Corsham is a historical market town and also civil parish in west Wiltshire, England. It is at the south-western edge of the Cotswolds, just off the A4 national course, 28 miles (45 km) southwest of Swindon, 20 miles (32 kilometres) southeast of Bristol, 8 miles (13 km) northeast of Bath as well as 4 miles (6 km) southwest of Chippenham. Corsham was historically a centre for farming as well as later on, the wool sector, as well as stays an emphasis for quarrying Bath Stone. It includes numerous noteworthy historic structures, among them the stately home of Corsham Court. Throughout the 2nd World War and the Cold War, it became a major administrative and manufacturing centre for the Ministry of Defence, with countless facilities both over ground and in disused quarry tunnels. The church consists of the villages of Gastard and also Neston, which goes to the gates of the Neston Park estate. Corsham appears to acquire its name from Cosa's ham, "ham" being Old English for homestead, or town. The town is referred in the Domesday publication as Cosseham; the letter 'R' shows up to have actually gotten in the name later on under Norman impact (perhaps brought on by the recording of local pronunciation), when the town is reported to have been in the possession of the Earl of Cornwall. Corsham is recorded as Coseham in 1001, as Cosseha in 1086, and also as Cosham as late as 1611 (on John Speed's map of Wiltshire). The Corsham location belonged to the King in Saxon times, the area at the time likewise had a large woodland which was removed to give way for further development. There is evidence that the community had actually been referred to as "Corsham Regis" as a result of its reputed association with Anglo-Saxon Ethelred of Wessex, and also this name continues to be as that of a primary school. Among the towns that prospered significantly from Wiltshire's wool sell medieval times, it maintained its success after the decline of that trade with the quarrying of Bathroom rock, with below ground mining functions including the south as well as west of Corsham. The major turnpike road (now the A4) from London to Bristol passed through the community. Numbers 94 to 112 of the High Street are Grade II * listed buildings called the "Flemish Weavers Houses", nonetheless there is little cogent evidence to sustain this name and also it shows up more probable to derive from a handful of Dutch workers who showed up in the 17th century. The Grove, opposite the High Street, is a typical example of classic Georgian style.
