Cuckfield
| Cuckfield | |
| Sussex | |
|---|---|
 Cuckfield High Street | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TQ305245 |
| Location: | 51°0’25"N, 0°8’24"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 3,266 (2011) |
| Post town: | Haywards Heath |
| Postcode: | RH17 |
| Dialling code: | 01444 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Mid Sussex |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Mid Sussex |
Cuckfield is a large village in Sussex, on the southern slopes of the Weald. It is to be found in the Rape of Lewes, thirteen miles north of Brighton, and thirty-one miles east-north-east of the county town, Chichester. Nearby towns include Haywards Heath to the south-east and Burgess Hill to the south.
The 2011 census recorded a population of 3,500.
Cuckfield is known locally for its idiosyncratic system of mayoral voting; unlimited numbers of votes can be purchased for the price of one penny each, with the winner receiving the most votes.[1] The position is purely honorary and the money raised supports local charities.
Parish church
The parish church is Holy Trinity Church. It has Norman foundations, although the building itself is of the 13th century.
The lych gates are listed buildings. Several of the stained-glass windows as well as the pulpit and the ceiling's painting were designed by Charles Eamer Kempe (1837–1907).
History
The origin of the name, Cuckfield (earlier spelled variously as Kukefeld, Cucufeld, and Cucufelda), is debated but it is generally associated with the cuckoo which is the village emblem.
The village grew as a market town; and an important coaching stop between London and Brighton, since it stood on the main turnpike road. In 1820, fifty coaches a day were passing through; but when the railway to Brighton was to be built in the 1840s, local landowners objected to its projected route: it was therefore built through neighbouring Haywards Heath instead. The village lost its importance at once as a result. Today, even the A272 road also bypasses the village centre.
The Cuckfield Museum and village library reside within the Queen's Hall, built in 1897 to celebrate Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee.
In 1822, Mary Ann Mantell, wife of Dr Gideon Mantell, found the first known iguanodon fossils among many others close to Cuckfield at Whitemans Green, where a monument to him now stands though the quarry from where he acquired them is long gone.[2][3] Dr Mantell also features in the town's museum.
About the village
Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School is one of the oldest schools in the United Kingdom. It was founded in the early 1500s as the local grammar school.[4][5] The founder, Edward Flower, was a London merchant tailor in about 1512 and endowed by his will in 1521 with lands in Westerham and £100 to be laid out in other lands. Other endowments were added, but in 1589, the original endowment was leased at a perpetual rent of £20. In consequence in 1819, the schoolmaster had an income of a mere £28.8s.0.d. In 1844, as a result of local discontent, the Court of Chancery made a scheme reorganising the school in the manner of a Church of England National School (which it became in fact as well as format in 1886). The teaching of Latin and Greek were discontinued and the fees fixed at a maximum of a shilling. The teacher no longer had to be a clergyman. In 1991, the school was rebuilt on a new site and the old school became a church hall.[6][7]
To the west of the village stands Cuckfield Park, an Elizabethan stately home. Bonfire Night celebrations are held here.
Another Elizabethan house, Ockenden Manor, is a hotel and restaurant.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Cuckfield) |
References
- ↑ J D A Wiseman: 'Unusual Electoral Systems'
- ↑ Burton, Alex (May 1998). "Cuckfield". A Taphonomic Study of the Wealden Beds of Southern Britain. Cambridge University. http://wealdentaphonomy.webs.com/cuckfield.htm. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
- ↑ Dean, Dennis R. (1999). Gideon Mantell and the Discovery of Dinosaurs. Cambridge University Press. p. 48.
- ↑ Cuckfield: Grammar School and National School - The National Archives
- ↑ A History of the County of Sussex - Volume 7 : The Rape of Lewes (Victoria County History) – [1]
- ↑ The Old School - Holy Trinity Church Cuckfield
- ↑ Cooper, Wilbraham V. and Cooper, James Hughes: 'A history of the parish of Cuckfield' (C. Clarke, 1912) pages 128-148