Fritwell
Fritwell | ||
---|---|---|
Shire county | ||
Region | ||
Country | England | |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom | |
Post town | Bicester | |
Postcode district | OX27 | |
Dialling code | 01869 | |
Police | Thames Valley | |
Fire | Oxfordshire | |
Ambulance | South Central | |
UK Parliament | ||
Website | Fritwell Parish Council | |
Fritwell is a village and
The parish's southern boundary is a stream that flows eastwards through Fewcott and past the villages of Fringford and Godington before entering Buckinghamshire where it becomes part of Padbury Brook, a tributary of the Great Ouse. The northeastern boundary of Fritwell parish is the main road between Bicester and Banbury. On other sides the parish is bounded by field boundaries.
The Portway, a road that predates the Roman conquest of Britain, runs north–south parallel with the River Cherwell and passes through the western part of the parish. The village's toponym is derived from Fyrht-wielle or Fyrht-welle, which is Old English for a wishing well.[2]
Manors
De Lisle
After the
The de Lisle manor house was probably built late in the 16th century and rebuilt in 1619. Robert Barclay Allardice (1779–1854) lived at the house, by then renamed Fritwell Manor. The architect Thomas Garner restored the house in 1893 and made it his home[3] until his death in 1906. Sir John Simon (1873–1954) bought the house in 1911, had a west wing added in 1921 and lived there until 1933.[2]
Ormond
In 1086 there was a second manor at Fritwell. It had six hides of land and its
The Ormond manor house seems to have been at the southern end of the village. It was still standing when Fritwell was assessed for the hearth tax in 1655 but seems to have been demolished by 1677, when a map of the village was made that showed no trace of it. Dovehouse Farm seems to have been built on its site and incorporating fragments of the old house. A large dovecote was built for it in 1702 and was still standing in 1897. By 1955 the dovecote had gone and the farm had been renamed Lodge Farm.[2]
Churches
Church of England
The earliest known written record of the
In 1865 the church was restored and the bell tower was rebuilt under the direction of the Oxford Diocesan architect and Gothic Revivalist G.E. Street. He also had a new, wider chancel arch built and had the original Norman arch relocated against the north wall. In 1868 the square-headed Perpendicular Gothic east window of the chancel was moved to the north aisle and the present east window inserted in its place.[3]
The
Roman Catholic
The Fermors were
Methodist
The parish had a small number of Methodists by 1823, who had their own meeting house by 1829. It is not clear whether this was a private house or a purpose-built chapel, but there was certainly a stone-built chapel by 1853 when the congregation numbered almost 100. The chapel was replaced in 1874 by the present building, which was still in use early in the 20th century but is now a private house.[2][8]
Wesleyan
By 1853 a stone-built chapel for a different branch of Methodism, the Methodist Reform Church, was being completed in Fritwell.[2] In 1857 most Methodist Reform congregations merged with the Wesleyan Association, but the chapel in Fritwell was one of a minority that rejected the merger and together founded the Wesleyan Reform Union instead. By 1878 non-conformists were said to be a third of the parish's population. A new Wesleyan Reform chapel was built in 1892[3] but thereafter both Methodist congregations decreased. The two chapels merged in 1920 and the combined congregation continues today as the Wesleyan Reform Methodist Chapel.[2][8][9]
Economic and social history
A
Clock and watch makers
George Harris (1614–94) was born in Fritwell.[10] He was both a blacksmith and a notable clockmaker who made turret clocks and innovative lantern clocks.[10] Harris repaired the turret clocks at the churches of St Peter ad Vincula, South Newington in 1669 and St. Bartholomew, Yarnton in 1682.[11] In 1671 Sir Anthony Cope, 4th Baronet of Hanwell had Harris make a turret clock for St. Peter's parish church, Hanwell.[12] George Harris's work can now be much sought-after. In 2006 a late 17th-century lantern clock by George Harris was sold in a Bonhams auction for £12,000.[13]
George's third son Nicholas Harris (1657–1738) succeeded to his father's business.[11] Nicholas mended the church clock at St. Peter and Vincula, South Newington in 1674 and made the clock at St. Mary's parish church, Great Milton in 1699.[11] Fritwell had further clock and watchmakers in the 18th century: Thomas Jennings (1722–73) and his younger brother William Jennings (1716–80).[11]
Public houses
By 1735 Fritwell had three
Parish school
Attempts at education in the parish were intermittent until about 1833, by which time a village school was being held for 30 children. By the 1850s it was being held in the vicarage and in 1871 it had 67 children. A purpose-built school building and schoolmistress's house were completed in 1872 and opened as a National School with two teachers and 64 pupils. Attendance grew to 87 in 1893 and 117 in 1937, and in 1930 an extra classroom was built.[2] In 1948 it was reorganised as a junior school and by 1953 it was a voluntary controlled school. In 1954 the number of pupils had fallen to 77 but it remains open as Fritwell Church of England Primary School.[2][16]
Transport history
The main road between Bicester and Banbury was made into a
In 1907 the
References
- Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Lobel 1959, pp. 134–146
- ^ a b c d Sherwood & Pevsner 1974, p. 608–609.
- Central Council for Church Bell Ringers. Retrieved 23 January 2012.
- ^ Central Council for Church Bell Ringers. Retrieved 23 January 2012.
- ^ Beeson 1989, p. 21.
- A Church Near You. Church of England. Archived from the originalon 13 January 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
- ^ a b "Fritwell". Oxfordshire Churches & Chapels. Brian Curtis. Archived from the original on 9 December 2009.
- ^ "Fritwell Wesleyan Reform". Circuits and Churches. The Wesleyan Reform Union.
- ^ a b Beeson 1989, p. 108.
- ^ a b c d Beeson 1989, p. 109.
- ^ Beeson 1989, p. 39.
- ^ "Lot No: 102 A fine and rare late 17th century lantern clock with barrel winding". Sale 14227 - Fine Clocks, 13 Jun 2006 New Bond Street. Bonhams. 13 June 2006. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
- ^ The Kings Head Fritwell
- ^ "Plans for George and Dragon Site Approved". Fritwell Parish Council. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
- ^ Fritwell Church of Englande Primary School
- ^ a b "Turnpike Roads in England". Turnpike Trusts in England & Wales. Alan Rosevear.
- ^ "page 1". Railway Tunnel Lengths. David Eaves. 14 May 2015.
Sources
- ISBN 0-903364-06-9.
- Lobel, Mary D, ed. (1959). A History of the County of Oxford. Victoria County History. Vol. 6: Ploughley Hundred. London: Oxford University Press for the Institute of Historical Research. pp. 134–146.
- Sherwood, Jennifer; ISBN 0-14-071045-0.