Oxted
| Oxted | |
| Surrey | |
|---|---|
.jpg) High Street, Old Oxted | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TQ392528 |
| Location: | 51°15’27"N, 0°0’24"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 12,576 (2001) |
| Post town: | Oxted |
| Postcode: | RH8 |
| Dialling code: | 01883 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Tandridge |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
East Surrey |
Oxted is a town in Surrey, nestled at the foot of the North Downs, north of East Grinstead and south-east of Croydon. It is in the south-eastern corner of the county, in the Tandridge Hundred.
History
Oxted appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Acstede, meaning "Oak place". It was held by Eustace of Boulogne. Its Domesday assets were: 5 hides; 1 church, 2 mills worth 12s 6d, 20 ploughs, 4 acre of meadow, pannage worth 100 hogs. It rendered £14 and 2d from a house in Southwark.[1]
The original village of Oxted (now Old Oxted) is a small village centred around a short high street with four pubs (The Old Bell, The George Inn, The Crown Inn and The Wheatsheaf) just off the A25. Oxted's oldest church (St Mary's) was built some distance north-east from the original village of Oxted, but it is almost surrounded by the new town. The church dates from at least Norman times and stands on a conspicuous mound, perhaps artificial. It is possible that an Anglo-Saxon church existed on the site before the later stone construction. With the arrival of the railway in 1884 (after many years' delay caused by lack of funds) Oxted boomed around its station, north-east of Old Oxted), and new buildings created "New Oxted". These new buildings were built in the Tudor style.
The Greenwich Meridian runs through Oxted, straight through Oxted School.
In 2011 The Daily Telegraph listed Oxted as the twentieth richest town in Britain. [2]
Oxted is one of the few Surrey towns to retain its town brass band, Oxted Band, which has been a permanent fixture within the town since 1901.[3]
Pram Race
Oxted is host to a charity pram race held annually. It was started in 1977 by Eric and Elsie Hallson, who ran it for nearly 20 years before retiring. Entrants wear fancy dress and must push a pram around the two thirds of a mile course, stopping at each of the seven licensed premises on the way to quaff a drink as quickly as they can. The race ends in Old Oxted high street where the road is closed for the evening and a street party is held.[4]
References
- ↑ Surrey Domesday Book
- ↑ "Britain's richest towns: 20 - 11". The Daily Telegraph (London). 18 April 2008. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/3361038/Britains-richest-towns-20-11.html.
- ↑ OxtedBand.co.uk
- ↑ Oxtedpramrace.co.uk
