Almshouses of Taunton and South Somerset

The Taunton Heritage Trust  is rather like the The Exeter Homes Trust in that it covers several discrete almshouse buildings. The first and most impressive is Gray's Almshouses. They were founded in 1635 by the wealthy cloth-merchant Robert Gray, whose monument survives in the Church of St Mary Magdalene. The building is one of the oldest surviving in Taunton and is one of the earliest brick buildings in the county (from Wikipedia). 

 

Then we have the impressive Huish Homes. They are located in a  Grade II listed building, built in 1868, that provides four flats, a laundry room and a communal garden. The offices of the Trust are also there. 

The buildings of Leycroft Close in Hamilton Road were built in 1931 and consist of 328 flats.

The St James's flats, dating from 1845, consist of eight flats with a shared garden.

Finally, the Bernard Taylor homes date from1984. The accommodation is intended for single occupancy, but there is a large communal area. 

The remaining Almshouses are the St Margaret's Almshouses. They began as a leper hospital - or Leprosaria - in the 12th century where diseased locals were isolated. The building is said to have featured secret underground tunnels to transport the dead to a nearby cemetery.  The almshouses are now privately owned.

 

 Finally, I discovered a relocated almshouse preserved by Taunton Castle in the Museum of Somerset .

 

 To the south of Taunton there are Staple Fitzpaine with Portman's Almshouses.

These almshouses were founded by Sir William Portman and were restored in 1970.

To the east is the village of East Coker, famous for T S Eliot's celebrated poem. They were originally built in 1640 for 11 women and a man, and are still in use.  A plaque in front of a large tree marks the site of a "plague pit", where 70 villagers were buried in 1645.

Nearby is the village of Bishops Lydeard. The almshouses in the high street were originally built in 1616 by Sir Richard Grobham.  They were restored in 1854 and again in the mid 20th century.

 

Finally, there are Harvey's Almshouses. These almshouses were founded by an Exeter merchant called Richard Harvey in 1663.  He was born in Chard.  The original almshouses were demolished in the 19th century and replaced by the present building in 1841-42.