Coordinates: 52°00′N 1°29′W / 52.00°N 1.48°W
| Hook Norton | |
  Hook Norton
Hook Norton shown within Oxfordshire |
|
| OS grid reference | |
|---|---|
| Parish | Hook Norton |
| District | Cherwell |
| Shire county | Oxfordshire |
| Region | South East |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Banbury |
| Postcode district | OX15 |
| Dialling code | 01608 |
| Police | Thames Valley |
| Fire | Oxfordshire |
| Ambulance | South Central |
| EU Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | Banbury |
| Website | Hook Norton Village Website |
| List of places: UK • England • Oxfordshire | |
Hook Norton is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold Hills in Oxfordshire. It is 4.5 miles (7.2 km) northeast of Chipping Norton.
Contents |
History
The toponym is believed to come from a ruler called Hook, whilst Norton is a corruption of ora-tun meaning a settlement (tun) on the side of a hill (ora), hence Hook Norton. In the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in AD 922 the village is called Hocnertune. In the Domesday Book of 1086 it is called Hochenartone.[1] Other historical spellings of the name include Hocceneretune (1050), Hogenarton (1216) and Okenardton (1263).[2]
Today the village is colloquially known to its inhabitants as "Hooky" and sometimes as "The Hook". The village is formed of four neighbourhoods: East End, Scotland End (in the west), Down End (in the centre) and Southrop (in the south).
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records that a Viking army raided the Hook Norton area in AD 913[3] and the village had a parish church by AD 922.[4] The Domesday Book records that in 1086 Hook Norton had 76 villagers and two mills.[5]
The present Church of England parish church of Saint Peter is of Norman origin but also has Early English, Decorated and Perpendicular features. The Norman font is 11th century and is unusual in featuring pagan signs of the Zodiac. St. Peter's contains a number of Mediaeval wall paintings including saints, angels and the apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul.[6] The church tower has a peal of eight bells.[7] St Peter's is now the mother church of the Benefice of Hook Norton with Great Rollright, Swerford and Wigginton.
Hook Norton Baptist Church is among the oldest in Britain, having been founded 1640.[8] Its present building is Georgian, built in 1781.[6] Hook Norton also had a Methodist chapel, which was built in 1875.[6]
The former Banbury and Cheltenham Direct Railway, part of the Great Western Railway, served Hook Norton with a railway station at East End. British Railways closed the station in 1951 and closed the railway to all traffic in 1964.[9] Tall stone pillars which supported two B&CDR viaducts can be seen in the valley to the south of the village.
Near Hook Norton there were several ironstone quarries, evidence of which can still be seen. The Brymbo Ironworks, opened in 1899, had its own narrow gauge railway and was connected to the B&CDR at Hook Norton station. The Brymbo Ironworks close in 1946 and was dismantled in 1948.
Hook Norton Brewery has a museum that includes a section on the history of the village. The village's 18th century hand-pumped fire engine, which was in use until 1896, is preserved in St. Peter's parish church.[10]
Amenities
Hook Norton has a Church of England controlled primary school,[11] shop, a post office and general store,[12] a fire station[13] crewed by retained firefighters, a GPs' practice,[14] a dental practice,[15] veterinary surgery,[16] public library,[17], a Memorial village hall, a Women's Institute[18] and a sports and social club[19]
Hook Norton Brewery is famous for brewing traditional real ale. Hook Norton hosts an annual music festival, Music at the Crossroads, that raises funds for many local charitable causes.
Hook Norton has four public houses, all of which apart from The Bell belong to the Hook Norton Brewery:
Hook Norton F.C. plays in the Hellenic Football League Premier Division.[23] Hook Norton Cricket Club[24] plays in Oxfordshire Cricket Association Division Two.[25] Hook Norton also has a tennis club[26], a running club[27] and a Multi Use Games Area whose sports include netball.[28]
Sources
- Dickens, Margaret (1928). History of Hook Norton 912-1928. Banbury Guardian.
- Sherwood, Jennifer; Pevsner, Nikolaus (1974). The Buildings of England: Oxfordshire. Harmondsworth: Penguin. pp. 651-652. ISBN 0 14 071045 0.
- Land at Bourne Lane, Hook Norton, Oxfordshire: An Archaeological Assessment. CPM environmental planning and design. 2004. p. 5.
References
- ^ Domesday Book entry for Hook Norton
- ^ Land at Bourne Lane, Hook Norton, Oxfordshire: An Archaeological Assessment, 2004, p. 5
- ^ Anglo-Saxons.net
- ^ St Peter's Parish Church history
- ^ Domesday Book entry for Hook Norton
- ^ a b c Sherwood & Pevsner, 1974, page 651
- ^ Oxford Diocesan Guild of Church Bell Ringers, Chipping Norton Branch
- ^ Hook Norton Baptist Church history
- ^ Photographs of former railway tunnel and cuttings at Hook Norton
- ^ St Peter's Parish Church history
- ^ Hook Norton Church of England Primary School
- ^ Hook Norton Post Office and General Store
- ^ Hook Norton Fire Station
- ^ Hook Norton Surgery
- ^ Lion House Dental Practice
- ^ Hook Norton Veterinary Practice
- ^ Hook Norton Public Library
- ^ Oxfordshire Federation of Women's Institutes
- ^ Hook Norton Sports and Social Club
- ^ The Gate Hangs High
- ^ The Pear Tree Inn
- ^ The Sun Inn
- ^ Hook Norton FC
- ^ Hook Norton Cricket Club
- ^ Oxfordshire Cricket Association Division 2
- ^ Hook Norton Tennis Club
- ^ Hook Norton Harriers
- ^ Hook Norton Multi Use Games Area
External links
- Hook Norton Youth Club
- Hook Norton Football Club
- Hook Norton Sports & Social Club
- Hook Norton Brewery
- Hook Norton Festival of Fine Ales
- Hook Norton Music at the Crossroads
- St Peter's Hook Norton
- Hook Norton Harriers running club
- Hook Norton Pre-School Playgroup
- Tracey Leigh Artist
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