Wootton Bridge
| Wootton Bridge | |
| Hampshire | |
|---|---|
 High Street, Wootton | |
| Location | |
| Island: | Isle of Wight |
| Grid reference: | SZ542921 |
| Location: | 50°43’35"N, 1°13’56"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 3,447 (2011) |
| Post town: | Ryde |
| Postcode: | PO33 |
| Dialling code: | 01983 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Isle of Wight |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Isle of Wight |
Wootton Bridge, also known just as Wootton, is a large village of about 3,000 folk on the Isle of Wight in Hampshire. Once there was a distinction between the parent village, Wootton, and Wootton Bridge, which grew up around the bridge over the Wootton Creek, then it has been lost as the villages have grown together indistinguishably.
Wootton is found midway between the towns of Ryde and Newport, which are seven miles apart, and historically centred on the old parish church of St Edmund. The hamlet of Wootton Common to the south centres on the crossroads that bears its name.
The newer village of Wootton Bridge is found in the area immediately west of Wootton Creek.
Names
Wootton is first found recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086,[1] in which is appears as "Odetone" or "Wootten".
The name is said to mean "Woodtown", which means a clearing in a forest, although other interpretations do exist.[1]
Wootton Bridge is found on the eastern most side of Wootton, bordering Fishbourne. It grew up following the construction of the bridge across Wootton Creek, and soon eclipsed the original Wootton. Latterly the name "Wootton Bridge" has come to be used for the whole of Wootton, thanks in part to the Royal Mail, who used the name "Wootton Bridge" to differentiate Wootton from the twenty-odd other Woottons found across Britain.
Churches
St Edmund's Parish Church dates from the 11th century.[2]
St Mark's Church, Wootton is in the south end of the village.
Wootton Creek
- Main article: Wootton Creek
There is a millpond on Wootton Creek formed by a sluice gate in Wootton Bridge. At one time there was a second sluice gate in the bridge that would use the tidal water from the millpond to power a mill grinding flour. The mill was demolished in 1962 and houses later built on the site.[3]
The pond is part of a Special Area of Conservation and is important for wildfowl and for bats. The heron has been adopted as the symbol of the village.[4]
Firestone Copse is a Forestry Commission woodland open to the public which is situated on the edge of the pond.[5]
About the village
The Sloop is a prominent building in Wootton, with its prime position next to Wootton Bridge. The pub is about 150 years old, and is currently managed by Mitchells & Butlers as part of its Crown Carveries pub chain.[6]
The Fernhill Ice House is to be found in an area of woodland adjacent to agricultural land and public footpaths just outside the village of Wooton. The ice house is in excellent condition, having been maintained by the council since the 1980s. This structure is one of a few remnants of a grand estate called Fernhill, which was destroyed by fire in 1938.[7]
Wootton Station is the western terminus of the Isle of Wight Steam Railway. The current station, opened in 1987, is in a different location from the original which was closed in 1953. However the authentic station signage from the original is in place in the newer station.[8]
Isle of Wight Festival 1969
The 1969 Isle of Wight Festival took place on 30 and 31 August at Woodside Bay in Wootton. The event was one of the largest music festivals to that date, and had an estimated audience of some 150,000.[9] The line-up included Bob Dylan, The Band, The Nice, The Pretty Things, Marsha Hunt, The Who, Third Ear Band, Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, Fat Mattress and Joe Cocker.[10]
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Wootton Bridge) |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Wootton Bridge Historical – History – Wootton". http://woottonbridgeiow.org.uk/wootton.php. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
- ↑ St Edmund's, Wootton – Wight Churches}
- ↑ "Netguide to Wootton on the Isle of Wight". www.wightstay.co.uk. http://www.wightstay.co.uk/context/wootton.html. Retrieved 5 September 2008.
- ↑ "Wootton Bridge – Homepage". www.woottonbridge.com. Archived from the original on 16 July 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080716012422/http://www.woottonbridge.com/. Retrieved 5 September 2008.
- ↑ "Forestry Commission – The Forests of the Isle of Wight – Firestone Copse". www.forestry.gov.uk. http://www.forestry.gov.uk/website/recreation.nsf/LUWebDocsByKey/EnglandIsleofWightTheForestsoftheIsleofWightFirestoneCopse. Retrieved 5 September 2008.
- ↑ "The Sloop Inn – Wootton". http://www.crowncarveries.co.uk/thesloopinntheisleofwight/. http://www.crowncarveries.co.uk/thesloopinntheisleofwight/. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
- ↑ Wooton Bridge: The ice house
- ↑ Isle of Wight Steam Railway – A Journey Along the Line
- ↑ 2010 audio interview with Ray Foulk
- ↑ "Isle of Wight Festival History – 1969". www.isleofwightfestival.com. http://www.isleofwightfestival.com/history/1969.aspx. Retrieved 3 September 2008.