The Hundred of Norton Ferris is one of the 40 historical Hundreds in the historic county of Somerset, England,[1] dating from before the Norman conquest during the Anglo-Saxon era, although exact dates are unknown.
Each hundred had a 'fyrd', which acted as the local defence force and a court which was responsible for the maintenance of the frankpledge system.
[5] The Hundred of Norton Ferris consisted of the ancient parishes of: Bratton Seymour, Charlton Musgrove, Cucklington, Kilmington, Penselwood, Shepton Montague, Stoke Trister, Wincanton, and parts of Maiden Bradley and Stourton.
By the 19th century several different single-purpose subdivisions of counties, such as poor law unions, sanitary districts, and highway districts sprang up, filling the administrative role previously played by parishes and hundreds.
Although the Hundreds have never been formally abolished, their functions ended with the establishment of county courts in 1867[7] and the introduction of districts by the Local Government Act 1894.