| Whiddon Down | |
|---|---|
  Whiddon Down Location within Devon | |
| Population | 267 [1] |
| OS grid reference | SX691925 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Okehampton |
| Postcode district | EX20 |
| Dialling code | 01647 |
| Police | Devon and Cornwall |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| UK Parliament | |
Whiddon Down is a hamlet within the parish of Drewsteignton in Devon.
The hamlet lies on the old east–west A30 (London-Penzance) road, between Exeter and Okehampton at the cross-roads with the south–north route up to Bideford. The 'down' itself is a ridge of high farmland some 800 feet above sea level with commanding views. Recorded [2] as Whyddon Doune in 1535 and as Whiddon Downe in 1661, it is named after its medieval landowners, the Whiddon family of nearby Chagford.
There have been scattered farms in the area since Saxon times, but the hamlet was only established [3] with the turn-piking of the south–north road in the 18th century, when a 15th-century crossroads dwelling became a coaching inn and post point (The Post Inn). In the modern era, the village has long been well-served by buses due to its location. The dualling of this section of the A30 in the late 1980s means that the hamlet is now bypassed by the A30 itself, but it remains a major road junction point, with a service station (Whiddon Down Service Area) and Travelodge.
Population growth in the 19th century was sufficient for the establishment of a small primary school in 1879 [4] and a Methodist church in 1906. [5] The school closed in 1959 and now serves as a village hall. The community was expanded with council housing in the 1970s. There is a small number of agricultural businesses in the hamlet, and a caravan park, but there are no longer any shops apart from the nearby service station.
Farmland on the south side of the hamlet provided the setting for the annual Chagstock music festival, held in July from 2007 to 2022.
Broughton is a hamlet and civil parish to the east of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, England. Broughton is also the name of a nearby housing estate in Aylesbury itself.
Chagford is a market town and civil parish on the north-east edge of Dartmoor, in Devon, England, close to the River Teign and the A382, 4 miles (6 km) west of Moretonhampstead. The name is derived from chag, meaning gorse or broom, and the ford suffix indicates its importance as a crossing place. At the 2011 Census, it had a population of 1,449.
Edington is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, about 4 miles (6 km) east-northeast of Westbury. The village lies under the north slope of Salisbury Plain and the parish extends south onto the Plain. Its Grade I listed parish church was built for Edington Priory in the 14th century.
Charfield is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, south-west of Wotton-under-Edge near the Little Avon River and the villages of Falfield and Cromhall. The parish includes the hamlet of Churchend.
Castle Bromwich is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in the West Midlands, England. It borders the rest of the borough to the south east, Sutton Coldfield to the east and north east, Shard End to the south west, Castle Vale, Erdington and Minworth to the north and Hodge Hill to the west.
Wolfscastle, also spelt Wolf's Castle, is a village and community in Pembrokeshire, between Haverfordwest and Fishguard, in southwest Wales. It was historically in the parish of St Dogwells.
Alrewas is a village and civil parish in the Lichfield District of Staffordshire, England.
Purton is a large village and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, about 4 miles (6 km) northwest of the centre of Swindon. The parish includes the village of Purton Stoke and the hamlets of Bentham, Hayes Knoll, Purton Common, Restrop, The Fox and Widham.
Hayfield is a village and civil parish in High Peak, Derbyshire, England, with a population of around 2,700. The village is 3 miles (4.8 km) east of New Mills, 4.5 miles (7.2 km) south of Glossop and 10 miles (16 km) north of Buxton, in the basin of the River Sett.
Abbotskerswell is a village and civil parish in the English county of Devon. The village is in the north part of the parish and is located two miles (3 km) south of the town of Newton Abbot, 7 miles (11 km) from the seaside resort of Torquay and 32 miles (51 km) from the city of Plymouth. The A381 road between Newton Abbot and Totnes runs down the western side of the parish and the main railway line between these two towns forms part of its eastern boundary.
Docking is a village and ancient civil parish in the north-west of the English county of Norfolk. It is near the North Norfolk Coast Site of Special Scientific Interest.
New Buckenham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.
Barton Stacey is a village and undulating civil parish, which includes the hamlets of Bransbury, Newton Stacey, Drayton and Cocum, in the Test Valley district of Hampshire, England, centred about 7 miles (11 km) south-east of Andover. It is bounded to the north by the estate of Drayton Lodge, and, to the south, by the minor A30 road; both being east–west routes, and connected by The Street/Cocum Road, the main road that bisects the village. The distance between the A303 and A30 at this point is 2 miles (3.2 km), which is twice the width of the parish.
Lyneham is a large village in north Wiltshire, England, within the civil parish of Lyneham and Bradenstoke, and situated 4 miles (6.4 km) southwest of Royal Wootton Bassett, 5.5 miles (8.9 km) north of Calne and 11 miles (18 km) southwest of Swindon. The village is on the A3102 road between Calne and Wootton Bassett.
Castle Bytham is a village and civil parish of around 300 houses in South Kesteven, Lincolnshire, England. It is located 9 miles (14 km) north of Stamford and 9 miles (14 km) west of Bourne.The population was measured at 768 in 317 households at the 2011 census.
Wootton Rivers is a small village and civil parish in the Vale of Pewsey, Wiltshire, England. The village lies about 3 miles (5 km) northeast of Pewsey and 4 miles (6 km) south of Marlborough. During the 20th century its population halved and most of its facilities closed.
Hittisleigh is a small rural parish and village just north-east of Dartmoor in Devon. Once part of the ancient district of the Wonford Hundred, it is now administered by Mid Devon District Council and part of the Central Devon constituency. The name Hittisleigh may be derived from Hyttin's leah. Alternatively it may come from the Old English "hithisce" and have meant 'tenant's place or pasture'. Although difficult to date the initial settlement Hittisleigh is mentioned in the Domesday Book. Hittisleigh is known as the birthplace of Samuel Bellamy the eighteenth-century pirate.
Chapel Allerton is an inner suburb of north-east Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, 2 miles (3.2 km) from the city centre.
Wootton is a hamlet in the civil parish of New Milton in Hampshire, England. It is in the south of the New Forest.
Over Stratton is a small village in the district of South Somerset, Somerset, England. It is part of the parish of South Petherton along with the nearby hamlets of Lower Stratton, Wigborough, Yeabridge, Drayton and Watergore. As of census day 2011, the population was 317.
 | This Devon location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |