A relatively simple drive-by cache at the entrance to the new village of Cotford St.Luke.
In the vale of Taunton Deane, Cotford Asylum was founded in 1892 and built in 1897. Subsequently re-named Tone Vale, the hospital was notorious for practising electro-shock psychiatric treatment on its patients.
The Victorian houses built around the edge of the hospital (North, South and West Villas) were originally used to house unmarried mothers (a heinous crime!) and to accommodate staff working at the hospital, but these houses were eventually sold off as private residences.
Years later, Margaret Thatcher’s Care in the Community policy led to the closure of Tone Vale hospital in 1995. Most of the Tone Vale Hospital buildings were demolished, but a few with Grade II listing status were preserved and incorporated into the new village of Cotford St.Luke.
Crucial to the development of the new village was the re-routing of Dene Road. An extremely narrow road, with high banks on both sides, this road had become a treacherous rat-run between the A358 Minehead road and the B3227 Bampton road. Much to the relief of the long-standing residents of North, South and West Villas, the road was closed off to through traffic and replaced with a new road through the village centre. Notwithstanding the road closure, the old Royal Mail Post Box at the south end of the road remains in full operation.