AN 18th century civil leader involved in building the road from Minehead to Dulverton and Bampton, now the A396, is featured in a new display on show in Minehead Museum.

Born in Minehead in 1741, Samuel Hayman Warren was a leading figure in the Minehead Turnpike Trust which maintained and developed local roads.

The new display includes a portrait of Warren acquired by the museum during the winter, through a donation from a local resident.

Samuel Warren was a prominent solicitor in the town.

His father Daniel Warren, also a solicitor, moved to Minehead in 1725 and married Mary Hayman in 1731.

The couple had 11 children, seven sons and four daughters, but only one son and one daughter survived to maturity.

Samuel Hayman Warren was the third child named Samuel - the others had died in infancy in1737 and 1738.

The trust minute book for 1775 is also on show, with minutes signed by Warren himself.

He died on November 22, 1803.

The Minehead trust covered a large area, with roads linking up with the Bridgwater and Taunton trusts and was responsible for the development of the valley road to Dulverton and Bampton.

Tolls were collected from users for travelling by cart, coach, horse, or even driving livestock, to fund repairs and running costs.

Museum curator Julian Luke said: “It is wonderful to have a portrait of a Minehead resident at the time of the Great Fire (1791) and, from a different source, the donation of the original minute book for the turnpike trust.

“This is an important historical document covering the whole period of the trust and lists all sorts of information about the roads, land owners, and fees collected for the use of the turnpike roads.

“The book will be on show this year and we hope to obtain funding to have the contents digitised at the end of the season, so that it can be made available to researchers.”

Other new exhibits feature Isabella Gifford, a Victorian botanist who lived in Minehead and did pioneering work on seaweed, the Hopcott Hotel fire, and the centenary of the town’s Blenheim Gardens.

Other popular attractions are a fine oil painting of Minehead Harbour dated 1800, and gifted to the museum last year in memory of local historian the late John Gilman.

Also on show are the medals of Harry Bertram Walker MC, a surgeon in Minehead Old Hospital who served in both world wars.

The museum is also home to a full-size hobby horse, various models, including those of the Regal Theatre, the former pier, and many other exhibits connected to the town’s history as well as models of trading schooners and ketches based in Minehead’s harbour.

The museum, next to the former visitor information centre, Is open every day except Mondays and Fridays, and will be open seven days week for the month of August.

To find out more about the museum, its opening hours, and opportunities for volunteering, see the museum website.