Boxford, Berkshire

infobox UK place
country = England
static_

static_image_caption = The mill at the centre of the village
latitude= 51.441
longitude= -1.38
official_name= Boxford
population= 501
os_grid_reference= SU429715
lieutenancy_england= Berkshire
unitary_england= West Berkshire
region= South East England
post_town= NEWBURY
postcode_district = RG20
postcode_area= RG
dial_code= 01488
constituency_westminster= Newbury

Boxford is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of West Berkshire, part of the county of Berkshire in England.

It is situated on the east side of the River Lambourn, about convert|4|mi|km northwest of Newbury but south of the M4 motorway. The associated settlement of Westbrook lies on the opposite side of the river.

The village has a number of thatched cottages and a watermill. St Andrew’s Church is 15th Century with earlier Saxon remains [ cite web
url = http://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=233572
title = National Monuments Record (St Andrews Church) ] . It consists of a chancel, nave, north aisle, north-west vestry, south porch and a west tower.

Boxford House is a Grade II listed country house which is believed to date from 1825. It is constructed of ashlar stone in a Gothic revival style, with mullioned and transomed windows. It has a slate roof and a parapet. It is a private residence [ cite web
last = Ford
first = David Nash
title = Boxford House
work = Royal Berkshire History
url = http://www.berkshirehistory.com/castles/boxford_house.html ] .

Boxford used to have a station on the Lambourn Valley Railway.

Boxford is known for the ‘Boxford Masques’, an outdoor midsummer celebration held on Hoar Hill in the unspoiled woodland above the village overlooking the Lambourn Valley.

It was originally created in the late 1800s by a local writer, Charlotte Peake with her love of music, drama and poetry. The Boxford Masques was performed by locals and lasted only up until the First World War. It was revived in the year 2000 by the Watermill Theatre of Bagnor, near Newbury; it has been hugely popular since.

History

A number of Bronze Age features have been recorded near Boxford and an urn of this period has been found [ cite web
url = http://www.pastscape.org.uk/SearchResults.aspx?type=&class1=None&period=Bronze%20Age&county=Berkshire&place=Boxford&yearfrom=ALL&yearto=ALL&recordsperpage=10&source=text&sort=1&nmr=&defra=
title = National Monuments Record ] .

A hearth and pottery fragments from the Iron Age, including a La Tène pot, have been found near the north end of Boxford Common [ cite web
url = | url = http://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=233551
title = National Monuments Record (Monument No. 233551) ] . Iron Age pottery fragments and a possible earthwork have also been found near Borough Hill [ cite web
url = | url = http://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=233581
title = National Monuments Record (Monument No. 233581) ] .

Mud Hall Cottage on Wyfield Farm is the site of a large Roman building which was excavated about 1870 [ cite web
url = http://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=233554
title = National Monuments Record (Monument No. 233554) ] . Roman pottery and coins have been found at Boxford Rectory [ cite web
url = http://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=233557
title = National Monuments Record (Monument No. 233557) ] . The course of Ermin Street, a Roman road, runs through the south of the parish and a convert|130|m|yd section is visible from aerial photographs near William's Copse [ cite web
url = http://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=1307472
title = National Monuments Record (Monument No. 1307472) ] .

Boxford was recorded in the Domesday Book as "Bochesorne". It said under the list of lands that belonged to Abingdon Abbey:

References

External links

* [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=62679 'Parishes: Boxford with Westbrook', A History of the County of Berkshire: Volume 4 (1924), pp. 44-48. (via British History Online)]