Reepham, Norfolk

Reepham
Norfolk
The twin churches
Location
Grid reference:	TG100228
Location:	52°45’43"N, 1°6’43"E
Data
Population:	2,455  (2001)
Post town:	Norwich
Postcode:	NR10
Dialling code:	01603
Local Government
Council:	Broadland
Parliamentary constituency:	Mid Norfolk

Reepham is a village in Norfolk, found along the B1145 road between the Bure and Wensum valleys. The B1145 runs between King's Lynn and Mundesley. Reepham is 12 miles north west of Norwich.

As of the 2001 census the civil parish had a population of 2,455 residents in 970 households.

Reepham has had market town status since 1277, which its more modern village sign celebrated. The town has undergone significant development throughout its life, and the houses of the village show a mix of vintages, styles and purposes.

Name

The village is listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Refham meaning the reeve's manor (from the Old English gerefa (reeve, officer or bailiff).

The village's name is accordingly pronounced reef-am not reap-ham. It is found in earlier forms with an f, as in the Domesday Book and in the 15th century as Reifham.

Today

Recent housing developments have mostly been on brownfield land so have not significantly expanded the perimeter of the town.

The town has both a secondary school Reepham High School and College and a primary school (with over 300 pupils).

History

Mediæval shrine

In the Middle Ages, Reepham Church was an important place of pilgrimage. Whilst not as famous as the Shrine at Walsingham, nevertheless, people came on pilgrimage to Reepham to visit the image of "Our Lady of Reepham", and many miracles were attributed to it, which kept the pilgrims coming.

What form this image took is unknown. It may have been a statue, or perhaps a wood carving. There is evidence to suggest that it was an important place and it is mentioned in the 15th century will of Alice Cook of Horstead who wrote that after her death, in order to smooth her passage from this world to the next, she would “Have a man goo a pilgrimage to our Lady of Reifham.......”.

The shrine was broken down at the Reformation.

Railway history

By 1882, the town had two stations, located on different tracks and each managed by a separate railway company:

• Whitwell station was on the M&GNs, Norwich City station to Melton Constable station branch line.
• Reepham station was on the Great Eastern Railway's line between Wroxham station and County School station.

In 1960, the tracks were joined by the construction of the Themelthorpe Curve, the work carried out by British Rail to facilitate the movement of concrete products from Lenwade. Today, the railway trackbed forms the Marriott's Way long distance footpath and both former stations are notable stops on the footpath.

About the village

Twin churches

Reepham has three churches on the same site, which is almost unique. Reepham's parish church of St Mary is joined by its choir vestry to St Michael’s. The third church belonged to Hackford. However, this third church burned down in 1543 and now only a fragment of the tower wall remains on the left of the path as you go towards the market place.

The town sign

Town sign

The town sign was designed by the local high school and installed in 1992. It depicts three of each of the following elements: churches, villagers, farm labourers, sheep, lambs and "sisters" and refers to a myth that three sisters were each responsible for building a church. In fact, the three churches were built over several generations.

Big Society

The Reepham Society is a registered charity, set up to stimulate public interest in Reepham, Hackford, Kerdiston, Salle, and Whitwell in 1976.

Outside links

("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Reepham, Norfolk)

• The Reepham Society