Beckley, Sussex
| Beckley | |
| Sussex | |
|---|---|
 All Saints Church | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TQ852239 |
| Location: | 50°59’24"N, 0°38’24"E |
| Data | |
| Population: | 1,037 (2011[1]) |
| Post town: | Rye |
| Postcode: | TN31 |
| Dialling code: | 01797 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Rother |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Bexhill and Battle |
| Website: | Beckley Council |
Beckley is a village and parish in eastern Sussex, adjacent to the border with Kent. It is located on the B2088 minor road above the Rother Levels five miles north-west of Rye and ten miles from Hastings. The northern boundary is also the county border and follows the river Rother.
History
Beckley was part of the Wealden iron industry.[2] An iron furnace was built in 1578, at the small settlement still called Beckley Furnace. A watermill powered the bellows. Production ceased in 1770.[3]
The 1830s saw a mass emigration of Beckley residents to New South Wales. At the time, the developing colony of New South Wales was in need of skilled agricultural labourers, whilst the English labourers were suffering hard times. Various schemes were introduced to provide finance for workers to emigrate. 165 Beckley residents took up the offer and emigrated. Amongst those residents were Thomas and Maria Ann Smith (née Sherwood), the cultivator of the Granny Smith apple.[4] Another of those residents who emigrated at this time was Henry Charles Packham, whose son Charles, in Molong, New South Wales, was the cultivator of the Packham pear.[5][6]
The parish church is the All Saints church, which is located at the far west end of the town. Its isolated position indicates that the main village has relocated during its history.
References
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Beckley, Sussex) |
- ↑ "Civil Parish". http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=11120532&c=TN31+6TN&d=16&e=62&g=6421561&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=0&s=1444225303115&enc=1. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
- ↑ "Wealden Iron Series 2". Wealden Iron Research Group. 2007. http://www.wealdeniron.org.uk/bull2.htm#1993. Retrieved 24 May 2008.
- ↑ "Beckley Sussex". Villagenet.co.uk. Archived from the original on 16 May 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080516071603/http://www.villagenet.co.uk/rotherlevels/villages/beckley.php. Retrieved 24 May 2008.
- ↑ "Local History". Beckley History Society. Archived from the original on 18 July 2006. https://web.archive.org/web/20060718173926/http://www.beckley-uk.com/History%20Folder/Local_History_Pages.htm. Retrieved 24 May 2008.
- ↑ Finn, Rosslyn. Packham, Charles Henry (1842–1909). Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/packham-charles-henry-13142.
- ↑ "A village claims its slice of history: the birthplace of the Packham Pear" (in en-AU). http://www.abc.net.au/local/photos/2015/04/22/4221306.htm. Retrieved 21 April 2016.