Frome, Somerset.html



Coordinates: 51°13′40″N 2°19′17″W / 51.2279, -2.3215

Frome
Frome shown within Somerset
Population	204401
OS grid reference	ST775477
District	Mendip
Shire county	Somerset
Region	South West
Constituent country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	FROME
Postcode district	BA11
Dialling code	01373
Police	Avon and Somerset
Fire	Devon and Somerset
Ambulance	South Western
European Parliament	South West England
UK Parliament	Somerton and Frome
List of places: UK • England • Somerset

Frome (pronunciation (help·info)) (pronounced /ˈfruːm/) is a medium-sized town and civil parish in Somerset, England, near the Mendip Hills.

From AD 950 to 1650, it was larger than Bath, 13 miles (21 km) to the north. The town originally grew due to the weaving industry, and weavers' cottages can still be found, contrasting with Georgian terraces. The town has grown substantially in recent years but still retains its centre, most of which falls within a conservation area.

Notable modern day attractions include the museum, the Cheese and Grain hall now an entertainment venue, and the restored Rook Lane Chapel.

History

The Saxon occupation of Frome (Froome) is the earliest of which there is evidence, the settlement being due to the foundation of a monastery by Aldhelm in 685.² A witenagemot was held there in 934, so that Frome must already have been a place of some size.² At the time of the Domesday Survey the manor was owned by King William. Local tradition asserts that Frome was a medieval borough, and the reeve of Frome is occasionally mentioned in documents after the reign of Edward I, but there is no direct evidence that Frome was a borough and no trace of any charter granted to it. It was not represented in parliament until given one member by the Reform Act of 1832. Separate representation ceased in 1885. Frome was never incorporated.

A charter of Henry VII to Edmund Leversedge, then lord of the manor, granted the right to have fairs on July 22 and September 21. In the 18th century two other fairs on February 24 and November 25 were held.² Cattle fairs are now held on the last Wednesday in February and November, and a cheese fair on the last Wednesday in September. The Wednesday market is held under the charter of Henry VII. There is also a Saturday cattle market at nearby Standerwick. The manufacture of woollen cloth has been established since the 15th century,³ Frome being the only Somerset town in which this staple industry has flourished continuously.⁴ From 1665 to 1725 major expansion, including the bulding of a new artisans suburb to the west of Trinity street occured.⁵

Following the Monmouth Rebellion during which the forces of the Duke of Monmouthcamped in Frome on the 27th June 1685, 12 men were hanged in the town.⁶

In 2003, Frome was granted Fairtrade Town status.⁷

Governance

Frome is the largest town within the Somerset non-metropolitan district of Mendip, although the administrative centre is Shepton Mallet.

The Frome Parliament constituency returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1832, until it was abolished for the 1950 general election. Frome itself being transferred to the Wells division but most of the remainder of the constituency forming the bulk of the new Somerset North which was itself abolished again for the 1983 general election becoming Somerton and Frome. The current representative is Liberal Democrat MP David Heath CBE, although the seat has been contested for many years by the Conservatives. During the general election of 2005, in which 70% of those eligible turned out to vote, David Heath increased his majority to over 800 votes (1.5% of the total).⁸

It is within the South West England (European Parliament constituency) which elects seven MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.

Frome has two twin towns: Château-Gontier, France and Murrhardt, Germany.

Geography

It is unevenly built on high ground above the River Frome, which is here crossed by a stone bridge of five arches. It was formerly called Frome or Froome Selwood, after the neighbouring forest of Selwood;² and the country surround is still richly wooded and picturesque.

Suburbs

Frome's main suburban areas are :-

• Fromefield
• Critchill
• Welshmill
• Stonebridge
• Innox Hill
• Keyford
• Berkley Down
• Marston Gate
• Clink
• Trinity
• Wallbridge
• Packsaddle

Demography

Population of the urban district in 1901 was 11,057. In 2002 this figure has grown to 20440.¹

Landmarks

The Blue House, a grade I listed building

The market-hall, museum, school of art, and a free grammar school, founded under Edward VI, may be noted among buildings and institutions. The chief industries are brewing and art metal-working, also printing, metal-founding, and the manufacture of cloth, silk, tools and cards for wool dressing. Dairy farming is largely practised in the neighbourhood. Selwood Forest was long a favourite haunt of brigands, and even in the 18th century gave shelter to a gang of coiners and highwaymen.

The Blue House

Formerly the Bluecoat School and Almshouses. It was named Bluecoat school due to the colour of the school uniforms. Built in 1726, it now provides studio and one bedroom flats for 17 elderly residents. It is a grade I listed building.⁹

Rook Lane Chapel

Rook Lane Chapel is a noncomformist chapel built in 1705 which closed in the 1960s. It is now owned by a firm of architects who converted the Chapel into a community facility with the galleried upper floor is used as office space. It is a grade I listed building.¹⁰

Tunnels

Frome is reputed to have a systems of tunnels beneath the streets of the town centre. Some entrances are visible above ground e.g. in the wall at the top of Stoney Street, with other entrances in the cellars of shops and houses. Their purpose and full extent remains unknown, but they have been under investigation in recent years by at least one local group and a documentary has been made¹¹

Transport

Frome station was opened in 1850 and is one of the oldest railway stations still in operation in Britain, served by rail and lies on the Bristol to Weymouth line. Trains are operated by First Great Western and the town's train station can be found off Wallbridge, to the east of the town.

The branch railway line which previously served Frome from Radstock is now the route of National Cycle Route 24, otherwise known as the Colliers Way.

Frome has several minor roads and lies on the A362 road close to its junction with the A361.

Education

The town's main college, Frome Community College, has specialist "media arts" status.

Culture

Frome has a thriving arts scene with an arts centre The Black Swan,¹² two theatres; The Merlin a 240 seat Theatre on the college campus¹³ and Frome Memorial Theatre, which was built in 1924 in memory of the fallen of the First World War,¹⁴ and is part of the West Country Carnival circuit.

The Cheese and Grain, a former farm produce warehouse which was converted into a market and concert hall in 1997, hosts a variety of bands with a capacity of up to 800.¹⁵ Local musicians include American saxophonist Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis; hardcore punk band "Baysix" and the Beatles' tribute "Sgt. Pepper's Only Dart Board Band".

Frome's only Cinema, the Westway, can be found in Cork Street in the town centre.¹⁶

Frome Festival

The annual ten-day Frome Festival, starting the first Friday in July, with more than 160 events held at various venues in and around the town.¹⁷

Religious sites

The parish church of St John the Baptist, was built between the late 12th century and early 15th century replacing a saxon building that had stood since 685AD. It is a grade II* listed building.¹⁸

Sports

Football

Frome Town Sports FC, affiliated to Frome Town FC, provides football to all ages from under 6's upwards. Frome Town Sports is an FA Charter Standard Club and member of the Somerset FA.¹⁹ Frome Collegians Football Club is an organisation dedicated to the community and youth activities through the sport of football. It is a Charter Standard Club and a member of the Somerset FA.²⁰ Badgers Hill (or as it is currently known The AlderSmith Stadium) is the home of Western Football League side Frome Town F.C. The Frome Town ladies' team also play at Badgers Hill . The ladies section runs a first and reserves team and a girls team. Frome currently has several notable young players playing at profesional clubs, George Pawley (Bolton Wanderers F.C.), Christopher Stokes (Bolton Wanderers) Ryan Child (Eastern Illinois University)

Cricket

Frome Cricket Club play cricket at the Showground on the Bath side of town. The club was formed in 1925²¹ and, for the 2007 season, play in the West of England Premier League: Somerset Division. Somerset County Cricket Club used to use the ground and Harold Gimblett made his debut at the venue in May 1935. The club's most famed players are Colin Herbert Dredge, who played county cricket 209 times for Somerset from 1976-1988 and Mark Harmon, who played for both Somerset and Kent.

Rugby

Formed in 1883, Frome Rugby Club play at Gypsy Lane. They have four senior teams and a thriving mini and junior section. The First XV, Second XV and Third XV all play in the South West Division of the English Clubs Rugby Union Championship; the First XV play in Southern Counties South, the Second XV in Dorset and Wilts One South and the Third XV in Dorset and Wilts Three West. The Fourth XV, known as the Cavalry, play friendly, social fixtures against other local sides.

Notable people

• Formula 1 racing driver Jenson Button originates from Frome. His mother still lives nearby.
• Lois Maxwell, Miss Moneypenny in the James Bond film series from 1962–1985, lived in Frome from 1994–2001.
• Alfred Pee Wee Ellis (born 1941 in Bradenton, Florida) is an American saxophonist, composer and arranger. He was an important member of James Brown's band in the 1960s and appeared on many of Brown's most notable recordings. He also worked closely with Van Morrison.
• Richard Vranch of Whose Line Is It Anyway? and Comedy Store fame was also born in Frome on June 29, 1959.
• Dr Stephen Vranch, past President of the Institute of Chemical Engineers, was also born in Frome on May 19, 1946.
• Charlie Higson Comedian of The Fast Show fame was born in Frome in 1958.
• Cara Dillon Folk singer currently is a Frome resident.

Cultural references

Frome's Cheap Street is a location in episode six of the first series of BBC TV comedy The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin.²² Frome has also provided the backdrop to historical dramas, such as Drover's Gold, filmed by BBC Wales in 1996.²³

Gallery of images

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Frome

Museum on North Parade	Market Place	Rook Lane Chapel	House on Bath Street
View up Gentle Street	Houses on Gentle Street	View down Gentle Street	St Catherine's Hill
Cheap Street	Sheppards Barton	The Blue House

References

External links

• Frome Town Council
• Frome Towntalk
• Fairtrade Frome
• Photos of Frome in 3d (Anaglyphs)

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.