Merriott is a small village located west of Yeovil in Somerset just north of the border with Dorset. Mentioned in the Domesday Book, Merriott was famous during the 19th century for its market garden produce, but the village never grew into an important town or financial centre. Perhaps the best first-hand description of life in Merriott during that time can be found in the article “Tales from Wessex – The Mer’t Man” which was published in The Devon and Exeter Gazette on Monday March 1st 1915; although written in somewhat flowery, late-19th century, prose, it was clearly written by someone who witnessed life in Merriott during the 1870s and it paints a fascinating picture.
The Trask family lived in Merriott for generations; Henry Trask was the first to appear in its parish records when he married Joane Poughnell on the 13th of November 1694. Henry and Joan had several children and founded a dynasty that existed in Merriott until well into the twentieth century.
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