Widford, Hertfordshire

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Widford
St John the Baptist Church, Widford, Herts. - geograph.org.uk - 217301.jpg
St John the Baptist Church
Hertfordshire UK location map.svg
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Widford
Location within Hertfordshire
Population534 (2011) [1]
OS grid reference TL 421 157
Civil parish
  • Widford
District
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town WARE
Postcode district SG12
Dialling code 01279
Police Hertfordshire
Fire Hertfordshire
Ambulance East of England
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Hertfordshire
51°49′19″N0°03′36″E / 51.822°N 0.060°E / 51.822; 0.060

Widford is a village and civil parish between Ware and Much Hadham in the East Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire in England. It covers an area of approximately 1,167 acres [2] and contains 220 houses. [3] The River Ash flows through the north of the parish. Widford had a population of 534 people in the 2011 census. [4]

Contents

History

The name Widford comes from the old English word 'wid' meaning willow tree and the word 'ford' [5]

The Widford commons were extensive and were enclosed under an award of 1856. There was a wood called Lily Wood to the west of the village which was cut down in the late 19th century. [2]

Between 1870 and 1872, John Marius Wilson described Widford as: "a parish, with a village, in Ware district, Herts; near the Buntingford railway, 4 miles E by N of Ware. It has a post-office under Ware, and a r. station." [6]

Demography and employment

Population Graph of Widford between 1801 and 2011. Widford population graph.jpg
Population Graph of Widford between 1801 and 2011.

The population of Widford was first recorded in 1801 at 361. The population peaked in 1841 at 539. [7] In the most recent census in 2011 the population was measured as 534. [4]

Image shows the different occupations people were employed by in 1881 and the numbers of people in each sector. Widford Occupation Structure 1881.jpg
Image shows the different occupations people were employed by in 1881 and the numbers of people in each sector.

The data included in the graph shows that in 1881 there was one sector of employment that was significantly more popular than any others. This sector was the agriculture sector which had a total of 81 people working in. [7]

Buildings and landmarks

Widford School is a combination of a primary school and a pre-School. There are approximately 60 pupils with a capacity for a maximum of 8 children per year group. [3] Widford School has been open since 1875. [8]

The Village Hall, on Bell Lane at the south of the civil parish, provides for local individuals and organisations. It was built in 1910 by George S Pawle. The primary use of the hall at inception was as a drill hall for the Hertfordshire Regiment TA; it was then used by a Regiment from Staffordshire. It was for village activities and events before it was bought in 1956, after volunteers raised money to buy the building and renovate it. These volunteers then cared and maintained the hall. A new kitchen was added in 2009. The hall has two main rooms: a function room and a smaller room. The function room has a removable stage and has capacity for 100 people. The smaller room is more of a committee room with capacity for 30 people. [3] [9]

There is a disused single-platformed railway station in Widford. The station was used between 1873 and 1963 as part of the Ware to Buntingford Branch Line. Construction of the railway began in 1859, and four years later the line was complete and nearly fourteen miles long. A coal and garden product distribution centre uses the site. The railway line is used by walkers and cyclists. [10]

Widford allotments hold more than 20 plots; these were created in 1978 after the land was purchased by Widford Parish Council. [3]

Church

The parish church is St John the Baptist. [11] The oldest parts of the church date to the early 13th century, with further work in the late 13th and 14th. The church registers, at Hertfordshire County Record Office, date from 1558. The church graveyard was closed for burials in 1903 when a new graveyard on the other side of Ware Road became available. The Church is supported by an independent, non-religious charity called The Friends of Widford Church. The purpose of the charity is to support the parochial church council and to care for the management and maintenance of the church. [12]

Sport and recreation

Playing field

Widford Playing Field includes a children's play area, a football pitch and a cricket strip. The playing field has green areas of planted trees and hedges. The development of the playing field came after Askey's Field was bought in 1979 by volunteers from the Village Hall Community who raised the money for purchase. [3]

Cricket Club

The ground of Ware Cricket Club is one of the few privately owned cricket grounds in the country. [3] The club has two teams that compete in the Saracens Hertfordshire Premier Cricket League. [13]

Notable people

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Civil Parish population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  2. 1 2 "British History Online". Parishes: Widford. University of London. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Widford Parish Council". Widford Village. Widford Parish Council. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  4. 1 2 "Key Figures for 2011 Data: Widford". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  5. ↑ "University of Nottingham". Key to English Place-Names. University of Nottingham. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  6. ↑ Wilson, John Marius (1870–72). Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales. Edinburgh: A. Fullerton & Co.
  7. 1 2 "Vision of Britain". Widford AP/CP. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  8. ↑ "Widford School". Welcome to Widford School Website!. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  9. ↑ "Widford Parish Council". Widford Village Hall. Widford Parish Council 2011–2015. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
  10. ↑ "Disused Stations". Station Name: WIDFORD. Disused Stations. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
  11. ↑ "A Church Near You". St John the Baptist, Widford. Archbishops' Council. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  12. ↑ "Hunsdon with Widford and Wareside". The Church of St John the Baptist Widford, Hertfordshire. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  13. ↑ "Saracens Hertfordshire Premier Cricket League". Ware. Saracens Hertfordshire Premier Cricket League. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  14. ↑ "Biographic sketches of memorable Christians of the Past". John Eliot, Missionary To the American Indians. Retrieved 19 March 2016.

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