Ashtead

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Ashtead
Surrey
Location
Grid reference: TQ1858
Location: 51°18’36"N, 0°17’55"W
Data
Population: 13,494
Post town: Ashtead
Postcode: KT21
Dialling code: 01372
Local Government
Council: Mole Valley
Parliamentary
constituency: 		Epsom and Ewell

Ashtead is a village situated within the Metropolitan Green Belt of Surrey, and is just outside metropolitan suburbia. It is separated from Leatherhead by the M25 motorway, and from Epsom by Ashtead Common.

Ashtead lies within the Copthorne Hundred.

History

There has been settlement in Ashtead since at least Roman times: a Roman villa has been excavated in what is now Ashtead Common.[1]

Ashtead appears in the Domesday Book as Stede. It was held by the Canons of Bayeux from the Bishop of Bayeux. Its Domesday Assets were: 3 hides and 1 virgate; 16 ploughs, 4 acres of meadow, woodland worth 7 hogs. It rendered (in total): £12.[2] Its main source of water at the time seems to have been the Rye brook.

St Giles Church in Ashtead Park dates from the 12th century, and Ashtead is mentioned twice in Samuel Pepys' diaries. Part of his entry for 25 July 1663 reads:

Towards the evening we bade them adieu and took horse, being resolved that, instead of the race which fails us, we would go to Epsom When we come there we could hear of no lodging, the town so full, but which was better, I went towards Ashsted, and there we got a lodging in a little hole we could not stand upright in While supper was getting I walked up and down behind my cosen Pepys's house that was, which I find comes little short of what I took it to be when I was a little boy.

Ashtead is frequently misspelt, examples being "Ashsted" and "Ashstead". Until 1967, Ashtead Railway Station had both "Ashtead" and "Ashstead" displayed on station name plates hanging on opposite platforms.

The Ashtead Psalms were commissioned by Ashtead Choral Society to mark their fiftieth anniversary in the year 2000 from composer Robert Steadman.

In 1887 Ashtead Cricket Club was founded and since then they have progressed into the Premier league of the Surrey Championship.

The village

Villagers commonly refer to three areas of Ashtead: The Village (which is the village centre, around The Street); Lower Ashtead; and The Common. There is also Ashtead Park, Ashtead Heath and Ashtead Downs.

The village is the oldest part of Ashtead and has the main shopping and social area of the village, with two pubs and the Ashtead Village Club which is a C&IU affiliate.

The area north of the railway line is Ashtead Common, managed by the City of London Corporation and subject to a long-standing preservation order. It is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Lower Ashtead is a flat area leading to Ashtead Common, where there is a recreation ground, a youth club, a skate park, a pub, housing estates and a few shops all built near the railway station.

Business

The construction company Longcross has its head office in Astead.[3]

Activities

Ashtead Players have a long and successful history with a distinguished artistic record equalled by few dramatic societies. Established for over 50 years, with two distinct elements:

  1. Adult Ashtead Players, successfully presenting a whole range of popular theatrical productions.
  2. Young Ashtead Players (12–18 years), offering a real performance experience for younger members.

1st Ashtead Scout Group was incorporated on 21 June 1920 and is still offering adventurous and educational programmes to young people between the ages of 6 and 18. It has its own headquarters in Lower Ashtead near Ashtead Common. The group has over 250 members including young people, adult leaders and supporters.

Outside links

 ("Wikimedia Commons" has material
about Ashtead)

References

  1. ↑ "Ashtead Common cultural heritage". City of London. http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/Corporation/LGNL_Services/Environment_and_planning/Parks_and_open_spaces/Ashtead_Common/. Retrieved 2010-09-27. 
  2. ↑ Surrey Domesday Book
  3. ↑ "Contact Us". Longcross. http://www.longcross.co.uk/Ashtead. Retrieved 23 October 2012. 
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