Broomfield, Somerset
| Broomfield | |
| Somerset | |
|---|---|
 Church of St Mary and All Saints | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | ST220318 |
| Location: | 51°4’52"N, 3°6’50"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 249 (2011[1]) |
| Post town: | Bridgwater |
| Postcode: | TA7 |
| Dialling code: | 01823 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Sedgemoor |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Bridgwater & W. Somerset |
Broomfield is a village and parish in the Andersfield hundred of Somerset, situated about five miles north of Taunton. According to the 2011 census it had a population of 249.[1]
The village is the highest village on the Quantock Hills and lies on the Quantock Greenway footpath.
History
Approximately a mile from the village is the Iron Age hill fort of Ruborough Camp. There was a subterranean tunnel, which has now been filed in, which gave the camp safe access to a nearby spring for water.[2]
The estate was owned after the Norman Conquest by William de Mohun of Dunster, 1st Earl of Somerset.[3]
Church
The Church of St Mary and All Saints was built in the 15th and 16th centuries. The church contains the laboratory table of Andrew Crosse, on which he carried out electrical experiments and an obelisk in his memory is in the churchyard.[4]
Fyne Court
Fyne Court a is now a National Trust-owned nature reserve and visitor centre. The Quantock Hills AONB and Somerset Wildlife Trust have their headquarters at the house. Originally the house pleasure grounds of the 19th-century amateur scientist and electrical pioneer, Andrew Crosse, whose family had owned the house from its construction. It burnt down in 1898.[2] His laboratory table on which he carried out experiments stands in the aisle of the Church of St Mary and All Saints in Broomfield and an obelisk in his memory is in the churchyard.[4]
Notable residents
- The politician Lord Rippon of Hexham lived in the village and is buried in the churchyard.[5]
- The Clash vocalist Joe Strummer died from a heart attack at his home there in December 2002.[6]
- The cricketer Alfred Bowerman was born in the village.[7]
References
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Broomfield, Somerset) |
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Statistics for Wards, LSOAs and Parishes — SUMMARY Profiles" (Excel). Somerset Intelligence. http://www.somersetintelligence.org.uk/files/Somerset%20Census%20Key%20Statistics%20-%20Summary%20Profiles.xls. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Waite, Vincent (1964). Portrait of the Quantocks. London: Robert Hale. ISBN 0-7091-1158-4.
- ↑ Bush, Robin (1994). Somerset: The complete guide. Wimborne, Dorset: Dovecote Press. p. 46. ISBN 1-874336-26-1.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Church of St. Mary and All Saints". Images of England. Archived from the original on 4 October 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121004063801/http://www.imagesofengland.org.uk/Details/Default.aspx?id=269264. Retrieved 9 March 2008.
- ↑ "Geoffrey Rippon grave monument in St Mary and All Saints , Broomfield, Somerset, England". Gracevstone Photographic Resource. http://www.gravestonephotos.com/public/gravedetails.php?grave=449626&scrwidth=1600. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
- ↑ "Clash star Strummer dies". BBC. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/2600669.stm. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
- ↑ "Alf Bowerman". Cricket Archive. http://www.cricketarchive.co.uk/Archive/Players/3/3451/3451.html. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
