Rode, Somerset
| Rode | |
|---|---|
 Village centre |
|
 Rode
|
|
| Rode shown within Somerset | |
| Population | 1,025 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | ST805540 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | FROME |
| Postcode district | BA11 6 |
| Dialling code | 01373 |
| Police | Avon and Somerset |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| EU Parliament | South West England |
| UK Parliament | |
Rode (formerly Road) is a village in Somerset, England located 5 miles (8.0 km) northeast of Frome and 5 miles (8.0 km) southwest of Trowbridge. The village was formerly in Wiltshire, before being transferred to neighbouring Somerset.
The village lies within a mile of the Wiltshire border and is the easternmost settlement in Somerset. The Wiltshire village of Southwick is only 2 miles (3 km) to the east.
Facilities in the village include a village school, pre-school, shop/post office, physiotherapy and acupuncture clinic and a cricket club, which was founded in about 1895.
There used to be several mills in the village, one of which has now been converted into the Mill pub. Other pubs in Rode are the Cross Keys and the Bell. Until 1962, the village was home to Fussell's Brewery, which grew up behind the Cross Keys Inn. It continued to be used a bottling plant and distribution depot by Bass until 1992. The site was eventually sold off to a housing developer despite strong opposition from residents, as was the old site of Rode Tropical Bird Gardens, an animal sanctuary and small zoo, which closed its doors to the public in 2001.
The village appears as "Rode" in the Domesday Book, but the spelling was labile from an early date: it is "Roda" in assize rolls of 1201, "la Rode" in a charter roll of 1230; by the 18th century "Road" was regarded as the usual form. This was reverted to the older spelling "Rode" by Somerset County Council in 1919. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon rod, meaning a clearing. The parish was part of the hundred of Frome.
Rode rose to prominence as a trading centre on the ceremonial borders of Wiltshire and Somerset, and later became a market town. The old village was positioned around St Lawrence's church along the main thoroughfare (known as Rode Major; now on the ordnance map as "Church Row"). However, many parts of the old village were damaged in a fire and the ruins can be seen in the field adjoining the church.
...
Wikipedia