Milverton in 1841
Milverton is in the hundred of Milverton, 152 or 153 miles west by south of London, and 8 miles west of Taunton. It was a market-town at the time of the compilation of Domesday, and belonged then to the king, but had previously belonged to the bishop of Well's. The town is pleasantly situated in a valley drained by a feeder of the Tone, and surrounded by wooded hill's. It consists principally of three streets, irregularly laid out, and neither paved nor lighted. The church is a spacious building of perpendicular character ; there are meeting-house's for Quakers and Independents. The area of the parish is 6,400 acres : the population in 1831 was 2,233. The only manufacture is of woollen-cloth ; formerly druggets and serges were made to considerable amount : stone is quarried in the parish. The market is on Friday, and there is one yearly fair.
The living is a vicarage, united with the chapelry of Langford Budville, both in the peculiar jurisdiction of the archdeacon of Taunton, of the clear yearly value of £449, with a glebe-house.
There were in the parish, in 1833, a day-school with 90 boys and 59 girls, partly supported by endowment ; and eight other day-schools or boarding-schools, with 104 boys and 79 girls ; and one Sunday-school with 187 boys and 148 girls. |