- Upwey, Dorset
Upwey is a village in south
Dorset ,England . The village is situated on theA354 road in the Wey valley and has been absorbed into theWeymouth built-up area and is four miles north of the town centre in the outersuburb s. During the Census 2001 the combined population of Upwey and neighbouringBroadwey was 4,349.The River Wey rises at the foot of the
chalk ridge of the SouthDorset Downs , which rise above Upwey to the north, and flows through the village. The source is known as the Upwey Wishing Well and was a tourist attraction as far back as theVictorian era . There is now a tea room at the site, complete with maturewater garden s. In the 18th century awater mill was built on the river, rebuilt in 1802; it featured inThomas Hardy 's "The Trumpet Major "; he also wrote a poem "At the Railway Station, Upways", which most likely relates to Upwey station.The village has a 13th century parish church, dedicated to
Saint Lawrence , and amanor house , Upwey Manor, which was owned by the Gould family.Another famous name associated with Upwey is that of
Lucille Ball the American actress, comedian who was proud of her family and heritage. Her genealogy can be traced back to the earliest settlers in the colonies. One direct ancestor,William Sprague (1609–1675) , left England on the shipLyon's Whelp for Plymouth/Salem,Massachusetts . They were from Upwey, Dorset, England. Along with his two brothers, William helped to found the city ofCharlestown, Massachusetts . Other Sprague relatives became soldiers in the US Revolutionary War and two of them became governors of the state ofRhode Island .ee also
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Upwey railway station External links
* [http://www.weymouth-dorset.co.uk/upwey.html Upwey Local History]
* [http://www.weymouth-pictures.co.uk/dor/wey/upw/pic_upwey.htm Pictures of Upwey]
* [http://www.thedorsetpage.com/locations/Place/U050.htm The Dorset Page]
* [http://www.dorset-opc.com/Upwey.htm The Dorset Online Parish Clerk]
* [http://www.stantonetal.com/genealogy/getperson.php?personID=I320&tree=maintree Upwey Stanton Genealogy]References
* [http://www1.dorsetcc.gov.uk/LIVING/FACTS/Census2001.nsf/0/ea928328a000b4d580256d730030f8da?OpenDocument Census data]
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