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| Local
Towns and Villages - Index
- Lyneham |
| Introduction:
Lyneham (pronounced Line-ham) is situated in the peaceful
and scenic county of Wiltshire. The village lies in the north
western part of the county, among the undulating hills, just
north of the escarpment of the Marlborough Downs. The village
sits on a slight plateau about 156 metres / 511 feet above
sea level, overlooking the picturesque and far reaching Avon
Vale.
Maps:
Lyneham can be found cornered on three separate Ordnance Survey
Explorer maps 156 (ISBN 0319 21781-7), 157 (ISBN 0319 21782-5)
and 169 (ISBN 0319 21793-0) all at grid reference SU0278 -
Scale 1:25 000 (4 cm to 1 km, 2½ inch to 1 mile). Alternatively,
Lyneham is centered on the Ordnance Survey Landranger map
173. (ISBN 0319 227731) Scale 1:50 000 (1 cm to 0.5 km, 1
inch to 0.8 miles) again at grid reference SU0278. The Global
Grid for Lyneham is Latitude: 51.50°N Longitude: 1.90°W.
Finding Lyneham click
here
Location:
The village is located approximately 3¾ miles (6 kms)
south-west of Wootton Bassett and 5½ miles (8.8 kms)
north of Calne. The parish
covers about 3442 square acres and is roughly rectangular
in shape. It measures 4 miles (6.4 kms) from east to west
at its widest point and is 2¾ miles (4.4 kms) from
north to south. Lyneham is very accessible to many of the
neighbouring towns of Chippenham,
Calne, Swindon
and Wootton Bassett
and is located on the primary transport network of Wiltshire.
The surrounding land is mainly arable but some dairy farming
exists. |
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| Origins
Lyneham is mentioned for the first time in 1224, and was probably
included in the Domesday holding of "Stoche". West
Tockenham, which lies a mile east of Lyneham village was known
in 1198 simply as "Tockenham", but in 1293 the area,
which contained several small estates, was also known as "West
Tockenham" to distinguish it from East Tockenham.
The area has always been agricultural, with several
farms scattered around the hamlet all responsible for
working the land. In earlier times the land had belonged to
the priory at Bradenstoke-cum-Clack and together was the centre
for growing flax.
Lyneham's name originated from this crop; Linen is a material
made from the fibers of the flax plant. The village name started
off as Linen Hamlet, the place where flax is grown. The last
syllable, ‘ham,’ means enclosure by the river; the river Braydon. |
Aerial
picture of Lyneham village.Oct 2003 |
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| There is clear evidence of a possible mediaeval
pottery site at Lyneham, kiln ash, iron slag, and quantities
of mediaeval sherds of the 13th and 14th centuries date were
discovered when the foundations were being dug for a bungalow
to be built in Farthing Lane Lyneham. In the first part of
the 20th century most of the village population worked in
local pursuits such as agriculture or the sawmills, some went
to work for the Great Western Railway in Swindon, and others
went down to Calne to work for the Harris bacon factory.
The western and southern parts of the parish are located
on the Corallian ridge, which runs from Wheatley to Calne.
The northern part of the ridge determines the northern, western
and part of the southern boundaries of Lyneham. The two villages
and Preston all lie on a part of the ridge formed of Coral
Rag. To the west and south of the parish the Corallian ridge
can rise to heights of 400 feet and west of Bradenstoke up
to over 475 feet. The dip slope of this ridge gradually falls
away to the south-east.
It is due to its elevated status that the parish has an open
outlook with little tree growth, except in the north where
Lilly Brook has eroded the sand beneath Coral Rag at a place
called Blind Mill. This has resulted
in the formation of a steep gully that is thickly wooded.
The first World War had quite an impact on the villages of
Lyneham and Bradenstoke
in that many of its men folk either volunteered, or were later
conscripted, for service in the forces. We are proud to those
solders and airman that lost their lives serving for the country.
some never came back. There is a memorial stone which still
lies in the village
library commemorating the brave heroes. |
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