The name of the village is believed to come from the
Old English and mean
settlement at the mill ford. There is evidence of a mill within the parish from the
Domesday Book of 1086. These referred to the site of the Town Mills on Hillfarrence Brook.
Neolithic flint arrowheads have been found to the west of the village and
Bronze Age axe heads were discovered when the bypass, which opened in 1975, was being built.
The Old House is a Grade II*
listed building dating from the late 14th and early 15th century. It was built as a residence for the archdeacon of
Taunton and was once the home of
Thomas Cranmer. While the house was being renovated in the early 21st century a Tudor wall painting of
Henry VIII was discovered underneath the plaster and is the only one of its kind in a domestic dwelling. It has been speculated that there is a secret message in the image., which has been dated to around 1541. In 1708 there was a fire which destroyed 13 properties.
Quaker heritage The village of Milverton has a notable
Quaker history, beginning in 1679 when Edward Pole made land available on the parish boundary with
Wiveliscombe for use as a burial ground and meeting house. This occurred during a period of restrictions on nonconformist worship under laws such as the
Conventicle Act 1664, which led many Quakers—including those from Milverton—to face fines, imprisonment, or the seizure of property for refusing to pay church tithes or swear oaths of allegiance. Friends also participated in meetings held at
Ilchester Gaol, where Quaker prisoners were sometimes allowed to congregate together. A formal Quaker meeting house was registered at Milverton in 1684, following the Act of Toleration. In 1753, a purpose-built meeting house was constructed beside the Pole family home, known as "The Recess," which served as a focal point for both worship and education through a small Quaker school. The former
Quaker burial ground, now located off Quaking House Lane west of the village, contains memorials spanning over two centuries. It has been maintained periodically by the
Quaker community and is listed in the Quaker Cemeteries Register. Milverton was administratively part of the West Somerset Monthly Meeting, linked to other nearby meetings in
Taunton,
Wellington, and
Bridgwater. Among those serving as trustees was Elias Osborne of
Chard, a prominent Quaker who oversaw multiple Friends' properties during the late 17th century. Elements of the original meeting house still exist in the fabric of
Ivy Cottage (also known as the Old Quaker House) on North Street, which is now a
Grade II listed building. The renowned scientist
Thomas Young was born in Milverton in 1773 and grew up in a Quaker household connected to the local meeting. ==Governance==