Keynsham is located on the confluence where the River Chew meets the River Avon, the town has a prehistoric history and is scattered with Roman remains, such as the Roman villas at Somerdale and Durley Hill and a burial site between Keynsham and Saltford.The settlement, said to be named after Saint Keyne, developed into a medieval market town, its growth prompted by the foundation of an influential and prosperous abbey, founded by the Victorine order of Augustinian monks founded around 1170. It survived until the dissolution of the monasteries in 1539 and a house built on the site. The remains have been designated as grade I listed building by English Heritage. The town was the site of a battle between royalist forces and the rebel Duke of Monmouth. According to local legend, St Keyne was warned by the local King that the marshy area was swarming with snakes, which prevented habitation. St. Keyne prayed to the heavens and turned the snakes to stone. Folklore has it that the fossilized ammonites that are very prevalent in the town are the remains of the snakes. Described in a dictionary published in 1752 as 'a foggy smoaky town, whose market is weekly on Thursday; it has fine stone bridge over the River Avon, and its principal trade is malting; in the neighborhood of this town is a quarry in which are frequently found stones inform of serpents, but generally without any representation of a head' These fossil Ammonites have become the symbol of many institutions connected with the town. Research by the University of Bristol Department of Archeology suggests that early settlement may have been at Oakleaze Farm between Keynsham and Stockwood. Before the creation of Chew Valley Lake and river level controls at Keynsham Lock and weir, Keynsham was prone to flooding. The "Great Flood" of 1968 flooded large parts of the town, destroyed the town's bridges and private premises the Dapps Hill; the devastation was viewed by the Duke of Edinburgh. Keynsham did play a part in the Civil War as the Roundheads saved the town and also camped there for the night. The town also has links to the Mormen, the hostile forebears to the Angles, the original settlers in the area are said to have been allied with the Mormen and it is due to this alliance that Keynsham survived the 1147 Angle sacking. More on Kenysham 

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