Coordinates: 51°43′37″N 1°32′38″W / 51.727°N 1.544°W
| Bampton | |
  Bampton
 Bampton shown within Oxfordshire |
|
| Population | 2,505 (2001 census[1]) |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | |
| Parish | Bampton |
| District | West Oxfordshire |
| Shire county | Oxfordshire |
| Region | South East |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Bampton |
| Postcode district | OX18 |
| Dialling code | 01993 |
| Police | Thames Valley |
| Fire | Oxfordshire |
| Ambulance | South Central |
| European Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | Witney |
| Website: Bampton Oxfordshire | |
| List of places: UK • England • Oxfordshire | |
Bampton, also called Bampton-in-the-Bush, is a village and civil parish in the Thames Valley about 4.5 miles (7.2 km) southwest of Witney in Oxfordshire. It is thought[by whom?] the origins of Bampton were established during the Iron Age and is considered[by whom?] as part of the Cotswolds. The parish includes the hamlet of Weald.
Contents |
History
Bampton was an important place in Saxon and medieval times.[2] The ancient parish was one of the largest in Oxfordshire[2] and included the townships of Weald, Lew, Aston, Cote, Shifford, Chimney and Lower Haddon.[2] In 1857 the parish was split into the three ecclesiastical parishes of Bampton Proper, Bampton Lew and Bampton Aston, all now part of the united benefice of Bampton with Clanfield.[2] In 1866 the parish was split into five civil parishes: Bampton, Lew, Aston and Cote, Shifford and Chimney.[2]
Church
The Church of England parish church of Saint Mary the Virgin dates from the 12th century. It has a 13th-century spire and carved stone reredos of Christ and the apostles from around 1400.
St. Mary's Rectory has a date-stone indicating that it was built in 1546.[3] It was altered in 1799 by the builder and architect Daniel Harris.[3]
Transport
From 1861 until 1961 the village was served by Brize Norton and Bampton railway station.
Amenities
Pumpkin club
Three Bampton residents Arnold Woodley, Jack Horn and Reg Absolom formed the Bampton Pumpkin club in March, 1969. Every October there is a Pumpkin club weigh-in, where all contestants' Pumpkins are weighed, with the winner receiving a prize. The first ever winner of the club weigh-in was Joe Buckingham with a gourd weighing 51.5 lb. After the weigh-in the pumpkins, along with flowers, fruit and vegetables, are put up for auction. The sum of money raised is donated to the local pensioners.
Youth Centre
Bampton youth centre was founded in 1984 to provide facilities for children and teenagers. The Centre is housed in the historic Victorian building of the old primary school in Church View.
Gardening Club
Bampton's gardening club holds flower shows in which the owners of the best flowers are awarded with a prize, there are two shows a year; the summer show is held at the end of June or early July, and the Autumn Show is held in September. The first ever shows were held in October 1972.
Society for the protection of Bampton
The Society for the protection of Bampton (SPB) is a society set up to maintain or improve the quality of life for people living in Bampton. It was created in 1993 and now has around 450 members.
Bampton Environmental Watch Group
The Bampton Environmental Watch Group (BEWG) is a group set up in 1989, to look after the Bampton environment; it currently has around 100 members.
Bampton Town Football Club
Bampton Town Football Club play in the Witney and District Football Association (WDFA) league. Their home ground is located at Buckland Road, Bampton. The club runs 2 senior (first and reserve), 7 junior (under 8s to under 14s) and 1 veteran (over 35) team. The club main kit colours are orange shirts and black shorts.
SPAJER
'Society for the Preservation of Ancient Junketing' (SPAJERS). A great race run on Spring Bank Monday on May every year around the village, celebrating the 14 pubs that used to be open. Runners, dressed in night-gowns have to be in pairs, with one pushing another in a trolley, stopping at the houses that used to be pubs (and of course the current open pubs), drink a measure of beer before running to the next.
The Bampton Beam
The local magazine The Bampton Beam is distributed freely to all residences and businesses in Bampton. It contains information on events in the Bampton parish.
See also
Sources
- Crossley, Alan & C.R.J. Currie (eds.); A.P. Baggs, Eleanor Chance, Christina Colvin, C.J. Day, Nesta Selwyn, S.C. Townley (1996). Victoria County History: A History of the County of Oxford, Volume 13: Bampton Hundred (Part One). pp. 6-62.
- Sherwood, Jennifer; Pevsner, Nikolaus (1974). The Buildings of England: Oxfordshire. Harmondsworth: Penguin. pp. 429-435. ISBN 0 14 071045 0.
References
- ^ ONS Census 2001
- ^ a b c d e Victoria County History of Oxfordshire
- ^ a b Sherwood & Pevsner, 1974, page 432
External links
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