Allerford
Coordinates: 51°12′58″N 3°34′09″W / 51.2161°N 3.5691°W
| Allerford | |
 The packhorse bridge |
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 Allerford
Allerford shown within Somerset |
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| OS grid reference | SS905475 |
|---|---|
| District | West Somerset |
| Shire county | Somerset |
| Region | South West |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | MINEHEAD |
| Postcode district | TA24 |
| Dialling code | 01643 |
| Police | Avon and Somerset |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| EU Parliament | South West England |
| UK Parliament | Bridgwater and West Somerset |
| List of places: UK • England • Somerset | |
Allerford is a village in the county of Somerset, England, located within Exmoor National Park, and is part of the parish of Selworthy in the district of West Somerset. It appears in Domesday Book as “Alresford – forda Ralph de Limesy Mill”.
The parish was part of the hundred of Carhampton.[1]
One of the village's main attractions is the much-photographed Packhorse Bridge. Built as a crossing over the River Aller (from which the village gets its name), is thought to have been constructed in the 18th Century.[2] Nearby is the New Bridge where the A39 road crosses Horner Water. The 18 feet (5.5 m) wide pointed arch rises 8 feet (2.4 m) with a 4 feet (1.2 m) span half arch onj the side for flood relief. Originally the bridge was 12 feet (3.7 m) wide but another 6 feet (1.8 m) was added in 1866.[3]
The village is also home to Allerford House, childhood home of Admiral John Moresby, who explored the coastline of New Guinea and for whom Port Moresby, the capital city of Papua New Guinea, was named. Other traditional sights in the village include thatched cottages, a forge and an old-fashioned red telephone box. There is also a Reading Room, built by the Acland family to foster adult education.
One of the thatched cottages operated as the local Primary School between 1821 and 1981 and is now a museum containing the West Somerset Rural Life Museum and Victorian School. The museum houses the West Somerset Photographic Archive.
[edit] References
- ^ "Carhampton Hundred". Domesday Map. http://www.domesdaymap.co.uk/hundred/carhampton/. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
- ^ "Packhorse Bridge". Images of England. http://www.imagesofengland.org.uk/details/default.aspx?id=265486. Retrieved 5 January 2008.
- ^ Otter, R.A. (1994). Civil Engineering Heritage: Southern England. London: Thomas Telford Ltd. pp. 93. ISBN 978-0-7277-1971-3.
[edit] External links
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