X-Nico

52 unusual facts about Somerset


Abbey104

Abbey104 (formerly known as Radio Sherborne) is a community radio station broadcasting on 104.7 FM to Sherborne and the surrounding areas in Dorset and Somerset.

Anthony Dominic Fahy

Between 1834 to 1836 he lived and worked with his Dominican brothers in the Saint Joseph Convent, in Somerset, Ohio.

Barbastelle

In Britain, only a few breeding roosts are known; Paston Great Barn in Norfolk, parts of Exmoor and the Quantock Hills in Devon and Somerset (see Tarr Steps), the Mottisfont woodland in Hampshire and Ebernoe Common in West Sussex.

Bath Abbey Cemetery

The Anglican Bath Abbey Cemetery, officially dedicated as the Cemetery of St Peter and St Paul (the patron saints that Bath Abbey is dedicated to), was laid out by noted cemetery designer and landscape architect John Claudius Loudon (1783–1843) in 1843 on a picturesque hillside site overlooking Bath, Somerset, England.

Bath by-election, 1929

The Bath by-election, 1929 was a parliamentary by-election held on 21 March 1929 for the constituency of Bath in Somerset.

Battle of Lansdowne

On 3 July, skirmishes took place at Claverton and at Waller's positions south and east of Bath.

Brislington Brook

Brislington Brook rises in twin tributaries fed by springs on the northern slopes of Maes Knoll, at the eastern end of Dundry Hill, just north of the boundary between Somerset and Bristol.

Cannington Court

Cannington Court in the village of Cannington, Somerset, England was built around 1138 as the lay wing of a Benedictine nunnery, founded by Robert de Courcy.

Cannington Nunnery

Cannington Nunnery was established around 1138 and dissolved in 1536 in Cannington, Somerset, England.

Cephalanthera rubra

During the 19th and early 20th centuries, the species was recorded from single sites in Somerset, Sussex and Kent, and a second Hampshire site (in the upper Test Valley).

Church of Holy Trinity, Burrington

The Church of the Holy Trinity in Burrington, Somerset, England, is from the 15th century and was restored in 1884.

Church of St Andrew, Backwell

The parish is part of the benefice of Backwell with Chelvey and Brockley within the deanery of Portishead.

Church of St Peter, Englishcombe

The Church of St Peter in Englishcombe, Somerset, England was probably built by Robert de Gournay in the 12th century.

Corston

Corston, Somerset, village in the county of Somerset in the United Kingdom

Cranmore chase

The winner of the race Benjamin was made a freeman of Batcombe and granted an annual stipend.

DeForest Soaries

Additionally, he is the senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens in Somerset, New Jersey, a position he has held since November 1990.

Easton Cowboys and Cowgirls

The club celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2012 with an international tournament at Berrow, Somerset, and hopes to have its own home ground in the future.

Flag of Wiltshire

The six portions are also represent the six surrounding counties of Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Hampshire, Dorset and Somerset.

Frances Freeling Broderip

He was born at Wells, Somersetshire, in 1814, educated at Eton, and at Balliol College, Oxford, where he took his B.A. 1837, M.A. 1839, became rector of Cossington, Somersetshire, 1844, and died at Cossington on 10 April 1866.

Francis Hawley, 2nd Baron Hawley

He instead stood for election to the English House of Commons for Somerset in 1705 but was unsuccessful.

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He succeeded his grandfather Lord Hawley in the barony in 1684, also inheriting large estates in Berkshire, Devon, Dorset and Somerset.

German hospital ship Ophelia

The British renamed the ship SS Huntley and used it for transporting fuel from Portishead to Boulogne.

Harriet Waylett

The daughter of a tradesman in Bath, Somerset, Harriet Cooke was born there on 7 February 1798; her uncle was a member of the Drury Lane Theatre company, and Sarah Cooke was her cousin.

Henry Fane of Brympton

Henry Fane (1669–1726) of Brympton, Somerset was a great-grandson of Francis Fane, 1st Earl of Westmorland and father of Thomas Fane, 8th Earl of Westmorland.

Henry Kiddle

Henry Kiddle (15 January 1824 Bath, England - 1891) was a United States educator and had an interest in spiritualism.

Highbury Hill, Clutton

Highbury Hill in Clutton, Somerset, England is the site of the earthwork remains of an Iron Age univallate hillfort.

Jack Whicher

Detective Inspector Jonathan 'Jack' Whicher's fame had spread, and he was at the height of his powers when in July 1860 he was sent by Scotland Yard to assist the local police in the small village of Rode (then in Wiltshire) in investigating the murder of 3-year-old Francis Saville Kent.

James Lorimer Ilsley

He was born in Somerset, Nova Scotia, the son of Randel Ilsley and Catherine Caldwell.

Jenny Hansen

Jenny Hansen is an American gymnast from Somerset, Wisconsin.

KZJK

Although they were licensed to the west Minneapolis suburb of St. Louis Park, the tower was located far east of the Twin Cities, in Somerset, Wisconsin.

Liber Exoniensis

It contains a variety of administrative materials concerning the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire.

Peppin Merino

In March 1858, the Peppin brothers, who had emigrated from Dulverton, Somerset in England, purchased Wanganella Station, near Wanganella township in the Riverina district of New South Wales.

RAF Northleach

Glider Training School left RAF Stoke Orchard and RAF Northleach for good relocating to RAF Exeter, Devon and its satellite of RAF Culmhead, Somerset.

Rebellion of 1088

They were spread far and wide geographically from Kent, controlled by Bishop Odo, to Northumberland, controlled by Robert de Mowbray, to Gloucestershire and Somerset under Geoffrey de Montbray (Bishop of Coutances), to Norfolk with Roger Bigod, Roger of Montgomery at Shrewsbury in Shropshire, and a vast swathe of territory in the south-west, centre and south of England under Count Robert.

River Otter

The River Otter rises in the Blackdown Hills just inside the county of Somerset, England near Otterford, then flows south for some 32 km through East Devon to the English Channel at the western end of Lyme Bay, part of the Jurassic Coast, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Permian and Triassic sandstone aquifer in the Otter Valley is one of Devon's largest groundwater sources, supplying drinking water to 200,000 people.

Saint Mary's Abbey, Colwich

When released in 1795, they settled in England, first in Dorset and then at Cannington in Somerset.

Somerset, Kentucky

In 2004, Somerset was featured on the television series City Confidential.

Somerset, Ohio

The village of Somerset was established in 1810 by settlers from Somerset, Pennsylvania at the spot on Zane's Trace located midway between Lancaster and Zanesville.

Somerset, Tasmania

The school follows the Accelerated Christian Education curriculum and is for students from kinder to grade 12.

Somerton Tunnel

Not far from the west end of the tunnel, in Long Sutton, there is an old derelict building which is said to have been used as an explosives store for the GWR engineers at the time of construction.

Soo Line High Bridge

The Soo Line High Bridge is a steel deck arch bridge over the St. Croix River between Stillwater, Minnesota and Somerset, Wisconsin.

Stacey Tadd

Stacey Tadd (born 21 February 1989 in Bath, Somerset, England) is a British breaststroke swimmer.

Strides Arcolab

USA - The company has a soft gelatin capsule plant at Somerset, New Jersey, USA.

The Abbey, Beckington

The Abbey, Beckington in Somerset, UK was built as a monastic grange and also used as a college for priests; the building was begun in 1502, but after the Dissolution of the Monasteries it became a private house.

The RiverBank

Locations have since been added in MarketPlace Foods and Somerset, Wisconsin and in Chisago City and Wyoming, Minnesota.

The Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners' Royal Benevolent Society

It was founded at the instigation of Mr John Rye, a philanthropic retired medical man of Bath, Somerset and his servant Mr Charles Gee Jones, a former Bristol Pilot and Landlord of the Pulteney Arms in Bath, following the tragic loss of life from the Clovelly fishing fleet in a severe storm in November 1838.

Tolland, Connecticut

Alternatively, its name could have been taken after Tolland in Somerset, England.

Viscount Bridport

The 2nd Viscount represented West Somerset in Parliament as a Conservative.

Wells, Maine

In 1653, Wells was incorporated, the third town in Maine to do so, and named after Wells, England, a small cathedral city in the county of Somerset.

West Somerset Council election, 2007

The 2007 West Somerset Council election took place on 3 May 2007 to elect members of West Somerset District Council in Somerset, England.

Who I Was Born to Be

In August 2013 Boyle performed the song during the opening ceremonies of the 2013 Special Olympics held at the Royal Crescent in Bath.

Wrinstone

Through her marriage to Simon de Raleigh, of Nettlecombe, Somerset, the Wrinstone manor passed to the de Raleighs, their descendants holding the manor for six generations.


Arthur Bartholomew

Arthur Bartholomew (3 December 1833 Bruton, Somerset – 19 August 1909 Melbourne) was an English-born Australian engraver, lithographer and natural history illustrator.

Bath Preservation Trust

The Bath Preservation Trust is an independent charity based in Bath, Somerset, England which exists to safeguard the historic character of the city of Bath, the only complete city in the UK that (along with its environs) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and to champion its sustainable future.

Battle of Peonnum

The Saxons were victorious, and Cenwalh advanced west through the Polden Hills to the River Parrett, annexing eastern and central Somerset.

Bessie Blount

Elizabeth Blount, mistress of Henry VIII of England and mother of his son, Henry Fitzroy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset

Bruton Abbey

It was subsequently refounded as a house of Augustinian canons in 1135, by William de Mohun, who later became the Earl of Somerset.

Church of St Luke and St Andrew, Priston

The Church of St Luke and St Andrew in Priston, Somerset, England has a nave dating from the 12th century, on the site of an earlier Norman church.

Coal Measures Group

In those coalfields to the south of the former Wales-Brabant High i.e. the South Wales, Bristol, Somerset, Forest of Dean and concealed Oxfordshire and Kent coalfields, the corresponding group is the South Wales Coal Measures Group.

Dianthus

Dianthus gratianopolitanus - the Cheddar Pink - was chosen as the County flower of Somerset in 2002 following a poll by the wild flora conservation charity Plantlife.

Fiddleford

In the hamlet there is also the beautiful mill and weir and the Fiddleford Manor, one of the oldest buildings in Dorset, probably dating from around 1370 and built by William Latimer, Royal Sheriff of Somerset and Dorset.

Fred Wheldon

1901 was worse still, as he did not pass 51 in 26 innings, and 1902 was little better, but he returned to form at last in 1903 with 969 runs – the most of his career – including 112 against Somerset.

Frederick Baitup

Playing as a tailender, Baitup picked up eleven runs in the only innings in which he batted, as Somerset picked up an innings victory thanks to a century and a double-century from Jack MacBryan and Dar Lyon respectively.

Gazebo

Examples of such structures are the garden houses at Montacute House in Somerset, England.

Geoffrey Ashe

Ashe has also helped demonstrate, through acting as secretary to a dig undertaken by Dr. Ralegh Radford in 1966-70, that Cadbury Castle in Somerset, identified as Camelot by the sixteenth-century antiquary John Leland, was actually refortified in the latter part of the fifth century, in works as yet unparalleled elsewhere in Britain at the time.

George Hunt

George E. Hunt (1896–1959), medium-pace bowler who made over 200 appearances for Somerset

Ilchester Nunnery

Ilchester Nunnery, in Ilchester, Somerset, England, was founded around 1217-1220 as the "White Hall Hospital of the Holy Trinity", (Latin: Alba Aula, French: Blanche Halle/Blanchesale) after the gift of a house and other property by William "The Dane" of Sock Dennis manor, Ilchester (Norman-French: Le Deneis etc., Latinised to Dacus (the adjectival form of Dacia being mediaeval Latin for Denmark) modernised to "Dennis").

Jacob Rees-Mogg

In his long speech on the Sustainable Livestock Bill, he recited poetry; spoke of the superior quality of Somerset eggs, and mentioned the fictional pig, the Empress of Blandings, who won silver at the Shropshire Show three years in a row, before moving on to talk about the sewerage system and the Battle of Agincourt.

John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset

Somerset died in the Hospital of St Katharine's by the Tower.

John Edward Taylor

He was born at Ilminster, Somerset, England, to Mary Scott, the poet, and John Taylor, a Unitarian minister who moved after his wife's death to Manchester with his son to run a school there.

Jon Callard

Callard taught physical education classes and sports classes at Downside School (Somerset) in the early to mid-1990s.

KSJL

KYTY, a radio station (810 AM) licensed to serve Somerset, Texas, United States, which held the call sign KSJL from 1998 to 2007

Locking Castle

Locking Castle was a castle that once stood on Carberry Hill near the site of RAF Locking in Locking in the North Somerset district of Somerset, England.

Maiden Castle, Dorset

This was a characteristic of Vespasian's campaign in the region; there was military occupation at Cadbury Castle in Somerset, Hembury in Devon, and Hodd Hill in Dorset.

Margaret Beaufort

Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Stafford (c. 1427–1474), the daughter of Edmund Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset (second creation) and the mother of Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham.

Midsomer Murders

Many of the villages and small towns of the county have the word Midsomer in their name; this is inspired in part by the real county of Somerset, and specifically the town of Midsomer Norton.

Mike Latham

Latham's son Patrick Latham has played List A and Minor Counties cricket for Cambridgeshire and had second eleven matches in 1998 for both Durham and Somerset.

Neshanic

Neshanic Station, New Jersey, an unincorporated community within Branchburg Township, Somerset County

New Brunswick Marconi Station

New Brunswick Marconi Station (40.51529° N 74.48895° W) was located at JFK Boulevard and Easton Avenue just a few minutes from the New Brunswick border in Somerset, New Jersey.

Newbridge Navigator

The company was later brought back to life as N.B. Yachts and the company moved its production facility from Bridport in Dorset UK to Chard in the county of Somerset UK.

Pelagosaurus

Pelagosaurus was originally described from a specimen from Normandy, but the holotype for P. typus was discovered north of the town of Ilminster in Somerset, England.

Raritan

Raritan Inc., a provider of KVM Switches and IT infrastructure management solutions, in Somerset, New Jersey

Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery

Boyle fought with the Parliamentarians until the execution of the king, when he retired altogether from public affairs and took up his residence at Marston in Somersetshire.

Russ McCool

He was born while his father was engaged as a professional cricketer for Somerset, but brought up in Australia where he attended schools in Woy Woy, New South Wales.

Somerset Hospital

Somerset Medical Center in Somerville, New Jersey, which was originally known as Somerset Hospital.

Somerset, Massachusetts

Stephen Rebello, writer and screenwriter known for such books as Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho and for the screenplay of Hitchcock (film) based on that book.

St George's Road Cricket Ground, Harrogate

Two double centuries were scored at the ground, 277* by Percy Holmes against Northamptonshire in 1921, as part of that 548, and 217* by Viv Richards for Somerset in 1975.

St Mary Magdalene's Church, Langridge

St Mary Magdalene's Church at Langridge in the parish of Charlcombe, Somerset, England dates from the 12th century and has been designated as a Grade I listed building.

Stokeleigh Camp

It has been suggested that Stokeleigh was connected with the Wansdyke, a series of defensive linear earthworks, consisting of a ditch and an embankment running at least from Maes Knoll in Somerset, to the Savernake Forest near Marlborough in Wiltshire, however there is little evidence for this.

Thomas Austin

Thomas Austin was born at Baltonsborough, Somerset, England, the youngest son of John Austin and Nancy, née Lucas.

Thomas Somerset

Thomas Somerset (born about 1530; died in the Tower of London, 27 May 1587) was an English Roman Catholic layman, kept imprisoned for long periods by Elizabeth I of England.

TripleOne Somerset

Situated between Somerset Road and Devonshire Road, Group 2 Architects designed the PUB Building based on the concept of H-shaped block with a central service core and a naturally-ventilated lift lobby.

Ursina

Ursina, Pennsylvania, a borough in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, United States.

Wassailing

The West Country is the most famous and largest cider producing region of the country and some of the most important wassails are held annually in Carhampton and Dunster (Somerset) and Whimple (Devon), both on 17 January (old Twelfth Night).

Westhay Heath

This is the only site in Somerset where the nationally rare Marsh Harrier (Circus areuginosus) breeds.

William Fitz Reynold

His name is listed in the Somerset region and is also one of the earliest recorded members of the Reynolds family.

World Horse Welfare

Horses needing attention are taken into one of charities four Recovery and Rehabilitation Centres, based in Norfolk, Somerset, Lancashire and Aberdeenshire.