Whipsnade
Whipsnade | |
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Bedfordshire and Luton | |
Ambulance | East of England |
UK Parliament | |
Whipsnade is a small village and
Etymology
Whipsnade is a compound of the Anglo-Saxon personal name, Wibba, with the word "snæd", an area of woodland. Therefore, the name means "Wibba's wood".[2] A variation may be seen as "Wystnade" in a legal record of 1460, where named people in Dunstable were accused of trespassing. [3]
History
The village was first mentioned in a coroner's roll of 1274 when Whipsnade Wood was described as being within the parish of Houghton Regis.[2] The Old Hunters Lodge at the Crossroads in the village is a Grade II listed building, built in the early 17th Century. It is now a hotel and is the only licensed premises in the village outside the ZSL grounds.[4]
Edward John Eyre, explorer of Australia, was born in Whipsnade in 1815.[5]
The parish of Whipsnade used to have a detached part at
In the 2021 census, the population of Whipsnade was 455.[1]
Landmarks
Whipsnade is home to Whipsnade Tree Cathedral, a 9+1⁄2 acres (3.8 ha) arboretum planted in the arrangement of a cathedral, and Whipsnade Zoo. A chalk hill figure of a lion can be found on Bison Hill, created in 1933; it is owned by the zoo. It is the longest hill figure in England at 483 feet (147 m). During the Second World War, the lion was covered with a black tarp to prevent German bomber planes from using it for navigation.[9] Whipsnade Park Golf Club is also in the vicinity, though it is actually in neighbouring Dagnall.[10]
The local Wildlife Trust manages a small nature reserve north of the village called Sallowsprings (51°51′21″N 0°32′21″W / 51.8559°N 0.5391°W).[11]
References
- ^ a b ONS, Census 2021 Parish Profiles
- ^ a b c "The Parish of Whipsnade in General". Bedford Borough Council. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
- ^ first entry in http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT1/H6/CP40no799/aCP40no799fronts/IMG_0332.htm
- ^ "Old Hunters Lodge Hotel: The Cross Roads, Whipsnade". Bedford Borough Council. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
- ^ "Eyre, Edward John (1815–1901)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
- ^ "Whipsnade Tithe Apportionment 1842–1844". Bedfordshire Archives Catalogue. Bedford Borough Council. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
Parish, including detached portion called Ballingdon Bottom.
- ^ Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844 (7 & 8 Vict. c. 61)
- ^ Local and Personal Acts. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office. 1897. p. 561. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
The Counties of Bedford and Hertford (Caddington, &c.) Order 1897
- ^ "Whipsnade Zoo's Big Help Out volunteers weed giant lion for Coronation". BBC News. 8 May 2023. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
- ^ "Whipsande Park Golf Club". Whipsnade Park Golf Club. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
- ^ "Sallowsprings". Bedfordshire Cambridgeshire Northamptonshire Wildlife Trust. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
External links
Media related to Whipsnade at Wikimedia Commons