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Foggam Barn Bed & Breakfast is near many places and makes traveling to such places as Bradford-Upon-Avon and Bath very easy with buses leaving for Bath from the bus stop in Box that is a five minute walk away from the property. There are also many nature trails and the wildlife has it's own place with us and our paddock is a host to many a wild animal.
|Corsham|Box|Bath|Other Locals|
Corsham
Corsham is a small mediæval town in northwest Wiltshire, England. It is at the southwestern extreme of the Cotswolds, between Bath (7.5 miles, 12 km) and Chippenham (4.5 miles, 7 km.)
The civil parish of Corsham includes the neighbouring communities of Chapel Knap, Easton, Gastard, Hartham, Leafield, The Linleys, Neston, The Ridge, Rudloe and Thingley.
In the past, Corsham was a centre for the wool industry, and a source for quarrying Bath stone. It includes numerous historic buildings, such as the stately home of Corsham Court. In World War II and the Cold War, it became a major administrative and manufacturing centre for the Ministry of Defence, with numerous establishments both above ground and in the old quarry tunnels.
Corsham derives its name from 'Cosa' village', where hām is the Old English for homestead, or village. The town is referred in the Domesday book as Cosseham; the letter 'R' appears to have entered the name later under Norman influence.
One of the towns that prospered greatly from Wiltshire's wool trade in mediæval times, it maintained its prosperity after the decline of that trade through the quarrying of Bath stone, with underground mining works extending to the south and west of Corsham.
There was once a priory in Corsham, which was destroyed, then replaced with a Georgian house (now Heywood School) located on Priory Street.
The town of Corsham was the inspiration for Charles Dickens's novel The Pickwick Papers. The name Pickwick is likely to have come from that of a nearby farm, Pickwick Lodge Farm. Pickwick was once a separate community—now the northwestern part of the town—on the A4, formerly the main turnpike road from London to Bristol.[2]
Corsham never had a town charter. Instead it was officially a village until 1999, when the parish council took advantage of the right (given to English parishes in 1972) to rename itself to Corsham Town Council.
The town has its own festival. Corsham also started a jazz festival (separate from the town festival) in 2004, which included a performance by the National Youth Jazz Orchestra. The event however was not as successful as the organizers would have hoped, bands across the seven venues had to compete with each other and turnout was lower than expected. In 2005 the festival was reduced to just two venues and a much reduced lineup. In 2006, the festival reduced in size once again, with only the Royal Oak Pub hosting the event, and the Stan Tracey Trio as principal headliners.
Information courtesy of Wikipedia.org
An Introduction To Walking Around Box
Sitting astride the A4 about 6 miles East of Bath, the village of Box and it's surroundings provide an ideal focus for a number of exploring beautiful scenery, livened by its varied nature and its associations with agriculture and traditional industries.
A settlement since Roman times, and possibly earlier, many of the houses now standing date back to the early 18th century. The village retains it's 'pound' and a fine example of a Blind House, an early form of prison. Open areas of common land are still maintained for use by the villagers. Mills along the by-brook are testimony to the agricultural activities of these earlier ages. The slopes to the south were the source of much of the 'Bath Stone' used in the building of Bath and the area. Many tracks criss-cross this area, including obvious tramways that were used to bring stone down to the main roads. The coming of the railway has given Box perhaps its most famous landmark, Box Tunnel, designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel to take trains through from Bristol to London. The amazing facade can be viewed from a special viewing platform towards the Eastern end of the village, next to the newly planted Lacy's Wood, our commemoration of the Millenium.
Todays' village retains its special community spirit and a warm welcome is extended to all our visitors. Shops, a Post Office and a Pharmacy are all located near to the centre of the village. A marked footpath map can be obtained from the council offices on Tuesdays. The Parish Church is normally open during daylight hours and you are welcome to explore or sit for a moments quiet rest. There is an active sports calendar played out on the village recreation ground from football in winter, to cricket, tennis and bowls through the summer months. A well maintained childrens' area is on the far side of the recreation ground. There are a number of good pubs in and around the village for refreshment. The petrol station is another useful village amenity.
Further information about what's happening in Box can be found in the Parish Magazine, obtainable from the Post Office or the Church, or by logging on to the Parish Website, www.boxparish.org
Car parking is at the bottom of Valens Terrace, next to the Recreation Ground. Coming from Bath, take the left at the traffic lights and turn left after The Bear pub.
©Footpath Walks Around Box, Box Parish Council.
Bath
Bath is a city in Somerset, England most famous for its historic baths fed by three hot springs. It is situated 99 miles (159 km) west of Central London and 13 miles (21 km) south east of Bristol.
The city is founded around the only naturally occurring hot springs in the United Kingdom. It was first documented as a Roman spa, although tradition suggests that it was founded earlier. The waters from its spring were believed to be a cure for many afflictions. From Elizabethan to Georgian times it was a resort city for the wealthy. As a result of its popularity during the latter period, the city contains many fine examples of Georgian architecture, most notably the Royal Crescent. The city has a population of over 90,144 and is a World Heritage Site.
Situation and transport
Bath is approximately 15 miles (25 km) south-east of the larger city and port of Bristol, to which it is linked by the A4 road, and is a similar distance south of the M4 motorway. Its main railway station, Bath Spa, lies on the Great Western Railway, the main line between Bristol and London, as well as on the line linking Cardiff with Portsmouth.
Bath is connected to Bristol and the sea by the River Avon, navigable via locks by small boats. The river was connected to the River Thames and London by the Kennet and Avon Canal in 1810 via Bath Locks; this waterway — closed for many years, but restored in the last years of the 20th century — is now popular among users of narrow boats.[5]
Physical geography
Bath is at the bottom of the Avon Valley, and near the southern edge of the Cotswolds, a range of limestone hills designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The hills that surround and make up the city have a maximum altitude of 238 m (780 ft) on the Lansdown plateau. It has an area of 11 mile² (29 km²).[6]
The surrounding hills give Bath its steep streets and make its buildings appear to climb the slopes. The flood plain of the River Avon, which runs through the centre of the city, here has an altitude of 17 metres (56 ft). The river, once an unnavigable series of braided streams broken up by swamps and ponds, has been managed by weirs into a single channel. Nevertheless, periodic flooding, which shortened the life of many buildings in the lowest part of the city, was normal until major flood control works in the 1970s.
The city has the hottest geothermal springs in the UK. [7] Three of these springs feed the thermal baths.
During the 18th century, Bath became the leading centre of fashionable life in England. It was during this time that Bath's Theatre Royal was built, as well as architectural triumphs such as Royal Crescent, Lansdown Crescent,[9] the Royal Crescent,[10] The Circus and Pulteney Bridge.[11]
Today, Bath has five theatres — Bath Theatre Royal, Ustinov Studio, The Egg, the Rondo Theatre, and the Mission Theatre — and attracts internationally renowned companies and directors, including an annual season by Sir Peter Hall. The city also has a long-standing musical tradition; Bath Abbey[12] is home to the Klais Organ and is the largest concert venue in the city, with about 20 concerts and 26 organ recitals each year. Another important concert venue is the Forum, a 1700-seat art deco building which originated as a cinema. The city holds the Bath International Music Festival and Mozartfest every year. Other festivals include the annual Bath Film Festival, Bath Literature Festival, the Bath Fringe Festival and the Bath Beer Festival.
The city is home to the Victoria Art Gallery,[13] the Museum of East Asian Art, and The Holburne Museum of Art,[14] as well as numerous museums, among them The Bath Postal Museum, The Museum of Costume, The Jane Austen Centre, the William Herschel Museum and the Roman Baths.[15] The Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution, now in Queen Square, and founded in 1824 on the base of a 1777 Society for the encouragement of Agriculture, Planting, Manufactures, Commerce and the Fine Arts, has an important collection and holds a rich and popular programme of talks and discussions. See 'Places of interest' below for details of many other places of artistic, cultural and historical interest.
There are numerous commercial art galleries and antique shops in Bath, which is one of the most important centres of the English antiques trade outside London.
For a list of churches in Bath, see here. In addition to the churches listed, Manvers Gospel Hall is located in the city centre.
Bath in the arts
Perhaps the best known resident of Bath was Jane Austen, who lived in the city from 1801 until 1806. However, Jane Austen never liked the city, and wrote to her sister Cassandra, "It will be two years tomorrow since we left Bath for Clifton, with what happy feelings of escape." Despite these feelings, Bath has honoured her name with the Jane Austen Centre and a city walk. Austen's later Northanger Abbey and Persuasion are largely set in the city and feature descriptions of taking the waters, social life, and music recitals.
- Thomas Gainsborough moved to Bath in 1759, where he first became fashionable. He moved to London in 1774.
- Sir Thomas Lawrence first became famous in the city, where he lived from 1782 to 1787.
- Charles Dickens' novel Pickwick Papers also features Bath, and satirises its social life. Pickwick takes the waters and his servant, Sam Weller, comments that the water has "a very strong flavour o' warm flat irons", while the Royal Crescent is the venue for a chase between two of the characters, Dowler and Winkle.
- William Friese-Greene began experimenting with celluloid and motion pictures in his studio in Bath in the 1870s, developing some of the earliest movie camera technology there. He is credited as the inventor of cinematography.
- Moyra Caldecott's novel The Waters of Sul is set in Roman Bath in 72 AD. Richard Brinsley Sheridan's play The Rivals is also set in Bath.
- In 2004, a movie of Thackeray's Vanity Fair was largely filmed in Bath.
- Roald Dahl's chilling short-story, "The Landlady" also takes place in the city of Bath.
- In August 2003 the Three Tenors sang at a special concert to mark the opening of the Thermae Bath Spa, a new hot water spa in Bath City Centre; delays to the project meant the spa actually opened three years later on August 7, 2006.
The city has several public parks, the main one being Royal Victoria Park, a short walk from the centre of the city. It was opened in 1830 and has an area of 57 acres (231,000 m²).[16] Several events are held in the park every year, including the Bath International Music Festival, and it is favoured as a take-off site by hot air balloon companies. The park features a botanical garden, a large children's play park, and sports facilities, including crazy golf, bowls and lawn tennis. Much of its area is lawn; a notable feature is the way in which a ha-ha segregates it from the Royal Crescent, while giving the impression to a viewer from the Crescent of a greensward uninterrupted across the Park down to Royal Avenue.
Other parks in Bath include: Alexandra Park, which crowns a hill and overlooks the city; Parade Gardens, along the river front near the Abbey in the centre of the city; Sydney Gardens, known as a pleasure-garden in the 18th century; Henrietta Park; Hedgemead Park; and Alice Park. Jane Austen wrote of Sydney Gardens that "It would be pleasant to be near the Sydney Gardens. We could go into the Labyrinth every day." Alexandra, Alice and Henrietta parks were built into the growing city among the housing developments.[17] There is also a linear park following the old Somerset and Dorset railway line.
Sally Lunn's buns (a type of teacake) have long been baked in Bath. They were first mentioned by that name in verses printed in a local newspaper, the Bath Chronicle, in 1772. At that time they were eaten hot at public breakfasts in the city's Spring Gardens. They can be eaten with sweet or savoury toppings.
Visitors sometimes confuse Sally Lunn's buns with Bath Buns — smaller, round, very sweet, very rich buns that were associated with the city following The Great Exhibition. Bath Buns were originally topped with crushed 'comfits' created by dipping caraway seeds repeatedly in boiling sugar; but today seeds are added to a 'London Bath Bun' (a reference to the bun's promotion and sale at the Great Exhibition). The seeds may be replaced by crushed sugar granules or 'nibs'.
Bath has also lent its name to one other distinctive recipe — Bath Olivers — the dry baked biscuits invented by Dr William Oliver, physician to the Mineral Water Hospital in 1740. Oliver was an early anti-obesity campaigner, writing a "Practical Essay on the Use and Abuse of warm Bathing in Gluty Cases". Local legend has it that he bequeathed the recipe for his low calorie biscuits to his coachman, a Mr Atkins, along with £100 and a hundred sacks of flour. Atkins subsequently opened a shop in Green Street, Bath and became a rich man on the proceeds. In more recent years Dr Oliver's efforts have been traduced by the introduction of a version of the biscuits with a plain chocolate coating.
Bath chap, the cheek and jawbones of the pig, salted and smoked is named after Bath, its place of origin. [18]
The city's best known sporting team is Bath Rugby, a rugby union team which is currently in the Guinness Premiership league and coached by Steve Meeham. It plays in black, blue and white kit with its sponsors' logo, Helphire, on the front of the shirts. The team plays at the Recreation Ground in the city, where it has been since the late 19th century, following its establishment in 1865. The team rose to national prestige during the 1980s, and it has remained one of the best rugby teams in the country. Its first major honour was winning the John Player Cup four years consecutively from 1984 until 1987. The team then led the Courage league for six consecutive seasons, from 1988/1989 until 1995/1996, during which time it also won the Pilkington Cup in 1989, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1995 and 1996. It finally won the Heineken Cup in the 1997/1998 season, and topped the Zürich (now Guinness) Premiership in 2003/2004.
The team's current squad includes several members who also play in the English national elite team including: Steve Borthwick, Lee Mears, Matt Stevens, Olly Barkley, David Flatman and Danny Grewcock. Colston's Collegiate School, Bristol has had a large input in the team over the past decade, providing current 1st XV squad members Barkley, Bell, Brooker, Crockett, Davey, Davis, Delve, Hawkins, Mears and Smith. The former England Rugby Team Manager Andy Robinson used to play for Bath Rugby team and was Captain and later Coach. While in the Bath team, he was a Physical Education, Rugby and Mathematics teacher at King Edward's School, North Road, Bath. Both of Robinson's predecessors, Clive Woodward and Jack Rowell, were also former Bath coaches and managers.
Bath City F.C. and Team Bath F.C. (affiliated with the University of Bath) are the major football teams. Bath City play in the Conference South, while Team Bath play one division below in the Southern Football League. In 2007, Bath City became champions of the Southern Football League, and were promoted. In 2002, Team Bath became the first university team to enter the FA Cup in 120 years, and advanced through four qualifying rounds to the first round proper. Unlike the city's rugby team, Bath City have never attained an elite status in English football; its highest position has been seventh in the Football Conference in the 1992/1993 season. The University's team was established in 1999, while the city team has existed since before 1908 (when it entered the Western League). Bath City F.C. play their games at Twerton Park. Current players include Scott Partridge, Jim Rollo, Lewis Hogg and former South African international goalkeeper Paul Evans.
Cricket is played at the Bath Cricket Club, located, like the rugby Recreation Ground, east of the river, near Pulteney Bridge. The cricket ground is the venue for the annual Bath Cricket Festival which sees Somerset County Cricket Club play several games.
Bath also has a thriving biking community, with places for biking including Royal Victoria Park, 'The Tumps' in Odd Down, the jumps on top of Lansdown, and Prior Park. Places for biking near Bath include Brown's Folly in Batheaston and Box Woods, in Box.
The Recreation Ground is also home to Bath Croquet Club, which was re-formed in 1976 and is affiliated with the South West Federation of Croquet Clubs.
TeamBath is the umbrella name for all of the University of Bath sports teams, including the aforementioned football club. Other sports for which TeamBath is noted are athletics, badminton, basketball, bob skeleton, bobsleigh, hockey, judo, modern pentathlon, netball, rugby, swimming, tennis, triathlon and volleyball.
Bath is also the home of the Bath American Football Club, which has been playing American Football in the city since 2001. It caters for Youth and Junior levels of play.
The Bath Half Marathon is run annually through the city streets, with over 10,000 runners.[19] The City of Bath Triathlon takes place annually at the University of Bath.
The city has one major skate park; Victoria Skatepark, located near inside the Victoria play park vicinity, and just a few 100 meters away from the Royal Cresent. It features 1 vertical ramp, 1 medium sized ramp, 1 spine, 1 block and a few other bits of park course.
Bath's principal industry is tourism, with visits mainly falling into the categories of heritage tourism and cultural tourism. All significant stages of the history of England are represented within the city, from the Roman Baths (including their significant Celtic presence), to Bath Abbey and the Royal Crescent, to Thermae Bath Spa in the 2000s.
The size of the tourist industry is reflected in the almost 300 places of accommodation—including over 80 hotels, and over 180 bed and breakfasts—many of which are located in Georgian buildings and have five-star ratings. There are also two campsites located very close to the city centre. The city also contains approximately 100 restaurants, and a similar number of public houses and bars. Several companies offer open-top bus tours around the city, as well as tours on foot and on the river.
While many tourists come to Bath to see the city in general, some are attracted to particular aspects of the city, such as the Jane Austen landmarks or the Roman Baths.
The Spa
Since 2006, with the opening of Thermae Bath Spa, the city has attempted to recapture its historical position as the only town in the United Kingdom offering visitors the opportunity to bathe in naturally heated spring waters. Hotels in Bath.
Places of interest
Key National Trust Forestry Commission Country Park Accessible open space
Museums (free/not free) Heritage railway Historic House Castle Abbey/Priory/Cathedral Information courtesy of Wikipedia.org
Others
There are many other place of interest within a short drive:
