River Frome, Herefordshire

Frome
The river at Rowden Mill
River Frome, Herefordshire is located in Herefordshire
River Frome, Herefordshire
Mouth shown within its county, Herefordshire
Location
CountryUnited Kingdom
County/Unitary AuthorityHerefordshire
townsBromyard
Physical characteristics
MouthRiver Lugg
 • location
facing parish of Hampton Bishop, the eastern approach to the city of Hereford
 • coordinates
52°03′40″N 2°38′06″W / 52.061°N 2.635°W / 52.061; -2.635
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • rightRiver Lodon or Lodon Brook
etymology(to be discussed)

The River Frome is a river in Herefordshire, England. It flows through Bromyard, and Bishops Frome. Immediately below the depopulated village of Stretton Grandison its tributary, the river or brook named the Lodon, joins it. It then flows west, past Yarkhill and the farmstead or locality of Prior's Frome before its confluence with the Lugg (which skirts the north side of Hereford here) at Hampton Bishop about 2 miles (3.2 km) before the latter joins the Wye.

The valley lies in the Old Red Sandstone[1] formations of this part of Herefordshire, revealing much evidence of the region's geological past.[2] It has left many exposures of Devonian and late Silurian sandstones and mudstones, and has created a landscape that demonstrates the effects of successive phases of glaciofluvial erosion. The river source is on the Bromyard plateau where it cuts through rocks of the St. Maughan's Formation. At the village of Bishop's Frome, the Bishop's Frome Limestone marks the transition to the older, Silurian Raglan Mudstone Formation and enters a broad, low-lying area, where the effects of both the Anglian and Devensian glacial stages can be seen in the rocks and landscape.[1][2]

The river gives its name to hamlets on the high ground to the east: Halmond's Frome, Fromes Hill and Castle Frome.

In 2007, like many other rivers in England, the Frome burst its banks. This occurred at places including lower parts of Bromyard, causing homes to be evacuated. A smaller scale recurrence occurred in April and July 2012.

See also

References

Hereford and Leominster, Bromyard and Ledbury (OS Landranger Map Series) (B2 ed.), Ordnance Survey, 2007, ISBN 978-0-319-22953-8

  1. ^ a b Barclay, W.J. (2005). The Old Red Sandstone of Great Britain. City: Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC). ISBN 978-1-86107-543-7.
  2. ^ a b Herefordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust, 2007 Frome Valley Geology & Landscape Discovery Guide, Herefordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust ISBN 978-0-9548360-8-5

Media related to River Frome, Herefordshire at Wikimedia Commons