|
A site called Palace Green is supposed to have been where the kings of Wessex had a palace, the area surtainly has Saxon connections. The town is close to the Somerset border, on the western
edge of Salisbury Plain. It has a number of Georgian buildings around the market place with some others around the nearby church. All Saints is known for its faceless clock, made by a local blacksmith in 1604 and a chained
copy of the New Testament by Erasmus. It has a ring of eight bells and a sanctus bell, one of the heaviest anywhere in the world.
The town hall was built in 1815 by Sir Massey Lopes and given to the town. The Georgian 'Lopes Arms Hotel' recalls the family name. In picturesque corners away from the main street there are quaint cottages of the
19th century.
Westbury played its part in the medieval wool and cloth making industry with its good sheep grazing land. It is well known for its leatherwork and glovemaking, adding light industry in recent years.
Westbury White Horse is 1 1/2 miles (2.4 km) to the south-east on Bratton Down.
|
