History

The ivy creeps over the rubble;
The stone crumbles,
But the village grows.
Some men build;
Some men restore
What others have destroyed.
Castle House rises behind the ruin;
Rockfield House is built;
After Whitchurch and Theobald,
Fussell comes...

After the Restoration the manor passed to the Samboumes, and later to William Whitchurch, who built Castle House — Manor Farm as it was later known — a state ly building famous for its fine staircase and oak panelling, owned at the time of writing by Sir Charles and Lady Pickthorn. The Village settled to a long peace: in 1749, via the will of William Whitchurch, the manor was inherited by James Theobald, who built Rockfleld House, and whose name is perpetuated in the inn-sign at Nunney Catch. Rockfield House, built in 1804, now the residence of Maj. The Hon. Robert and Mrs. A.Pomeroy, gets its name from the adjoining Rack Field, used for stretching and drying the cloth which was then made in the village. The houses at the top of Horn Street were once weavers’ dwellings, and some still have square holes in the ceilings of their lower rooms to accomodate the lengths of cloth as they were man ufactured. Tennis racquets were made in Horn Street, and milling was carried on at the old mill, where more recently cider was made. The mill, like Bell House in the centre of the village, and Praters opposite the church, was restored some years ago by Mr. Gordon Upsall arid his wife, who iiiade a major contribution to improving the appearance of the village. The Fussell family helped to extend the fame of Nunney in the nineteenth century. They established their iron works in Nunney towards the end of the eight eenth century. making spades, shovels and edge tools. The Rev. John Skinner records that in 1828 he walked over to Nunney from Whatley one July morning ‘to purchase a scythe for mowing the garden. as the best in the county, perhaps in the Kin gdoni. are made by Fussells. . .‘ Their hooks are still to be found on second-hand stalls, providing interesting and still useful relics of what is now sometimes known as ‘industrial archaeology’. The cloth industry declined, and by 1895 production of iron tools had ceased, the Nunney works being described as ‘simply ruins’. Agriculture, of course, continued to flourish, and the quarrying industry grew with the increasing popularity of the motor-car and the growth of road transport. The Coleman brothers occupy a special place in the memory of many villagers. They owned and ran the local quarry at Holwell, which was sold to the English China Clay Company in 1966, and their paternal concern for their workers is still remembered with affection by former employees and friends.

In the Beginning Page1 Page2
The Last Invasion Page3 Page4 Page5 Page6 Page7 Page8 Page9

	History The ivy creeps over the rubble; The stone crumbles, But the village grows. Some men build; Some men restore What others have destroyed. Castle House rises behind the ruin; Rockfield House is built; After Whitchurch and Theobald, Fussell comes... After the Restoration the manor passed to the Samboumes, and later to William Whitchurch, who built Castle House — Manor Farm as it was later known — a state ly building famous for its fine staircase and oak panelling, owned at the time of writing by Sir Charles and Lady Pickthorn. The Village settled to a long peace: in 1749, via the will of William Whitchurch, the manor was inherited by James Theobald, who built Rockfleld House, and whose name is perpetuated in the inn-sign at Nunney Catch. Rockfield House, built in 1804, now the residence of Maj. The Hon. Robert and Mrs. A.Pomeroy, gets its name from the adjoining Rack Field, used for stretching and drying the cloth which was then made in the village. The houses at the top of Horn Street were once weavers’ dwellings, and some still have square holes in the ceilings of their lower rooms to accomodate the lengths of cloth as they were man ufactured. Tennis racquets were made in Horn Street, and milling was carried on at the old mill, where more recently cider was made. The mill, like Bell House in the centre of the village, and Praters opposite the church, was restored some years ago by Mr. Gordon Upsall arid his wife, who iiiade a major contribution to improving the appearance of the village. The Fussell family helped to extend the fame of Nunney in the nineteenth century. They established their iron works in Nunney towards the end of the eight eenth century. making spades, shovels and edge tools. The Rev. John Skinner records that in 1828 he walked over to Nunney from Whatley one July morning ‘to purchase a scythe for mowing the garden. as the best in the county, perhaps in the Kin gdoni. are made by Fussells. . .‘ Their hooks are still to be found on second-hand stalls, providing interesting and still useful relics of what is now sometimes known as ‘industrial archaeology’. The cloth industry declined, and by 1895 production of iron tools had ceased, the Nunney works being described as ‘simply ruins’. Agriculture, of course, continued to flourish, and the quarrying industry grew with the increasing popularity of the motor-car and the growth of road transport. The Coleman brothers occupy a special place in the memory of many villagers. They owned and ran the local quarry at Holwell, which was sold to the English China Clay Company in 1966, and their paternal concern for their workers is still remembered with affection by former employees and friends. In the Beginning Page1 Page2 The Last Invasion Page3 Page4 Page5 Page6 Page7 Page8 Page9