The town of Westbury lies not far from its famous White Horse hill-carving at the western extremity of Salisbury Plain. It is a old town mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. There is also evidence that the area was inhabited in the Iron and Bronze Ages, and in more recent times even the Romans settled here.

Westbury was known locally for its woollen industry and glove making, both of which were carried out until about 1970, the industries benefiting from the plentiful supply of local spring water. Another industry in the area was iron making and this was started firstly by the Romans, then when the railway was being built in 1841 iron ore was rediscovered and the Westbury Iron Works, situated near the railway station, was built to process it and send it out via the Great Western Railway. This carried on until the 1930's when the works closed.