Senior Research Fellow in Urban and Regional Geography at the School of Geographical Sciences, University of Bristol.
Haggett was born 1933 in t ...
(b. 1933), academic geographer
A geographer is a physical scientist, social scientist or humanist whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society, including how society and nature interacts. The Greek prefix "geo" means "earth" a ...
and professor at University of Bristol
, mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'')
, established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter
, type ...
, was educated at Dr Morgan's Grammar School, Bridgwater.
* Chris Harris (1942–2014), English performer, director and writer who starred in '' Into the Labyrinth''. He also starred in and directed the pantomime at the Theatre Royal, Bath
The Theatre Royal in Bath, England, was built in 1805. A Grade II* listed building, it has been described by the Theatres Trust as "One of the most important surviving examples of Georgian theatre architecture". It has a capacity for an audien ...
from 2001.
* Charles Kent (1953–2005), England rugby player, was born in Bridgwater.
*David Luckes
David James Luckes (born 24 April 1969 in Newport, Monmouthshire) is a male former field hockey goalkeeper.
Hockey career
Luckes participated in three Summer Olympics for Great Britain: 1992, 1996 and 2000. He earned 125 caps for England an ...
(b. 1969), England and Great Britain hockey player 1989–2000, was brought up in Bridgwater.
*Richard
Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Frankish language, Old Frankish and is a Compound (linguistics), compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' an ...
(b. 1981) and Simon Mantell
Simon Douglas Mantell (born 24 April 1984) is an English field hockey forward. He is the younger brother of Richard Mantell.
Mantell currently plays for Exeter University Hockey Club.
Mantell made his international senior debut for the nati ...
(b. 1984), brothers and field hockey players for England, were both born in Bridgwater.
* Harry "Breaker" Morant (1864–1902), Anglo-Australian Boer War soldier, was born in Bridgwater.
*Kim Newman
Kim James Newman (born 31 July 1959) is an English journalist, film critic and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's ''Dracula (1931 ...
(b. 1959), science fiction novelist, horror film expert, TV presenter and film critic, was educated at Dr Morgan's Grammar School in Bridgwater.
*Henry Phillpotts
Henry Phillpotts (6 May 177818 September 1869), often called "Henry of Exeter", was the Anglican Bishop of Exeter from 1830 to 1869. One of England's longest serving bishops since the 14th century, Phillpotts was a striking figure of the 19th- ...
(1778–1869), Bishop of Exeter
The Bishop of Exeter is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. Since 30 April 2014 the ordinary has been Robert Atwell. 1830–1869, was born in Bridgwater.
* John de Ponz (c.1248-c.1307), royal administrator and senior judge in Ireland, was born in Bridgwater, and was sometimes known as "John of Bridgwater".[Ball, F. Elrington ''The Judges in Ireland 1221-1921'' London John Murray 1926]
* Jean Rees (1914–2004), artist and co-founder of the Bridgwater Arts Centre.
*Alexander Scoles
Alexander Joseph Cory Scoles (30 November 1844 – 29 December 1920) was an architect and Roman Catholic priest.Directory of British Architects, 1834–1914: Vol. 2 (L-Z)' ed. Brodie, Antonia (London, 2001), p. 552 He designed many lancet style ...
(1844–1920), Roman Catholic priest and architect of Catholic churches: he served as parish priest in Bridgwater and designed and built St Joseph's church, Binford Place.
*James Sully
James Sully (3 March 1842 – 1 November 1923) was an English psychologist.
Biography
James Sully was born at Bridgwater, Somerset, the son of J. W. Sully, a liberal Baptist merchant and ship-owner. He was educated at the Independent Colle ...
(1842–1923), psychologist, was born in Bridgwater.
*Fanny Talbot
Fanny Talbot (née) Browne (1824–1917) was a landowner and philanthropist, and a friend and correspondent of the influential art critic John Ruskin. She is noted for donating the first property— of land known as Cliff of Light (''Dinas Oleu ...
(1824–1917), born in Bridgwater, philanthropist and friend of John Ruskin
John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English writer, philosopher, art critic and polymath of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as geology, architecture, myth, ornithology, literature, education, botany and politi ...
, who donated the first property to the National Trust
The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...
.
* Tommy Woods (1883–1955), England rugby player, was born in Bridgwater and played club rugby for Bridgwater & Albion RFC and Rochdale Hornets
The Rochdale Hornets are a professional rugby league club from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England, competing in the Championship, the second tier of European rugby league. The Rochdale Hornets are one of the original twenty-two rugby clubs ...
.
Notes
References
*
Attribution:
*
External links
Port of Bridgwater
*
{{Authority control
Market towns in Somerset
Towns in Sedgemoor
Somerset Levels
Monmouth Rebellion