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Bradford-on Avon

Bradford on Avon
Bradford on Avon town bridge (2).JPG
The Town Bridge over the river Avon.
The small domed building is the lockup, where the town's troublemakers were put for the night.
Bradford on Avon is located in Wiltshire
Bradford on Avon
Bradford on Avon
Bradford on Avon shown within Wiltshire
Population 9,402 (in 2011)
OS grid reference ST826609
Civil parish
  • Bradford on Avon
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town BRADFORD-ON-AVON
Postcode district BA15
Dialling code 01225
Police Wiltshire
Fire Dorset and Wiltshire
Ambulance South Western
EU Parliament South West England
UK Parliament
Website Town Council
List of places
UK
England
Wiltshire
51°20′49″N 2°15′04″W / 51.347°N 2.251°W / 51.347; -2.251Coordinates: 51°20′49″N 2°15′04″W / 51.347°N 2.251°W / 51.347; -2.251

Bradford on Avon (sometimes Bradford-on-Avon) is a town and civil parish in west Wiltshire, England, with a population of 9,402 at the 2011 census. The town's canal, historic buildings, shops, pubs and restaurants make it popular with tourists.

The history of the town can be traced back to Roman origins. It has several buildings dating from the 17th century, when the town grew due to the thriving English woollen textile industry.

The town lies partly on the Avon Valley, and partly on the hill that marks the Vale's western edge, eight miles southeast of Bath, in the hilly countryside between the Mendip Hills, Salisbury Plain and the Cotswold Hills. The local area around Bath provides the Jurassic limestone (Bath Stone) from which the older buildings are constructed. The River Avon (the Bristol Avon) runs through the town. The town directly borders Trowbridge to the south east.

The town includes the suburbs of Bearfield and Woolley; the parish includes the hamlets of Widbrook and Woolley Green.

The earliest evidence of habitation is fragments of Roman settlements above the town. In particular, archaeological digs have revealed the remains of a large Roman villa with a well-preserved mosaic on the playing fields of St Laurence School. The centre of the town grew up around the ford across the river Avon, hence the origin of the town's name ("Broad-Ford"). This was supplemented in Norman times by the stone bridge that still stands today. The Norman side is upstream, and has pointed arches; the newer side has curved arches. The Town Bridge and Chapel is a grade I listed building. It was originally a packhorse bridge, but widened in the 17th century by rebuilding the western side. On 2 July 1643 the town was the site of a skirmish in the English Civil War, when Royalists seized control of the bridge on their way to the Battle of Lansdowne.


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