Willian | |
---|---|
![]() The Fox pub and All Saints' Church | |
Location within Hertfordshire | |
OS grid reference | TL225308 |
District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | LETCHWORTH GARDEN CITY |
Postcode district | SG6 |
Dialling code | 01462 |
Police | Hertfordshire |
Fire | Hertfordshire |
Ambulance | East of England |
UK Parliament | |
Willian is a village and former civil parish, adjoining the town of Letchworth, in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. Along with Norton and Old Letchworth, it is one of the original three villages around which the garden city of Letchworth Garden City was created. Despite this, the village retains a separate character to the rest of Letchworth Garden City. In 1931 the parish had a population of 210. [1]
The village was referred to in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Wilie", and the name probably derives from a word meaning "willows". There is no explicit mention of a church or priest at Willian in the Domesday Book, but the current parish church of All Saints seems to have been started a few years later in the early twelfth century. [2] [3] [4] [5]
In 1903 much of the land in the parish of Willian and the neighbouring parishes of Letchworth and Norton was purchased for the development of the first garden city, which took its name from the smallest of the three old parishes, Letchworth. The area north of Willian village was gradually developed through the twentieth century as part of the newly-created town. [6]
The solicitor and historian Reginald Hine lived in the village from 1929 until his death in 1949. [7]
Willian was an ancient parish in the hundred of Broadwater. [8]
The parish of Willian was included in the Hitchin Poor Law Union from 1835. [9] The eastern side of the parish of Willian extended to the edge of the town of Baldock, and in 1880 the Baldock Local Board was given control of the parts of Willian parish where the town's urban area was starting to expand into Willian. The following year the parish boundary between Willian and Baldock was adjusted to match the local board boundary. [10] [11] [12]
Under the Local Government Act 1894, the parish of Willian became part of the Hitchin Rural District. [13] Following the commencement of work on Letchworth Garden City in 1903, it became necessary to review administrative arrangements in the area. The civil parish of Letchworth was substantially enlarged in 1908 to take over all of Norton parish and the northern part of Willian parish. [14] The reduced civil parish of Willian thereafter covered the village itself and the rural areas generally to the south of the village. The civil parish of Willian was abolished in 1935, being absorbed into Letchworth Urban District on 1 April 1935. [15] Since then the village has been administered as part of Letchworth, which became part of North Hertfordshire in 1974. [16]
The village has two public houses: the Fox, built in 1870 [17] [18] and the Three Horseshoes, dating from the late eighteenth century. [19] The village also has a village shop, which incorporates a Post Office, and a large pond. The parish church of All Saints has a tower with clocks on two sides; two sides are blank, supposedly so that farm labourers would not be able to tell when to leave work. This continues to be an active parish church in the village. Its daughter church of St Paul's, Letchworth became a separate parish church in 1963.
Hitchin is a market town in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. The town dates from at least the 7th century. It lies in the valley of the River Hiz at the north-eastern end of the Chiltern Hills. It is 16 miles (26 km) north-west of the county town of Hertford, and 35 miles (56 km) north of London. The population at the 2021 census was 35,220.
Preston is a village and civil parish about 3 miles (4.8 km) south of Hitchin in Hertfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census the population was 420.
Baldock is a historic market town in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. The River Ivel rises from springs in the town. It lies 33 miles (53 km) north of London and 14 miles (23 km) north northwest of the county town of Hertford. Nearby towns include Royston to the northeast, Letchworth and Hitchin to the southwest and Stevenage to the south.
North Hertfordshire is one of ten local government districts in the county of Hertfordshire, England. Its council is based in Letchworth Garden City and the largest town is Hitchin. The district also includes the towns of Baldock and Royston and numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. Part of the district lies within the Chiltern Hills, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Norton is a small village and former civil parish in Hertfordshire, England, one of the three original villages which were absorbed into Letchworth Garden City, the other two being Willian and Old Letchworth. The village is known to have existed by 1007, with remains of the medieval settlement visible as earthworks in a field beside the church. However, the history of the village goes back even further than that. In 1901 the parish had a population of 169.
Hinxworth is a village and civil parish in North Hertfordshire, England. It sits just off the Great North Road between Baldock and Biggleswade. It has a village hall, a park, a pub, a small church, a bus stop and a post box. The population at the 2011 Census was 313.
Weston is a village and civil parish in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. In 2011 the parish had a population of 1054.
Hitchin is a parliamentary constituency in Hertfordshire which returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 until it was abolished for the 1983 general election.
Brickendon is a village in the civil parish of Brickendon Liberty in the district of East Hertfordshire about 3 miles (4.8 km) south of the county town Hertford, and is served by Bayford railway station.
The Cloisters in Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire in the UK was built in 1905 as an open-air school dedicated to Psychology and where students were taught skills from the Arts and Crafts movement. After a period of neglect during World War II The Cloisters became the North Hertfordshire Masonic Centre in 1951.
Hitchin Rural District was a rural district in Hertfordshire, England from 1894 to 1974, covering an area in the north of the county.
Radwell is a village and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England. It is situated close to the A1 a little to the north of Baldock and Letchworth Garden City and is in the district of North Hertfordshire.
Letchworth Garden City, commonly known as Letchworth, is a town in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. It is noted for being the first garden city. The population at the time of the 2021 census was 33,990.
Letchworth Museum and Art Gallery was a museum in Letchworth, Hertfordshire, England. It had permanent displays dedicated to the natural history of North Hertfordshire, including the famous black squirrel, as well as its archaeology from remote prehistory to the turn of the twentieth century.
The Church of St Nicholas in Norton in Hertfordshire was originally the parish church for the village of Norton, which today has become a suburb of Letchworth Garden City. The present building dates from about 1109 to 1119, with additions in the 15th century including the tower. Before the Reformation it was a stopping point on the pilgrim route to the Abbey of St Albans and the shrine there.
The Church of St Mary the Virgin is the Church of England parish church of Letchworth in Hertfordshire. A church appears to have been on the site since before the Norman Conquest. The current church was built in the late 12th century and is Grade II listed. It comes under the Diocese of St Albans. The original dedication of the church is unknown; it was rededicated to St Mary during the First World War.
The Church of St Paul in Letchworth in Hertfordshire is the Anglican parish church for the Letchworth Gate area of the town at the top of Pixmore Way. Dating from 1923, with later extensions, it is a 'daughter church' of the nearby Church of All Saints in Willian and comes under the Diocese of St Albans. Built as a 'Victory' church following World War I, the building is the largest war memorial in Hertfordshire.
The Church of All Saints is the Anglican parish church for the village of Willian in Hertfordshire. The benefice is united with St Paul's church in nearby Letchworth, although each church has its own parish. It is in the Diocese of St Albans. The church has been a Grade II* listed building since 1954.
The 1973 North Hertfordshire District Council election was held on 7 June 1973. It was the first election to North Hertfordshire District Council, and was held at the same time as other local elections across England for the new non-metropolitan district councils that were created under the Local Government Act 1972. The elected councillors initially formed a shadow authority to oversee the transition to the new system, operating alongside the five outgoing district councils until 1 April 1974 when the new district formally came into being.
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: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)Effective 29 September 1880