Old Cleeve is a predominantly rural parish in Somerset, set a few miles inland from the Bristol Channel on the fringes of Exmoor. The area is notable for the well‑preserved 12th‑century Cistercian ruins of Cleeve Abbey, a Norman‑era parish church and a handful of villages clustered along the Washford valley, with lanes and footpaths that link moorland and coastal walking routes.
Historically agricultural, the local economy now mixes farming with tourism drawn by the abbey, heritage railway and outdoor recreation; the nearby West Somerset Railway and its station at Washford bring visitors to the area. Community life is quietly village‑centred, with parish activities, historic buildings and converted farmsteads reflecting a long local continuity.
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