Colerne, Wiltshire

Colerne is a village in north Wiltshire, 3.5 miles from Corsham and 7 miles from Bath. From the 14th century the local economy, already based on sheep-rearing; went into cloth production with mills on the bordering By Brook river; and stone quarrying. With advances in mechanisation by the 19th century cloth-making had migrated to industrial towns and the economy became mainly agriculture, today the village is home to many commuters.


There are close to 90 buildings Listed for their architectural merit in Colerne, a great number for a village, though there would be more except for a great fire in the High Street in 1774 which totally destroyed 42 houses, as well as barns and malt houses. The Grade II* former farmhouse known as Daubenys, on the High Street, is a long house from circa 1400. The Manor House, near the church, bears a date of 1689, Date stones are not necessarily indicative of a buildings age, it may relate to an alteration or event. The parish church of St John the Baptist dates from the 13th century.


The village has two pubs, the Fox and Hounds and the Six Bells Inn, as well as several shops, including a Post Office. Derek Fowlds, the actor in in Yes Minister, and Basil Brush,  used to live in Colerne.

photos to be added