History of Yate and Sodbury
Yate and Chipping Sodbury have been settlements since Medieval times! Yate began first and was mentioned either in 778 or by 950 and in the following centuries became a large Medieval parish dominated by the church and 3 manors.
Yet, it was Chipping Sodbury, which grew to prominence first. Sodbury was a planned New Town of the late 12th century whose primary function was to provide a market for the area. During the Medieval and early modern period the Town acted as a wool market for this vital local and national industry and later became renowned for cheese.
Chipping Sodbury boasted many of the features of a dominant local centre complete with residences and commercial properties along the newly laid out street. Additionally, Inns and by 1284, the current parish church were also vital parts of town life.
Both the parish of Yate and the Borough of Chipping Sodbury owe their success to farming more than any other trade. Farming was at the forefront of Yate life for centuries. In the Middle Ages sheep farming and wool dominated, while dairy farming took over in the 17th century. Dairy Farming affected nearly everyone in Yate and remained vital to both Sodbury market, although it faded during the 20th century it remained common up until the 1950s.
Chipping Sodbury retained its local importance and flourished in the 18th and early 19th centuries. Transport was key! Sodbury was handily placed on the emerging coach road network. The Town thrived as coaching inns, shops and services expanded and did good business.
From 1844, new railway lines built around Yate and Chipping Sodbury had a lasting impact on Yate. In turn, the area was blessed with raw materials namely coal, limestone and Celestine. In the 19th century, businesses used railways to transport materials to place such as Bristol and beyond. Local companies worked out remaining local coal and Celestine stocks during the 20th century. Stone quarrying, however, remains one traditional industry still thriving around Yate and Sodbury.
In turn the area grew! New middle class families built palatial new houses in Yate, new roads were developed and the population more than doubled in the late 19th century. New chapels, schools and pubs served the new industrial population.
Chipping Sodbury by contrast was unable to reap all the benefits of the railway boom despite the burgeoning quarrying industry. However, the Town was able to obtain a station on the new London to South-Wales line in 1902. Transporting milk and stone from the local dairy and quarrying industries now became far easier.
Victorian Yate was in turn transformed during and after World War I. The Air Ministry’s enormous Aircraft Repair Depot brought modern industry to Yate! These large industrial sites on Station Road re-shaped the old farming landscape and enabled modern industry to use the site. Parnalls, later Jackson and Creda and Newman industries occupied the vast area and between them employed over four thousand individuals during the 1960s heyday.
In the early 1960s, the village of Yate changed dramatically. New Town development brought many newcomers to Yate from Bristol, all over Britain and abroad. The local economy was booming and the town was seen as fresh and modern. The population has more than quadrupled between 1965 and 2000.
Until the1960s, Sodbury retained its unrivalled position in the local retail economy while also providing key services to the local population. However, Sodbury suffered a serious decline during this period losing both its Market in 1954 and railway station in 1961. The opening of Yate Shopping Centre further undermined the town which sustained several shop closures after 1965.
Today, Sodbury like Yate has grown markedly since the 1960s with a ring of new estates around the old centre. Both towns have quite different but effective shopping and service areas catering for different people, both of which have largely withstood pressures from larger shopping areas and economic fluctuations.
Information kindly provided by Mr D Hardhill - Yate Heritage Centre