Quemerford

Quemerford is a suburb of the town of Calne in the county of Wiltshire, South West England,UK.

Early history of Quemerford and the Quemerford family

Quemerford is in the parish of Calne, on the edge of Calne in Wiltshire, situated on the A4 road between Bristol and London, and 28 miles north-west of Salisbury. The River Marden flows behind the village at the bottom of a slope, before passing through Calne into the Avon. [National Gazetteer (London, 1868), i, p. 454; ii, p. 269. ]

In the mid-19th century, Quemerford had a population of 635 inhabitants. [Samuel Lewis, Topographical Dictionary, iii, p. 602.] According to etymologists, the name is derived from the Old English Cynemaeres-ford, meaning the ford at the royal (cyne) boundary (maere) or lake (mere).Eilert Ekwall, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English place-names (Oxford, 1936), pp. 359 and 296.] The etymologist Ekwall notes the early variants of the name include Camerford (1204), Kemerford (1226-1228), Quemerford (1240-1245), Cameresford (1292), and Quemerforde (1294).

Today, Quemerford is part of the town of Calne, which claims to be “of very remote antiquity.” The parish website claims the town has one of the longest histories in Wiltshire. The first recorded mention of the town was in the will of King Edred in 955. Calne was probably laid out as a deliberate settlement during the Anglo-Saxon period, when it was described as a villa regia, meaning a place on crown land. In 977, Archbishop Dunstan of Canterbury presided at a synod in Calne to settle a dispute between monks and secular clergy. During the synod, the floor of the chapter gave way, and several secular priests were killed although the monks escaped unhurt. Calne is currently a huge Swindon Town F.C. fanbase, and an extremely important town in Wiltshire, despite the Harris Pork Factory closing in 1982. [Lewis (i, 1842), pp. 468-469.]

Quemerford today

Quemerford today is mostly an Edwardian terrace and a long line of mainly 1930s houses, although new developments are under construction; and several have already been completed. In the latest Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) this area was ranked 31,325 out of 32,482 in England, where 1 was the most deprived and 32,482 the least. [ [http://www.uklocalarea.com/index.php?q=calne+quemerford UK Local Area - Calne Quemerford, North Wiltshire - Neighbourhood Profile - Schools - House Prices - Council Tax - Gas / Electricity Prices ] ]

Swindon Town Football Club have been the local football team since its formation in 1875. [National Gazetteer, i, p. 454.]

Notable Former residents

* Derek McFaull, president of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. [ [http://www.thisismalmesbury.com/display.var.1771662.0.and_for_my_next_trick.php And For My Next Trick (from The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald) ] ]

References