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Watchet Lifeboat Station

1875 establishments in England1944 disestablishments in EnglandLibraries in SomersetLifeboat stations in SomersetUse British English from January 2025
Watchet
Watchet Library geograph.org.uk 2505020
Watchet Library geograph.org.uk 2505020

Watchet Lifeboat Station was located at the eastern end of The Esplanade at Watchet, a harbour town on the edge of Exmoor National Park approximately 8 miles (13 km) east of Minehead, which sits at the mouth of the Washford River, overlooking Bridgwater Bay and the Bristol Channel, on the Somerset coast. A lifeboat station was first established at Watchet in 1875 by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI). After 69 years of operation, Watchet Lifeboat Station closed in 1944. The building is in use as a public library.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Watchet Lifeboat Station (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Watchet Lifeboat Station
Harbour Road,

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Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 51.181777777778 ° E -3.3283611111111 °
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Address

Harbour Road
TA23 0AQ
England, United Kingdom
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Watchet Library geograph.org.uk 2505020
Watchet Library geograph.org.uk 2505020
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Watchet
Watchet

Watchet is a harbour town and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is situated 15 miles (24 km) west of Bridgwater, 15 miles (24 km) north-west of Taunton, and 9 miles (14 km) east of Minehead. The town lies at the mouth of the Washford River on Bridgwater Bay, part of the Bristol Channel, and on the edge of Exmoor National Park. At the 2021 census, the parish had a population of 3,948. The original settlement may have been at the Iron Age fort, Daw's Castle. It then moved to the mouth of the river and a small harbour developed. After the Saxon conquest of the area the town developed, becoming known as Weced or Waeced, and was attacked by Vikings in the 10th century. Trade using the harbour gradually grew, despite damage during several severe storms, with import and exports of goods including those from Wansbrough Paper Mill until the 19th century when it increased with the export of iron ore, brought from the Brendon Hills via the West Somerset Mineral Railway, mainly to Newport for onward transportation to the Ebbw Vale Steelworks. The West Somerset Railway also served the town and port bringing goods and people from the Bristol and Exeter Railway. The iron ore trade reduced, finally ceasing in the early 20th century. The port continued a smaller commercial trade until 2000 when it was converted into a marina. In 2016, Watchet joined the rest of West Somerset in receiving 'Opportunity Area' status. The church is dedicated to Saint Decuman who is thought to have died here around 706. An early church was built near Daw's Castle and a new church was erected in the 15th century. It has several tombs and monuments to Sir John Wyndham and his family who were the lords of the manor. Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, which was written in the area, is commemorated by a statue on the harbourside. East Quay Watchet is a purpose-built art gallery and arts centre that opened in 2021.

Daw's Castle
Daw's Castle

Daw's Castle (or Dart's Castle or Dane's Castle) is a sea cliff hillfort just west of Watchet, a harbour town in Somerset, England. It is a Scheduled Monument. The name comes from Thomas Dawe, who owned castell field in 1537. The fort is situated on an east-west cliff about 80 metres (260 ft) above the sea, on a tapering spur of land bounded by the Washford River to the south, as it flows to the sea at Watchet, about 1 km east. The ramparts of the fort would have formed a semicircle backing on to the sheer cliffs, but coastal erosion has reduced the size of the enclosure, and later destruction by farming, limekilns, and the B3191 road, have left only about 300 metres (980 ft) of ramparts visible today. The fort may be of Iron Age origin, but was rebuilt and fortified as a burh by King Alfred, as part of his defense against Viking raids from the Bristol Channel around 878 AD. It would have been one of a chain of forts and coastal lookout posts, connected by the Herepath, or military road, which allowed Alfred to move his army along the coast, covering Viking movements at sea. Excavations have revealed a first phase of defence with a mortared wall fronting an earth bank from this period. Then a second phase of defence in late 9th or early 10th centuries, also against Viking invaders. In the Burghal Hidage of 919, nearby Watchet is attributed 513 hides, which converts to a defensive perimeter of 645 m. It is not clear whether this refers to the walls of the town, or of Daw's Castle high on the cliff above. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records a Viking raid on Watchet in 914, but they were defeated with great slaughter ... so that few of them came away, except those only who swam out to the ships. There was a plundering raid in 987, and another in 997, with much evil wrought in burning and manslaughter. A Saxon mint was established at Watchet in 1035, and this was probably within the fort, rather than in the town below.