North Wraxall

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North Wraxall
St. James, North Wraxall. - panoramio.jpg
Parish church of St James the Great
North Wraxall is located in Wiltshire
North Wraxall
North Wraxall
Location within Wiltshire
Population401 (2011 Census)
OS grid referenceST819750
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townChippenham
Postcode districtSN14
Dialling code01249
PoliceWiltshire
FireDorset and Wiltshire
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
WebsiteParish Council
List of places
UK
England
Wiltshire
51°28′26″N 2°15′43″W / 51.474°N 2.262°W / 51.474; -2.262Coordinates: 51°28′26″N 2°15′43″W / 51.474°N 2.262°W / 51.474; -2.262

North Wraxall is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The village is about 6 miles (10 km) west of Chippenham, just north of the A420 road between Chippenham and Bristol.

The parish includes the village of Ford and the hamlets of Upper Wraxall, Mountain Bower and The Shoe. The 2011 Census recorded the parish population as 401.[1]

The Fosse Way Roman road crosses the parish as a minor road. There was a Roman villa at Truckle Hill.[2] Danks Down and Truckle Hill is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest, as is Out Woods. The name of the community originated from Wroxall, "derived from 'wroc' either meaning buzzard or a personal name and 'healh' seen as an angle or corner".[3]

Early history[]

The Roman Villa stood in this area as long ago as the 2nd century. The site has been excavated on at least thee occasions, the first by one of the Scrope family of landowners in 1852 and the most recent in 2010. Some reports refer to the site as the North Wraxall or the Truckle Hill villa. Evidence of a bath house and corn drying ovens were found, the latter from the 4th century.[4] The villa itself apparently contained 16 rooms, and there were additional buildings and a cemetery.[5] Neolithic flint tools and Iron Age brooches were also discovered not far from the villa, in 1985.[6]

The Domesday Book of 1086 states that estate was held by "Baldwin in the reign of King Edward prior to the Norman Conquest" and by "by Godfrey" afterwards; the population was around 140 to 150 people. This was an agricultural area in the 1800s; the cloth industry was also important for a time and many of the buildings housed workers. During that century the population increased and then declined, to 371 by 1891. In 2001, there were 348 people. No industry remained by the early 1900s and nearly all buildings once used for by industry became residential.[7]

Parish Church[]

The oldest parts of the Church of England parish church of St James the Great are 13th-century. The baptismal font and south porch are 14th-century. The north aisle was rebuilt in the 18th century. The building is Grade I listed.[8] St James' parish is part of the Bybrook Benefice.[9]

References[]

  1. ^ "Area: North Wraxall (Parish): Key Figures for 2011 Census: Key Statistics". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 5 February 2017.
  2. ^ Historic England. "Site of a Roman villa at Truckle Hill (208315)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 19 March 2015.
  3. ^ Community History https://history.wiltshire.gov.uk/community/getcom.php?id=172#:~:text=The%20name%20North%20Wraxall%20originated,)%2C%20Northwroxhall%20(1468).title=Wiltshire Community History Check |url= value (help). Retrieved 17 March 2021. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. ^ "Truckle Hill Roman Villa". Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  5. ^ "Historic England MONUMENT NO 208315". Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  6. ^ "Wiltshire Community History". Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  7. ^ "Wiltshire Community History". Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  8. ^ Historic England. "Church of St James (Grade I) (1022991)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  9. ^ Bybrook Team Ministry

Further reading[]

External links[]

Media related to North Wraxall at Wikimedia Commons

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