Overton
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![]() The main street of Overton-on-Dee | |
Location within Wrexham | |
Population | 1,382 (2011) |
OS grid reference | SJ372417 |
Community |
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Principal area | |
Preserved county | |
Country | Wales |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | WREXHAM |
Postcode district | LL13 |
Dialling code | 01978 |
Police | North Wales |
Fire | North Wales |
Ambulance | Welsh |
UK Parliament | |
Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
Overton (Welsh : Owrtyn) or Overton-on-Dee is a village and community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. It is situated close to the Welsh-English border on the edge of an escarpment that winds its way around the course of the River Dee, from which Overton-on-Dee derives its name.
The community of Overton, which also includes the village of Lightwood Green and a number of small hamlets including Knolton, had a total population of 1,276 at the 2001 census, [1] increasing to 1,382 at the 2011 Census. [2]
Overton is 7 miles (11 km) from Wrexham and exactly 22 miles (35 km) from both Chester and Shrewsbury. Its neighbouring villages are Bangor-on-Dee and Penley whilst the small towns of Ellesmere and Ruabon are only a short distance away.
The hamlet of Overton Bridge is a distinct settlement west of the village at grid reference SJ356426 above the Dee and the road bridge that carries the A528 road across the river.
The settlement is not mentioned in the Domesday Book, but was first recorded in 1195, via a 14th-century source, as Ouerton. [3] Its name was also recorded as Overtone in 1201, Awtun, in the 14th century and Ortyn in the 15th, all of which are forms of a name meaning "settlement on the bank [of the Dee]". [3] A castle was built here in the 12th century by Madog ap Maredudd, a prince of Powys: Overton was granted the right to a weekly market and annual fair in 1279 by the English king Edward I and became a borough by royal charter in 1292, at which time 56 taxpayers lived there. [3] One of Overton's earliest appearances in history was as one of the first targets of the revolt of 1294–95, led by Madog ap Llywelyn.
Overton is situated in a former exclave of the traditional county of Flintshire known as Maelor Saesneg (English: "English Maelor"). In 1536, under the rule of Henry VIII, it was included into the county of Flintshire, forming the Hundred of Maelor. Although part of Flintshire, Overton was within an exclave, surrounded by Cheshire, Shropshire and Denbighshire, and became the administrative centre of the area, often referred to as Flintshire Detached, which included the villages of Bangor on Dee, Bettisfield, Bronington, Hanmer, Knolton, Penley, Tybroughton, Willington and Worthenbury.
In 1887 a Boundary Commission was appointed to review the boundaries of counties in England and Wales. At an inquiry in Overton, it was found that most of the population of the area favoured it becoming part of Shropshire and this was later supported by resolution of the Flintshire justices of the peace. [4] However, when local government legislation was introduced no change was made.
Under the Local Government Act 1894 the area became Overton Rural District, remaining as a detached part of Flintshire until 1974.
Between 1974 and 1996 Overton was administered as part of the short-lived county of Clwyd. The community (parish) and county boundary between it and Erbistock (in historic Denbighshire) is, in part, on the west side of the river due to oxbow formation in the river. It is now in Wrexham borough.
The churchyard of St Mary the Virgin dominates the high street and is famous for twenty-one very ancient yew trees. The yew trees are traditionally one of the Seven Wonders of Wales and are commemorated in an anonymously written rhyme:
At 1,500 to 2,000 years old, the oldest tree predates the church, whose earliest stonework is probably Norman. In 1992 the village celebrated the 700th anniversary of the granting of a Royal Charter to Overton by Edward I in 1292 with a royal visit from Elizabeth II, who planted a new yew tree.
Overton has a fine collection of 18th and 19th-century buildings, many of which are listed as buildings of architectural or historic interest. Even the old telephone box has been "listed". The village centre is also designated as a Conservation Area.
Most of the village was once owned by the Bryn-y-pys Estate. The 1848 sale particulars, with 4,300 acres (17 km2) and a majority of the houses and farms in the village, run to several pages. It was made clear that the estate wielded "Great Political Influence", as without the secret ballot at general elections, the purchaser, who would be virtually everyone's landlord, was guaranteed of a place in Parliament.[ citation needed ]
There are several interesting buildings in the village including: the "Cocoa and Reading Rooms", a terracotta building of 1890, built to promulgate temperance, now the library; almshouses and a Victorian village pump.
An electoral ward in the same name exists. This ward stretches south east to Maelor South and at the 2011 census had a total population of 3,315. [5]
The village has the usual sporting recreational areas of cricket, football, bowls and tennis. Overton is also an excellent rendezvous point for walkers as it finds itself on the map of the Maelor Way, a 24 mile (38 km) long-distance footpath; this in turn links up with Offa's Dyke Path National Trail at Bronygarth and the Sandstone Trail, Llangollen Canal, South Cheshire Way, and the Marches Way.
Denbighshire is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, Flintshire to the east, Wrexham to the southeast, Powys to the south, and Gwynedd and Conwy to the west. Rhyl is the largest town, and Ruthin is the administrative centre. Its borders differ from the historic county of the same name.
Flintshire is a county in the north-east of Wales. It has a maritime border with Merseyside along the Dee Estuary to the north, and land borders with Cheshire to the east, Wrexham County Borough to the south, and Denbighshire to the west. Connah's Quay is the largest town, while Flintshire County Council is based in Mold.
Flintshire, also known as the County of Flint, is one of Wales' thirteen historic counties, and a former administrative county. It mostly lies on the north-east coast of Wales.
Historic Denbighshire, or the County of Denbigh, is one of thirteen traditional counties in Wales, a vice-county and a former administrative county, which covers an area in north east Wales. It is a maritime county, bounded to the north by the Irish Sea, to the east by Flintshire, Cheshire and Shropshire, to the south by Montgomeryshire and Merionethshire, and to the west by Caernarfonshire.
Bangor-on-Dee is a village and community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales, on the banks of the River Dee. Until 1974 it was in the exclave of Flintshire known as the Maelor Saesneg, and from 1974 to 1996 in the county of Clwyd.
Clwyd is a preserved county of Wales, situated in the north-east corner of the country; it is named after the River Clwyd, which runs through the area. To the north lies the Irish Sea, with the English ceremonial counties of Cheshire to the east and Shropshire to the south-east. Powys and Gwynedd lie to the south and west respectively. Clwyd also shares a maritime boundary with Merseyside along the River Dee. Between 1974 and 1996, a slightly different area had a county council, with local government functions shared with six district councils. In 1996, Clwyd was abolished, and the new principal areas of Conwy County Borough, Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham County Borough were created; under this reorganisation, "Clwyd" became a preserved county, with the name being retained for certain ceremonial functions.
The Maelor is an area of north-east Wales along the border with England. It is now entirely part of Wrexham County Borough.
English Maelor comprises one half of the Maelor region on the Welsh side of the Wales-England border, being the area of the Maelor east of the River Dee. The region has changed counties several times, previously being part of Cheshire and later a detached portion of Flintshire. The area is currently in Wales, despite its name, and administered as part of Wrexham County Borough.
Wrexham County Borough is a county borough, with city status, in the north-east of Wales. It borders the English ceremonial counties of Cheshire and Shropshire to the east and south-east respectively, Powys to the south-west, Denbighshire to the west and Flintshire to the north-west. The city of Wrexham is the administrative centre. The county borough is part of the preserved county of Clwyd.
North Wales is a region of Wales, encompassing its northernmost areas. It borders mid Wales to the south, England to the east, and the Irish Sea to the north and west. The area is highly mountainous and rural, with Snowdonia National Park and the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley, known for its mountains, waterfalls and trails, wholly within the region. Its population is concentrated in the north-east and northern coastal areas, with significant Welsh-speaking populations in its western and rural areas. North Wales is imprecisely defined, lacking any exact definition or administrative structure. It is commonly defined administratively as its six most northern principal areas, but other definitions exist, with Montgomeryshire historically considered to be part of the region.
Wrexham Maelor was a local government district with borough status, being one of six districts in the county of Clwyd, north-east Wales, from 1974 to 1996.
Maelor was a rural district in the administrative county of Flintshire, Wales, from 1894 to 1974. The area approximated to the hundred of Maelor or English Maelor, and was notable for forming a detached part of the county, surrounded by Cheshire, Denbighshire and Shropshire. The administrative centre was located at Overton.
Erbistock is a village and community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. The village lies on the banks of the River Dee.
Maelor Way is a key long distance footpath, running 38 kilometres / 24 miles from the Offa's Dyke Path National Trail at Bronygarth to the Shropshire Way, Sandstone Trail, Llangollen Canal, South Cheshire Way, and the Marches Way all at Grindley Brook near Whitchurch.
Penley is a village in the County Borough of Wrexham, in Wales close to the border with Shropshire, England, and had a population of 606 as of the 2011 census.
Willington Worthenbury is a community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales, and is situated near the England–Wales border.
The Wych Brook, Worthenbury Brook and Red Brook, formerly known as the River Elfe, is a tributary of the River Dee in England and Wales, forming part of both the historic and present-day border between the two countries. The stream forms part of the border between Cheshire and Shropshire in England to the east, and Wales, particularly the Maelor Saesneg, to the west.
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) is the local health board of NHS Wales for the north of Wales. It is the largest health organisation in Wales, providing a full range of primary, community, mental health, and acute hospital services for a population of around 694,000 people across the six principal areas of north Wales as well as some parts of Mid Wales, Cheshire and Shropshire. Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board is the operational name of Betsi Cadwaladr Local Health Board.
Whitewell is a dispersed rural settlement, and surrounding ecclesiastical parish, in the community of Bronington, in the east of Wrexham County Borough, Wales.
Bangor Bridge is a Grade I listed bridge crossing the River Dee in Bangor-on-Dee, Wrexham County Borough, Wales. It is situated on the community boundary between Bangor-is-y-Coed and Sesswick. Located to the west of Bangor-on-Dee, it connects the village's high street and the A525 road bypass. The narrow bridge is a one-way traffic bridge, west to east, and is downstream (north) of the Bangor by-pass bridge.