The Bishop's Barn in Silver Street, Wells,

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, England, was built as a

tithe barn A tithe barn was a type of barn used in much of northern Europe in the Middle Ages for storing rents and tithes. Farmers were required to give one-tenth of their produce to the established church. Tithe barns were usually associated with the ...

in the 15th century. It has been designated as a Grade I

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

, and scheduled as an

ancient monument An ancient monument can refer to any early or historical manmade structure or architecture. Certain ancient monuments are of cultural importance for nations and become symbols of international recognition, including the Baalbek, ruins of Baalbek ...

. It was built of local stone roughly squared, with

Doulting Doulting is a village and civil parish east of Shepton Mallet, on the A361, in the county of Somerset, England. History The parish of Doulting was part of the Whitstone Hundred. The parish includes the village of Bodden, which was founded ...

ashlar dressings and a

Westmorland Westmorland (, formerly also spelt ''Westmoreland''R. Wilkinson The British Isles, Sheet The British IslesVision of Britain/ref>) is an area of North West England which was Historic counties of England, historically a county. People of the area ...

slate roof. The barn has 12

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

s with a

cruck A cruck or crook frame is a curved timber, one of a pair, which support the roof of a building, historically used in England and Wales. This type of timber framing consists of long, generally naturally curved, timber members that lean inwards and ...

roof with double

collar beam A collar beam or collar is a horizontal member between two rafters and is very common in domestic roof construction. Often a collar is structural but they may be used simply to frame a ceiling. A collar beam is often called a collar tie but this ...

s and arched wind braces. Royalist troops were quartered in the barn during the Bloody Assizes. It 1887 the barn was given to the City of Wells by Bishop

Lord Arthur Hervey Lord Arthur Charles Hervey (20 August 1808 – 9 June 1894) was an English bishop who served as Bishop of Bath and Wells from 1869 to 1894. He was usually known by his aristocratic courtesy title, "Lord", rather than the Style (manner of address ...

for recreation and amusement. During the 1970s the barn was used as a music venue, and hosted bands such as

Supertramp Supertramp were a British rock band formed in London in 1970. Marked by the individual songwriting of founders Roger Hodgson (vocals, keyboards and guitars) and Rick Davies (vocals and keyboards), the group were distinguished for blending p ...

Status Quo is a Latin phrase meaning the existing state of affairs, particularly with regard to social, economic, legal, environmental, political, religious, scientific or military issues. In the sociological sense, the ''status quo'' refers to the curren ...

and

Slade Slade are a rock band formed in Wolverhampton, England in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The '' British Hit Singl ...

, with audiences of up to 1,500. These bands were promoted at the venue by local Wells teenager
Gordon Poole
and Tony Leach. It is now managed by the Wells Recreation Ground Trust. The barn and adjacent recreation ground can be booked for events. In 2014 the Wells Recreation Ground Trust commissioned architects to survey the buildings and develop options for its repair and future use in conjunction with the

Somerset Buildings Preservation Trust The Somerset Buildings Preservation Trust (SBPT) works to save the Architecture, architectural Cultural heritage, heritage of Somerset, England. The Trust is an independent body and consists of up to 18 Trustees who hold Board meetings 3 times a y ...

. The advisory group identified a plan for improvements to the barn, including the installation of central heating and repairs to the walls and roof, estimated to cost at least £400,000 over five years.

References

External links

Wells Recreation GroundWells Recreation Ground and Bishop's Barn
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bishops Bard, Wells 15th-century religious buildings and structures in the United Kingdom Grade I listed buildings in Mendip District History of Somerset Wells Cathedral Grade I listed barns in England Scheduled monuments in Mendip District Tithe barns in Europe Buildings and structures in Wells, Somerset