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Ross On Wye

Ross-on-Wye
Ross-on-Wye2.jpg
Town centre,
looking north from Market House
Ross-on-Wye is located in Herefordshire
Ross-on-Wye
Ross-on-Wye
Ross-on-Wye shown within Herefordshire
Population 9,574 (2011)
OS grid reference SO597241
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town ROSS-ON-WYE
Postcode district HR9
Dialling code 01989
Police West Mercia
Fire Hereford and Worcester
Ambulance West Midlands
EU Parliament West Midlands
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
HerefordshireCoordinates: 51°54′50″N 2°35′13″W / 51.914°N 2.587°W / 51.914; -2.587

Ross-on-Wye (Welsh: Rhosan ar Wy) is a small market town with a population of 9,574 (according to the 2011 census), in south eastern Herefordshire, England, located on the River Wye, and on the northern edge of the Forest of Dean.

Ross-on-Wye was the birthplace of the British tourist industry. In 1745, the rector, Dr John Egerton, started taking friends on boat trips down the valley from his rectory at Ross. The Wye Valley's attraction was its river scenery, its precipitous landscapes, and its castles and abbeys, which were accessible to seekers of the "Picturesque". In 1782, William Gilpin's book "Observations on the River Wye" was published, the first illustrated tour guide to be published in Britain. Once it was published, demand grew so much that by 1808 there were eight boats making regular excursions down the Wye, most of them hired from inns in Ross and Monmouth. By 1850 more than 20 visitors had published their own accounts of the Wye Tour, and the area was established as a tourist area.

The 700-year-old parish church of St. Mary's is the town's most prominent landmark and its tall pointed spire is visible when approaching the town from all directions. The church holds several distinctive tombs, one of which – that of a certain William Rudhall (d.1530) – is one of the last great alabaster sculptures from the specialist masons of Nottingham, whose work was prized across medieval Europe. Rudhall was responsible for the repair of the almshouses, situated to the north west of the church, in 1575. Another tomb is of John Kyrle, a prominent figure in 18th century Ross, whose name is now given to the town's secondary school and after whom one of the town's notable inns, The Man Of Ross, is also named.


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Wikipedia

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