Radstock is a town in Somerset, England, 9 miles (14 kilometres) southern west of Bath, as well as 8 miles (13 kilometres) north west of Frome. It is within the unitary authority of Bath and North East Somerset as well as had a population of 5,620 according to the 2011 Census. Considering that 2011 Radstock has actually been a town council in its own right. Radstock has been resolved because the Iron Age, and also its importance grew after the building and construction of the Fosse Way, a Roman roadway. The development of the community happened after 1763, when coal was found in the area. Lots of mines opened up during the 19th century including numerous owned by the Waldegrave family, that had been Lords of the Estate considering that the English Civil War. Admiral Lord Radstock, sibling of George, 4th Earl Waldegrave, took the community's name as his title when created a Baron. The spoil lot of Writhlington colliery is now the Writhlington Site of Special Scientific Interest, that includes 3,000 tons of Upper Carboniferous spoil from which greater than 1,400 insect fossil specimens have actually been recuperated. The facility geology and also narrow seams made coal extraction challenging. Tonnage increased throughout the 19th century, reaching a peak around 1901, when there were 79 different collieries and also annual production was 1,250,000 heaps per year. Nevertheless, because of regional geological problems as well as workforce scarcities result decreased and also the number of pits lowered from 30 at the beginning 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 as well as the Somerset and Dorset Railway both established stations and mustering yards in the town. The last passenger train solutions to Radstock closed in 1966. Manufacturing markets such as printing, binding and packaging provide some local work. In recent years, Radstock has increasingly come to be a traveler community for the close-by cities of Bath and Bristol. Radstock is house to the Radstock Museum which is housed in a previous market hall, as well as has a range of displays which provide an insight into north-east Somerset life because the 19th century. Much of the displays relate to local geology and the now disused Somerset coalfield as well as geology. The community is also house to Writhlington School, famous for its Orchid collection, as well as a variety of instructional, spiritual as well as cultural structures and also sporting clubs.