Kelmscott is best known from it's association with William Morris who bought Kelmscott Manor and lived there with his wife Jane and Dante Gabriel Rossetti. It is an idyllic Cotswold village lost in a maze of country lanes on the upper reaches of the River Thames. Indeed William Morris would row from his home in London, Kelmscott House to his country retreat Kelmscott Manor.

The church is a wonderful survival, unchanged since the 16th century and the north transept of this small cruciform building has a rare scheme of 13th century wall paintings. The east window preserves an attractive 15th century panel depicting St George on horseback slaying the dragon. Also of interest is the is the bell-cote which contains an early 13th century bell, one of the earliest in England.

Kelmscott is beautifully preserved with stone slab fences, Gloucestershire cattle and a fine pub, The Plough Inn. Kelmscott Manor is open to the public between April and October.

The Morris Memorial Hall is owned by the village and available to hire for weddings, parties and talks. It was commissioned by May Morris and originally designed by Ernest Gimson but not built until after his death. His original designs were changed somewhat by Norman Jewson and the Hall was completed in 1933. When the Hall was officially opened by George Bernard Shaw in October 1934, the Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald turned up unannounced. The village was so crowded he was unable to get straight to the Hall and missed Shaw's speech.