Yeovil: South Somerset Market Town Built on Gloves and Helicopters
Yeovil has been making things for a long time. The town was the centre of England's glove-making industry for centuries, and by the late Victorian era it produced most of the country's output. That trade faded, but it was replaced by something heavier. Westland Helicopters (now Leonardo Helicopters) established its factory here in 1915, and the works on the western edge of town remains the largest employer by some distance. The Wildcat, Merlin, and Apache helicopters have all been built or assembled in Yeovil. The population is around 45,000. The town sits in rolling South Somerset countryside, close to the Dorset border, about 40 miles south of Bristol and 25 miles east of Taunton.
The town centre is built on a hill, with Middle Street, High Street, and the Borough running through it. The Quedam Shopping Centre handles the chain retail. Ninesprings Country Park, in the valley below the town centre, is a well-kept green space with lakes and woodland walks. Yeovil Town FC, the Glovers, plays at Huish Park and has bounced between the Football League and the National League in recent seasons. Yeovil Junction station, a mile south of town, sits on the main Waterloo to Exeter line, though services are infrequent. The A303 passes about five miles to the north, linking to the M3 eastward and the A30 westward. For those interested in adult companionship in South Somerset, Yeovil is the principal town in the area, with Taunton and Dorchester the nearest alternatives of comparable size.
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Yeovil has been making things for a long time. The town was the centre of England's glove-making industry for centuries, and by the late Victorian era it produced most of the country's output. That trade faded, but it was replaced by something heavier. Westland Helicopters (now Leonardo Helicopters) established its factory here in 1915, and the works on the western edge of town remains the largest employer by some distance. The Wildcat, Merlin, and Apache helicopters have all been built or assembled in Yeovil. The population is around 45,000. The town sits in rolling South Somerset countryside, close to the Dorset border, about 40 miles south of Bristol and 25 miles east of Taunton.
The town centre is built on a hill, with Middle Street, High Street, and the Borough running through it. The Quedam Shopping Centre handles the chain retail. Ninesprings Country Park, in the valley below the town centre, is a well-kept green space with lakes and woodland walks. Yeovil Town FC, the Glovers, plays at Huish Park and has bounced between the Football League and the National League in recent seasons. Yeovil Junction station, a mile south of town, sits on the main Waterloo to Exeter line, though services are infrequent. The A303 passes about five miles to the north, linking to the M3 eastward and the A30 westward. For those interested in adult companionship in South Somerset, Yeovil is the principal town in the area, with Taunton and Dorchester the nearest alternatives of comparable size.
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