Bolney
| Bolney | |
| Sussex | |
|---|---|
 Bolney Street | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TQ261227 |
| Location: | 50°59’23"N, 0°12’13"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 1,209 (2001) |
| Post town: | Haywards Heath |
| Postcode: | RH17 |
| Dialling code: | 01444 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Mid Sussex |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Mid Sussex |
| Website: | http://www.bolney.com/ |
Bolney is a village in Sussex, eleven miles north of Brighton, and 27 miles east of the county town, Chichester, near the junction of the A23 road with the A272 road. Nearby towns include Burgess Hill to the southeast and Haywards Heath to the east.
The 2011 census recorded a population of 1,366.
The majority of the village sits between the A23 to the east, and the A272 to the south and consists of a main north/south road called The Street and towards the top of the village by Top Street, Cherry Lane and Ryecroft cutting east/west. Outside of this area the village extends south of the A272 down Bolney Chapel Road and to the East of the A23 in Crossways. The Bolney crossroads of the A23 and A272 has always been an accident black spot, and even with the building of the A23 flyover the area still has a high level of accidents and incidents on its stretch of the A23.
Church
At the heart of the village is St Mary Magdalene's Church, which partly dates from the 12th century.
The tower houses the first ring of eight bells in Sussex, the oldest dating to 1592. At the top end of the village in Top Street there is another place of worship, the Bolney Village Chapel.
History
It is believed the name of the village came from the Saxon word “Bolne” meaning “a village (or high place) near marsh”, as the area is on high ground in an area that was marshy.[1] Saxon road timbers have been excavated in The Street and there is a suggestion that this was an old route north into St Leonard's Forest.
In the Middle Ages the village was noted for its cherry fair and iron smelting and until the early 20th Century a windmill existed on the Common.
Historically the Village was in two parts the main village was clustered around the church and to the north there was the Common. House building up The Street during the 20th century joined these two parts together.
The last remaining pub in the village is called The Eight Bells[2] in reference to the set of bells in the village church.
The village has a relatively high number of listed properties, with two main clusters at the south, around the church and to the north, in what was originally the Common.
Sport
Batchelor's Field is the village's main recreation ground.
- Cricket: Bolney Cricket Club, founded in 1840. In 2003 a new pavilion was designed and built by players.
- Football: Bolney Rovers F.C.
- Ladies' stoolball: Bolney Stoolball Club
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Bolney) |
References
- ↑ Bolney-Village of a Thousand Years by Margaret Burgess and Ian Denyer published in 2000
- ↑ The Eight Bells, Bolney