Deopham
| Deopham | |
| Norfolk | |
|---|---|
 St Andrew's Church, Deopham | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TG051008 |
| Location: | 52°34’0"N, 1°1’29"E |
| Data | |
| Population: | 541 |
| Post town: | Wymondham |
| Postcode: | NR18 |
| Dialling code: | 01953 |
| Local Government | |
Deopham is a village in the midst of Norfolk, four miles west of Wymondham and twelve miles south-west of Norwich. The tower of its parish church is one of the tallest in the county.
The wider parish includes such hamlets as Hackford, Deopham Green and part of Deopham Stalland hamlet, and had a recorded population of 542 at the 2021 census.
History
Deopham's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for a homestead close to a deep body of water, likely the nearby Sea Mere.[1]
In the Domesday Book, Deopham is listed as a settlement of 75 households in the Hundred]] of Forehoe. In 1086, the village was divided between the estates of William de Warenne and Ralph de Beaufour.[2]
In 1830, a windmill was built in Deopham which burnt down in the 1920s.[3]
RAF Deopham Green opened in 1943 for use by the United States Army Air Forces during the Second World War. The base was at first home to rear echelon units, until it was handed over to the 452nd Operations Group of the Eighth Air Force flying B-17 Flying Fortresses against strategic targets in Continental Europe. In October 1945, the site reverted to the Royal Air Force which closed the airfield in 1948 and allowed it to revert to agricultural use.[4]
Church
Deopham's parish church, St Andrew, dates at its earliest from the late-14th century. The building is a Grade I listed building.[5]
St Andrew's has suffered from vandalism and theft over the last few decades but retains pews from the 17th century.[6]
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Deopham) |
References
- ↑ Place-Names
- ↑ Deopham in the Domesday Book
- ↑ "mnf16743 - Norfolk Heritage Explorer". https://www.heritage.norfolk.gov.uk/record-details?mnf16743.
- ↑ "mnf4260 - Norfolk Heritage Explorer". https://www.heritage.norfolk.gov.uk/record-details?mnf4260.
- ↑ National Heritage List 1373039: Church of St Andrew (Grade I listing)
- ↑ "Norfolk Churches". http://www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/deopham/deopham.htm.