Clevedon is a very historic, vibrant little north Somerset town. The name derives from the Saxon for, 'Cleve' meaning Cleft and 'don' meaning hill. The town is situated in an cleft, amongst a group of small hills alongside the River Severn estuary, from which it has derived its name. There is evidence of a hill fort dating from the Iron Age: where now stands Walton Castle, built in between, 1615 and 1620. Prior to the Norman's invading it was  a Saxon town. However there is little documentation during this period. In fact it is not until after the Norman invasion of 1066, that we find the town documented. For it is mentioned in the that great survey of 1088, which gives us such a great insight into the history of the towns and villages, of not only the west country: but all of England. In the  Domesday Book of 1088, Cleavedon  was described thus; 'as being a holding of a tenant in chief by the name of Mathew of Mortaigne, and was listed at that time as having eight villagers, and ten smallholders.' Prior to the Norman's the area was held by one John (Gunni?) the Dane.

Again Clevedon in line with most West Country town's spang into prominence in the Victorian Era. And yes the reason for Clevedons emergence as an holiday resort was the coming of the railway; Clevedon was served by a short branch line from the main railway at Yatton, opened in 1847, six years after the main line itself. This continued in operation for passengers until 1961. ( the year a certain Dr Beeching decimated the great railway system set up by the Victorian's an act of offical vandalism that remains- unprecedeted ) The site of the former station is now Queen's Square, a shopping precinct. Another railway also served the town, the Weston, Clevedon & Portishead Light Railway, which opened in 1897 and closed in 1940. Trains crossed the road at The Triangle, preceded by a man with a red flag.It was during the Victorian era Clevedon became a popular seaside town. Clevedon Pier was opened on easter Monday 1869,  one of the earliest examples of a Victorian pier still in existence in England. The seafront stretches for approximately half a mile from the pier to Salthouse Field, Clevedon seafront also includes beautiful ornamental gardens, and an Victorian bandstand, whish is show at the top of the page. a bowling green, tennis courts and other amusements. An addition to this list is Marine Lake, which was once a Victorian swimming pool, is now used for boating activities. The town hosts  a small but popular festival once each year where people can try out new sports. The Salthouse Field has a great little light railway running round the perimeter, and is also used for donkey rides during the summer. The shore at Clevedon is a mixture of pebbled beaches and low rocky cliffs, with the old harbour being at the western edge of the town at the mouth of the Land Yeo. Clevedon is remembered as the place where, a young Anglican clergyman; John Ashley who was holidaying in Clevedon conceived of the idea of creating the Mission to Seafarers

Clevedon today  is now part of the North Somerset unitary authority, having formerly been part of Somerset, and between 1974 and 1996 the county of Avon. Clevedon has a certain amount of light industry, mainly in industrial estates including Hither Green Trading Estate near the M5 motorway junction, and it is also a dormitory town for Bristol. The Clerical Medical pensions and investments group, part of HBOS, has its headquarters in the town on the former site of the Hales Cakes factory.  Clevedon is situated on and round seven hills called Chruchill, Wain's hill (which is topped by the remains of an iron age hill fort, Dial hill, Stawberry hill, Castle hill, Hangstone hill and Court hill. On a clear day there are far reaching views across the Severn estuary to South Wales. When the visibility is particularly good the island of Lundy in the Bristol Channel can be seen. Unfortunatly the rocky beach and the sedate nature of the amusements on offer meant that Clevedon lost almost all of its residential holiday trade by the middle of the twentieth century, though it is still a popular resort for day-trippers. However if you are like me an admirer of all things Victorian that the town with its wonderful Victorian features is a great plce to visit

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