Camerton, Somerset
Camerton is a village and civil parish in Somerset, south west of Bath, lying on the Cam Brook. The parish has a population of 655. History The parish includes the hamlet of Tunley, which is the site of a hill fort that has been designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument. The village stands beside the route of the Fosse Way, and a Roman settlement was south-west of the current village. The parish of Camerton was part of the Wellow Hundred. Originally a farming village in North Somerset, its vicar from 1800 was the amateur antiquarian and archaeologist The Rev. John Skinner, who committed suicide in 1839. His studies led him to conclude, incorrectly, that Camerton was the location of the notable ancient British site of Camulodunum. Camerton Court was built by the Jarrett family, to a design by George Repton (son of Humphry Repton), in 1838–40, replacing an earlier Manor House. The village expanded as a result of coal mining on the Somerset coalfield in the 19th century. Camerton New Colliery, which started in the very early 19th century, and Camerton Old Colliery, which predates it by about 20 years. Camerton New Pit survived to be nationalised, eventually closing in