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Not to be confused with Witney (UK Parliament constituency). Coordinates: 51°47′N 1°29′W / 51.78°N 1.49°W
Witney is a town on the River Windrush, 12 miles (19 km) west of Oxford in Oxfordshire, England.
[edit] Notable buildingsThe Church of England parish church of St. Mary the Virgin was originally Norman. The north porch and north aisle were added in this style late in the 12th century, and survived a major rebuilding in about 1243. In this rebuilding the present chancel, transepts, tower and spire were added and the nave was remodelled, all in the Early English style. In the 14th century a number of side chapels and some of the present windows were added in the Decorated style. In the 15th century the south transept was extended and the present west window of the nave were added in the Perpendicular style.[1] The tower has a peal of eight bells.[2] Holy Trinity parish church in Wood Green was built in 1849 in the Early English style. Both St. Mary the Virgin and Holy Trinity are now members of a single team parish.[3] Witney Market began in the Middle Ages. Thursday is the traditional market day but there is also a market on Saturday. The Buttercross in the market square is so called because people from neighbouring towns would gather there to buy butter and eggs. It was built in about 1600 and its clock was added in 1683.[4] The town hall is 18th century. A local legend holds that it was designed by Sir Christopher Wren, but there is little evidence to support this claim. Witney has long been an important crossing over the River Windrush. The architect Thomas Wyatt rebuilt the bridge in Bridge Street in 1822.[5] The Friends Meeting House in Wood Green was built in the 18th century. Since 1997 Quakers in Witney have met at the Corn Exchange.[6] The Methodist church in the High Street was built in 1850.[7] It is now one of five Methodist churches and chapels in Witney.[8] The Roman Catholic parish of Our Lady and Saint Hugh was founded in 1913.[9] It originally used a chapel in West End built in 1881[4] but now has its own modern building.[10] The old chapel in West End is now Elim Christian Fellowship.[11] West End, part of the road to Hailey, is one of Britain's best preserved streets[citation needed] and inspired the song Just an Old Fashioned House in an Old Fashioned Street.[citation needed] Although it is called West End, it is actually on the northern side of the town and gets its name from when it was not actually in Witney parish but at the west end of the adjacent Hailey parish. Witney Workhouse was on Razor Hill (now Tower Hill). It was built in 1835-36 by the architect George Wilkinson. It had four wings radiating from an octagonal central building, similar to Chipping Norton workhouse, which also was built by Wilkinson. His younger brother William Wilkinson added a separate chapel to Witney Workhouse in 1860.[12][13] During the First World War the workhouse contained prisoners of war. In 1940 it became Crawford Collets[14] engineering factory and the chapel became the factory canteen. In 1979 Crawford Collets demolished the main buildings and replaced them with a modern factory but preserved the entrance gate and former chapel. In 2004 the modern factory was demolished for redevelopment. The gate and chapel have again been preserved but the chapel is in a poor state of repair.[15] [edit] IndustryWitney has been famous for its woollen blankets since the Middle Ages[citation needed]. The water for the production of these blankets is drawn from the River Windrush, which was believed to be the secret of Witney's high quality blankets.[citation needed] The Blanket Hall in the High Street was built in 1721[citation needed] for weighing and measuring blankets.[4] At one time[when?] there were five blanket factories in the town but with the closure of the largest blanket maker, Early's, in 2002, the town's blanket industry has completely ceased. Early's factory, once a vital and important part of the town's history, has now been demolished, and is the site of several new housing estates. Witney United Football Club retains its nickname "The Blanketmen" from the town's traditional trade. For many years Witney had its own brewery and maltings: J.W. Clinch and Co, which founded the Eagle Maltings in 1841. Courage took over Clinch's and closed it down, but since 1983 Refresh UK's Wychwood Brewery has brewed real ales in the Eagle Maltings. In 2002 Refresh UK contracted to produce ales for W.H. Brakspear, who had sold their former brewery in Henley-upon-Thames for redevelopment. Refresh UK also brews ale for The Prince of Wales' Duchy Originals company. The Witney Railway opened in 1861, linking the town to Yarnton where the line joined the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway. In 1873 the East Gloucestershire railway opened linking Witney with Lechlade and Fairford. The Great Western Railway operated services on both lines and eventually took them over. In 1962 British Railways closed the EGR completely and withdrew passenger trains from the Witney Railway. In 1970 BR closed the Witney Railway completely and it was dismantled. [edit] MuseumsWitney has two museums. Cogges Manor Farm Museum, in the 13th century manor house[16] and farm of Cogges, represents farming and countryside history. The Witney and District Museum has many artefacts and documents representing the history of the town. [edit] EducationWitney has three county secondary schools: Henry Box School, Wood Green School and Springfield School. In 1660 Henry Box founded Witney Grammar School. In 1968 it became the comprehensive Henry Box School[17]. In 1970 new school buildings were added to the original 17th century premises beside Church Green.[5] Wood Green School[18] was founded in 1954 and is at the top of Woodstock Road. Springfield School[19] was founded in 1967 and is a special needs school for pupils with severe learning difficulties, Springfield School senior section is a self contained unit, with some shared facilities, within the grounds of Wood Green School. Wood Green was substantially expanded 2000 thru 2004, an additional block with 15 teaching rooms was added together with purpose built Sixth form centre, School restaurant and new Astroturf pitch. 2009 sees part of the old Lower School being remodelled to provide new changing and shower facillities for the Astroturf pitch and its many users from local community sports clubs. King's School is independent of Oxfordshire Local Education Authority. It was founded by Oxfordshire Community Churches,[20] an evangelical Christian organisation, in 2001. St. Mary's School beside Church Green was built in 1860. It was a Church of England primary school but is now an infants' school.[21] Witney now has two Church of England primary schools: The Batt School[22] in Corn Street and The Blake School[23] in Cogges Hill Road. Our Lady Of Lourdes Catholic Primary School[24] is a Roman Catholic school founded in 1958. Witney has five Community Primary Schools: Madley Park Community Primary School,[25] Queen's Dyke Primary School,[26] Tower Hill Community Primary School,[27] West Witney Primary School[28] and Witney Community Primary School.[29] The former Witney Technical College is now part of Abingdon and Witney College.[30] A complete rebuilding of its premises began in September 2008. [edit] SportsWitney United Football Club[31] first XI plays in the Hellenic League Premier Division.[32] Witney and District League[33] is a local association football league with about 32 clubs in five divisions. Witney Rugby Football Club[34] first XV plays in the RFU Southern Counties North division.[35] Witney Hockey Club[36] men's first XI plays in the England Hockey Men's Conference East division[37] and its ladies' first XI plays in South Clubs' Women's Hockey League Division 3A.[38] Witney Swifts Cricket Club[39] first XI plays in Oxfordshire Cricket Association Division Three.[40] [edit] PoliticsWitney is known as a Conservative safe seat, and as such has been the constituency for both Douglas Hurd and the current leader of the Conservative Party, David Cameron. This clear party preference led to controversy when Shaun Woodward was appointed to succeed the retiring Hurd as Conservative candidate. Woodward was elected in the 1997 General Election, but switched allegiance to the Labour Party in 1999. In the 2001 General Election Woodward stood as the Labour candidate for St. Helens, Lancashire and David Cameron retook Witney for the Conservatives. [edit] TwinningWitney is twinned with: [edit] FloodsMain article: 2007 United Kingdom floods In July 2007 Witney saw its worst flooding in more than 50 years. Homes and businesses were evacuated and Bridge Street, a major road into the town and the only road across the Windrush, was closed. About 200 properties in central Witney were flooded, with areas around Bridge Street, Mill Street and West End the worst affected. The new and incomplete housing development Aquarius also suffered substantial flooding. In 2008 further flooding contributed to the death of a 17 year old youth who drowned in a culvert.[41] [edit] Famous peopleFamous people associated with Witney include:
[edit] See also[edit] Bibliography
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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