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The Great Britain Guide

Towns & cities · South West England

Selworthy

Free admission

Selworthy — village and civil parish in Somerset, England.

Selworthy, towns & cities in South West England

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Plan your visit

Typical visit
3 h–6 h
Nearest railway station
Minehead · 5.8 km
  • Free entry
  • Family-friendly
  • Dog-friendly

About

Selworthy is a town, city, village or settlement in the United Kingdom. Recent population estimates put it at around 426 people. Address: TA24. Wikidata describes it as: "village and civil parish in Somerset, England". Coordinates: 51.2104°, -3.5512°.

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Protected designations

  • Site of Special Scientific Interest: North Exmoor SSSI
  • Site of Special Scientific Interest: Exmoor Coastal Heaths SSSI

Designations sourced from Natural England open data under OGL v3.

From the Wikipedia article

Selworthy is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. The village lies 3 miles (5 km) west of Minehead, its post town. As well as the small village of Selworthy itself, the parish also covers surrounding rural areas, including the hamlets of Allerford, Bossington, and Tivington. Much of the parish forms part of the Holnicote Estate, owned by the National Trust. It lies within the Exmoor National Park. At the 2021 census, the parish had a population of 426. At 308 metres (1,010 ft) Selworthy Beacon, rising above the village, is one of the highest points on Exmoor. Its height defines as one of the 'marilyns" in England. Near the summit are a series of cairns, thought to be the remains of round barrows, and the British Iron Age Bury Castle. Bossington is separated from Porlock Bay by a shingle beach, through which flows the River Horner, forming part of the Porlock Ridge and Saltmarsh Site of Special Scientific Interest. In the 1990s rising sea levels created salt marshes, and lagoons developed in the area behind the boulder bank. The village is on the South West Coast Path.

Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.

Background

History

The name of the village means "enclosure or settlement near sallows or willows". In the Domesday Book it was recorded as Selewrda. It was held by Queen Edith of Wessex in 1066 and, with Luccombe, was awarded to Ralph de Limesy by William the Conqueror. In 1301 Edward I awarded it to Henry de Pynkeny. It passed down through the family until acquired by marriage by Sir Thomas Dyke Acland in 1802. Selworthy was rebuilt as a model village, to provide housing for the aged and infirm of the Holnicote estate, in 1828 by Sir Thomas Acland, in a similar style to Blaise Hamlet, Bristol, which had been built a few years earlier. Many of the other cottages, whose walls are painted with limewash that…

Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Coordinates
51.2104, -3.5512
District
Somerset
Parish
Selworthy
Postcode
TA24
Parliamentary constituency
Tiverton and Minehead
Population
426
Nearest railway station
Minehead5.8 km

Sources

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Frequently asked questions

Where is Selworthy?
Selworthy is in South-West England, United Kingdom (postcode TA24), in the parish of Selworthy.
Is Selworthy a protected site?
Yes — Selworthy is part of the North Exmoor SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest and the Exmoor Coastal Heaths SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Is Selworthy free to visit?
Yes, Selworthy is free to enter.
How do I get to Selworthy?
The nearest railway station is Minehead, about 5.8 km away. Drivers can navigate to postcode TA24.