Barton on Sea

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Barton on Sea
Cliffs at Barton on Sea - geograph.org.uk - 111854.jpg
Cliffs at Barton on Sea
Hampshire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Barton on Sea
Location within Hampshire
Population5,454 (2011 census: Barton on Sea ward) [1]
OS grid reference SZ244937
District
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town New Milton
Postcode district BH25 7
Dialling code 01425
Police Hampshire and Isle of Wight
Fire Hampshire and Isle of Wight
Ambulance South Central
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Hampshire
50°44′34″N1°39′19″W / 50.7428°N 1.6552°W / 50.7428; -1.6552

Barton on Sea (often hyphenated as Barton-on-Sea) is a cliff-top village in Hampshire, England close to the town of New Milton, which is its civil parish to the north. As a settlement, Barton has a history dating back to Anglo-Saxon times. Barton is notable for the many fossils to be found in the Barton geological beds in the cliffs, as well as for the significant sea defences built to guard the cliffs against coastal erosion. Barton on Sea is a very popular retirement location. Approximately 36% of the population is retired. [2] The population of Barton in the 2001 census was 6,849. [3]

Contents

History

The area of Barton has been populated since prehistoric times. A number of Bronze Age funerary urns were uncovered in Barton during the early 20th century, although most of them have been lost or destroyed. [4] While Barton is a common English place-name, the etymology of Barton-on-Sea is unique. It means Beorma's Farm, and appears twice in the Domesday Book, as Bermintune and as Burmintune. [5] Roger de Montgomerie, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury, and friend of William the Conqueror, held both Barton manors in 1086. [6]

A manor is mentioned in 1559, when John Dowce died in possession of it. [7] William Juniper acquired it soon after, and at his death it was described as the capital farm called "Barmeton". [7] In 1654, Richard Stephens, lord of Winkton Manor, is said to have owned the "site of the manor" of Barton. [7] It remained in the Stephens family until 1733, when Richard Stephens sold it to Thomas Le Marchant of the Inner Temple. [7] In 1771 John Le Marchant of Guernsey conveyed "the scite of the manor of Barton, etc.," to Edward Dampier of Corfe Castle, in whose family it remained (the last holder having taken the name of Crossley) until 1903. [7] As late as the 1880s, Barton largely consisted of two farm estates, but in the 1890s, both farms were auctioned and the estates were broken up. [8] Subsequent land sales in the period 1904-1907 allowed the full development of the village as it appears today. [8] In 1897 the first golf course was built at Barton along the cliff top, although the modern golf course at the east end of Barton dates from 1922. [8]

A distinctive row of Coast Guard cottages is to be found in Barton Lane; these were built at the end of the nineteenth century by the government of the day to house armed guards to try to stop the smuggling rife at the time. The Barton on Sea and Mudeford coastline was renowned for smuggling activity with many of the offshore seaways and routes to shore being named after well known local smuggling families. [9]

World War I Obelisk with an Urdu inscription Barton on Sea, obelisk, Urdu detail - geograph.org.uk - 1088453.jpg
World War I Obelisk with an Urdu inscription

In the First World War Barton was the site of a convalescent home for Indian service men, [6] and this is commemorated by an obelisk in the village which was erected in 1917. [10] In 1927, a maternity hospital known as the Grove Maternity Hospital where many local people were born was opened; it closed in 1988. [11] During World War II, the sea front at Barton was made a restricted area and metal defences including a pillbox were built, in anticipation of a German invasion. [12]

The footballers Russell Perrett, [13] Jamie Redknapp, [14] and Neil Moss, [15] were all born in Barton on Sea. Famous residents of Barton have included composer and author Ernest St. John Burton, [16] the novelist Beatrice Harraden; [17] the cricketer Denys Hill; [18] and the conductor Harry Norris. [19] George Campbell Wheeler who served in the British Indian Army during World War I and was awarded the Victoria Cross also lived here. [20] The GCHQ whistleblower and intelligence agency officer, Jock Kane, lived in Barton in the 1980s, where he worked as a milkman and school bus driver. [21]

At the east end of Barton was Becton Farm, where the famous showjumper Marion Coakes lived. [22] Her horse, Stroller, is the only pony to have competed at the Olympic Games in Show Jumping, winning an individual silver medal in the 1968 Summer Olympics. [23] The pony was buried at the farm. The farm was later bought by the Barton on Sea Golf Club, and Stroller now lies underneath the golf course with a plaque over the grave. [22]

Geography

Paragliders at Barton cliffs Paragliding at Barton on Sea - geograph.org.uk - 511244.jpg
Paragliders at Barton cliffs
Sea defences at Barton on Sea Barton on Sea, groyne, beach and cliff - geograph.org.uk - 24375.jpg
Sea defences at Barton on Sea
Becton Bunny Beckton Bunny - geograph.org.uk - 1634801.jpg
Becton Bunny

The coast at Barton on Sea is particularly well known for its geological content, being home to many fossils in the Barton geological beds. The Barton Beds may give their name to the Bartonian stage of the Eocene Epoch of geological time. [24]

The beach is separated from the village by a 34-metre-high cliff, although there are connecting paths from the village. A cliff-top path runs between Barton and the village of Milford on Sea; the Solent Way stretches to Emsworth, on the West Sussex border. Barton is also well known for the fact that it was the first place in England to try out rock groynes. The cliffs are frequently used for paragliding. [25] At the eastern end of the village is the Barton On Sea Golf Club, which is notable for comprising three loops of nine holes. [26]

Barton on Sea has had for many years a problem with coastal erosion. In the past, the cliffs have eroded away at a rate of up to 1 metre a year, and several buildings have been lost. [27] In the early 1900s the grassy promenade at the top of the cliffs was 100 metres wide, today it is around 20 metres at its widest points. [6] The erosion was encouraged by the sea-defences added to the west at Bournemouth, thus starving Barton of the sediment needed for protecting its cliffs. Some coastal protection measures at Barton were installed in the late 1930s but fell into disrepair during World War II. [28] In 1964 a series of timber groynes and a cliff drainage system was installed along 300m of the sea-front. [28] This was followed in 1965-8 by a timber revetment backed by large rocks; an extension to the drainage system; and some rock groynes. [28] Later improvements have consisted of replacing the timber groynes with rock groynes; and replacing the timber revetment with a rock structure of dark grey limestone boulders to protect the toe of the cliff. [29] Today's cliff slip problems are largely due to inland water seepage. [6] There have been recent experiments with vegetation defences (planting shrubs, plants and trees on the cliff face) to prevent rotational cliff slump, and therefore slowing the retreat of the cliff towards land which is in use.

To the west of Barton is Naish Farm, now a holiday park, which was once a farm estate with a history dating back to the 14th century. [7] To the west of that is Chewton, notable for the chine called Chewton Bunny running down to the sea. To the east of Barton is Becton, once a farm with a history dating back to the Domesday book –the Saxon name means "Becca's farm" –now a golf course. [30] Another chine called Becton Bunny can be found here, but it has become much reduced by coastal erosion. To the east of that are the farmlands of Taddiford ("Toad ford").

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coastal erosion</span> Displacement of land along the coastline

Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of waves, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts of storms. The landward retreat of the shoreline can be measured and described over a temporal scale of tides, seasons, and other short-term cyclic processes. Coastal erosion may be caused by hydraulic action, abrasion, impact and corrosion by wind and water, and other forces, natural or unnatural.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chine</span> Steep-sided river valley

A chine is a steep-sided coastal gorge where a river flows to the sea through, typically, soft eroding cliffs of sandstone or clays. The word is still in use in central Southern England—notably in East Devon, Dorset, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight—to describe such topographical features. The term 'bunny' is sometimes used to describe a chine in Hampshire. The term chine is also used in some Vancouver suburbs in Canada to describe similar features.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Groyne</span> Structure extending into a body of water to alter water flow

A groyne is a rigid hydraulic structure built perpendicularly from an ocean shore or a river bank, interrupting water flow and limiting the movement of sediment. It is usually made out of wood, concrete, or stone. In the ocean, groynes create beaches, prevent beach erosion caused by longshore drift where this is the dominant process and facilitate beach nourishment. There is also often cross-shore movement which if longer than the groyne will limit its effectiveness. In a river, groynes slow down the process of erosion and prevent ice-jamming, which in turn aids navigation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holderness</span> Region of England

Holderness is an area of the East Riding of Yorkshire, on the north-east coast of England. An area of rich agricultural land, Holderness was marshland until it was drained in the Middle Ages. Topographically, Holderness has more in common with the Netherlands than with other parts of Yorkshire. To the north and west are the Yorkshire Wolds. Holderness generally refers to the area between the River Hull and the North Sea. The Prime Meridian passes through Holderness just to the east of Patrington and through Tunstall to the north.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Milton</span> Human settlement in England

New Milton is a market town in southwest Hampshire, England. To the north is in the New Forest and to the south the coast at Barton-on-Sea. The town is equidistant between Lymington and Christchurch, 6 miles (9.7 km) away.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hopton-on-Sea</span> Human settlement in England

Hopton-on-Sea is a village, civil parish and seaside resort on the coast of East Anglia in the county of Norfolk. The village is 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Great Yarmouth, 5 miles (8.0 km) north-west of Lowestoft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milford on Sea</span> Human settlement in England

Milford on Sea, often hyphenated, is a large coastal village and civil parish in the New Forest district, on the Hampshire coast, England. The parish had a population of 4,660 at the 2011 census and is centred about 3 miles (4.8 km) south of Lymington. Tourism and businesses for quite prosperous retirees as well as the care sector make up large parts of its economy. Businesses include restaurants, cafés, tea rooms, small shops, garden centres, pubs and camping/lodge/caravan parks, bed-and-breakfasts and a few luxury hotels. Shops cluster on its small high street, which fronts a village green. The western cliffs are accessed by flights of steps. In common with the flatter coast by the more commercial and eastern part of Milford, they have car parks with some facilities, which, along with many apartment blocks and houses, have close views of The Needles, which are the main, large chalk rocks immediately next to the Isle of Wight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minsmere</span>

Minsmere is a place in the English county of Suffolk. It is located on the North Sea coast around 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north of Leiston and 1.5 miles (2.4 km) south-east of Westleton within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB. It is the site of the Minsmere RSPB reserve and the original site of Leiston Abbey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mappleton</span> Village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England

Mappleton is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the North Sea coastline in an area known as Holderness, lying approximately 3 miles (5 km) south of the seaside resort of Hornsea. The civil parish is formed by the village of Mappleton and the hamlets of Cowden, Great Cowden and Rolston. According to the 2011 UK census, Mappleton parish had a population of 342, an increase on the 2001 UK census figure of 249.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coastal management</span> Preventing flooding and erosion of shorelines

Coastal management is defence against flooding and erosion, and techniques that stop erosion to claim lands. Protection against rising sea levels in the 21st century is crucial, as sea level rise accelerates due to climate change. Changes in sea level damage beaches and coastal systems are expected to rise at an increasing rate, causing coastal sediments to be disturbed by tidal energy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Happisburgh</span> Village in Norfolk, England

Happisburgh is a village civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is on the coast, to the east of a north–south road, the B1159 from Bacton on the coast to Stalham. It is a nucleated village. The nearest substantial town is North Walsham 6 miles (10 km) to the west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bashley, Hampshire</span> Human settlement in England

Bashley is a chapelry in the New Forest England. It takes up the north of New Milton civil parish of a type having a town council, and is a semi-rural community in New Forest District, to which it contributes about a quarter of the population of the ward of the same name. Bashley begins 2 miles (3 km) inland from the Solent. Most of its modest population is in its holiday park which has a chain-based convenience shop. Bashley has two garden centres, both football and cricket clubs, a few guesthouses, two riding schools/centres, a post office/store and a petrol station. Within the forest commons across cattle grids in its former hamlet of Wootton which has a large listed building pub-restaurant, once a drovers' retreat.

Beach evolution occurs at the shoreline where sea, lake or river water is eroding the land. Beaches exist where sand accumulated from centuries-old, recurrent processes that erode rocky and sedimentary material into sand deposits. River deltas deposit silt from upriver, accreting at the river's outlet to extend lake or ocean shorelines. Catastrophic events such as tsunamis, hurricanes, and storm surges accelerate beach erosion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Downton, Hampshire</span> Human settlement in England

Downton is a hamlet in Hampshire, England, clustered around a crossroads on the A337 road with a lane to the sea southwards whilst another lane leads north to Hordle. Most of the population today live in the part that has been re-allocated to the civil parish of Milford-on-Sea ; the area north of the A337 is in Hordle. Part of the Green belt, its population fluctuates as it has two holiday/static home parks with amenities and some small camp sites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hampton-on-Sea</span> Former British settlement

Hampton-on-Sea is a drowned and abandoned village in what is now the Hampton area of Herne Bay, Kent. It grew from a tiny fishing hamlet in 1864 at the hands of an oyster fishery company, was developed from 1879 by land agents, abandoned in 1916 and finally drowned due to coastal erosion by 1921. All that now remains is the stub of the original pier, the Hampton Inn, and the rocky arc of Hampton-on-Sea's ruined coastal defence visible at low tide. The site is notable for sharing its history with the eccentric Edmund Reid. Reid was previously the Metropolitan Police head of CID who handled the Jack the Ripper case. In retirement he chose to champion the plight of the beleaguered residents of the settlement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ossemsley</span> Human settlement in England

Ossemsley is an extended hamlet in the New Forest National Park of Hampshire, England. It lies close to the village of Bashley. The nearest town is New Milton, which lies approximately 1.7 miles (2.4 km) to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiptoe, Hampshire</span> Human settlement in England

Tiptoe is a small Hamlet in the New Forest National Park in Hampshire. It lies mostly within the civil parish of Hordle and partly within the civil parish of Sway. It is 1+1⁄2 miles (2.4 km) west of the village of Sway, and about 2 miles (3.2 km) northeast of the town of New Milton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashley, New Forest</span> Human settlement in England

Ashley is a village located in the southwest of Hampshire, England. It lies on the eastern outskirts of New Milton in the New Forest district, and is two miles (3 km) inland from the sea. Its history dates back to the Domesday book of 1086, when two estates were recorded. In the 15th century much of Ashley merged with a neighbouring manor, and the estate became known as Ashley Arnewood. As a village, Ashley began to develop in the 19th century when a church and a school were built. Most of the current village was built in the 20th century, and today Ashley is effectively a suburb of New Milton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wootton, New Forest</span> Human settlement in England

Wootton is a hamlet in the civil parish of New Milton in Hampshire, England. It is in the south of the New Forest.

Arthur Thomas Lloyd (1917–2009) was a local historian of the New Forest region of Hampshire, England, and a writer and teacher.

References

  1. ↑ "New Milton Ward population 2011" . Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  2. ↑ Victoria Pybus, 2008, Where to Retire in Britain, page 146 Crimson Publishing
  3. ↑ Population for the Barton Ward Archived 29 August 2012 at the Wayback Machine = 5,056. Population for east Barton Archived 29 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine = 1,793. Combined total = 6849
  4. ↑ A. T. Lloyd, J. E. S. Brooks, (1996), The History of New Milton and its Surrounding Area, Centenary Edition, page 10
  5. ↑ Barton-on-Sea History Archived 12 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  6. 1 2 3 4 The History of Barton-on-Sea NewForest-Online, retrieved 30 November 2010
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 William Page (editor), 1912, A History of the County of Hampshire: Volume 5, Victoria County History
  8. 1 2 3 A. T. Lloyd, J. E. S. Brooks, (1996), The History of New Milton and its Surrounding Area, Centenary Edition, page 47
  9. ↑ A. T. Lloyd, J. E. S. Brooks, (1996), The History of New Milton and its Surrounding Area, Centenary Edition, pp. 28–29, 39
  10. ↑ A. T. Lloyd, J. E. S. Brooks, (1996), The History of New Milton and its Surrounding Area, Centenary Edition, page 57
  11. ↑ A. T. Lloyd, J. E. S. Brooks, (1996), The History of New Milton and its Surrounding Area, Centenary Edition, page 95
  12. ↑ A. T. Lloyd, J. E. S. Brooks, (1996), The History of New Milton and its Surrounding Area, Centenary Edition, page 79
  13. ↑ SoccerBase: Russell Perrett Archived 1 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine , retrieved 30 November 2010
  14. ↑ Liverpool FC, Past Players, Jamie Redknapp Archived 29 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine , retrieved 30 November 2010
  15. ↑ Bournemouth Echo 1 June 2009, retrieved 30 November 2010
  16. ↑ Proceedings of the Bournemouth natural science society, Volumes 45–56 (1954)
  17. ↑ Joanne Shattock, 1993, The Oxford guide to British women writers, page 204
  18. ↑ Cricket Archive: Denys Vivian Hill, retrieved 30 November 2010
  19. ↑ D'Oyly Carte Who Was Who, retrieved 30 November 2010
  20. ↑ Max Arthur, 2005, Symbol of Courage: The Men Behind the Medal, page 684. Pan Macmillan
  21. ↑ "Obituary: Jock Kane". The Daily Telegraph. 20 October 2013. Retrieved 21 October 2013.
  22. 1 2 A. T. Lloyd, J. E. S. Brooks, (1996), The History of New Milton and its Surrounding Area, Centenary Edition, page 48
  23. ↑ Show Jumping Nostalgia - retrieved 30 November 2010
  24. ↑ "Bartonian Stage | stratigraphy | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 4 January 2016.
  25. ↑ Wessex Hang-Gliding and Paragliding Club - retrieved 29 November 2010
  26. ↑ Barton-on-Sea Golf Club Archived 24 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine , retrieved 14 August 2011
  27. ↑ Eric Bird, 2010, Encyclopedia of the World's Coastal Landforms, page 430. Springer
  28. 1 2 3 Janet M. Hooke, 1998, Coastal defence and earth science conservation, page 251.
  29. ↑ Ian West, 2010, Barton, Highcliffe and Christchurch Bay - History of and Future of Coast Erosion and Sea Defences - retrieved 29 November 2010
  30. ↑ A. T. Lloyd, J. E. S. Brooks, (1996), The History of New Milton and its Surrounding Area, Centenary Edition, page 13
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