Leominster

Coordinates: 52°13′42″N 2°44′19″W / 52.2282°N 2.7385°W / 52.2282; -2.7385

Leominster (ⁱ/ˈlɛmstər/ LEM-stər) is a market town in Herefordshire, England, and is located at the confluence of the River Lugg and its tributary the River Kenwater, approximately 12 miles (19 km) north of the city of Hereford and approx 7 miles south of the Shropshire border, 11 miles from Ludlow in Shropshire. With a population of approximately 11,700 people, Leominster is the largest of the five towns (Leominster, Ross-on-Wye, Ledbury, Bromyard & Kington) in the county surrounding the City of Hereford.

From 1974 to 1996, Leominster served as the administrative centre for the former local government district of Leominster District.

Toponymy

The town takes its name from a minster, that is a community of clergy in the district of Lene or Leon, probably in turn from an Old Welsh root lei to flow. Contrary to certain reports, the name has nothing to do with Leofric, an 11th-century Earl of Mercia (most famous for being the miserly husband of Lady Godiva). The Welsh name for Leominster, still used today by a few on the Welsh side of the nearby border, is Llanllieni.

Leominster, Massachusetts

Leominster (/ˈlɛmənstər/ LEM-ən-stər) is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the second-largest city in Worcester County, with a population of 40,759 at the 2010 census. Leominster is located north of Worcester and west of Boston. Both Route 2 and Route 12 pass through Leominster. Interstate 190, Route 13, and Route 117 all have starting/ending points in Leominster. Leominster is bounded by Fitchburg and Lunenburg to the north, Lancaster to the east, Sterling and Princeton to the south, and Westminster to the west.

History

Probably taking the name from Leominster, Herefordshire, England. The region was originally inhabited by various divisions of the Pennacook or Nipmuc Native Americans, who lived along the Nashua River. The river provided fertile soil for the cultivation of corn, beans, squash and tobacco. European settlers began arriving in the mid-17th century and in 1653, the area of Leominster was first founded as part of the town of Lancaster.

Leominster (district)

Leominster (district) was a local government district in England from 1 April 1974 to 1 April 1998 with its administrative seat in the town of Leominster.

It was one of two districts in a new county of Hereford and Worcester created in 1974, following the Local Government Act 1972) that merged the historical counties of Herefordshire and Worcestershire and crossed the traditional border, the range of Malvern Hills, between the two counties. It was formed from, in Herefordshire, the municipal borough of Leominster, the urban district of Kington, Kington Rural District, Leominster and Wigmore Rural District, Weobley Rural District, and from, in Worcestershire, the Tenbury Rural District.

In 1998, the district of Leominster was abolished, with the Herefordshire parts becoming part of the new unitary authority of Herefordshire and the Worcestershire parts becoming part of the newly defined Worcestershire district of Malvern Hills. Malvern Hills District now comprises remaining parts of its boundary and new additions while other parts were taken over by Herefordshire Council.