In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Nunney like this:
NUNNEY, a village, a parish, and a sub-district, in Frome district, Somerset. The village stands 3½ miles S W by W of Frome r. station; and has a post-office under Frome, and a cattle fair on 11 Nov. The parish contains also the hamlet of Trudox Hill, and comprises 2, 421 acres. Real property, £5, 483. ...
Pop., 1,088. Houses, 269. The property is divided among a few. The manor belongs to James Theobald, Esq. Nunney Castle was erected, in the time of Edward III. or in that of Richard II., by Sir Elias De la Mere; was an oblong moated structure, with a tower at each angle; rose, in its central part, to the height of four stories; passed to thefamily of Paulet, ancestors of the Dukes of Bolton; wassold, in the time of Elizabeth, by the first Marquis of Winchester; passed through several families to the Theobalds; was garrisoned, for the king, in the civilwars of Charles I.; sustained a stiff siege by the troops of Cromwell; surrendered on condition that the garrison should go to their own homes; was afterwards dismantled; is now a massive, mouldering, ivy-clad, picturesque ruin; and retains, in its S E tower, a very fine specimen of an ancient domestic chapel. Remains of a Roman camp are near the village; and remains of a Roman tesselated pavement, in good preservation, were discovered, not many years ago, on the property of J. H. Shore, Esq. A pretty dell, called Holwell valley, watered by an affluent of the Frome river, is about ½ a mile from the village. Limestone abounds, and is calcined in several kilns; and the manufacture of edge-tools is carried on. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Bath and Wells. Value, £400.* Patron, J. Theobald, Esq. The church is early English; consists of nave, aisles, and chancel, with porch and tower; and contains a fine old oak screen and five ancient tombs with recumbent effigies. There are chapels for Independents, Wesleyans, Primitive Methodists, and United Free Methodists, national schoolsfor boys and girls, and charities £71.—The sub-district contains also six other parishes and parts of two others. Pop., 4, 589. Houses, 1,058.
Nunney through time
Nunney is now part of Mendip district. Click here for graphs and data of how Mendip has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Nunney itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Nunney, in Mendip and Somerset | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/13121
Date accessed: 19th April 2024
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