Dursley

Dursley gained borough status in 1471 and lost it in 1886. From then until 1974 it was the administrative centre of Dursley Rural District (RDC). In 1974 the RDC became part of Stroud District.

The Parish Church of St. James the Great dates from the 13th century, but the modern building is largely of 14th and 15th century construction. The original chuch spire collapsed January 1699 during a bell-ringing session, causing casualties. The current bell tower, in an imposing 'Gothic Survival' style was built by Thomas Sumsion of Colerne in the years 1708 - 09. The stunning pillared market house, complete with statue of Queen Anne and bell turret, dates from 1738, when the towns markets attracted farmers and traders from miles around ^[1].

In 1856 a short branch line railway opened, [1] linking Dursley and Cam to the Bristol - Gloucester main line at Coaley Junction. The branch line was closed in 1968. Coaley Junction station was also closed at about this time. However, in 1994 a new railway station called Cam and Dursley [2] was opened on the main line near the site of Coaley Junction.

Ancient historical sites in the vicinity give evidence of earlier occupation. Uley Bury, in nearby Uley, is an Iron Age hill fort dating from around 300BC, and the village also has neolithic long barrows, which are evident further afield at Selsley Common and Nympsfield to the north. Notable Roman remains exist at Frocester, West Hill near Uley, Woodchester and Calcot Manor.

The town sits on the edge of the Cotswold escarpment where it drops off towards the Severn Vale and the River Severn. Dursley's main watercourse is the River Cam, and the town is surrounded by beautiful woodland and countryside. The Cotswold Way long distance trail passes through Dursley.

Stinchcombe Hill provides a scenic backdrop to much of the town. It has an 18 hole golf course, said to be a favourite of the actor Hugh Grant. The Hill has had a great deal of work carried out by volunteers (SHV, led by John Smallwood), since 1992, in an attempt to restore the open views over the Severn Vale. The cleared areas can be seen from the M5 motorway. The Cotswold Way has now been re-routed around the Hill to take advantage of this work.

In the 19th and 20th centuries Dursley was a large-scale manufacturing town, and the engines built here by Lister stationary engine company were seen around the world. That company's successor, Lister-Petter, is still based in the town, though much of the original factory site is part of a large housing development. Listers Towers, a large gothic-style house, formerly part of the Listers estate, still overlooks the town.

Historically, other large factories based in the down included Mawdsleys, an electrical equipment manufacturer, Bymacks an upholsterers and the Bailey Newspaper Group, a newspaper printer, all of which have reduced or closed operations in recent years.

Nowadays, the town is supported by a number of long-standing independent retailers and new independent shops which offer a truly unique service and help to maintain the town's atmosphere of community and individuality. The Sainsburys supermarket chain is also proposing to open a store.

Dursley has a number of licenced premises and Old Spot pub is regularly voted Gloucestershire Pub of the Year. The pub was named as 2007 CAMRA National Pub of the year^[2].

• Upon his marriage in 1937 the novelist Evelyn Waugh moved to Piers Court near Dursley, where he lived until 1956, when he moved to Combe Florey in Somerset.

• Local legend has it that William Shakespeare worked as a schoolmaster in Dursley during his "lost years". References to local landscapes and families in Henry IV are often cited as evidence.

• Mikael Pedersen invented the Pedersen bicycle in Dursley in the 19th Century^[3].

• Dursley once had a castle, built by Roger de Berkeley in 1153^[4].

• There is much dispute over the invention of the lawnmower, in the early 19th Century, by Edwin Budding. Many claim Budding was from Dursley and invented the lawnmower in the town, though it was later produced in factories in Stroud.

• Harry Potter author JK Rowling was born in Yate used to visit the town as a child with her parents, and hated it so much she named the awful Dursley family in the Potter books after it.^[5]

• Dursley is also credited as the first town to have a sunday school in church.

• Dursley Local History
• Dursley Chamber of Trade Website
• John Wilkes' Dursley website
• Dursley Gazette Website
• Dursley Town Council
• A history of Dursley's railways
• Coaley Junction Action Committee
• Vale Vision Community Development covering Dursley, Cam and the surrounding villages
• Rednock School website
• About the Dursley Pedersen Bicycle