A spring rises near the church and feeds the village duck pond, which used to power a paper mill,[2] and ultimately becomes the River Yeo.

In the reign of Henry I of England it passed to his grandson, Robert fitz Martin, who gave the village the latter half of its name.

In 1770, a new whipping post was installed by the pond for corporal punishment for minor offences such as petty larceny, vagrancy or absence from church.

On 14 March 1944, during World War II a United States Navy Consolidated B-24 Liberator bomber crashed near the village with the loss of five lives.

[5] In August 2010, the village had a surprise visit and performance by singer Kylie Minogue at the Ring O’Bells pub.

The parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, such as the village hall or community centre, playing fields and playgrounds, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street-cleaning.

Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also of interest to the council.

Compton Martin is part of the Chew Valley South Ward, which is represented by one councillor on the unitary authority of Bath and North East Somerset which was created in 1996, as established by the Local Government Act 1992.

[10] The parish is represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom as part of North East Somerset and Hanham.

According to the 2001 Census, the Chew Valley South Ward (which includes Nempnett Thrubwell), had 1,032 residents, living in 411 households, with an average age of 42.1 years.

Of these 74% of residents describing their health as 'good', 20% of 16- to 74-year-olds had no qualifications; and the area had an unemployment rate of 1.7% of all economically active people aged 16–74.

The fine arcades, with their cylindrical columns and circular abaci, are too obvious to escape notice, but particular attention should be paid to the twisted pillar on the N.E.