The Village of Southwick, Wiltshire
Maybe there's more here than you would think
Some villages here in England are easily driven through and dismissed as of little interest. Being dissected by a busy road and filled with modern housing is not uncommon for some of our villages. I live close to one such village, Southwick, that is situated close to the south-western edge of Wiltshire’s county town, Trowbridge.
The village is mainly linear, with the A361 running through it, heading towards Frome. It’s a busy road, and there might appear little reason to stop for those passing through. The village has a pub, The Farmhouse Inn1 and further along this road (Frome Road), a convenience store, hair salon, and opposite is a vehicle repairer, Norris Auto Services and a little further along the road, Southwick Car Center, a used-car dealer.
Two food takeaways are found in one of the offshoot housing estates (Chantry Gardens) and are the only remaining shops in a rank that has been converted to houses. A modest-sized industrial estate is on the Frome side of the village once you pass the last of the houses.
Southwick was once a strong Baptist community, though today, just one Baptist church remains open, along with a St Thomas Church (Church of England) built in 1899-1904, so quite late for the architectural style. Interestingly, St. Thomas was constructed with a baptism pool to tempt the Baptists to join them. The Baptist Church on Wynsome Street has an outside baptism pool, which, due to development, lies in front of some modern homes next to the roadside footpath.
Early Origins: Southwick, Trowbridge
Before starting my walk around Southwick, let me tell you a little about its early origins.
It has always been a relatively small place and, in Anglo-Saxon times, was part of Steeple Ashton Manor. It was once part of the vast Selwood Forest, which covered the land from approximately Gillingham in Dorset to Chippenham in Wiltshire. That’s a distance of around 35 miles; in modern Britain, that would be a good-sized National Park. The forest was cut down over the years, and Southwick was no longer part of it from around 1300.
Records show that one of the early landowners was Humphrey Stafford, who died in 1413. He was the Tax Assessor for Wiltshire in 1379 and was the MP for Warwickshire in 1383. Humphrey had an illegitimate son by Emma from nearby North Bradley. The son fared well and became the Bishop of Bath and Wells, progressing to Archbishop of Canterbury and Chancellor of England.
Humphrey lived at Southwick Manor, today called Southwick Court Farmhouse, and he left the property to his legitimate son. The manor was built upon, and Southwick Court Farmhouse is on the site. However, this is an old building. It dates back to the 16th century and is surrounded by a moat, most likely added in the 18th century. It has a late 15th-century gatehouse, and it’s been a private residence for over 800 years.
Let’s start walking through Southwick
I start my walk from Trowbridge and descend the hill towards my destination. On the right-hand side of the road, as I cross the Lambrok, at the bottom of the valley dividing Trowbridge from Southwick, lies the entry to Southwick Country Park. It’s a popular area with dog walkers, runners and anyone wanting some fresh air. Next to this is the Fairfield Animal Centre2, a wonderful place to take children to experience an abundance of animals. It is a charity, its main aim is to provide employment and training for young people with learning disabilities. You can enjoy the delights of the cafe whether or not you visit the animals. Link below.
The first and oldest property in Southwick, though not visible from the road, lies on my left as I walk from Trowbridge and enter Southwick. This is the aforementioned Southwick Court. It’s not possible to photograph from my position, so I will include a link for you to see photos the owners have published online.3 The house lies in green open fields between Trowbridge and Southwick. A stream, the Lambrok, flows along the valley and past this house. Sadly, developers are trying to fill this green space with new homes, taking them close to this historic house. So far, they have been thwarted - but for how long?
Once I reach the top of the hill, Southwick is on level ground, and we can see the new houses that have been built lining each side of the road. Dotted amongst them are some gems worthy of our attention, so let's look at them as I go from one end of the village to the other. I will walk along another road later.
Many years ago, Southwick had four public houses, and all have been demolished. One of them, the Royal Oak, once stood on the right-hand side of Frome Road, not too far from the start of the village. The oldest pub was the Fleur-de-Lys, situated along a lane which once ran off the left side of Frome Road, and was open until the 1960s. It was demolished to make way for housing. Fleur-de-Lys Drive and part of Chantry Gardens are now on the site.
On the opposite side of the road to Chantry Gardens is the Farmhouse Inn. I have eaten there several times and always enjoyed the food in the restaurant. This is a 17th-century farmhouse converted to a pub in the 1980s. (Weblink in the footnotes)
Before reaching the mini roundabout and the junction of Wynsome Street leading off to the left, there is a former Baptist chapel. Now converted into a house, having closed late in the twentieth century, Providence Chapel opened in 1861. It was built by a breakaway group of Baptists from the chapel in Wynsome Street, which I will look at later after completing the length of Frome Road beyond the roundabout. This group followed the Strict Baptist movement, believing their way of worship to be better.
Across the road on the right is the Scouts building. This was originally the National School with a teacher’s house. It was built in 1867 on land donated by Richard Penidoccke Long, a man who created a few stories to tell. It’s built in Flemish Bond brick, which forms an interesting pattern. A modern school is not far away, accessed from Hollis Way in the area, which was also once common land.
On the corner of Wynsome Street is St Thomas Church (mentioned earlier), postally with an address on Frome Road. It stands on land which was once part of the common, sadly built upon except the playing fields further along.
Walking from the roundabout, there are the two shops on my right, the hair salon and Premier convenience store. Opposite is the entrance to the village hall and the first of the car companies, Norris Auto Services. Just before the driveway to the village hall is a cream-coloured house. This is the old post office that closed in 2004 and, apart from the house name, gives no visible clue as to its busy past.
Walking a little further on, I soon arrive at the car dealers, Southwick Car Sales. This is where another of Southwick’s original pubs once stood, The New Inn. In later life, it had some name changes, including The Axe and Cleaver. The pub closed in 2012 and was demolished in 2013.
To finish off my walk, I head back to the roundabout in the direction of Trowbridge and turn right onto Wynsome Street. If this name is taken from old English, it means something like ‘pleasant way’. On my left is Church Lane, which loops onto Frome Road near what was Providence Chapel. I mention this because one of Southwick’s four former pubs, The White Swan, was on this lane, sold around 1935 and also demolished. It seems that public houses and Southwick didn’t get on!
Towards the end of Wynsome Street, before it becomes Goose Street, I take a look at the open-air Baptist pool, which was rebuilt in stone in 1937, and it is just after I cross the Lambrok flowing under the road.
Finally, on this trip, I reached the Baptist Church, which is still in use today. The original church was opened in 1709 and at one time grew to a congregation of three hundred. That building was replaced in 1815 and includes a sunken baptistery, more in tune with British temperatures than the outdoor one I just passed.
The attached Sunday school once had one hundred and twenty children in attendance and was rebuilt in the 1870s. That’s a good number for what would have been a small population at the time.
Although Southwick might not be regarded as one of Wiltshire's prettiest villages, it has some interesting buildings and history worthy of mention. Sadly, some buildings, including the four pubs, that have been demolished it has lost some of the historic architecture. Today, some of the older buildings are late 19th-century, built for workers who were employed in Trowbridge rather than as home weavers in the village. Weaving from the Middle Ages through to the 18th century was the main employment for villagers, along with agriculture. As weaving became mechanised and the mills in Trowbridge grew, villagers would need to go into Trowbridge to work.
The 1960s and 70s saw a surge of modern housing, with more later, filling the gaps and increasing the population to close to above two thousand today.
I hope you have enjoyed this look at Southwick and the photos. Please let me know in the comments. If you haven’t become a free subscriber yet, please click the button for more stories that can be delivered to your inbox or read on the Substack app.
Thanks very interesting. Btw having trouble posting comments. Have to go into desktop mode on my phone or the post button doesn't show.