River Parrett

The origin of the name Parrett is unclear, but several derivations from the Celtic languages used in Wales have been suggested. Priestley-Evans suggests, "Parrett has been said to be a form of the Welsh pared, a partition, and that it was the name which the Welsh people of Somerset and Devon gave to that river because it was at one time the dividing line between themselves and the Saxons". Another spelling, parwydydd, is also translated as `partition'. Another explanation from Welsh, Peraidd, meaning the sweet or delicious river, has also been suggested. An alternative explanation, based on Celtic, is a derivation from Pedair or Pedride from pedr, meaning four and the Old Cornish Rit…

With the prospect of the Chard Canal in particular damaging trade on the Parrett, four traders from Langport including Vincent Stuckey and Walter Bagehot, who together operated a river freight business, commissioned the engineer Joseph Jones to carry out a survey for the Parrett Navigation which was then put before Parliament. It was supported by Brunel and a large quantity of documentary evidence. Objections from local landowners were handled by including clauses in the act to ensure that surplus water would be channelled to the Long Sutton Catchwater Drain by culverts, siphons, and sluices, and the Parrett Navigation and Canal Act 1836 (6 & 7 Will. 4. c. ci) was passed on 4 July 1836. The…