Bradford-on-Avon (sometimes Bradford on Avon or Bradford upon Avon[2][3]) is a town and civil parish in west Wiltshire, England, near the border with Somerset, which had a population of 10,405 at the 2021 census.[1] The town's canal, historic buildings, shops, pubs and restaurants make it popular with tourists.
The history of the town can be traced back to Roman origins. It has several buildings dating from the 17th century, when the town grew due to the thriving English woollen textile industry.
History
The earliest evidence of habitation is fragments of Roman settlements above the town. In particular, archaeological digs have revealed the remains of a large Roman villa with a well-preserved mosaic on the playing fields of St Laurence School. The centre of the town grew up around the ford across the river Avon, hence the origin of the town's name ("Broad-Ford").[4] This was supplemented in Norman times by the stone bridge that still stands today. The Norman side is upstream, and has pointed arches; the newer side has curved arches. The Town Bridge and Chapel is a grade I listed building. It was originally a packhorse bridge, but widened in the 17th century by rebuilding the western side.[5] On 2 July 1643 the town was the site of a skirmish in the English Civil War, when Royalists seized control of the bridge on their way to the Battle of Lansdowne.[6]
On the bridge stands a small building which was originally a chapel but was later used as a town lock-up. The weathervane on top takes the form of a gudgeon[4] (an early Christian symbol), hence the local saying "under the fish and over the water". (The gilded fish is a perch; Bradford gudgeon is a local term.) [7]
The river provided power for the wool mills that gave the town its wealth. The town has 17th-century buildings dating from the most successful period of the local textile industry. The best examples of weavers' cottages are on Newtown, Middle Rank and Tory Terraces. Daniel Defoe visited Bradford-on-Avon in the early 18th century[4] and commented: "They told me at Bradford that it was no extra-ordinary thing to have clothiers in that country worth, from ten thousand, to forty thousand pounds a man [equivalent to £1.3M to £5.3M in 2007], and many of the great families, who now pass for gentry in those counties, have been originally raised from, and built up by this truly noble manufacture."[8]
With improving mechanisation in textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution, the wool weaving industry moved from cottages to purpose-built woollen mills adjacent to the river, where they used water and steam to power the looms. Around thirty such mills were built in Bradford-on-Avon alone, and these prospered further until the English woollen industry shifted its centre of power to Yorkshire in the late 19th century. The last local mill closed in 1905. Many have since stood empty and some became derelict.
A notable feature of Bradford-on-Avon is the large Grade I listed tithe barn, 180 feet long and 30 feet wide, which was constructed in the 14th century and is now part of Barton Farm Country Park.[9] The barn was used for collecting taxes, in the form of goods, to fund the church.
There are several notable buildings in and around the town centre. Many of the old textile factories have been converted into modern flats and apartments; however, few of the buildings are still used today in their original roles. One of the few is The Swan, a public house and hotel set in the centre of town; the building is 17th century and retains many original features, in particular the stone flag floors. Records show that there has been a public house on the same site since the 1500s. The Hall, on the eastern edge of the town, is a Jacobean mansion built for John Hall, a wealthy mill-owner, in about 1610. It was bought by Stephen Moulton in 1848, and is now managed by the Alex Moulton Charitable Trust.[10]
In 1998 the Wiltshire Music Centre was opened in Bradford-on-Avon, on the grounds of St Laurence School. In 2000, the Millennium sculpture nicknamed "Millie" was unveiled.
On 8 October 2003, Bradford-on-Avon was granted Fairtrade Town status.
Geography
The town lies partly in the Avon Valley, and partly on the hill that marks the Vale's western edge, 8 miles (13km) southeast of Bath, in the hilly area between the Mendip Hills, Salisbury Plain and the Cotswold Hills. The local area around Bath provides the Jurassiclimestone known as Bath stone, from which the older buildings are constructed. The River Avon (the Bristol Avon) runs through the town. The larger town of Trowbridge is nearby to the southeast.
The town includes the suburbs of Bearfield and Woolley; the parish includes the hamlets of Widbrook and Woolley Green.
The Western Wiltshire Green Belt, which forms the eastern extent of the Avon Green Belt, completely surrounds Bradford-on-Avon. It helps to maintain the setting and preserve the character of the town by maintaining separation from nearby settlements such as Trowbridge, Winsley, and Westwood.[11][12]
The Saxon church dedicated to Saint Laurence may have been founded by Saint Aldhelm around 705, and could have been a temporary burial site for King Edward the Martyr. It was rediscovered by the Anglican priest, antiquarian and author William Jones in 1856, having been used for secular purposes (apparently becoming a house, a school and part of a factory).
It is suggested that some of the building, containing the blind arcades at a higher level, may belong to a later period[13] while a leaflet available at the church in February 2012 seems to prefer the period 950–1050 for the whole building. The elaborate ornamentation of the exterior consists of pilaster-strips, a broad frieze of two plain string-courses between which is a blind arcade of round-headed arches whose short vertical pilasters have trapezoidal capitals and bases, while on the eastern gable and the corners adjacent there is a series of mouldings as vertical triple semicylinders.[13]
Inside the church, high in the wall above a small chancel arch, are the carved figures of two flying angels, the right-hand figure reportedly "intended to be clothed in transparent drapery ... the legs from the knee downward are depicted as showing through the transparent robe" which is referred to as a "quaint fancy".[14]
Holy Trinity Church is the original parish church, and stands near the town centre by the river. The Grade I listed building is Norman in origin, and it is possible that the chancel was built over the remains of an older church. Several chapels were added on the north side, and the wall in between was later opened up so that the chapels now form the north aisle. A squint, or hagioscope, near the altar is claimed to be England's longest. The tower and spire was built around 1480, replacing an older one, and the south wall was largely rebuilt in the 19th century.[15] The church has a ring of eight bells, with the tenor (heaviest bell) weighing 29longcwt2qr26lb (3,330lb or 1,510kg).[16]
There is also a Buddhist monastery in the town, under the auspices of the Aukana Trust; it comprises a monastic building each for men and for women, and a meditation hall. There are also workshops, gardens and a library, and the elegant buildings look down upon the town from a hill. The monastery practises the Theravadin tradition of Buddhism, and offers opportunities for both full-time residential and part-time practise and study.[citation needed]
Economy
A panoramic view of Bradford from the north-west
Bradford-on-Avon was the site of an early factory for rubber products, established at Kingston Mill by Stephen Moulton in 1848 and later named George Spencer, Moulton and Co. The company was acquired by Avon Rubber, a large manufacturer of rubber products for the automotive and other industries, and production continued until 1993.[19] Today, the town is the headquarters of the Alex Moultonbicycle company and has several other small-scale manufacturing enterprises.
The town's main business is shopping, tourism and day-to-day servicing of a population largely made up of families, commuters and the retired. The town has one mid-sized supermarket on the Elms Cross industrial estate, a short walk from the canal lock, and five convenience stores.[20]
Local consumers founded Bradford-on-Avon Co-operative Society in 1861, which, in the 1960s, united with other consumer co-operatives in the district to merge with a national business.[21] A mini outdoor shopping centre of independent shops, Weavers Walk, which describes itself as an "ethical trading centre", is in the town centre.
The town is an increasingly popular location for films, television adaptations and more; it has played host to Wolf Hall, Creation (a 2009 film about the life of Darwin), Robin of Sherwood and a 1972 film adaptation of The Canterbury Tales. In 2016, The White Princess TV series was filmed in the area.[22]
Transport
Bradford-on-Avon is on the A363Trowbridge to Bath road, which runs through the town from south to north, and crossed over by the B3109 linking Bradford-on-Avon with Melksham and Frome. All other road routes are minor, affording access to local settlements. Bradford-on-Avon is about 15 miles from junction 18 of the M4 motorway at Bath and the same distance from junction 17 at Chippenham.
Running parallel to the railway through the town is the Kennet and Avon Canal. The use of this canal declined as the railways grew but it was restored to full working order during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. The canal provides a link through to the Avon at Bath in the west, and the Thames at Reading in the east.
Governance
Bradford-on-Avon civil parish elects a town council with twelve members: six for the North ward and six for the South ward.[24] After the May 2021 elections, there were seven Liberal Democrat and five Ideal Bradford[25] councillors.[24] The town council provides an increasing range of services in the town, building on its historically mostly consultative and ceremonial role. These include provision of youth services, management of significant and growing areas of green space and town facilities, and management of several premises within the town. Members of the council elect one of their number as the town's mayor, for a one-year term.[24] The town council declared a climate emergency in March 2019[26] and has committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2030.[27]
Statutory local government functions – including schools, roads, social services, emergency planning, leisure services, development control, and waste disposal – are carried out by Wiltshire Council, a unitary authority. The North and South wards each elect one member of Wiltshire Council.[28]
For Westminster elections, Bradford-on-Avon is part of the Melksham and Devizes constituency, which was created following a boundary review and first contested at the 2024 general election when it was won by Brian Mathew for the Liberal Democrats.[29] From 2010 to 2024, the town was in the Chippenham constituency.
Education
The town has a secondary school, St Laurence School, founded in 1980 as a result of the merger of Fitzmaurice Grammar School and Trinity Secondary Modern school.[30] There are two primary schools: in the north of the town is Christ Church CofE (VC) Primary School, established as a National school in 1848 and on its present site since 1956,[31] and in the south is Fitzmaurice Primary School, opened in 1928 as Bradford on Avon Council Junior Mixed and Infants' School.[32]
Media
Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC West and ITV West Country. Television signals are received from the Mendip and the local relay transmitters. [33][34]
Bradford-on-Avon has a non-League football club, Bradford Town F.C., who play at the Sports and Social Club on Trowbridge Road. In addition to a bowls & croquet club, tennis courts and a swimming pool, there is also the Bradford-on-Avon Rowing Club, catering for rowing and canoeing from their base opposite Barton Farm country park.[37] Bradford on Avon rugby club, whose first team played in Dorset & Wilts 1 North in 2019–20, have their ground at Winsley, just west of the town.[38]
Wiltshire Music Centre is a purpose-built, 300-seat concert hall within the grounds of St Laurence School that attracts internationally renowned musicians.
Paul Methuen (1613–1667), clothier, lived and worked in Bradford-on-Avon.[39]
John Methuen (1650–1706), was born in Bradford-on-Avon,[40] as was his son Sir Paul Methuen (ca.1672–1757); they were successively British Ambassadors to Portugal.
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to the west. The largest settlement is Swindon, and Trowbridge is the county town.
Trowbridge is the county town of Wiltshire, England; situated on the River Biss in the west of the county, close to the border with Somerset. The town lies 8 miles (13 km) south-east of Bath, 31 miles (50 km) south-west of Swindon and 20 miles (32 km) south-east of Bristol. The parish had a population of 37,169 in 2021.
Chippenham is a market town in north-west Wiltshire, England. It lies 13 miles (21 km) north-east of Bath, 86 miles (138 km) west of London and is near the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The town was established on a crossing of the River Avon, where some form of settlement is believed to have existed since before Roman times. It was a royal vill and probably a royal hunting lodge, under Alfred the Great. The town continued to grow when the Great Western Railway arrived in 1841. It had a population of 36,548 in 2021.
Devizes is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It developed around Devizes Castle, an 11th-century Norman castle, and received a charter in 1141. The castle was besieged during the Anarchy, a 12th-century civil war between Stephen of England and Empress Matilda, and again during the English Civil War when the Cavaliers lifted the siege at the Battle of Roundway Down and the Parliamentarian Army of the West under Sir William Waller was routed. Devizes remained under Royalist control until 1645, when Oliver Cromwell attacked and forced the Royalists to surrender. The castle was destroyed in 1648 on the orders of Parliament, and today little remains of it.
Melksham is a town and civil parish on the River Avon in Wiltshire, England, about 4.5 miles (7 km) northeast of Trowbridge and 6 miles (10 km) south of Chippenham. At the 2021 census, the parish had a population of 18,113.
Corsham is a historic market town and civil parish in west Wiltshire, England. It is at the southwestern edge of the Cotswolds, just off the A4 national route. It is 28 miles (45 km) southwest of Swindon, 20 miles (32 km) east of Bristol, 8 miles (13 km) north-east of Bath, and 4 miles (6 km) southwest of Chippenham.
Westbury is a market town and civil parish in west Wiltshire, England. The town lies below the northwestern edge of Salisbury Plain, about 4 miles (6 km) south of Trowbridge and a similar distance north of Warminster.
Box is a large village and civil parish within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Wiltshire, England, about 3 miles (5 km) west of Corsham and 5 miles (8 km) northeast of Bath. Box also falls in the easternmost part of the Avon Green Belt. Besides the village of Box, the parish includes the villages of Ashley and Box Hill; Hazelbury manor; and the hamlets of Alcombe, Blue Vein, Chapel Plaister, Ditteridge, Henley, Kingsdown, Middlehill, and Wadswick. To the east the parish includes much of Rudloe, formerly a hamlet but now a housing estate, and the defence establishments and related businesses on the site of the former RAF Rudloe Manor.
The River Biss is a small river in Wiltshire, England. It is a tributary of the Bristol Avon. The river rises on Salisbury Plain and passes through Westbury and Trowbridge, before meeting the Avon at Widbrook Wood near Staverton, north of Trowbridge.
Limpley Stoke is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It lies in the Avon valley between Bath and Freshford, and is both above and below the A36 road.
St Laurence School is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form in Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire, England. It became an Academy in August 2011. Besides Bradford on Avon, the school takes pupils from Atworth, Monkton Farleigh, Winsley, Limpley Stoke, South Wraxall, Bradford Leigh, Trowbridge and Melksham. It is in the northwest of the town, off the road towards Little Ashley.
The Anglican Christ Church is in the northern Hillside Terraces district of Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire, England. It is in the Bradford Deanery of the Diocese of Salisbury.
Hilperton is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The village is separated by a few fields from the northeastern edge of the town of Trowbridge and is approximately 1.3 miles (2.1 km) from Trowbridge town centre.
Staverton is a village and civil parish in the west of the English county of Wiltshire, about 1.75 miles (2.82 km) north of the centre of Trowbridge and 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Bradford on Avon.
Wingfield is a small village and civil parish in the county of Wiltshire, England, about 2.5 miles (4.0 km) south of Bradford-on-Avon and 2.2 miles (3.5 km) west of Trowbridge.
Hardenhuish School is a large mixed secondary school and sixth form in Chippenham, Wiltshire, England, for students aged 11 to 18. Together with Abbeyfield School and Sheldon School, it is one of three secondary schools in the town with academy status. The school's headteacher is Lisa Percy.
Winsley is a large village and civil parish about 2 miles (3 km) west of Bradford on Avon in Wiltshire, England.
Holt is a village and civil parish in the west of Wiltshire, England, about 2.5 miles (4 km) northeast of Bradford-on-Avon and 3 miles (5 km) southwest of Melksham.
Malmesbury is a town and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, which lies approximately 14 miles (23 km) west of Swindon, 25 miles (40 km) northeast of Bristol, and 9 miles (14 km) north of Chippenham. The older part of the town is on a hilltop which is almost surrounded by the upper waters of the Bristol Avon and one of its tributaries.
↑ Home, Gordon; Foord, Edward. "Bristol, Bath and Malmesbury, with a Short Account of Bradford on Avon" in the series Cathedrals, abbeys and Famous Churches, J.M.Dent, London, 1925
↑ Barker, George Fisher Russell; Doyle, Thomas (reviser) (21 May 2009) [2004]. "Methuen, John (1650–1706), diplomat". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press doi10.1093/ref:odnb/18628. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.) The first edition of this text is available at Wikisource: Barker, George Fisher Russell (1894). "Methuen, John" . In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 37. London: Smith, Elder & Co. pp. 310–311
↑ MacGregor, Rosie (Autumn 2022). "The life and career of acclaimed Guyanian writer Eric D Walrond, who made his home in Bradford on Avon in the 1940s". Guardian Angel. Bradford on Avon Preservation Trust. p.6.
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