Duxford, Berkshire
| Duxford | |
| Berkshire | |
|---|---|
 The ford at Duxford | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SU364996 |
| Location: | 51°41’38"N, 1°28’23"W |
| Data | |
| Post town: | Faringdon |
| Postcode: | SN7 |
| Dialling code: | 01865 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Vale of White Horse |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Wantage |
Duxford is a small village in north-western Berkshire, standing on the south bank of the River Thames. It is in the civil parish of Hinton Waldrist, 5½ miles northeast of Faringdon.
The Thames is fordable here and a passable ford, from which ford the village received its name, crosses the river and leads to the short path to Chimney in Oxfordshire on the north bank, by way of a footbridge over the Shifford Cut.
History
Duxford is recorded as Dudochesforde in the Domesday Book of 1086. It is recorded as Dukesford in the 13th century, and Duddelesford and Dodekelesford in the 14th century before reaching its present form.[1]
According to the Domesday Book, the manor of Duxford had three hides.[1] Alwi held it during the reign of King Edward the Confessor, but by the time of the Domesday Book it had been granted to William the Conqueror's half-brother Odo, Bishop of Bayeux.[1] It seems to have been linked with the manor of Hinton Waldrist by 1301.[1] The Domesday Book recorded a fishery and a watermill at Duxford.[1] The watermill was still in existence in 1219.[1]
Until the 20th century there was a ferry across the Thames here. In 1898 the Shifford Lock Cut was opened, controlling the flow of the river past Duxford and allowing navigation higher upriver.
References
Sources
- Victoria County History: A History of the County of Berkshire, Volume 4. 1924. pp. 463–466.