Devizes Through Time

by Bob Clarke, John Girvan, and Jon Sanigar

Published 15 March 2014
Devizes is a typical bustling Wiltshire market town. Architecturally the town boasts a variety of buildings spanning almost a thousand years, and over 500 are currently listed. The town, located centrally in the county of Wiltshire, continues to thrive as a commercial hub despite losing the canal to industrial traffic and the railway by the mid-1960s. A range of industries have made Devizes their home, including Brown & May and Wadworth's, and there has been major development in and around town. This series of images - many not published before - has been drawn from the collection housed at the Wiltshire Museum. The museum is also the recipient of all profits made by this book.

The name of Royal Wootton Bassett is instantly recognisable across the world. Its wide High Street, typical of many West Country market towns, regularly played host to the military over a five-year period. 'Bassett', however, as it is known locally, has a rich architectural history stretching back many centuries. Small, utilitarian cottages once rubbed shoulders with large grandiose houses and surprisingly, in spite of all the recent development, still remain. Through the reproduction of many old photographs, readers are invited to take a walk down Coxstalls or Buthay, visit Lawn Farm, stand under the famous Town Hall or take a train from the once thriving station to Swindon, learning something of the town's colourful characters along the way. Discover Royal Wootton Bassett's history in this wonderfully illustrated book compiled by well-known author and archaeologist Bob Clarke.