Sherborne

The Conduit House (Gothic structure) at the head of Long Street in Sherborne

Hewletts in Sherborne, Dorset

Sherborne, Dorset, is the town of origin of our Hewlett family. So far we have only traced the family to this town, where there were a number of Hewletts working as tailors. John (born about 1766--location not established) married Mary. They had three children: William, James, and John. Each was burried in Sherborne Cemetary. William's son George (born 1834) moved to Bridport, Dorset.

History of Sherborne

Sherborne is a town rich in history and in extant historical buildings. See the web-page
http://www.sherbornetown.co.uk/static/about/history.asp The following material is taken from that website, which contains additional material and pictures.

"The Saxons named Sherborne scir burne - the place of the clear stream - and made it the capital of Wessex. Two of King Alfred's elder brothers, King Ethelbert and King Ethelbald are buried within the impressive and beautiful Abbey. The long line of Bishops began in AD 705 when the great Diocese of Winchester was divided in two, and St Aldhelm, the first Englishman of letters, was appointed as the first Bishop of the West Saxons. When the Bishop's seat was moved to Old Sarum in 1075, the church was taken over by the Benedictine monastery and when Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries in 1539, Sir John Horsey acquired the Abbey and most of its lands."

"In the 12th century Roger de Caen, Bishop of Salisbury and Chancellor of England, built a fortified palace. Taken by General Fairfax in 1645, the romantic ruins remain and are in the care of English Heritage. It is now known as Sherborne Old Castle.
Sir Walter Raleigh fell in love with Sherborne, tried first to modernise the Old Castle but finally built in 1594 an Elizabethan mansion in the grounds. The mansion has been the Stately Home of the Digby family since 1617. This is now called Sherborne Castle."

". . . [Historical] buildings are abound in the town, the most important of which are The Almshouse of St John the Baptist and St John the Evangelist; The 15th Century Conduit House and The Julian, an early 16th Century house originally the hospice of St Julian of Norwich."