Radstock is a town in Somerset, England, 9 miles (14 km) south west of Bath, and 8 miles (13 kilometres) 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 town council in its very own right. Radstock has been resolved because the Iron Age, and also its importance expanded after the building and construction of the Fosse Way, a Roman roadway. The growth of the town occurred after 1763, when coal was found in the area. Great deals of mines opened throughout the 19th century including a number of had by the Waldegrave family, that had been Lords of the Estate given that the English Civil War. Admiral Lord Radstock, bro of George, 4th Earl Waldegrave, took the town's name as his title when produced a Baron. The spoil stack of Writhlington colliery is now the Writhlington Site of Special Scientific Interest, that includes 3,000 lots of Upper Carboniferous spoil where more than 1,400 insect fossil specimens have actually been recuperated. The complicated geology and also narrow joints made coal extraction difficult. Tonnage enhanced throughout the 19th century, reaching a peak around 1901, when there were 79 different collieries as well as annual production was 1,250,000 loads per year. However, due to neighborhood geological troubles as well as workforce scarcities outcome decreased as well as the variety of pits lowered from 30 at the start of the 20th century to 14 by the mid-thirties; the last 2 pits, Kilmersdon and also Writhlington, closed in September 1973. The Great Western Railway and also the Somerset and Dorset Railway both established stations and also marshalling backyards in the community. The last passenger train services to Radstock enclosed 1966. Production industries such as printing, binding and also packaging give some local employment. Recently, Radstock has progressively become a commuter town for the neighboring cities of Bath and Bristol. Radstock is residence to the Radstock Museum which is housed in a former market hall, as well as has a series of exhibits which offer an understanding into north-east Somerset life since the 19th century. Most of the exhibitions relate to local geology and the currently obsolete Somerset coalfield and also geology. The community is also residence to Writhlington School, renowned for its Orchid collection, as well as a series of instructional, spiritual and also social structures and showing off clubs.