Anchor, Shropshire
Encyclopedia
Anchor is a remote hamlet
in Shropshire
, England
, located at . The hamlet is the most westerly place in Shropshire.
. The B4368 road runs through the hamlet on its way between the towns of Clun
(in England) to Newtown (in Wales). The road reaches an elevation
of 389 metres, making it the highest classified road in Shropshire. The point at which the B4368 crosses over the Nant Rhuddwr (a small watercourse that runs along this part of the English-Welsh border) into Wales is known as Anchor Bridge. Anchor is also the most westerly settlement in England on the English-Welsh border, with the most westerly point of the border being approximately 1.5 miles to the southwest.
Anchor is on the western fringes of the Clun Forest
and to the north and northwest lies Ceri Forest. The River Clun
, which flows towards Newcastle-on-Clun
and on to the River Teme
near Leintwardine
, has its source just south of the hamlet, between Anchor and Bettws Hill Wood.
Anchor lies in the parish
of Bettws-y-Crwyn
and the Shropshire Council
electoral division of Clun. The Royal Mail
postcode begins with SY7
.
at 386m, the second highest pub in Shropshire (the highest being in Cleehill
). It has previously been known as the "Mermaid's Rest".
There are a number of small, disused quarries in the area. The local economy is mainly agricultural, with sheep and other livestock farms. There is an Anchor Horse Fair held in the area, usually annually.
Nearby, to the southwest, is Bryn Amlwg Castle
, the remains of an ancient castle.
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
in Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, located at . The hamlet is the most westerly place in Shropshire.
Geography
Anchor lies only 400m away from the border with WalesWales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. The B4368 road runs through the hamlet on its way between the towns of Clun
Clun
Clun is a small town in Shropshire, England. The town is located entirely in the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The 2001 census recorded 642 people living in the town...
(in England) to Newtown (in Wales). The road reaches an elevation
Elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
of 389 metres, making it the highest classified road in Shropshire. The point at which the B4368 crosses over the Nant Rhuddwr (a small watercourse that runs along this part of the English-Welsh border) into Wales is known as Anchor Bridge. Anchor is also the most westerly settlement in England on the English-Welsh border, with the most westerly point of the border being approximately 1.5 miles to the southwest.
Anchor is on the western fringes of the Clun Forest
Clun Forest
Clun Forest is a remote, rural area of open pastures, moorland and mixed deciduous/coniferous woodland in the southwest part of the English county of Shropshire and also just over the border into Powys, Wales....
and to the north and northwest lies Ceri Forest. The River Clun
River Clun, Shropshire
The River Clun is a river in Shropshire, England which runs through the small town of Clun, as well as Newcastle-on-Clun and other villages. It meets the River Teme at Leintwardine, Herefordshire....
, which flows towards Newcastle-on-Clun
Newcastle, Shropshire
Newcastle is a village in the rural south west of Shropshire, England. It lies at the confluence of the River Clun and the Folly Brook, 3 miles west of the small town of Clun...
and on to the River Teme
River Teme
The River Teme rises in Mid Wales, south of Newtown in Powys, and flows through Knighton where it crosses the border into England down to Ludlow in Shropshire, then to the north of Tenbury Wells on the Shropshire/Worcestershire border there, on its way to join the River Severn south of Worcester...
near Leintwardine
Leintwardine
Leintwardine is a large village and civil parish in north Herefordshire, England, close to the border with Shropshire.- Roman Leintwardine :...
, has its source just south of the hamlet, between Anchor and Bettws Hill Wood.
Anchor lies in the parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
of Bettws-y-Crwyn
Bettws-y-Crwyn
This article is about the place in Shropshire. For other places called Betws or Bettws see Bettws.Bettws-y-Crwyn is a small, remote village and civil parish in south west Shropshire, England. It is close to the Welsh border, and is one of a few English villages to have a Welsh language placename,...
and the Shropshire Council
Shropshire Council
Shropshire Council is a unitary authority in Shropshire, United Kingdom.It replaced the former two-tier local government structure in the non-metropolitan county of Shropshire on 1 April 2009, which involved its immediate predecessor, Shropshire County Council, and five non-metropolitan districts -...
electoral division of Clun. The Royal Mail
Royal Mail
Royal Mail is the government-owned postal service in the United Kingdom. Royal Mail Holdings plc owns Royal Mail Group Limited, which in turn operates the brands Royal Mail and Parcelforce Worldwide...
postcode begins with SY7
SY postcode area
The SY postcode area, also known as the Shrewsbury postcode area, is a group of postcode districts primarily around Shrewsbury, but also covering Aberystwyth, Bishop's Castle, Borth, Bow Street, Bucknell, Caersws, Church Stretton, Craven Arms, Ellesmere, Llanbrynmair, Llandinam, Llanfechain,...
.
Demographics
Land is being set aside for the building of affordable housing. Planning permission was granted for one affordable house at Rose Farm in 2006 and in 2008 planning approval is being sought for two affordable houses near to the Anchor Inn.Features and attractions
At the main crossroads is the "Anchor" public housePublic house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
at 386m, the second highest pub in Shropshire (the highest being in Cleehill
Cleehill
Cleehill is a village in Shropshire, England. It is sometimes written as Clee Hill Village to avoid confusion....
). It has previously been known as the "Mermaid's Rest".
There are a number of small, disused quarries in the area. The local economy is mainly agricultural, with sheep and other livestock farms. There is an Anchor Horse Fair held in the area, usually annually.
Nearby, to the southwest, is Bryn Amlwg Castle
Bryn Amlwg Castle
Bryn Amlwg Castle is in Shropshire near the Welsh border and the hamlet of Anchor which lies between Newtown and Clun.This was an enclosure castle of the 12th and 13th centuries, and had towers and a gatehouse. Only earthworks now remain.-References:...
, the remains of an ancient castle.