By Tim Lambert In the Bronze Age, people built burial chambers called barrows at Beacon Hill near Warnford. So human beings have lived and farmed in the area for thousands of years. However, in the 6th century AD, a people called the Jutes from Denmark settled in central Hampshire. A tribe called the Meon gave… Continue reading A History of Warnford
A History of Warrington
By Tim Lambert Early Warrington At the time of the Domesday Book in 1086 Warrington was only a small village but in time it grew larger and more important. St Elphin’s Church existed by 1086 and probably much earlier. Furthermore, the Normans built a wooden castle at Warrington around 1070 AD. By the beginning of… Continue reading A History of Warrington
A History of Warwick
By Tim Lambert Medieval Warwick Warwick began as a Saxon settlement. The name Warwick is derived from two Saxon words, wering, which meant weir, and wic, which meant houses or settlement. So it was wering wic the settlement by the weir. In the 10th century, Warwick was made into a fortified town or burh. The… Continue reading A History of Warwick
A History of Waterlooville
By Tim Lambert The Beginning of Waterlooville Waterlooville and Cowplain did not exist before the year 1815. Before then it was part of the Forest of Bere, which stretched from the border of Sussex to Winchester. Today Queens Inclosure is one of the last remnants of the forest. On the southern fringe of the forest… Continue reading A History of Waterlooville
A History of West Meon
By Tim Lambert Early West Meon In the 6th century a people called the Jutes from Denmark settled along the Meon Valley. (As late as the 18th century the Meon Valley was called Jutedene, which meant Jute valley). The tribe who settled there were called the Meon wara (wara meant people or tribe). They gave… Continue reading A History of West Meon
A History of Whitby
By Wendy Pyatt Whitby is best known for its Jet jewelry, wonderful fish, Captain Cook, Whitby Abbey, Dracula, and the North York Moors Railway. But where does the name come from? Whitby was originally called Sinus Fari by the Brigantes who were a Celtic tribe controlling large sections of Northern England but by 71 AD… Continue reading A History of Whitby
A History of Whitehaven
By Tim Lambert Whitehaven in the 17th century Whitehaven was a fishing village until the 17th century. The Priory of St Bees owned the village until Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries in 1539. In 1630 Sir Christopher Lowther purchased the estate. He decided to use Whitehaven as a port for exporting coal from the Cumbrian… Continue reading A History of Whitehaven
A History of Wickham
By Tim Lambert Wickham in the Middle Ages In Roman times Wickham was on the road from Winchester to Chichester. There was probably a small Roman settlement at Wickham along the main road. After the Romans left people called the Jutes from Denmark invaded central Hampshire. The tribe who settled there were called the Meon… Continue reading A History of Wickham
A History of Wigan
By Tim Lambert Early Wigan Wigan began as a village but in the 13th century, it grew into a town. In 1246 the king granted Wigan a charter (a document giving the people certain rights). From then on Wigan had weekly markets. (In the Middle Ages there were few shops so if you wished to… Continue reading A History of Wigan
A History of Wincanton
By Tim Lambert Early Wincanton Today Wincanton is a pretty village in Somerset but it was once an important market town. It was once called wincawel tun. The word wincawel is Celtic and means white cawel (cawel being the original name of the River Cale. Perhaps the water once rushed past and looked white.) A… Continue reading A History of Wincanton