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At one time, Bream was reputed to be the largest village in Gloucestershire and is situated midway between Lydney and Coleford on the B4231.
The village is built on a ridge of high ground that provides views over the Forest of Dean and in the distance can be seen the hills of the Cotswolds.
The actual age of the village is not known as there may have been a settlement before the Romans came to the country. Iron ore was being mined here before they came, and the miners would most likely have lived near their work; it is possible that they built shelters close to where they worked. In the village church of St. James are tomb stones dated in the 1600s.
The oldest part of the present village is where the High street and the Lydney to Coleford road meet. The old house Bream Cross originally bore the date 1565. Some of the houses have a date in the 1600s on them. The New Inn near this road junction which is no longer an Inn, but a private house, has an inscription on one of the fire places that is also on one of the tomb stones in the church, and is dated 1637.
There are three places of worship - the Methodist Church in Parkend Road, The Gospel Church in Brockhollands Road and the Anglican Church of St. James in the old part of the village on the Coleford to Lydney road.
Today the population of the village has grown to over 3,000 but still has a village atmosphere.
The main employment in the village in the past was mining, farming. and forestry. Today with the mines closed, there is very little employment in the actual village, although there are several shops a post office, cafe and pub. Lydney is only three miles away where there are more shops and three supermarkets. Coleford is just 4 miles away with more shops and super markets. Service buses run frequently to both places.
Bream is home to one of the Male Voice Choirs in the forest and there is a Brass band in the village.
The Bream Heritage Walk is a National Lottery Heritage funded 6.5 mile walk around the villages of Bream and Whitecroft and the hamlets of Saunders Green and Brockhollands. It can be walked in one go in 3-4 hours but can also be walked in shorter sections.
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- Picnic site
