Yeovil
Encyclopedia
Yeovil is a town and civil parish in south Somerset
, England. The parish had a population of 27,949 at the 2001 census, although the wider urban area had a population of 42,140. The town lies within the local district of South Somerset
and the Yeovil parliamentary constituency.
It has palaeolithic remains, was on an old Roman
road and was recorded in the Domesday Book
as the town of Givle, and later became a centre for the glove making industry. During the Middle Ages
the population of the town suffered from the Black Death
and several serious fires. In the 20th century it developed into a centre of the aircraft and defence industries, which made it a target for bombing in the Second World War
, with one of the largest employers being AgustaWestland
who manufacture helicopters. Several other manufacturing and retail companies also have bases in the town. In the 21st century Yeovil became the first town in Britain to institute a system of biometric fingerprint
scanning in nightclubs and the first English council to ban the children's craze Heelys
. Plans have been proposed for various regeneration projects in the town.
Yeovil Country Park, which includes Ninesprings
, is one of several open spaces in the town. There are a range of educational, cultural and sporting facilities. Religious sites include the 14th-century Church of St John the Baptist
. It is on the A30
and A37
roads and has two railway stations on two separate railway lines. Yeovil Pen Mill
is on the Bristol to Weymouth line
served by First Great Western
train operating company
services, whilst Yeovil Junction
is on the London Waterloo to Exeter line
served by South West Trains
. There is also a small railway museum
.
golden torc
(twisted collar) was found. Yeovil was on the main Roman road
from Dorchester to the Fosse Way
at Ilchester
. The route of the old road is aligned with the A37
from Dorchester, Hendford Hill, Rustywell, across the Westland site, to Larkhill Road, and Vagg Lane, rejoining the A37 at the Halfway House pub on the Ilchester Road. The Westland site has evidence of a small Roman town. There were several Roman villa
s (estates) in the area, including finds at East Coker
, West Coker
and Lufton.
Yeovil was first mentioned in about 880 as Gifle. The name was derived from the Celtic
river-name gifl "forked river", an earlier name of the River Yeo
. The town was recorded in the Domesday Book
as Givele, a thriving market community. The parish of Yeovil was part of the Stone
Hundred. After the Norman Conquest
the manor, later known as Hendford, was granted to the Count of Eu and his tenant Hugh Maltravers, whose descendants became Earls of Arundel
and held the lordship
until 1561. In 1205 it was granted a charter by King John
. By the 14th century, the town had gained the right to elect a portreeve
. The Black Death
exacted a heavy toll, killing approximately half the population. In 1499 a major fire broke out in the town, destroying many of the wooden, thatched roofed buildings. Yeovil suffered further serious fires, in 1620 and again in 1643. After the dissolution of the monasteries
the lord of the manor was the family of John Horsey
of Clifton Maybank
from 1538–1610 and then by the Phelps family until 1846 when it passed to the Harbins of Newton Surmaville
. Babylon Hill
across the River Yeo to the south east of the town was the site of a minor skirmish, the Battle of Babylon Hill, during the English Civil War
, which resulted in the Earl of Bedford
's Roundheads forcing back Sir Ralph Hopton's Cavaliers to Sherborne
.
During the 1800s Yeovil was a centre of the glove
making industry and the population expanded rapidly. In the mid-19th century it became connected to the rest of Britain by a complex set of railway lines which resulted from competition between the broad gauge
lines of the Great Western Railway
(GWR) and the standard gauge
lines of the London and South Western Railway
(LSWR).
The first railway in the town was a branch line from the Bristol and Exeter Railway
near Taunton
to a terminus at on the western side of the town, which opened on 1 October 1853. As an associated company of the GWR, this was a broad gauge line. The GWR itself opened Yeovil Pen Mill railway station
on the east side of the town as part of its route from London
on 1 September 1856 (this was extended to Weymouth on 1 January 1857), and the original line from Taunton was connected to this. The LSWR route from London
reached Hendford on 1 June 1860 but a month later the town was by-passed by the extension of the LSWR to Exeter
. A new station at was provided south of the town from where passengers could catch a connecting service to Hendford. On 1 June 1861 passenger trains were withdrawn from Hendford and transferred to a new, more central, Yeovil Town railway station
.
In 1854, the town gained borough status and had its first mayor. In the early 20th century Yeovil had around 11,000 inhabitants and was dominated by the defence industry, making it a target of German raids during World War II
. The worst of the bombing was in 1940 and continued until 1942. During that time 107 high explosive bombs fell on the town. 49 people died, 68 houses were totally destroyed and 2,377 damaged.
Industrial businesses developed in the area around the Hendford railway goods station to such a degree that a small was opened on 2 May 1932 for passengers travelling to and from this district, but the growth of road transport and a desire to rationalise the rail network lead to half of the railway stations in Yeovil being closed in 1964. First to go was Hendford Halt which was closed on 15 June along with the line to Taunton, then closed on 2 October . Long-distance trains from Pen Mill
had been withdrawn on 11 September 1961 leaving only with a service to London, but the service between there and Pen Mill, the two remaining stations, was also withdrawn from 5 May 1968.
In April 2006 Yeovil became the first town in Britain to institute a somewhat controversial system of biometric fingerprint
scanning in nightclubs. Individuals wishing to gain access to one of the town's nightclubs were asked in the first instance to submit their personal details for inclusion in a central system. This included a photograph and index fingerprint. Thereafter, each entry to one of the participating premises will require a fingerprint scan. If the system is proved successful at reducing crime and violence, it will be introduced in towns throughout the country. In February 2007, Yeovil Town Council became the first English council to ban the children's craze Heelys
in the centre of the town and High Street. Skateboard
s, roller skates
and roller blades are also illegal in the area. Councillors have stated this is due to "numerous complaints about the activities of youngsters".
In late July 2007, South Somerset District Council plans were made public by the Western Gazette
to build a £21 m 'Yeovil Sports Zone' on Yeovil Recreation Ground, which has been a popular open green space used by the local community for over seventy years. Residents fought to protect the Rec, leading to rejection of the proposals in 2009, and further consultations in 2010.
The free, informal recreational space of Mudford Rec, as it is known colloquially, was frequented by England Cricket great Ian Botham
during his childhood stay in Yeovil. Another regeneration project was to have included the demolition of Foundry House, a former glove factory, however a local campaign led to this becoming a listed building and it will now be converted into a restaurant and offices and new shop and houses will be built on the surrounding site.
Officially designated as Yeovil Municipal Borough in 1854, the town continued to lend its name to the area with the creation of the local government district of Yeovil on 1 April 1974, with the merging several neighbouring rural and urban districts, which is today known as South Somerset
. Some of the suburbs fall within the civil parishes of Yeovil Without
and Brympton
.
Yeovil still has a town council which took over the functions of the Charter Trustees in 1982. The council has responsibility for the management of recreational and leisure facilities, open spaces and play areas. In 2005, Yeovil Town Council became the first large council in Somerset to be awarded Quality Town Council status.
Yeovil is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP)
by the first past the post system of election. The constituency covers the towns of Yeovil, Chard
, Crewkerne
and Ilminster
in Somerset
. Until 1983 Somerset
was split into four constituencies and Yeovil constituency also contained the towns of Ilchester
, Martock
and Somerton
but they were moved into the newly created constituency of Somerton and Frome. From the next election, Yeovil constituency will contain Ilchester
once again to equalise the populations of the Somerset constituencies. The Boundary Commission for England estimate the electorate of Yeovil constituency after the pending boundary changes to be 77,049. The current MP is David Laws
, a member of the Liberal Democrats.
Residents of Yeovil also form part of the electorate for the South West England
constituency for elections to the European Parliament
.
, South Africa
, a suburb called Yeoville which has a link to Yeovil. It was proclaimed in 1890 by one Thomas Yeo Sherwell, a native of Yeovil. He named the streets after his sons, friends and business associates.
, 130 miles (209 km) from London
, 40 miles (64 km) south of Bristol
and 30 miles (48 km) from Taunton
. The suburbs include: Summerlands, Hollands, Houndstone, Preston Plucknett
, Penn Mill, New Town, Hendford, Old Town, Forest Hill, Abbey Manor, Great Lyde.
Outlying villages include East Coker
, West Coker
, Hardington, Evershot
, Halstock
, Stoford, Barwick
, Sutton Bingham, Mudford
and Yetminster
. Other nearby villages include Bradford Abbas
, Thornford
Corscombe
, Montacute
(where one will find Montacute House
), and Pendomer. The village of Brympton
, now almost a suburb
of Yeovil, contains the medieval manor
of Brympton d'Evercy
. Tintinhull
is also a village close to Yeovil featuring the National Trust owned Tintinhull House and Gardens
.
Ninesprings Country Park
is in the south east near Penn Hill. It is linked to by a cycleway following the route of the old railway to Riverside Walk, Wyndham Hill and Summerhouse Hill forming the 40 hectares (98.8 acre) Yeovil Country Park.
, Yeovil has a temperate climate which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of the country. The annual mean temperature is approximately 10 °C (50 °F) and shows a seasonal and a diurnal
variation, but due to the modifying effect of the sea the range is less than in most other parts of the UK. January is the coldest month with mean minimum temperatures between 1 °C (33.8 °F) and 2 °C (35.6 °F). July and August are the warmest months in the region with mean daily maxima around 21 °C (69.8 °F).
The south-west of England has a favoured location with respect to the Azores
high pressure when it extends its influence north-eastwards towards the UK, particularly in summer. Convective cloud often forms inland however, especially near hills, reducing the number of hours of sunshine. The average annual sunshine totals around 1,600 hours.
Rainfall tends to be associated with Atlantic depressions
or with convection. The Atlantic depressions are more vigorous in autumn and winter and most of the rain which falls in those seasons in the south-west is from this source. Average rainfall is about 725 millimetres (28.5 in). November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, with June to August having the lightest winds. The predominant wind direction is from the south-west.
which has a population of 7260 and Brympton
with 5268.
AgustaWestland
manufactures helicopters in Yeovil, and Normalair Garratt
, builder of aircraft oxygen systems, is also based in the town.
Yeovil's reputation as a centre of the aircraft and defence industries lived on into the 21st century despite attempts at diversification, and the creation of numerous industrial estates, the principal employer is the aviation group AgustaWestland. This firm was created through the acquisition of Westland Helicopters
by Agusta in 2000. In January 1986 the proposed sale of Westland to the American Sikorsky Aircraft
group led to the Westland affair
, a crisis in the Thatcher
government, the resignation of Michael Heseltine
as Secretary of State for Defence
and the resignation two weeks later of the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, Leon Brittan, after his admission of leaking of a governmental law officer's letter which harshly criticised Mr Heseltine.
Yeovil Aerodrome
, sometimes known as Yeovil/Westland (to avoid confusion with nearby RNAS Yeovilton
), is located 1 nautical miles (1.9 km) west of the town centre. British defence giant BAE Systems
also operate a site which produces high-integrity networked software solutions primarily for the military.
The Screwfix
company is based in Houndstone having started life as the Woodscrew Supply Company in 1979. However the warehouse was relocated to Stoke-on-Trent following failure to gain planning permission for building expansion.
The Quedam Shopping Centre
is a complex of around 45 shops. As well as the usual array of British high street shops, the centre houses several independent retailers and a multi-storey car park of approximately 650 spaces.
The Yeovil Times
is a free weekly newspaper, published and distributed in South Somerset, in association with the Western Gazette
. It is owned by Northcliffe Media
, part of the Daily Mail and General Trust
newsgroup. Its content is a largely based on local issues.
One of the symbols of Yeovil is "Jack the Treacle Eater", a folly
consisting of a small archway topped by a turret with a statue on top. This is actually located in the village of Barwick
, just to the south of the town. The hamstone
Abbey Farm House
was built around 1420 by John Stourton II, known as Jenkyn, and the associated Abbey Barn
dates from the same period.
The Museum of South Somerset
is in Hendford, and based in the former coach house to Hendford Manor. There are displays of local history and geology particularly local industries such as leather and glove-making, flax and hemp production, stone working, engineering and newspaper printing. The manor house itself was built around 1720 and has since been converted into offices. It is a Grade II* listed building. Newton Surmaville
is a small park and house which is also known as Newton House. It was built between 1608 and 1612, for Robert Harbin, a Yeovil merchant. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade I listed building.
Yeovil has two theatres; The Octagon, and The Swan, a ten-screen cinema and 18-lane ten-pin bowling alley. Yeovil District Hospital
NHS Foundation Trust
provides local health services. The Yeovil Railway Centre
is a small railway museum at Yeovil Junction
. It was created in 1993 in response to British Rail
's decision to remove the turntable from Yeovil Junction. Approximately 0.25 miles (402.3 m) of track along the Clifton Maybank spur is used for demonstration trains.
served by First Great Western
train operating company
services, whilst is on the London Waterloo to Exeter line
served by South West Trains
. Both stations are situated some distance from the centre of Yeovil, with Pen Mill station being just under 1 miles (1.6 km) to the east and Junction station being just over 1 miles (1.6 km) to the south. Bus services link the town centre with Yeovil Junction operated by South West Coaches
except on Sundays and bank holidays when a service is operated by First Avon and Somerset. The latter company also operate a service to Pen Mill,
Yeovil has bus services provided by First Somerset & Avon
, First Hampshire & Dorset
, Nippy Bus
, NORDCAT (Door to Dorset), South West Coaches
, Stagecoach South West and Damory Coaches
along with coach services from National Express
, Berry's Coaches and South West Tours. There are around 62 separate bus routes serving Yeovil as at March 2009, of which four run Wednesday-Saturday nights only, and six of which run on Sundays. Many of the listed services serve Yeovil College
. All bus routes except First Somerset & Avon
local routes towards the Western side of the town serve Yeovil Bus Station.
in Yeovil is principally offered by Yeovil College
, with land-based studies available through a Yeovil centre of Bridgwater College
, and some provision through private providers. It also contains one higher education university centre, University Centre Yeovil. The registered awarding body for the university centre is Bournemouth University
.
Secondary education
in Yeovil is provided by four schools. Westfield Community School
is situated on Stiby Road. It has four main buildings on site and over 15 different facilities. Westfield is a specialist Science College
. Bucklers Mead Community School has specialist Music and Technology Facilities. Past pupils include Sir Ian Botham
. Preston School
is situated on Monks Dale and is under five minutes walk from Westfield School. Preston is a specialist Business and Enterprise College
. Past pupils include actress Sarah Parish
.
The Park School
, situated near to the centre of the town, is Yeovil's independent school offering co-education for day students and boarders.
The Anglican Church of St John The Baptist
dates from the late 14th century. The tower is 92 feet (28 m) high, in four-stages with set back offset corner buttresses. It is capped by openwork balustrading eatching the parapets which are from the 19th century. There are two-light late-14th-century windows on all sides at bell-ringing and bell-chamber levels, the latter having fine pierced stonework grilles. There is a stair turret to the north-west corner, with a Weather vane
termination. The tower contains two bells dating from 1728 and made by Thomas Bilbie of the Bilbie family
in Chew Stoke
. The "Great Bell" was recast from 4502 lb (2,042.1 kg; 321.6 st) to 4992 lb (2,264.3 kg; 356.6 st). It has been designated by English Heritage
as a grade I listed building.
Yeovil also has a Roman Catholic church, Three Methodist Churches — Preston Road, St Marks (Chelston Avenue) & Vicarage Street (Town Centre), Baptist
church in South Street, Salvation Army
, Elim Pentecostal Church
, Yeovil Community Church (Evangelical, based at "The GateWay"), and several other Anglican Churches.
The town's football
team Yeovil Town F.C.
play in green and white livery, at Huish Park
. Known as the "Glovers" (a reference to the town's glove-making past), they won promotion to Division Three
as Football Conference
champions. They had achieved numerous FA Cup
victories over Football League sides in the past 50 years, and since joining the elite they have won promotion again – as League Two
champions in 2005. They came close to yet another promotion in 2007, when they reached the League One
playoff final, but lost to Blackpool
at the newly reopened Wembley Stadium
.
Other football teams within the town include Westland's Sports Football Club and Pen Mill Football Club
Yeovil Olympiads Athletics Club
was founded in 1969, and has produced many international athletes since its creation. The first was Eric Berry who came 6th in the 1973 European Juniors in the hammer event. Olympians who started with the club include Max Robertson and Gary Jennings, both 400 metres hurdlers.
Yeovil is home to Ivel Barbarians Rugby Club. Ivel was formed in 1995 by the merger of Yeovil Rugby Club and Westlands Rugby Club.
Johnson Park
is a multi-purpose sports ground on the northern outskirts of the town and is now home to the Yeovil Sports and Social Club. Between 1951 and 1967, Somerset County Cricket Club
played 12 first-class cricket
matches on the ground, and Somerset also played two List A matches there, one each in 1969 and 1970.
The Goldenstones Pool and Leisure Centre provides a 25 metres (82 ft) swimming pool, separate teaching pool, refurbished & expanded Springs gym, sauna, steam room, spectator area & work out studio.
: Gamesmanship (1947), Lifemanship (1950), One-Upmanship (1952), Supermanship (1958), Anti-Woo (1965) and The Complete Golf Gamesmanship (1968). The books were adapted for the 1960 film School for Scoundrels
, starring Alastair Sim
, Terry-Thomas
, Ian Carmichael
and Irene Handl
. Later they were adapted by Barry Took
into a BBC TV comedy series called One-Upmanship (1974–78), starring Richard Briers
and Peter Jones
. Yeovil was featured as part of The Idler's
"Crap Towns" series. Yeovil is also one of the three principal locations in John Cowper Powys
's 1929 novel, Wolf Solent.
Yeovil is known in Thomas Hardy
's Wessex
as "Ivell". In the novel The English Patient
by Michael Ondaatje
, the character of Maddox is cited as living in the nearby village Marston Magna
.
Local band The Chesterfields
released a single called "Last train to Yeovil" and the pop band Bubblegum Splash also released a song called "18:10 to Yeovil Junction". The folk band Show Of Hands
wrote a song entitled "Yeovil Town" about the violence and criminality they experienced after playing a small gig in Yeovil.
by profession, who lived and died in Yeovil. He is buried in St. John the Baptist Church. His house, located at the edge of town and named Newton Surmaville
, was completed in 1612. Harbin was granted his coat of arms in May 1612 and given the title "Gentleman". He was not knighted. Stukeley Westcott
was an early American (17th century) settler. and the co-founder, with Roger Williams
and 11 others, of Providence, Rhode Island
(1636), an early American religious freedom asylum.
Michael T. Davies
, a traditionalist Catholic writer and public figure was born in Yeovil in 1936, while the film historian William K. Everson
was born in the town in 1929.
Sports people from the town include: Martin Cranie
a Coventry Football Club defender, and Sam Weale
who is an Olympic Pentathlete. The arts are represented by Jim Cregan
, a guitarist with Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel
, the musician John Parish
, and his younger sister the actress Sarah Parish
.
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, England. The parish had a population of 27,949 at the 2001 census, although the wider urban area had a population of 42,140. The town lies within the local district of South Somerset
South Somerset
South Somerset is a local government district in Somerset, England.The South Somerset district covers and area of ranging from the borders with Devon and Dorset to the edge of the Somerset Levels. It has a population of approximately 158,000...
and the Yeovil parliamentary constituency.
It has palaeolithic remains, was on an old Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
road and was recorded in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
as the town of Givle, and later became a centre for the glove making industry. During the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
the population of the town suffered from the Black Death
Black Death
The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...
and several serious fires. In the 20th century it developed into a centre of the aircraft and defence industries, which made it a target for bombing in the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, with one of the largest employers being AgustaWestland
AgustaWestland
AgustaWestland is an Anglo-Italian helicopter design and manufacturing company. It was formed in July 2000 when Finmeccanica S.p.A. and GKN plc agreed to merge their respective helicopter subsidiaries to form AgustaWestland with Finmeccanica and GKN each holding a 50% share.AgustaWestland is now a...
who manufacture helicopters. Several other manufacturing and retail companies also have bases in the town. In the 21st century Yeovil became the first town in Britain to institute a system of biometric fingerprint
Fingerprint
A fingerprint in its narrow sense is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. In a wider use of the term, fingerprints are the traces of an impression from the friction ridges of any part of a human hand. A print from the foot can also leave an impression of friction ridges...
scanning in nightclubs and the first English council to ban the children's craze Heelys
Heelys
Heelys is a brand of roller shoes that have one or more wheels embedded in each sole, similar to inline skates. Thus, the wearer can walk, run, or, by shifting their weight to their heels, roll. Braking can be achieved by lowering the back of the foot so that sole contacts the ground...
. Plans have been proposed for various regeneration projects in the town.
Yeovil Country Park, which includes Ninesprings
Ninesprings
Ninesprings is a country park situated in the South East of Yeovil, Somerset, the United Kingdom. It is the largest country park in South Somerset, spanning over ....
, is one of several open spaces in the town. There are a range of educational, cultural and sporting facilities. Religious sites include the 14th-century Church of St John the Baptist
Church of St John the Baptist, Yeovil
The Church of St John the Baptist in Yeovil, Somerset, England was built in the late 14th century and has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
. It is on the A30
A30 road
The 284 miles A30 road from London to Land's End, historically known as the Great South West Road used to provide the most direct route from London to the south west; more recently the M3 motorway and A303 road performs this function for much of the route and only parts of A30 now retain trunk...
and A37
A37 road
The A37 is a major road in southern England. It runs north from the A35 at Dorchester in Dorset into Somerset through Yeovil and Shepton Mallet before terminating at the Three Lamps junction with the A4 in central Bristol...
roads and has two railway stations on two separate railway lines. Yeovil Pen Mill
Yeovil Pen Mill railway station
Yeovil Pen Mill railway station is one of two stations serving the town of Yeovil, Somerset. The station is situated just under a mile to the east of the town centre.The station is located south of Bristol Temple Meads, on the Heart of Wessex Line...
is on the Bristol to Weymouth line
Heart of Wessex Line
The Heart of Wessex Line, also known as the Bristol to Weymouth line, is a United Kingdom railway line that runs from Bristol to Westbury to Weymouth...
served by First Great Western
First Great Western
First Great Western is the operating name of First Greater Western Ltd, a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that serves Greater London, the South East, South West and West Midlands regions of England, and South Wales....
train operating company
Train operating company
The term train operating company is used in the United Kingdom to describe the various businesses operating passenger trains on the railway system of Great Britain under the collective National Rail brand...
services, whilst Yeovil Junction
Yeovil Junction railway station
Yeovil Junction railway station is the busier of two railway stations serving the town of Yeovil in England. The station is outside the town in the village of Stoford; although Yeovil is in Somerset, the station was in Dorset until 1995. It was opened by the London and South Western Railway in...
is on the London Waterloo to Exeter line
West of England Main Line
The West of England Main Line is a British railway line that runs from , Hampshire to Exeter St Davids in Devon, England. Passenger services run between London Waterloo station and Exeter...
served by South West Trains
South West Trains
South West Trains is a British train operating company providing, under franchise, passenger rail services, mostly out of Waterloo station, to the southwest of London in the suburbs and in the counties of Surrey, Hampshire, Dorset, Devon, Somerset, Berkshire, and Wiltshire and on the Isle of Wight...
. There is also a small railway museum
Yeovil Railway Centre
The Yeovil Railway Centre is a small railway museum at Yeovil Junction on the L&SWR West of England Main Line between Salisbury and Exeter.It was created in 1993 in response to British Rail's decision to remove the turntable from Yeovil Junction. Approximately ¼ mile of track along the Clifton...
.
History
Archaeological surveys have indicated signs of activity from the palaeolithic period, with burial and occupation sites located principally to the south of the modern town, particularly in Hendford where a Bronze AgeBronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
golden torc
Torc
A torc, also spelled torq or torque, is a large, usually rigid, neck ring typically made from strands of metal twisted together. The great majority are open-ended at the front, although many seem designed for near-permanent wear and would have been difficult to remove. Smaller torcs worn around...
(twisted collar) was found. Yeovil was on the main Roman road
Roman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
from Dorchester to the Fosse Way
Fosse Way
The Fosse Way was a Roman road in England that linked Exeter in South West England to Lincoln in Lincolnshire, via Ilchester , Bath , Cirencester and Leicester .It joined Akeman Street and Ermin Way at Cirencester, crossed Watling Street at Venonis south...
at Ilchester
Ilchester
Ilchester is a village and civil parish, situated on the River Yeo or Ivel, five miles north of Yeovil, in the English county of Somerset. The parish, which includes the village of Sock Dennis and the old parish of Northover, has a population of 2,021...
. The route of the old road is aligned with the A37
A37 road
The A37 is a major road in southern England. It runs north from the A35 at Dorchester in Dorset into Somerset through Yeovil and Shepton Mallet before terminating at the Three Lamps junction with the A4 in central Bristol...
from Dorchester, Hendford Hill, Rustywell, across the Westland site, to Larkhill Road, and Vagg Lane, rejoining the A37 at the Halfway House pub on the Ilchester Road. The Westland site has evidence of a small Roman town. There were several Roman villa
Roman villa
A Roman villa is a villa that was built or lived in during the Roman republic and the Roman Empire. A villa was originally a Roman country house built for the upper class...
s (estates) in the area, including finds at East Coker
East Coker
East Coker is a village and civil parish in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England. Its nearest town is Yeovil, which is situated two miles north from the village. The village has a population of 1,781...
, West Coker
West Coker
West Coker is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated south west of Yeovil in the South Somerset district.-History:The name Coker comes from Coker Water ....
and Lufton.
Yeovil was first mentioned in about 880 as Gifle. The name was derived from the Celtic
Celtic languages
The Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic"; a branch of the greater Indo-European language family...
river-name gifl "forked river", an earlier name of the River Yeo
River Yeo (South Somerset)
The River Yeo, also known as the River Ivel or River Gascoigne, is a tributary of the River Parrett in north Dorset and south Somerset, England....
. The town was recorded in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
as Givele, a thriving market community. The parish of Yeovil was part of the Stone
Stone (hundred)
The Hundred of Stone is one of the 40 historical Hundreds in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England, dating from before the Norman conquest during the Anglo-Saxon era although exact dates are unknown. Each hundred had a 'fyrd', which acted as the local defence force and a court which was...
Hundred. After the Norman Conquest
Norman conquest of England
The Norman conquest of England began on 28 September 1066 with the invasion of England by William, Duke of Normandy. William became known as William the Conqueror after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, defeating King Harold II of England...
the manor, later known as Hendford, was granted to the Count of Eu and his tenant Hugh Maltravers, whose descendants became Earls of Arundel
Earl of Arundel
The title Earl of Arundel is the oldest extant Earldom and perhaps the oldest extant title in the Peerage of England. It is currently held by the Duke of Norfolk, and is used by his heir apparent as a courtesy title. It was created in 1138 for the Norman baron Sir William d'Aubigny...
and held the lordship
Lord of the Manor
The Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...
until 1561. In 1205 it was granted a charter by King John
John of England
John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
. By the 14th century, the town had gained the right to elect a portreeve
Portreeve
A portreeve, or 'port warden' is a historical British political appointment with a fluctuating role which evolved over time.The origins of the position are in the reign of Edward the Elder, who, in order to ensure that taxes were correctly exacted, forbade the conducting of trades outside of a...
. The Black Death
Black Death
The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...
exacted a heavy toll, killing approximately half the population. In 1499 a major fire broke out in the town, destroying many of the wooden, thatched roofed buildings. Yeovil suffered further serious fires, in 1620 and again in 1643. After the dissolution of the monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
the lord of the manor was the family of John Horsey
John Horsey (died 1564)
Sir John Horsey JP was a knight of Henry VIII and Lord of the Manors of Clifton Maubank and South Perrott....
of Clifton Maybank
Clifton Maybank
Clifton Maybank is a hamlet in west Dorset, England. It is perhaps best known for Clifton Maybank House, a country house with surviving Tudor fabric.-Clifton Maybank settlement:...
from 1538–1610 and then by the Phelps family until 1846 when it passed to the Harbins of Newton Surmaville
Newton Surmaville
Newton Surmaville is a small park and house south of Yeovil, Somerset in the district of South Somerset, in England. It lies just outside the town in the parish of Barwick.- House :...
. Babylon Hill
Babylon Hill
Babylon Hill in Dorset is a 2.2 hectare geological Site of Special Scientific Interest designated in 1977.It was also the site of a minor skirmish, the Battle of Babylon Hill, during the English Civil War, which resulted in the Earl of Bedford's Roundheads forcing back Sir Ralph Hopton's Cavaliers...
across the River Yeo to the south east of the town was the site of a minor skirmish, the Battle of Babylon Hill, during the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
, which resulted in the Earl of Bedford
Earl of Bedford
Earl of Bedford is a title that has been created three times in the Peerage of England. The first creation came in 1138 in favour Hugh de Beaumont. He appears to have been degraded from the title three or four years after its creation. However, the existence of the title altogether has been...
's Roundheads forcing back Sir Ralph Hopton's Cavaliers to Sherborne
Sherborne
Sherborne is a market town in northwest Dorset, England. It is sited on the River Yeo, on the edge of the Blackmore Vale, east of Yeovil. The A30 road, which connects London to Penzance, runs through the town. The population of the town is 9,350 . 27.1% of the population is aged 65 or...
.
During the 1800s Yeovil was a centre of the glove
Glove
A glove is a garment covering the hand. Gloves have separate sheaths or openings for each finger and the thumb; if there is an opening but no covering sheath for each finger they are called "fingerless gloves". Fingerless gloves with one large opening rather than individual openings for each...
making industry and the population expanded rapidly. In the mid-19th century it became connected to the rest of Britain by a complex set of railway lines which resulted from competition between the broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
lines of the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
(GWR) and the standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
lines of the London and South Western Railway
London and South Western Railway
The London and South Western Railway was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Its network extended from London to Plymouth via Salisbury and Exeter, with branches to Ilfracombe and Padstow and via Southampton to Bournemouth and Weymouth. It also had many routes connecting towns in...
(LSWR).
The first railway in the town was a branch line from the Bristol and Exeter Railway
Bristol and Exeter Railway
The Bristol & Exeter Railway was a railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter.The company's head office was situated outside their Bristol station...
near Taunton
Taunton
Taunton is the county town of Somerset, England. The town, including its suburbs, had an estimated population of 61,400 in 2001. It is the largest town in the shire county of Somerset....
to a terminus at on the western side of the town, which opened on 1 October 1853. As an associated company of the GWR, this was a broad gauge line. The GWR itself opened Yeovil Pen Mill railway station
Yeovil Pen Mill railway station
Yeovil Pen Mill railway station is one of two stations serving the town of Yeovil, Somerset. The station is situated just under a mile to the east of the town centre.The station is located south of Bristol Temple Meads, on the Heart of Wessex Line...
on the east side of the town as part of its route from London
Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway
The Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway was a broad gauge railway that linked the Great Western Railway at Chippenham in 'Wilts' with Weymouth in Dorset, England. Branches ran to Devizes, Bradford-on-Avon and Salisbury in Wiltshire, and to Radstock in Somerset. The majority of the line survives...
on 1 September 1856 (this was extended to Weymouth on 1 January 1857), and the original line from Taunton was connected to this. The LSWR route from London
Salisbury and Yeovil Railway
The Salisbury and Yeovil Railway linked Salisbury , Gillingham and Yeovil in England. Opened in stages in 1859 and 1860, it formed a bridge route between the main London and South Western Railway network and its lines in Devon and Cornwall. Its trains were operated by the LSWR and it was sold to...
reached Hendford on 1 June 1860 but a month later the town was by-passed by the extension of the LSWR to Exeter
Southern Railway routes west of Salisbury
This article describes the history and operation of the railway routes west of Salisbury that ultimately became part of the Southern Railway in the United Kingdom...
. A new station at was provided south of the town from where passengers could catch a connecting service to Hendford. On 1 June 1861 passenger trains were withdrawn from Hendford and transferred to a new, more central, Yeovil Town railway station
Yeovil Town railway station
Yeovil Town railway station was a railway station serving the town of Yeovil in Somerset, England. The station was located on the Yeovil to Taunton Line and also had shuttle services to Pen Mill and Yeovil Junction stations. The station opened on 1 June 1861, replacing an earlier Yeovil Hendford...
.
In 1854, the town gained borough status and had its first mayor. In the early 20th century Yeovil had around 11,000 inhabitants and was dominated by the defence industry, making it a target of German raids during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The worst of the bombing was in 1940 and continued until 1942. During that time 107 high explosive bombs fell on the town. 49 people died, 68 houses were totally destroyed and 2,377 damaged.
Industrial businesses developed in the area around the Hendford railway goods station to such a degree that a small was opened on 2 May 1932 for passengers travelling to and from this district, but the growth of road transport and a desire to rationalise the rail network lead to half of the railway stations in Yeovil being closed in 1964. First to go was Hendford Halt which was closed on 15 June along with the line to Taunton, then closed on 2 October . Long-distance trains from Pen Mill
Yeovil Pen Mill railway station
Yeovil Pen Mill railway station is one of two stations serving the town of Yeovil, Somerset. The station is situated just under a mile to the east of the town centre.The station is located south of Bristol Temple Meads, on the Heart of Wessex Line...
had been withdrawn on 11 September 1961 leaving only with a service to London, but the service between there and Pen Mill, the two remaining stations, was also withdrawn from 5 May 1968.
Fingerprint
A fingerprint in its narrow sense is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. In a wider use of the term, fingerprints are the traces of an impression from the friction ridges of any part of a human hand. A print from the foot can also leave an impression of friction ridges...
scanning in nightclubs. Individuals wishing to gain access to one of the town's nightclubs were asked in the first instance to submit their personal details for inclusion in a central system. This included a photograph and index fingerprint. Thereafter, each entry to one of the participating premises will require a fingerprint scan. If the system is proved successful at reducing crime and violence, it will be introduced in towns throughout the country. In February 2007, Yeovil Town Council became the first English council to ban the children's craze Heelys
Heelys
Heelys is a brand of roller shoes that have one or more wheels embedded in each sole, similar to inline skates. Thus, the wearer can walk, run, or, by shifting their weight to their heels, roll. Braking can be achieved by lowering the back of the foot so that sole contacts the ground...
in the centre of the town and High Street. Skateboard
Skateboard
A skateboard is typically a specially designed plywood board combined with a polyurethane coating used for making smoother slides and stronger durability, used primarily for the activity of skateboarding. The first skateboards to reach public notice came out of the surfing craze of the early 1960s,...
s, roller skates
Roller skates
Roller skates are devices worn on the feet to enable the wearer to roll along on wheels. A first basic type of roller skate consists of a boot with four wheels with ball bearings, arranged in the same configuration as the wheels of a typical car.-History:...
and roller blades are also illegal in the area. Councillors have stated this is due to "numerous complaints about the activities of youngsters".
In late July 2007, South Somerset District Council plans were made public by the Western Gazette
Western Gazette
The Western Gazette is a newspaper, published in Yeovil, Somerset, England.The Western Gazette is published every Thursday with five different editorial editions, named North Dorset, Sherborne/West Dorset, Crewkerne, Yeovil and South Somerset....
to build a £21 m 'Yeovil Sports Zone' on Yeovil Recreation Ground, which has been a popular open green space used by the local community for over seventy years. Residents fought to protect the Rec, leading to rejection of the proposals in 2009, and further consultations in 2010.
The free, informal recreational space of Mudford Rec, as it is known colloquially, was frequented by England Cricket great Ian Botham
Ian Botham
Sir Ian Terence Botham OBE is a former England Test cricketer and Test team captain, and current cricket commentator. He was a genuine all-rounder with 14 centuries and 383 wickets in Test cricket, and remains well-known by his nickname "Beefy"...
during his childhood stay in Yeovil. Another regeneration project was to have included the demolition of Foundry House, a former glove factory, however a local campaign led to this becoming a listed building and it will now be converted into a restaurant and offices and new shop and houses will be built on the surrounding site.
Governance
South Somerset
South Somerset is a local government district in Somerset, England.The South Somerset district covers and area of ranging from the borders with Devon and Dorset to the edge of the Somerset Levels. It has a population of approximately 158,000...
. Some of the suburbs fall within the civil parishes of Yeovil Without
Yeovil Without
Yeovil Without is a civil parish in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England.It lies on the northern edge of Yeovil. It includes both suburbs of Yeovil, including the Bucklers Mead development, and rural areas including the hamlets of Yeovil Marsh and Longcroft. The parish includes Johnson...
and Brympton
Brympton
Brympton is a civil parish and ward in Somerset, UK. The parish is situated on the north-west edge of Yeovil in the South Somerset district. The parish/ward has a population of 4,956...
.
Yeovil still has a town council which took over the functions of the Charter Trustees in 1982. The council has responsibility for the management of recreational and leisure facilities, open spaces and play areas. In 2005, Yeovil Town Council became the first large council in Somerset to be awarded Quality Town Council status.
Yeovil is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP)
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
by the first past the post system of election. The constituency covers the towns of Yeovil, Chard
Chard, Somerset
Chard is a town and civil parish in the Somerset county of England. It lies on the A30 road near the Devon border, south west of Yeovil. The parish has a population of approximately 12,000 and, at an elevation of , it is the southernmost and highest town in Somerset...
, Crewkerne
Crewkerne
Crewkerne is a town in Somerset, England, situated south west of Yeovil and east of Chard in the South Somerset district close to the border with Dorset. The civil parish of West Crewkerne includes the hamlets of Woolminstone and Henley...
and Ilminster
Ilminster
Ilminster is a country town and civil parish in the countryside of south west Somerset, England, with a population of 4,781. Bypassed a few years ago, the town now lies just east of the intersection of the A303 and the A358...
in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
. Until 1983 Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
was split into four constituencies and Yeovil constituency also contained the towns of Ilchester
Ilchester
Ilchester is a village and civil parish, situated on the River Yeo or Ivel, five miles north of Yeovil, in the English county of Somerset. The parish, which includes the village of Sock Dennis and the old parish of Northover, has a population of 2,021...
, Martock
Martock
Martock is a large village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated on the edge of the Somerset Levels north west of Yeovil in the South Somerset district. The parish includes Hurst, approximately one mile south of the village, and Bower Hinton, which is located at the western end of the...
and Somerton
Somerton
Somerton is a small town and civil parish in the South Somerset district of the English county of Somerset. It gave its name to the county of Somerset, was briefly, around the start of the 14th century, the county town, and around 900 AD was possibly the capital of Wessex...
but they were moved into the newly created constituency of Somerton and Frome. From the next election, Yeovil constituency will contain Ilchester
Ilchester
Ilchester is a village and civil parish, situated on the River Yeo or Ivel, five miles north of Yeovil, in the English county of Somerset. The parish, which includes the village of Sock Dennis and the old parish of Northover, has a population of 2,021...
once again to equalise the populations of the Somerset constituencies. The Boundary Commission for England estimate the electorate of Yeovil constituency after the pending boundary changes to be 77,049. The current MP is David Laws
David Laws
David Anthony Laws is a British politician. He is Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Yeovil and former Chief Secretary to the Treasury....
, a member of the Liberal Democrats.
Residents of Yeovil also form part of the electorate for the South West England
South West England (European Parliament constituency)
South West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation, reduced from 7 in 2004.-Boundaries:...
constituency for elections to the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
.
International links
There is, in JohannesburgJohannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, a suburb called Yeoville which has a link to Yeovil. It was proclaimed in 1890 by one Thomas Yeo Sherwell, a native of Yeovil. He named the streets after his sons, friends and business associates.
Geography
Yeovil is situated at the southern boundary of Somerset, close to the border with DorsetDorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, 130 miles (209 km) from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, 40 miles (64 km) south of Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
and 30 miles (48 km) from Taunton
Taunton
Taunton is the county town of Somerset, England. The town, including its suburbs, had an estimated population of 61,400 in 2001. It is the largest town in the shire county of Somerset....
. The suburbs include: Summerlands, Hollands, Houndstone, Preston Plucknett
Preston Plucknett
Preston Plucknett is a suburb of Yeovil in Somerset, England. It was once a small village, and a separate civil parish until 1930, when it was absorbed into the neighbouring parishes of Yeovil, Brympton and West Coker...
, Penn Mill, New Town, Hendford, Old Town, Forest Hill, Abbey Manor, Great Lyde.
Outlying villages include East Coker
East Coker
East Coker is a village and civil parish in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England. Its nearest town is Yeovil, which is situated two miles north from the village. The village has a population of 1,781...
, West Coker
West Coker
West Coker is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated south west of Yeovil in the South Somerset district.-History:The name Coker comes from Coker Water ....
, Hardington, Evershot
Evershot
Evershot is a village in west Dorset, England, south of Yeovil. It is the second highest village in the county , the centre of the village lying at 175 metres above sea-level. The village has a population of 206...
, Halstock
Halstock
Halstock is a village in north west Dorset, England, five miles south of Yeovil, and lies on the route of the ancient Harrow Way. The village has a population of 470 , down from a peak of over 600 in the mid-nineteenth century.-History:...
, Stoford, Barwick
Barwick, Somerset
Barwick is a village and parish in Somerset, England, situated south of Yeovil in the South Somerset district and on the border with Dorset. The parish, which includes the village of Stoford has a population of 1,289.-History:...
, Sutton Bingham, Mudford
Mudford
Mudford is a village and parish in Somerset, England, situated from Yeovil in the South Somerset district on the River Yeo. The village has a population of 649...
and Yetminster
Yetminster
Yetminster is a village in the English county of Dorset. It lies within the West Dorset administrative district of the county, about five miles south-west of the town of Sherborne. It is sited on the River Wriggle, a tributary of the River Yeo, and is built almost entirely of honey-coloured...
. Other nearby villages include Bradford Abbas
Bradford Abbas
Bradford Abbas is a village in north west Dorset, England, three miles south east of Yeovil and five miles south west of Sherborne. The village has a population of 936...
, Thornford
Thornford
Thornford is a village in north west Dorset, England, situated in the Yeo valley four miles south west of Sherborne. Thornford is in Thornhackett Parish, a combined parish comprising the villages of Thornford and Beer Hackett....
Corscombe
Corscombe
Corscombe is a small village in west Dorset, England, halfway between Yeovil and Beaminster. The village has a population of 465 .The musician Polly Jean Harvey is a former resident....
, Montacute
Montacute
Montacute is a small village and civil parish in Somerset, England, west of Yeovil. The village has a population of 680 . The name Montacute is thought by some to derive from the Latin "Mons Acutus", referring to the small but still quite acute hill dominating the village to the west.The village...
(where one will find Montacute House
Montacute House
Montacute House is a late Elizabethan country house situated in the South Somerset village of Montacute. This house is a textbook example of English architecture during a period that was moving from the medieval Gothic to the Renaissance Classical; this has resulted in Montacute being regarded as...
), and Pendomer. The village of Brympton
Brympton
Brympton is a civil parish and ward in Somerset, UK. The parish is situated on the north-west edge of Yeovil in the South Somerset district. The parish/ward has a population of 4,956...
, now almost a suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
of Yeovil, contains the medieval manor
Manorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
of Brympton d'Evercy
Brympton d'Evercy
Brympton d'Evercy is a manor house near Yeovil in the county of Somerset, England. It has been described as the most beautiful house in England, in a country of architecturally pleasing country houses; whatever the truth of that statement, in 1927 the British magazine Country Life published a set...
. Tintinhull
Tintinhull
This article is about a village in England. For the Australian village, see Tintinhull, New South Wales.Tintinhull is a village and civil parish close to the A303 near Yeovil, south west of Ilchester, in Somerset, England...
is also a village close to Yeovil featuring the National Trust owned Tintinhull House and Gardens
Tintinhull
This article is about a village in England. For the Australian village, see Tintinhull, New South Wales.Tintinhull is a village and civil parish close to the A303 near Yeovil, south west of Ilchester, in Somerset, England...
.
Ninesprings Country Park
Ninesprings
Ninesprings is a country park situated in the South East of Yeovil, Somerset, the United Kingdom. It is the largest country park in South Somerset, spanning over ....
is in the south east near Penn Hill. It is linked to by a cycleway following the route of the old railway to Riverside Walk, Wyndham Hill and Summerhouse Hill forming the 40 hectares (98.8 acre) Yeovil Country Park.
Climate
Along with the rest of South West EnglandSouth West England
South West England is one of the regions of England defined by the Government of the United Kingdom for statistical and other purposes. It is the largest such region in area, covering and comprising Bristol, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire, Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. ...
, Yeovil has a temperate climate which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of the country. The annual mean temperature is approximately 10 °C (50 °F) and shows a seasonal and a diurnal
Diurnal motion
Diurnal motion is an astronomical term referring to the apparent daily motion of stars around the Earth, or more precisely around the two celestial poles. It is caused by the Earth's rotation on its axis, so every star apparently moves on a circle, that is called the diurnal circle. The time for...
variation, but due to the modifying effect of the sea the range is less than in most other parts of the UK. January is the coldest month with mean minimum temperatures between 1 °C (33.8 °F) and 2 °C (35.6 °F). July and August are the warmest months in the region with mean daily maxima around 21 °C (69.8 °F).
The south-west of England has a favoured location with respect to the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
high pressure when it extends its influence north-eastwards towards the UK, particularly in summer. Convective cloud often forms inland however, especially near hills, reducing the number of hours of sunshine. The average annual sunshine totals around 1,600 hours.
Rainfall tends to be associated with Atlantic depressions
Low pressure area
A low-pressure area, or "low", is a region where the atmospheric pressure at sea level is below that of surrounding locations. Low-pressure systems form under areas of wind divergence which occur in upper levels of the troposphere. The formation process of a low-pressure area is known as...
or with convection. The Atlantic depressions are more vigorous in autumn and winter and most of the rain which falls in those seasons in the south-west is from this source. Average rainfall is about 725 millimetres (28.5 in). November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, with June to August having the lightest winds. The predominant wind direction is from the south-west.
Demography
The Yeovil urban district had a population of 41,871 at the 2001 census, although the civil parish was home to 27,949. The parish is made up of Yeovil Central Ward which has a population of 7230, Yeovil East 7300, Yeovil South 7802, and Yeovil West 7280. The urban area also includes Yeovil WithoutYeovil Without
Yeovil Without is a civil parish in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England.It lies on the northern edge of Yeovil. It includes both suburbs of Yeovil, including the Bucklers Mead development, and rural areas including the hamlets of Yeovil Marsh and Longcroft. The parish includes Johnson...
which has a population of 7260 and Brympton
Brympton
Brympton is a civil parish and ward in Somerset, UK. The parish is situated on the north-west edge of Yeovil in the South Somerset district. The parish/ward has a population of 4,956...
with 5268.
| Population since 1801 - Source: A Vision of Britain through Time | |||||||||||||
| Year | 1801 | 1851 | 1901 | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 | 1941 | 1951 | 1961 | 1971 | 1981 | 1991 | 2001 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population South Somerset | 70,769 | 93,075 | 85,080 | 84,280 | 85,001 | 85,729 | 92,313 | 99,407 | 106,462 | 114,020 | 129,310 | 143,395 | 150,974 |
Economy
AgustaWestland
AgustaWestland is an Anglo-Italian helicopter design and manufacturing company. It was formed in July 2000 when Finmeccanica S.p.A. and GKN plc agreed to merge their respective helicopter subsidiaries to form AgustaWestland with Finmeccanica and GKN each holding a 50% share.AgustaWestland is now a...
manufactures helicopters in Yeovil, and Normalair Garratt
Normalair
Normalair Garrett Limited ', or Normalair, was a British manufacturing company based in Yeovil, Somerset, England. It manufactured high altitude life support equipment for the aerospace industry...
, builder of aircraft oxygen systems, is also based in the town.
Yeovil's reputation as a centre of the aircraft and defence industries lived on into the 21st century despite attempts at diversification, and the creation of numerous industrial estates, the principal employer is the aviation group AgustaWestland. This firm was created through the acquisition of Westland Helicopters
Westland Helicopters
Westland Helicopters was a British aerospace company. Originally Westland Aircraft, the company focused on helicopters after the Second World War. It merged with several other British firms in 1961...
by Agusta in 2000. In January 1986 the proposed sale of Westland to the American Sikorsky Aircraft
Sikorsky Aircraft
The Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation is an American aircraft manufacturer based in Stratford, Connecticut. Its parent company is United Technologies Corporation.-History:...
group led to the Westland affair
Westland affair
The Westland affair was a political scandal for the British Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher in 1986. The argument was a result of differences of opinion within the government as to the future of the United Kingdom helicopter industry. The struggling Westland company, Britain's last...
, a crisis in the Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
government, the resignation of Michael Heseltine
Michael Heseltine
Michael Ray Dibdin Heseltine, Baron Heseltine, CH, PC is a British businessman, Conservative politician and patron of the Tory Reform Group. He was a Member of Parliament from 1966 to 2001 and was a prominent figure in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major...
as Secretary of State for Defence
Secretary of State for Defence
The Secretary of State for Defence, popularly known as the Defence Secretary, is the senior Government of the United Kingdom minister in charge of the Ministry of Defence, chairing the Defence Council. It is a Cabinet position...
and the resignation two weeks later of the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, Leon Brittan, after his admission of leaking of a governmental law officer's letter which harshly criticised Mr Heseltine.
Yeovil Aerodrome
Yeovil/Westland Airport
Yeovil Aerodrome , sometimes known as Yeovil/Westland , is located in Yeovil, Somerset, England, west of the town centre....
, sometimes known as Yeovil/Westland (to avoid confusion with nearby RNAS Yeovilton
RNAS Yeovilton
Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton, or RNAS Yeovilton, is an airfield of the Royal Navy, sited in South West England a few miles north of Yeovil in Somerset...
), is located 1 nautical miles (1.9 km) west of the town centre. British defence giant BAE Systems
BAE Systems
BAE Systems plc is a British multinational defence, security and aerospace company headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that has global interests, particularly in North America through its subsidiary BAE Systems Inc. BAE is among the world's largest military contractors; in 2009 it was the...
also operate a site which produces high-integrity networked software solutions primarily for the military.
The Screwfix
Screwfix
Screwfix Direct Limited is a UK direct and online supplier of trade tools, accessories and hardware products. Founded in 1979 the company was acquired in 1999 by the Kingfisher plc group, which also owns B&Q and is listed on the London Stock Exchange....
company is based in Houndstone having started life as the Woodscrew Supply Company in 1979. However the warehouse was relocated to Stoke-on-Trent following failure to gain planning permission for building expansion.
The Quedam Shopping Centre
Quedam Shopping Centre
The Quedam Shopping Centre is a complex of around 45 shops located in Yeovil, Somerset. As well as the usual array of British high street shops, the centre has a multi-storey car park of approximately 650 spaces....
is a complex of around 45 shops. As well as the usual array of British high street shops, the centre houses several independent retailers and a multi-storey car park of approximately 650 spaces.
The Yeovil Times
Yeovil Times
The Yeovil Times is a free weekly newspaper, published and distributed in South Somerset, in association with the Western Gazette. It is owned by Northcliffe Media, part of the Daily Mail and General Trust newsgroup. Its content is a largely based on local issues....
is a free weekly newspaper, published and distributed in South Somerset, in association with the Western Gazette
Western Gazette
The Western Gazette is a newspaper, published in Yeovil, Somerset, England.The Western Gazette is published every Thursday with five different editorial editions, named North Dorset, Sherborne/West Dorset, Crewkerne, Yeovil and South Somerset....
. It is owned by Northcliffe Media
Northcliffe Media
Northcliffe Media Ltd. is a large regional newspaper publisher in the UK and Central and Eastern Europe, owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. The company's name was changed to Northcliffe Media from Northcliffe Newspaper Group in 2007.It operates from over 30 publishing centres, and also...
, part of the Daily Mail and General Trust
Daily Mail and General Trust
Daily Mail and General Trust plc is a British media conglomerate, one of the largest in Europe. In the UK, it has interests in national and regional newspapers, television and radio. The company has extensive activities based outside the UK, through Northcliffe Media, DMG Radio Australia, DMG World...
newsgroup. Its content is a largely based on local issues.
Landmarks
Folly
In architecture, a folly is a building constructed primarily for decoration, but either suggesting by its appearance some other purpose, or merely so extravagant that it transcends the normal range of garden ornaments or other class of building to which it belongs...
consisting of a small archway topped by a turret with a statue on top. This is actually located in the village of Barwick
Barwick, Somerset
Barwick is a village and parish in Somerset, England, situated south of Yeovil in the South Somerset district and on the border with Dorset. The parish, which includes the village of Stoford has a population of 1,289.-History:...
, just to the south of the town. The hamstone
Hamstone
Hamstone is the colloquial name given to stone from Ham Hill, Somerset, England. Hamstone is a Jurassic limestone from the Toarcian, or Upper Lias, stage. It is a well cemented medium to coarse grained limestone characterised by its honey-gold colour and marked bedding planes. The stone contains...
Abbey Farm House
Abbey Farm House, Yeovil
The Abbey Farm House in Yeovil, Somerset, England was built around 1420 and has been designated as a Grade I listed building.The Ham stone farmhouse was built by John Stourton II, who was also known as Jenkyn...
was built around 1420 by John Stourton II, known as Jenkyn, and the associated Abbey Barn
Abbey Barn, Yeovil
The Abbey Barn in Preston Plucknett, Yeovil, Somerset, England was built around 1420 and in conjunction with the Abbey Farm House. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building, and Scheduled Ancient Monument....
dates from the same period.
The Museum of South Somerset
Museum of South Somerset
The Museum of South Somerset is in Hendford, Yeovil, Somerset, England. It is also the location of a Tourist information centre.The collection was started by Alderman W.R.E. Mitchelmore, Mayor of Yeovil from 1918 - 1921. It is based in the former coach house to Hendford Manor...
is in Hendford, and based in the former coach house to Hendford Manor. There are displays of local history and geology particularly local industries such as leather and glove-making, flax and hemp production, stone working, engineering and newspaper printing. The manor house itself was built around 1720 and has since been converted into offices. It is a Grade II* listed building. Newton Surmaville
Newton Surmaville
Newton Surmaville is a small park and house south of Yeovil, Somerset in the district of South Somerset, in England. It lies just outside the town in the parish of Barwick.- House :...
is a small park and house which is also known as Newton House. It was built between 1608 and 1612, for Robert Harbin, a Yeovil merchant. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade I listed building.
Yeovil has two theatres; The Octagon, and The Swan, a ten-screen cinema and 18-lane ten-pin bowling alley. Yeovil District Hospital
Yeovil District Hospital
Yeovil District Hospital is a NHS foundation trust hospital in Yeovil, Somerset, England.It provides acute care for a population of about 180,000, people living in South Somerset, North and West Dorset, and parts of Mendip. The hospital admits around 30,000 inpatients or day cases each year and...
NHS Foundation Trust
NHS Foundation Trust
An NHS foundation trust is part of the National Health Service in England and has gained a degree of independence from the Department of Health and local NHS strategic health authority.Foundation Trusts are represented by the , .-Function:...
provides local health services. The Yeovil Railway Centre
Yeovil Railway Centre
The Yeovil Railway Centre is a small railway museum at Yeovil Junction on the L&SWR West of England Main Line between Salisbury and Exeter.It was created in 1993 in response to British Rail's decision to remove the turntable from Yeovil Junction. Approximately ¼ mile of track along the Clifton...
is a small railway museum at Yeovil Junction
Yeovil Junction railway station
Yeovil Junction railway station is the busier of two railway stations serving the town of Yeovil in England. The station is outside the town in the village of Stoford; although Yeovil is in Somerset, the station was in Dorset until 1995. It was opened by the London and South Western Railway in...
. It was created in 1993 in response to British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
's decision to remove the turntable from Yeovil Junction. Approximately 0.25 miles (402.3 m) of track along the Clifton Maybank spur is used for demonstration trains.
Transport
The town has two railway stations on two separate railway lines. is on the Bristol to Weymouth lineHeart of Wessex Line
The Heart of Wessex Line, also known as the Bristol to Weymouth line, is a United Kingdom railway line that runs from Bristol to Westbury to Weymouth...
served by First Great Western
First Great Western
First Great Western is the operating name of First Greater Western Ltd, a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that serves Greater London, the South East, South West and West Midlands regions of England, and South Wales....
train operating company
Train operating company
The term train operating company is used in the United Kingdom to describe the various businesses operating passenger trains on the railway system of Great Britain under the collective National Rail brand...
services, whilst is on the London Waterloo to Exeter line
West of England Main Line
The West of England Main Line is a British railway line that runs from , Hampshire to Exeter St Davids in Devon, England. Passenger services run between London Waterloo station and Exeter...
served by South West Trains
South West Trains
South West Trains is a British train operating company providing, under franchise, passenger rail services, mostly out of Waterloo station, to the southwest of London in the suburbs and in the counties of Surrey, Hampshire, Dorset, Devon, Somerset, Berkshire, and Wiltshire and on the Isle of Wight...
. Both stations are situated some distance from the centre of Yeovil, with Pen Mill station being just under 1 miles (1.6 km) to the east and Junction station being just over 1 miles (1.6 km) to the south. Bus services link the town centre with Yeovil Junction operated by South West Coaches
South West Coaches
South West Coaches is a privately owned company that operate a number of bus services around Somerset, Dorset and Wiltshire, in South West England. It operates local town services in Yeovil under contract to the County Council, ex-Sureline routes in the Dorchester, Weymouth and Isle of Portland...
except on Sundays and bank holidays when a service is operated by First Avon and Somerset. The latter company also operate a service to Pen Mill,
Yeovil has bus services provided by First Somerset & Avon
First Somerset & Avon
First Somerset & Avon Ltd provides bus services in Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Bath and West Wiltshire. It is part of First Group. First Somerset & Avon operates an extensive network of services in and around Bath, Bridgwater, Bristol, Taunton, Trowbridge, Wells, Weston-super-Mare and...
, First Hampshire & Dorset
First Hampshire & Dorset
First Hampshire & Dorset is a subsidiary bus company within FirstGroup, which operates buses and trains throughout Great Britain.First Hampshire & Dorset has its head office in Empress Road, Southampton and operates bus services in the Weymouth and Bridport areas in Dorset; and services in...
, Nippy Bus
Nippy Bus
Nippy Bus is a privately owned company that operate a number of bus services around Somerset, England. It operates local town services in Yeovil under contract to the County Council as well as rural services. An ex-London Transport Routemaster bus is available for private hire work...
, NORDCAT (Door to Dorset), South West Coaches
South West Coaches
South West Coaches is a privately owned company that operate a number of bus services around Somerset, Dorset and Wiltshire, in South West England. It operates local town services in Yeovil under contract to the County Council, ex-Sureline routes in the Dorchester, Weymouth and Isle of Portland...
, Stagecoach South West and Damory Coaches
Damory Coaches
Damory Coaches is a bus and coach operator based in Blandford Forum in Dorset, England. Officially registered as Hants & Dorset Motor Services Limited, Damory Coaches is a subsidiary of Wilts & Dorset, which is itself part of the much larger Go-Ahead Group...
along with coach services from National Express
National Express
National Express Coaches, more commonly known as National Express, is a brand and company, owned by the National Express Group, under which the majority of long distance bus and coach services in Great Britain are operated,...
, Berry's Coaches and South West Tours. There are around 62 separate bus routes serving Yeovil as at March 2009, of which four run Wednesday-Saturday nights only, and six of which run on Sundays. Many of the listed services serve Yeovil College
Yeovil College
Yeovil College is a tertiary institution and further education college based in Yeovil, Somerset, England. Its main campus is on Mudford Road, Yeovil, but the College also operates the North Dorset Skills Centre in Shaftesbury and the Construction Skills Centre, Lufton, Yeovil, not far from the...
. All bus routes except First Somerset & Avon
First Somerset & Avon
First Somerset & Avon Ltd provides bus services in Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Bath and West Wiltshire. It is part of First Group. First Somerset & Avon operates an extensive network of services in and around Bath, Bridgwater, Bristol, Taunton, Trowbridge, Wells, Weston-super-Mare and...
local routes towards the Western side of the town serve Yeovil Bus Station.
Education
Further educationFurther education
Further education is a term mainly used in connection with education in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is post-compulsory education , that is distinct from the education offered in universities...
in Yeovil is principally offered by Yeovil College
Yeovil College
Yeovil College is a tertiary institution and further education college based in Yeovil, Somerset, England. Its main campus is on Mudford Road, Yeovil, but the College also operates the North Dorset Skills Centre in Shaftesbury and the Construction Skills Centre, Lufton, Yeovil, not far from the...
, with land-based studies available through a Yeovil centre of Bridgwater College
Bridgwater College
Bridgwater College is a further education college primarily based in Bridgwater, Somerset, England. It has centres in Cannington, Yeovil, and Paignton....
, and some provision through private providers. It also contains one higher education university centre, University Centre Yeovil. The registered awarding body for the university centre is Bournemouth University
Bournemouth University
Bournemouth University is a university in and around the large south coast town of Bournemouth, UK...
.
Secondary education
Secondary education
Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...
in Yeovil is provided by four schools. Westfield Community School
Westfield Community School, Yeovil
Westfield Community School is a secondary school in Yeovil, Somerset, England.The school, which has specialist Science College status, has 870 students aged between 11 and 16 years. In August 2011, it became an academy...
is situated on Stiby Road. It has four main buildings on site and over 15 different facilities. Westfield is a specialist Science College
Science College
Science Colleges were introduced in 2002 as part of the now defunct Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enabled secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, science and mathematics...
. Bucklers Mead Community School has specialist Music and Technology Facilities. Past pupils include Sir Ian Botham
Ian Botham
Sir Ian Terence Botham OBE is a former England Test cricketer and Test team captain, and current cricket commentator. He was a genuine all-rounder with 14 centuries and 383 wickets in Test cricket, and remains well-known by his nickname "Beefy"...
. Preston School
Preston School
Preston School is a comprehensive school with specialist Business and Enterprise College status in Yeovil, Somerset, England, for students aged 11 to 17 years...
is situated on Monks Dale and is under five minutes walk from Westfield School. Preston is a specialist Business and Enterprise College
Business and Enterprise College
Business and Enterprise Colleges were introduced in 2002 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields...
. Past pupils include actress Sarah Parish
Sarah Parish
Sarah Parish is an English actress.Parish is known for her work on such TV series as: Peak Practice, Hearts and Bones, Cutting It, Doctor Who, Mistresses, Merlin and the new ITV medical drama Monroe....
.
The Park School
The Park School Yeovil
The Park School is an independent, co-educational boarding and day school, in Yeovil, Somerset, England. It has 250 students from kindergarten, right through to Year 13. It has separate Junior, Senior and Sixth Form departments and is located close to the town centre. The school has an evangelical...
, situated near to the centre of the town, is Yeovil's independent school offering co-education for day students and boarders.
Religious sites
Church of St John the Baptist, Yeovil
The Church of St John the Baptist in Yeovil, Somerset, England was built in the late 14th century and has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
dates from the late 14th century. The tower is 92 feet (28 m) high, in four-stages with set back offset corner buttresses. It is capped by openwork balustrading eatching the parapets which are from the 19th century. There are two-light late-14th-century windows on all sides at bell-ringing and bell-chamber levels, the latter having fine pierced stonework grilles. There is a stair turret to the north-west corner, with a Weather vane
Weather vane
A weather vane is an instrument for showing the direction of the wind. They are typically used as an architectural ornament to the highest point of a building....
termination. The tower contains two bells dating from 1728 and made by Thomas Bilbie of the Bilbie family
Bilbie family
The Bilbie family were bell founders and clockmakers based initially in Chew Stoke, Somerset and later at Cullompton, Devon in south-west England from the late 17th century to the early 19th century....
in Chew Stoke
Chew Stoke
Chew Stoke is a small village and civil parish in the Chew Valley, in Somerset, England, about south of Bristol. It is at the northern edge of the Mendip Hills, a region designated by the United Kingdom as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and is within the Bristol/Bath green belt...
. The "Great Bell" was recast from 4502 lb (2,042.1 kg; 321.6 st) to 4992 lb (2,264.3 kg; 356.6 st). It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a grade I listed building.
Yeovil also has a Roman Catholic church, Three Methodist Churches — Preston Road, St Marks (Chelston Avenue) & Vicarage Street (Town Centre), Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
church in South Street, Salvation Army
Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....
, Elim Pentecostal Church
Elim Pentecostal Church
The Elim Pentecostal Church is a UK-based Pentecostal Christian denomination.-History:George Jeffreys , a Welshman, founded the Elim Pentecostal Church in Monaghan, Ireland in 1915. Jeffreys was an evangelist with a Welsh Congregational church background. He was converted at age 15 during the...
, Yeovil Community Church (Evangelical, based at "The GateWay"), and several other Anglican Churches.
Sport
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
team Yeovil Town F.C.
Yeovil Town F.C.
Yeovil Town F.C. are an English association football team based in Yeovil, Somerset. The club play in League One after having won the League Two championship in 2004–05...
play in green and white livery, at Huish Park
Huish Park
Huish Park is a football ground in the suburbs of Yeovil, Somerset, England and is the home ground of Yeovil Town Football Club. The stadium replaced the club's previous ground, The Huish famous for numerous FA Cup giant-killings was officially opened on 4 August 1990, with a match against then...
. Known as the "Glovers" (a reference to the town's glove-making past), they won promotion to Division Three
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
as Football Conference
Football Conference
The Football Conference is a football league in England which consists of three divisions called Conference National, Conference North, and Conference South. Some Football Conference clubs are fully professional, such as Luton Town, but most of them are semi-professional...
champions. They had achieved numerous FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
victories over Football League sides in the past 50 years, and since joining the elite they have won promotion again – as League Two
Football League Two
Football League Two is the third-highest division of The Football League and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system....
champions in 2005. They came close to yet another promotion in 2007, when they reached the League One
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
playoff final, but lost to Blackpool
Blackpool F.C.
Blackpool Football Club are an English football club founded in 1887 from the Lancashire seaside town of Blackpool. They are competing in the 2011–12 season of the The Championship, the second tier of professional football in England, having been relegated from the Premier League at the end of the...
at the newly reopened Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...
.
Other football teams within the town include Westland's Sports Football Club and Pen Mill Football Club
Yeovil Olympiads Athletics Club
Yeovil Olympiads Athletics Club
Yeovil Olympiads Athletics Club was the first track and field athletics club in Yeovil, Somerset, England.This club was founded in 1969. It has produced many international athletes since its creation. The first was Eric Berry who came 6th in the 1973 European Juniors in the hammer event...
was founded in 1969, and has produced many international athletes since its creation. The first was Eric Berry who came 6th in the 1973 European Juniors in the hammer event. Olympians who started with the club include Max Robertson and Gary Jennings, both 400 metres hurdlers.
Yeovil is home to Ivel Barbarians Rugby Club. Ivel was formed in 1995 by the merger of Yeovil Rugby Club and Westlands Rugby Club.
Johnson Park
Johnson Park, Yeovil
Johnson Park is a multi-purpose sports ground on the northern outskirts of Yeovil, Somerset and is home to the Yeovil Sports and Social Club . Between 1951 and 1967, Somerset County Cricket Club played 12 first-class cricket matches on the ground, and Somerset also played two List A matches there,...
is a multi-purpose sports ground on the northern outskirts of the town and is now home to the Yeovil Sports and Social Club. Between 1951 and 1967, Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset...
played 12 first-class cricket
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
matches on the ground, and Somerset also played two List A matches there, one each in 1969 and 1970.
The Goldenstones Pool and Leisure Centre provides a 25 metres (82 ft) swimming pool, separate teaching pool, refurbished & expanded Springs gym, sauna, steam room, spectator area & work out studio.
Cultural references
Yeovil is the location for the School of Lifemanship in a series of novels by Stephen PotterStephen Potter
Stephen Meredith Potter was a British author best known for his mocking self-help books, and film and television derivatives from them....
: Gamesmanship (1947), Lifemanship (1950), One-Upmanship (1952), Supermanship (1958), Anti-Woo (1965) and The Complete Golf Gamesmanship (1968). The books were adapted for the 1960 film School for Scoundrels
School for Scoundrels (1960 film)
School for Scoundrels is a 1960 British comedy film inspired by the "Gamesmanship" series of books by Stephen Potter. The main character, Henry Palfrey , is a failure in sport and love, and victim of conmen. He enrols at the "School of Lifemanship" in Yeovil, run by Dr...
, starring Alastair Sim
Alastair Sim
Alastair George Bell Sim, CBE was a Scottish character actor who appeared in a string of classic British films. He is best remembered in the role of Ebenezer Scrooge in the 1951 film Scrooge, and for his portrayal of Miss Fritton, the headmistress in two St. Trinian's films...
, Terry-Thomas
Terry-Thomas
Thomas Terry Hoar Stevens was a distinctive English comic actor, known as Terry-Thomas. He was famous for his portrayal of disreputable members of the upper classes, especially cads and toffs, with the trademark gap in his front teeth, cigarette holder, smoking jacket, and catch-phrases such as...
, Ian Carmichael
Ian Carmichael
Ian Gillett Carmichael, OBE was an English film, stage, television and radio actor.-Early life:Carmichael was born in Hull, in the East Riding of Yorkshire. The son of an optician, he was educated at Scarborough College and Bromsgrove School, before training as an actor at RADA...
and Irene Handl
Irene Handl
-Life:Irene Handl was born in Maida Vale, London, the daughter of an Austrian banker father and French mother. She took to acting at the relatively advanced age of 36, and studied at the acting school run by the sister of Dame Sybil Thorndike...
. Later they were adapted by Barry Took
Barry Took
Barry Took was an English comedian, writer and television presenter. He is best remembered in the UK for his weekly role as presenter of Points of View, a BBC TV programme in which viewers' letters criticising or praising the BBC were broadcast...
into a BBC TV comedy series called One-Upmanship (1974–78), starring Richard Briers
Richard Briers
Richard David Briers, CBE is an English actor whose career has encompassed theatre, television, film and radio.He first came to prominence as George Starling in Marriage Lines in the 1960s, but it was in the following decade when he played Tom Good in the BBC sitcom The Good Life that he became a...
and Peter Jones
Peter Jones (actor)
Peter Jones was an English actor, screenwriter and broadcaster.-Early life and career:Jones was born in Wem, Shropshire and he was educated at the Wem Grammar School and Ellesmere College. He made his first appearance as an actor in Wolverhampton at the age of 16 and then appeared in repertory...
. Yeovil was featured as part of The Idler's
The Idler (1993)
The Idler is a yearly British magazine devoted to its ethos of 'idling'. Founded in 1993 by Tom Hodgkinson and Gavin Pretor-Pinney, the publication's intention is to return dignity to the art of loafing, to make idling into something to aspire towards rather than reject.The magazine combines the...
"Crap Towns" series. Yeovil is also one of the three principal locations in John Cowper Powys
John Cowper Powys
-Biography:Powys was born in Shirley, Derbyshire, in 1872, the son of the Reverend Charles Francis Powys , who was vicar of Montacute, Somerset for thirty-two years, and Mary Cowper Johnson, a descendent of the poet William Cowper. He came from a family of eleven children, many of whom were also...
's 1929 novel, Wolf Solent.
Yeovil is known in Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy, OM was an English novelist and poet. While his works typically belong to the Naturalism movement, several poems display elements of the previous Romantic and Enlightenment periods of literature, such as his fascination with the supernatural.While he regarded himself primarily as a...
's Wessex
Wessex
The Kingdom of Wessex or Kingdom of the West Saxons was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the West Saxons, in South West England, from the 6th century, until the emergence of a united English state in the 10th century, under the Wessex dynasty. It was to be an earldom after Canute the Great's conquest...
as "Ivell". In the novel The English Patient
The English Patient
The English Patient is a 1992 novel by Sri Lankan-Canadian novelist Michael Ondaatje. The story deals with the gradually revealed histories of a critically burned English accented Hungarian man, his Canadian nurse, a Canadian-Italian thief, and an Indian sapper in the British Army as they live out...
by Michael Ondaatje
Michael Ondaatje
Philip Michael Ondaatje , OC, is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian novelist and poet of Burgher origin. He is perhaps best known for his Booker Prize-winning novel, The English Patient, which was adapted into an Academy-Award-winning film.-Life and work:...
, the character of Maddox is cited as living in the nearby village Marston Magna
Marston Magna
Marston Magna is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated north of Yeovil in the South Somerset district...
.
Local band The Chesterfields
The Chesterfields
The Chesterfields were an English indie pop band from Yeovil in Somerset. Hardcore fans tended to refer to them as 'The Chesterf!elds', with an exclamation mark replacing the 'i', following the example of the band's logo....
released a single called "Last train to Yeovil" and the pop band Bubblegum Splash also released a song called "18:10 to Yeovil Junction". The folk band Show Of Hands
Show of Hands
Show of Hands is an English acoustic roots and folk duo comprising singer-songwriter Steve Knightley and multi-instrumentalist Phil Beer. In recent years they have been accompanied on tour and in the studio by jazz double-bassist Miranda Sykes.-Origins:...
wrote a song entitled "Yeovil Town" about the violence and criminality they experienced after playing a small gig in Yeovil.
Notable current residents
Yeovil has been the home or birthplace to several notable people. Robert Harbin who was born in 1526, was a mercerMerchant
A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
by profession, who lived and died in Yeovil. He is buried in St. John the Baptist Church. His house, located at the edge of town and named Newton Surmaville
Newton Surmaville
Newton Surmaville is a small park and house south of Yeovil, Somerset in the district of South Somerset, in England. It lies just outside the town in the parish of Barwick.- House :...
, was completed in 1612. Harbin was granted his coat of arms in May 1612 and given the title "Gentleman". He was not knighted. Stukeley Westcott
Stukeley Westcott
Stukeley Westcott was one of the founding settlers of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations and one of the original members of the first Baptist Church in America, established by Roger Williams in 1638...
was an early American (17th century) settler. and the co-founder, with Roger Williams
Roger Williams (theologian)
Roger Williams was an English Protestant theologian who was an early proponent of religious freedom and the separation of church and state. In 1636, he began the colony of Providence Plantation, which provided a refuge for religious minorities. Williams started the first Baptist church in America,...
and 11 others, of Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
(1636), an early American religious freedom asylum.
Michael T. Davies
Michael Davies (Catholic writer)
Michael Treharne Davies was a British teacher, and traditionalist Catholic writer of many books about the Catholic Church following the Second Vatican Council...
, a traditionalist Catholic writer and public figure was born in Yeovil in 1936, while the film historian William K. Everson
William K. Everson
William Keith "Bill" Everson was an English-American archivist, author, critic, educator, collector and film historian. He often discovered lost films.-Early life and career:...
was born in the town in 1929.
Sports people from the town include: Martin Cranie
Martin Cranie
Martin James Cranie is an English footballer, currently playing for Championship club Coventry City. He began his career with the famous Southampton youth academy playing alongside Theo Walcott and Gareth Bale before moving to local rivals Portsmouth and later to Coventry City after several loan...
a Coventry Football Club defender, and Sam Weale
Sam Weale
Samuel "Sammy" Weale is a British modern pentathlete who has competed at the Olympic Games. Weale competed for Great Britain at the 2008 Summer Olympics, in Beijing, China, and finished 10th in the men's modern pentathlon. His identical twin Chris is a goalkeeper who has played for Leicester City...
who is an Olympic Pentathlete. The arts are represented by Jim Cregan
Jim Cregan
Jim Cregan, born James Cregan, 9 March 1946, Yeovil, Somerset, England is an English rock guitarist and bassist who best known for his associations with Family, Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel and Rod Stewart. Cregan is a former husband of the singer Linda Lewis and worked with her as a record producer...
, a guitarist with Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel
Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel
Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel are an English rock band from the early 1970s. Their music covers a range of styles from pop to progressive rock. Over the years they have had five albums in the UK Albums Chart and twelve singles in the UK Singles Chart.-Career:...
, the musician John Parish
John Parish
John Parish is a British musician and producer best known for his work with singer and songwriter PJ Harvey,. His sister is the actress Sarah Parish.-Partial discography:Solo*Rosie *How Animals Move...
, and his younger sister the actress Sarah Parish
Sarah Parish
Sarah Parish is an English actress.Parish is known for her work on such TV series as: Peak Practice, Hearts and Bones, Cutting It, Doctor Who, Mistresses, Merlin and the new ITV medical drama Monroe....
.