Selmeston
| Selmeston | |
| Sussex | |
|---|---|
| |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TQ509068 |
| Location: | 50°50’24"N, 0°8’24"E |
| Data | |
| Population: | 159 (2011) |
| Post town: | Polegate |
| Postcode: | BN26 |
| Dialling code: | 01323 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Wealden |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Lewes |
Selmeston is a village in Sussex, eight miles east of Lewes and to the north of the A27 road between there and Polegate.
The church existed at the time of its mention in the Domesday Book of 1086; it is dedicated to St Mary. The ecclesiastical parish is linked with the village of Alciston. The Domesday Book also has entries for the two large houses that lie in the Parish, Sherrington Manor (variously referred to as Elerintone, Serintone and Sirintone) and Tilton house (referred to as Telentone and Tilintone).
The village with its single street (aptly named 'The Street') marks a route between the River Ouse and the Cuckmere River.
The parish church was originally Saxon, built in 1100, but after a fire in 1860 it was left as a ruin until 1867 when it was reconstructed with tile walls and a shingle spire.
History
The local area has been a popular choice for inhabitation since Mesolithic times, with evidence of Mesolithic settlements discovered in old sandpits around the church in 1933. The results of the findings of this excavation can be viewed at the Barbican House Museum in Lewes.[1] The museum also holds later evidence of a Saxon burial site, located behind Manor Cottages. This spot may have been so popular because of its plentiful natural springs, which were still used as the main water supply up until the 1950s when running water was installed.
In 1807 the cricket pitch was donated to the village and by 1834 the Selmeston cricket team was well-established, playing in the West Firle Poor Law Union.
The village school was constructed in 1846, made of Sussex flint with a tiled roof. It was closed in 1968 and is now a private residence and Grade II listed building.
The village hall[2] was opened on the 27th July 1935, and is shared with Alciston.
On 12 August 1940, a Messerschmitt Bf 109E-1 crash-landed at harvest-time at Mays Farm: the pilot was captured.
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Selmeston) |
References
- ↑ "Sussex Past | The Sussex Archaeological Society" (in en-GB). https://sussexpast.co.uk/.
- ↑ "Home" (in en-GB). https://southdownsvillagehall.org/.
