Lyneham is situated
within the North Wiltshire District which is predominantly
a rural area, with small-scattered settlements throughout.
The settlement pattern to the south, with the larger towns
of Chippenham, Calne and Corsham lying on the A4 is generally
more intense than that of the north where large tracts of
land especially around Braydon are sparsely populated. Most
of the villages in the north centre around the farming industry.
Swindon is a significant urban conurbation located on the
north east boundary of the district, on the northern boundary
of the M4 motorway, close to its outlier, Wootton Bassett
which lies on the southern edge of the highway. The surrounding
area close to Wootton Bassett is subject to urban fringe pressures
from the expanding Swindon. Cricklade is located on the edge
of the Thames valley, close to the Ermin Way while the historic
town of Malmesbury is isolated in the northwest corner of
the area a Little distance from the Fosse Way. Much of the
district is serviced only by a minor
road system.
The main lines of transportation are east west, leading to
London and Bristol. These links include; the M4 corridor which
was constructed in our region in the early 1970's, the A4
and London to Bristol railway lines, which diverge at Wootton
Bassett and the Cheltenham line running from Swindon.
Across the area there is a significant presence of military
installations, both active and redundant. These take the form
of airfields associated barracks and depots, evident on higher
flat ground [e.g. Lyneham] and
in the Thames valley [eg Fairford and Brize Norton]. Land
to the west of Corsham is significantly influenced by military
infrastructure. The majority of the Second World War military
bases have since closed and have either been demolished or
renovated into industrial areas or housing.
Earliest Recorded Inhabitants
Lyneham Village Online have done quite an extensive search
for the earliest recorded inhabitants to Lyneham. The tithe
maps of 1821 and the apportionments,
recorded to supplement the maps, show who owned which property
and associated land but prior to that little is known. We
have searched the National Archive Records and found quite
a comprenhensive list of the earliest known residents to Lyneham.
If you would like to know more click
here
Early Settlements:
Lyneham was made up of 4 scattered hamlets and early evidence
suggests that in 1086 the main area of settlement was in the
present Bradenstoke village. At the time of the Domesday Survey
the estate contained enough land for 10 ploughs, and 71 hides
were held in demesne, which was land under feudalism kept
by the lord for his own use and occupation as distinguished
from that granted to tenants.
There is little visible evidence of early settlement in the
parish, although the name 'Barrow End' applied to the area
immediately north-west of Lyneham village, suggests pre-historic
activity there. Roman coins have been found near the site
of Bradenstoke Priory and a hoard of Constantian coins appeared
at another location in the parish. An extended skeleton of
unknown date was found near West Preston Farm. Lyneham Camp,
a motte-and-bailey earthwork of possibly Norman date, lies
in the north of the parish by Hillocks Wood. Clack Mount,
a Norman earthwork, rises on the Corallian ridge at its highest
point behind Bradenstoke Farm. If you would like to know more
click here...
Lifestyles 1900's onwards
In the first three decades of the 20th Century
Lyneham has predominately been a farming community with both
arable and dairy farms. There was also a considerable amount
of open pasture land with a labyrinth of footpaths meandering
through the wooded land for preserved scenery within the undulating
hills. Most of the population worked in local pursuits such
as agriculture or the sawmills, some went to work for the
Great Western Railway in Swindon and others travelled south
to Calne to work at Harris bacon factory. The first World
War had an impact on the villages of Lyneham and Bradenstoke
only in the fact that many of its menfolk either volunteered,
or were later conscripted, for service in the forces, and
unfortunately some
never returned.
The pace of the village was really quite slow, farmers getting
on with working the land, mothers taking the children to the
local school or indeed working within the village, either
fundraising or helping others. Looking back at the National
Archives Records it illustrates what professions or occupations
the Lyneham residents had in the 19th Century. The majority
of records show people were employed as agricultural labourers
or paupers, but we have made a snap shot at some of the census
records to show what other occupations were available. If
you would like to know more, click
here.
The Walker Heneage family owned most of Lyneham, but sold
the land and properties by public auction in lots in 1905.
Many of the farms were bought by the tenants and some are
still residing there. The community consisted chiefly of farmers
and some private businesses like builders, baker, wheelwright,
timber and sawmills, blacksmith, market gardeners and two
small sweet and grocery shops. One of these shops was the
village Post Office. The other shop was on the Green in one
of the thatched cottages. It was safe to say most of the village
people took pride in their community and a keen interest in
affairs and activities. Each farm had its own pond or ponds
as there was no mains water until least after the WWII.
The village ponds provided great entertainment during the
winter months, they often used to freeze over and children
could almost slide all the way to school over the slippery
surfaces. There was six ponds as the journey progressed through
the village. In very severe weather people were free to go
and skate on Tockenham reservoir. The neighbouring fields
and footpaths were always well maintained, thus making the
trip to the reservoir much safer.
Life in Lyneham carried on as a daily routine until the autumn
of 1937. A massive bomb was about to be dropped on the community.
It was not from an enemy plane, but the men from the Air Ministry
turned up with expansion ideas for the air force. The area
was surveyed for a possible airfield but initial results of
the inspection revealed a high water table on the 500 foot
plateau of Lyneham village. Concerns were raised that the
water table was to close to the surface but military airfield
numbers were paramount and this problem did not put a burden
on the decision for a new military estate.
Within twelve months of the nomination the land was soon
going to be utilised as a military aircraft storage depot.
Policy makers had made resolution to build several clumps
of hangers for storing and working on aircraft, they would
be widely dispersed across the site to prevent easy targeting
for the enemy aircraft. A central group of four hangers and
domestic buildings were erected and four additional groups
of hangers were remotely positioned on the airfield. This
gave a total of 14 hangers.
The station actually opened in February 1940 but was formally
opened as No 33 Maintenance Unit on the 18th May 1940 with
no ceremony and indeed very few people.
Reminiscences 1937 onwards:
We witness the experiences of the transformation of the village
in the words of Mrs E Hilliers, who wrote a very enjoyable
pamphlet "Reminiscences of Lyneham 1900 - 1940"
about the lifestyle within the community before and after
the station's arrival. If you would like to read more click
here...
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