| Dulverton | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Dulverton Location withinSomerset | |
| Population | 1,408 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | SS9128 |
| Civil parish |
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| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | DULVERTON |
| Postcode district | TA22 |
| Dialling code | 01398 |
| Police | Avon and Somerset |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| UK Parliament | |
| 51°02′46″N3°33′00″W / 51.046°N 3.550°W /51.046; -3.550 | |
Dulverton is a town andcivil parish in westSomerset, England, near the border withDevon. The town had a population of 1,408 at the2011 Census.[2] The parish includes the hamlets ofBattleton andAshwick which is located approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) north west of Dulverton.
To the west of the hamlet liesAshwick House, built in the Edwardian style in 1901.[3] Also nearby is the estate ofNorthmoor, formerly a seat ofSir Frederick Wills, 1st Baronet of Northmoor, one of the fourWills Baronetcys, and the founders of theImperial Tobacco Company. In 1929 Sir Frederick's son & heir,Sir Gilbert Wills, 2nd Baronet, was raised to thepeerage asBaron Dulverton, whose principal seat was atBatsford Park, nearBatsford,Gloucestershire.
Dulverton is a populartourist destination for exploringExmoor, and is home to theExmoor National Park Authority headquarters. The town lies on the route of the Exe Valley Way and Land's End Trail.
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The name Dulverton was first recorded in 1084 asdieglaford-tun meaning 'the settlement at the hidden ford'.[4] TheDomesday Book of 1086 records it asDolvertune, and suggests it was a royal manor before theNorman Conquest.[5]
The parish also once contained the place Tolchet, noted as one of the relatively rare examples of an English place with a name deriving fromCommon Brittonic. It seems to comprise the words found in modern Welsh astwll ('hole, cave') andcoed ('woodland'), the name being paralleled by several Welsh places calledTyllgoed, the Cornish place-nameTolgus, and the now-lost Breton place-nameToulgoat, along with place-names in England includingOlchard.[6][7]: 332
The town lies below theIron Agehillforts ofOldberry Castle,[5]Mounsey Castle[4] andBrewer's Castle.[8]
The manor was granted to the Turbervilles byWilliam I and in the late 12th century they gave the church and some land toTaunton Priory. The remainder of the manor passed to the Shete family.[5] The parish of Dulverton was part of theWilliton and FreemannersHundred.[9]
The Middle Ages saw continued growth and the establishment of fairs and markets, with several small industries based upon the traditions of uplandfarming and thewool trade.[4] These include related works such aslaundries; originally used for the washing of sheep fleeces in theleats feeding the wide and fast-flowingRiver Barle, the surviving 19th-century industrial laundries[10] continue to provide a service to surrounding businesses. The market house in Fore Street, which is believed to date from 1760, was re-modelled to becomeDulverton Town Hall in 1866,[4] with the porch and external double staircase being added in 1930 by SirAlbert Richardson.[11]
The manor of Dulverton was purchased in 1568 by the Sydenham family seated atCombe House, on the opposite side of the River Barle to Dulverton, a junior branch of the ancientde Sydenham family which originated at themanor ofSydenham, nearBridgwater in Somerset, of which other branches were seated in Somerset atCombe Sydenham, Orchard Sydenham (later calledOrchard Wyndham) andBrympton d'Evercy, which latter remained the seat of theSydenham baronets, which title was created in 1641.[12] In 1858 the Sydenhams sold the manor to theEarl of Carnarvon[4] ofPixton Park, Dulverton.George Sydenham Clarke, 1st Baron Sydenham of Combe (1848–1933) took his title from Combe, Dulverton.
Exmoor House was built as the Dulverton Union Workhouse in 1855. It is now the headquarters of the Exmoor National Park Authority.[13][14]
Dr Charles Palk Collyns (1793–1864) set up as a surgeon and apothecary in Dulverton in 1814. Dr Collyns moved into Bilboa House in 1820, where he authored The Chase of the Wild Red Deer; his grave stone is located at All Saints' Church in Dulverton.
Private housing stock generally ranges from medium-size to substantialGeorgian to lateVictorian family houses, with a small estate of post-war modern houses andbungalows to the east of the town centre.
The town council (parish council) has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council's operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The town council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, andneighbourhood watch groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The town council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the unitary authority on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council.
The town falls within the unitary authority of Somerset, which was established on 1 April 2023 from the merger of Somerset County Council and four district authorities. It was previously in thenon-metropolitan district ofSomerset West and Taunton, which was established on 1 April 2019, having been in the district ofWest Somerset, which was formed on 1 April 1974 under theLocal Government Act 1972, and before that inDulverton Rural District.[15] Somerset Council is responsible for the former district services includingbuilding control, local roads,council housing,environmental health,markets and fairs,refuse collection andrecycling,cemeteries andcrematoria, leisure services, parks, andtourism as well as county-level services such aseducation,social services,libraries, main roads,public transport,policing andfire services,trading standards,waste disposal and strategic planning.
As Dulverton falls within theExmoor National Park some functions normally administered by district or county councils have, since 1997, fallen under the Exmoor National Park Authority, which is known as a 'single purpose' authority, which aims to "conserve and enhance the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of the National Parks" and "promote opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of the special qualities of the Parks by the public",[16] including responsibility for local planning and conservation of the natural and historic environment.[17]
Dulverton is the most populous area of theelectoral ward called 'Dulverton and District'. The ward stretches north fromDulverton toWinsford. The total population of the ward at the2011 Census was 2,491.[18]
It is also part of theTiverton and Mineheadcounty constituency represented in theHouse of Commons of theParliament of the United Kingdom. It elects oneMember of Parliament (MP) by thefirst past the post system of election.
The town lies in the deep, woodedvalley of theRiver Barle, at an ancient route convergence and river crossing.[5] The river and theBarle Valley are both designated asbiological Site of Special Scientific Interest. The river passes under theTarr Steps, aprehistoricclapper bridge possibly dating from 1000 BC. The stone slabs weigh up to 5 tons each. According to local legend, they were placed by the devil to win a bet. The bridge is 180 feet (55 m) long and has 17 spans.[19] It has been designated byEnglish Heritage as a grade Ilisted building.[20] The other bridges over the Barle include the five spanBarle Bridge which is medieval in origin. It has double rings on the downstream side and single rings on the upstream side.[21] It was repaired in 1624, and subsequently widened in 1819 by John Stone.[21] It was further repaired in 1866 and in 1952–1953 after flood damage.[22] The 18th-century Marsh Bridge was altered in 1866 when the central pier was removed and an iron bridge inserted. The parapet was destroyed in 1952 and reconstructed in steel in 1979.[23] TowardsBrushford the River Barle is crossed by the New Bridge dating from 1870, which led toPixton Park,[24] which was the home ofJohn Dyke Acland and his wifeHarriet Acland and later the family ofEvelyn Waugh andAuberon Waugh.
The other major river in the parish is theRiver Exe, which is on the parish boundary withBrompton Regis, which is crossed by the medieval Chilly Bridge[25] and Hele Bridge,[26] and the 18th century Weir Bridge.[27]
In between the town centre and the river is a large recreationmeadow which recently underwent renovation by locals (including the pupils of Dulverton Middle School) supported by aBarclays Bank New Futures Scheme.
South of the town isBriggins Moor a biologicalSite of Special Scientific Interest which provides an example of unimproved mire of a type which is restricted to south-west England and Wales and which has been significantly reduced in extent in the recent past. Purple moor-grass (Molinia caerulea) and meadow thistle (Cirsium dissectum) are abundant. There is a large colony of themarsh fritillary butterfly (Eurodryas aurinia).[28]
| Climate data for Dulverton (Liscombe), Elevation: 348 m (1,142 ft), 1991–2020 normals | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 12.5 (54.5) | 16.0 (60.8) | 19.4 (66.9) | 22.6 (72.7) | 24.7 (76.5) | 28.6 (83.5) | 30.5 (86.9) | 30.0 (86.0) | 27.2 (81.0) | 24.8 (76.6) | 17.7 (63.9) | 13.6 (56.5) | 30.5 (86.9) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 6.4 (43.5) | 6.8 (44.2) | 8.8 (47.8) | 11.6 (52.9) | 14.6 (58.3) | 17.3 (63.1) | 19.0 (66.2) | 18.8 (65.8) | 16.7 (62.1) | 12.9 (55.2) | 9.4 (48.9) | 7.0 (44.6) | 12.5 (54.5) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 4.1 (39.4) | 4.1 (39.4) | 5.7 (42.3) | 7.8 (46.0) | 10.6 (51.1) | 13.3 (55.9) | 15.1 (59.2) | 15.1 (59.2) | 13.1 (55.6) | 10.1 (50.2) | 6.9 (44.4) | 4.6 (40.3) | 9.2 (48.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 1.7 (35.1) | 1.5 (34.7) | 2.6 (36.7) | 4.1 (39.4) | 6.5 (43.7) | 9.3 (48.7) | 11.2 (52.2) | 11.4 (52.5) | 9.5 (49.1) | 7.2 (45.0) | 4.4 (39.9) | 2.2 (36.0) | 6.0 (42.8) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −7.5 (18.5) | −8.0 (17.6) | −7.9 (17.8) | −3.6 (25.5) | −0.8 (30.6) | 3.2 (37.8) | 5.3 (41.5) | 5.6 (42.1) | 2.3 (36.1) | −2.2 (28.0) | −6.4 (20.5) | −8.8 (16.2) | −8.8 (16.2) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 155.9 (6.14) | 121.0 (4.76) | 108.6 (4.28) | 87.6 (3.45) | 84.6 (3.33) | 88.0 (3.46) | 97.3 (3.83) | 114.3 (4.50) | 108.7 (4.28) | 154.5 (6.08) | 167.0 (6.57) | 180.0 (7.09) | 1,467.5 (57.78) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 17.9 | 14.9 | 14.8 | 12.2 | 12.0 | 11.8 | 12.8 | 14.4 | 13.3 | 17.4 | 18.4 | 18.3 | 178.1 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 49.4 | 68.4 | 100.4 | 162.8 | 178.5 | 187.0 | 182.9 | 165.4 | 136.5 | 95.4 | 60.3 | 54.4 | 1,441.4 |
| Source 1:Met Office[29] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: Starlings Roost Weather[30] | |||||||||||||
Two miles from Dulverton is the village ofBrushford, where theDulverton railway station on theTaunton toBarnstaple line used to be. It opened in 1873 and closed to passengers, who transferred to Dulverton by bus, in October 1966. The station buildings are still visible and it is clear where the lines used to run as the railway embankment is still visible and worn in places although the rails have been lifted.
The parishChurch of All Saints in Bank Square has a tower from the 15th century, which was extensively restored between 1853 and 1855 when the rest of church was rebuilt byEdward Ashworth. It has been designated as Grade II*listed building.[31]
The Congregational Church in Chapel Street was built in the 19th century with adjoining schoolrooms.[32]
Two ships of theRoyal Navy have been named HMSDulverton after the Dulverton Hunt. The first,HMS Dulverton (L63), launched in 1941, was a type IIHunt-classdestroyer. She served in the Second World War and was scuttled in 1943 after being severely damaged by German air attack. The second and currentHMS Dulverton (M35), launched in 1982, is aHunt-classminesweeper.
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