Radstock is a town in Somerset, England, 9 miles (14 km) southern west of Bath, and 8 miles (13 km) north west of Frome. It is within the unitary authority of Bath and North East Somerset and had a population of 5,620 according to the 2011 Census. Since 2011 Radstock has been a community council in its very own right. Radstock has been settled since the Iron Age, as well as its significance grew after the building of the Fosse Way, a Roman roadway. The growth of the community took place after 1763, when coal was uncovered in the area. Great deals of mines opened up during the 19th century including several owned by the Waldegrave household, that had actually been Lords of the Manor because the English Civil War. Admiral Lord Radstock, brother of George, 4th Earl Waldegrave, took the town's name as his title when developed a Baron. The spoil heap of Writhlington colliery is currently the Writhlington Site of Special Scientific Interest, that includes 3,000 tons of Upper Carboniferous spoil from which greater than 1,400 insect fossil samplings have actually been recovered. The facility geology and also slim joints made coal extraction challenging. Tonnage increased throughout the 19th century, reaching a peak around 1901, when there were 79 different collieries and annual production was 1,250,000 loads per annum. However, as a result of regional geological difficulties as well as manpower scarcities result decreased and also the number of pits decreased from 30 at the start of the 20th century to 14 by the mid-thirties; the last 2 pits, Kilmersdon and Writhlington, closed in September 1973. The Great Western Railway and the Somerset and Dorset Railway both established terminals and marshalling yards in the community. The last passenger train services to Radstock enclosed 1966. Production sectors such as printing, binding as well as packaging give some neighborhood employment. Recently, Radstock has progressively come to be a commuter community for the close-by cities of Bath and Bristol. Radstock is home to the Radstock Museum which is housed in a former market hall, and has a range of exhibits which supply an understanding into north-east Somerset life given that the 19th century. Much of the exhibits relate to neighborhood geology as well as the now obsolete Somerset coalfield as well as geology. The community is additionally house to Writhlington School, famous for its Orchid collection, and also a series of academic, religious and social buildings and sporting clubs.