Milverton, Somerset

Historical Description

Milverton, a small town (formerly a borough) and a parish in Somerset The town stands in the beautiful, deep valley of Taunton Deane, overhung in the W by steep, high, cultivated hills, with a station on the Devon and Somerset branch of the G.W.R. 165 miles from London, 13½ SW of Bridgwater, and 7 W of Taunton. It is an ancient place, consists chiefly of three irregular streets, and has a post, money order, and telegraph office. Acreage of the civil parish, 5117; population, 1562; of the ecclesiastical, 1600. The church of St Michael stands on an eminence overlooking the town, is Later Englisli in style, of the time of Henry VII., and was restored in 1850; it consists of nave, aisles, and chancel, with porch and tower containing a clock and eight bells; and contains old seats with beautifully carved ends. In 1887 a spacious hall, with reading-room, called the Victoria Hall, was built by public subscription at a cost of £1100. A considerable tan trade was formerly carried on, but has entirely ceased. John de Milver, a friar who wrote furiously against Wycliffe, and Dr Thomas Young, who first deciphered Egyptian hieroglyphics, and established the un-dulatory theory of light, were natives. The parish contains also the hamlets of Preston Bowyer, Houndsmoor, and Screed-hay. The surface is diversified, and the higher grounds command extensive views. The Queen is lady of the manor. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Bath and Wells; net value, £300 with residence, traditionally said to have been a country seat of Cardinal Wolsey. Patron, the Archdeacon of Taunton. There are also Congregational and Wesleyan chapels.

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.

Church Records

The Phillimore transcript of Marriages at Milverton 1538-1812, Somerset is available to browse online.

Ancestry.co.uk, in association with Somerset Archives & Local Studies, have images of the Parish Registers for Somerset online.

Civil Registration

For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Milverton from the following:

• Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Milverton (St. Michael))

Maps

Online maps of Milverton are available from a number of sites:

• Bing (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• Google Streetview.
• National Library of Scotland. (Old maps)
• OpenStreetMap.
• old-maps.co.uk (Old Ordnance Survey maps to buy).
• Streetmap.co.uk (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• A Vision of Britain through Time. (Old maps)

Newspapers and Periodicals

The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following Somerset papers online:

• Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette
• Taunton Courier, and Western Advertiser
• Western Gazette
• Wells Journal
• Somerset County Gazette

Visitations Heraldic

The Visitation of Somersetshire, 1623 is available on the Heraldry page.