Editing Crewkerne (section)

{{Short description|Town in Somerset, England}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2021}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2012}}
{{Infobox UK place
| official_name = Crewkerne
| static_image_name = St Bartholomew Crewkerne.jpg
| static_image_alt = Decorated yellow stone building with square tower.
| static_image_caption = [[Church of St Bartholomew, Crewkerne]]
| coordinates = {{coord|50.8803|-2.7939|display=inline,title}}
| population = 7,000
| population_ref = (2011)<ref name="popn">{{cite web |title=Statistics for Wards, LSOAs and Parishes&nbsp;— SUMMARY Profiles |url=http://www.somersetintelligence.org.uk/files/Somerset%20Census%20Key%20Statistics%20-%20Summary%20Profiles.xls |format=Excel |publisher=Somerset Intelligence |access-date=4 January 2014}}</ref>
| os_grid_reference = ST441093
| civil_parish = Crewkerne
| unitary_england = [[Somerset Council|Somerset]]
| lieutenancy_england = [[Somerset]]
| region = South West England
| country = England
| post_town = CREWKERNE
| postcode_area = TA
| postcode_district = TA18
| dial_code = 01460
| constituency_westminster = [[Yeovil (UK Parliament constituency)|Yeovil]]
}}
'''Crewkerne''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|r|uː|k|ər|n}} {{respell|KROO|kərn}}) is a town and [[wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom|electoral ward]] in south [[Somerset]], [[England]], {{convert|9|mi|km|0}} southwest of [[Yeovil]] and {{convert|7|mi|km}} east of [[Chard, Somerset|Chard]]. The [[civil parish]] of West Crewkerne includes the [[Hamlet (place)|hamlets]] of Coombe, Woolminstone and Henley, and borders the county of [[Dorset]] to the south. The town is on the main headwater of the [[River Parrett]], [[A30 road]] and [[West of England Main Line]] railway, in modern times the slower route between the capital and the [[South West Peninsula|southwest peninsula]], having been eclipsed by the [[Reading to Taunton line|Taunton route]].

The earliest written record of Crewkerne is in the 899 will of [[Alfred the Great]] who left it to his youngest son [[Æthelweard (son of Alfred)|Æthelweard]]. After the [[Norman Conquest]] it was held by [[William the Conqueror]] and in the [[Domesday Survey]] of 1086 was described as a royal manor. [[Crewkerne Castle]] was possibly a [[Norman architecture|Norman]] [[motte and bailey|motte]] castle. The town grew up in the late [[mediaeval]] period around the [[textile]] industry, its wealth demonstrated in the fifteenth century [[Church of St Bartholomew, Crewkerne|Church of St Bartholomew]]. During the 18th and 19th centuries the main industry was cloth making, including webbing, and sails for the [[Royal Navy]].

Local ecological sites include the Bincombe Beeches [[Local Nature Reserve]] and the [[Millwater]] [[biological Site of Special Scientific Interest]]. [[Crewkerne railway station]] is served by [[South Western Railway (train operating company)|South Western Railway]]. There are local supermarkets and local shops, and some local industry. The town is the birthplace of several notable people and has varied cultural and sporting facilities including those at [[Wadham Community School]].