Farlington, Portsmouth
Encyclopedia
Farlington is a district of Portsmouth
. It is located in the north east of the city and is not actually on Portsea Island
. Farlington was incorporated into the city in 1932 and now forms a continuous development with Cosham
and Drayton.
Farlington was a small rural community for the majority of its existence. In 1891 a racecourse
, called 'Portsmouth Park', was built in Farlington, between the Havant
road and the shoreline. This new course was built with all of the modern facilities available at the time, including its own railway station
, with the intention of turning it into premier tracks. However race meetings were suspended during World War One
and the War Office
turned the course into one of the country's biggest ammunition dumps. After hostilities ceased, the War Office held control of the site and it was not released until 1929 when it was bought by Portsmouth City Council. The council then sold on the land for private housing development, eventually leading to the end of Farlington as a distinct community.
Farlington is also home of the Portsmouth Water Company's filtration beds. In 1812 Thomas Smith built a reservoir to hold spring water from Farlington Marshes. The works were built in 1908 and by 1924 there were five reservoirs and eight sand filters. Many of the local roads to the north of the Havant Road were named after senior company officers. Amongst these are Grant, Woodfield, Galt, Gillman and Evelegh.
The parish of Farlington has two churches - the ancient parish church of St. Andrew and the Church of the Resurrection. St. Andrew's is situated at the eastern end of the district on the main Havant Road. Adjacent to the church on the west side once stood Farlington House which was demolished in the 1960s to make way for a new housing estate that extended Old Rectory Road. The Church of the Resurrection was built in 1930 and is geographically located in Drayton.
Farlington was also home to Farlington Redoubt which was part of the "Palmerston's Folly" defence ring of forts around Portsmouth. They were built to protect the city from a possible French invasion. The defences were ordered by the then Prime Minister, Lord Palmerston. However, peace with France ensued before the defences were finished, hence the title "Palmerston's Folly". The redoubt was demolished in the early 1960s; however some of the other forts still remain, such as Forts Purbrook, Widley and Southwick.
(29 May 1539 – 5 March 1614), an English
Jesuit
lay brother
. After some thirty years spent in Elizabethan prisons for his Catholic faith, he is said to have died in the same room of the family house where he was born. In the late 16th century, the house, known as Belmont, was notorious as a safe house for recusants. An early 20th-century historian thought "The present [1905] Belmont Castle, on Portsdown Hill, [was] probably built on or near the site of the old house.” Recently, however, a different view of the location of the house has been offered.
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
. It is located in the north east of the city and is not actually on Portsea Island
Portsea Island
Portsea Island is a small, flat and low lying island just off the south coast of England. The island is totally within, and contains a large proportion of, the city of Portsmouth. It has the third-largest population of any island in the British Isles, after the mainlands of Great Britain and...
. Farlington was incorporated into the city in 1932 and now forms a continuous development with Cosham
Cosham
Cosham is a northern suburb of Portsmouth lying within the city boundary but off Portsea Island. It is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 along with Drayton and Wymering and Bocheland , Frodington and Copenore on the island.The name is of Saxon origin and means "Cossa's homestead"...
and Drayton.
Farlington was a small rural community for the majority of its existence. In 1891 a racecourse
Horseracing in the United Kingdom
Horse racing is a popular spectator sport in Great Britain, with hundreds of years of unique heritage. Gambling on horseraces is also considered the cornerstone of the British betting industry....
, called 'Portsmouth Park', was built in Farlington, between the Havant
Havant
Havant is a town in south east Hampshire on the South coast of England, between Portsmouth and Chichester. It gives its name to the borough comprising the town and the surrounding area. The town has rapidly grown since the end of the Second World War.It has good railway connections to London,...
road and the shoreline. This new course was built with all of the modern facilities available at the time, including its own railway station
Train station
A train station, also called a railroad station or railway station and often shortened to just station,"Station" is commonly understood to mean "train station" unless otherwise qualified. This is evident from dictionary entries e.g...
, with the intention of turning it into premier tracks. However race meetings were suspended during World War One
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and the War Office
War Office
The War Office was a department of the British Government, responsible for the administration of the British Army between the 17th century and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the Ministry of Defence...
turned the course into one of the country's biggest ammunition dumps. After hostilities ceased, the War Office held control of the site and it was not released until 1929 when it was bought by Portsmouth City Council. The council then sold on the land for private housing development, eventually leading to the end of Farlington as a distinct community.
Farlington is also home of the Portsmouth Water Company's filtration beds. In 1812 Thomas Smith built a reservoir to hold spring water from Farlington Marshes. The works were built in 1908 and by 1924 there were five reservoirs and eight sand filters. Many of the local roads to the north of the Havant Road were named after senior company officers. Amongst these are Grant, Woodfield, Galt, Gillman and Evelegh.
The parish of Farlington has two churches - the ancient parish church of St. Andrew and the Church of the Resurrection. St. Andrew's is situated at the eastern end of the district on the main Havant Road. Adjacent to the church on the west side once stood Farlington House which was demolished in the 1960s to make way for a new housing estate that extended Old Rectory Road. The Church of the Resurrection was built in 1930 and is geographically located in Drayton.
Farlington was also home to Farlington Redoubt which was part of the "Palmerston's Folly" defence ring of forts around Portsmouth. They were built to protect the city from a possible French invasion. The defences were ordered by the then Prime Minister, Lord Palmerston. However, peace with France ensued before the defences were finished, hence the title "Palmerston's Folly". The redoubt was demolished in the early 1960s; however some of the other forts still remain, such as Forts Purbrook, Widley and Southwick.
Famous Residents
Among the famous people connected to Farlington is Thomas PoundeThomas Pounde
Thomas Pounde was an English Jesuit lay brother.-Life:Pounde was born at Belmont , Farlington, Hampshire. He was the eldest son of William Pounde and Helen/Anne, the sister or half-sister to Thomas Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton. He is reported to have been educated at Winchester College...
(29 May 1539 – 5 March 1614), an English
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...
Jesuit
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
lay brother
Lay brother
In the most common usage, lay brothers are those members of Catholic religious orders, particularly of monastic orders, occupied primarily with manual labour and with the secular affairs of a monastery or friary, in contrast to the choir monks of the same monastery who are devoted mainly to the...
. After some thirty years spent in Elizabethan prisons for his Catholic faith, he is said to have died in the same room of the family house where he was born. In the late 16th century, the house, known as Belmont, was notorious as a safe house for recusants. An early 20th-century historian thought "The present [1905] Belmont Castle, on Portsdown Hill, [was] probably built on or near the site of the old house.” Recently, however, a different view of the location of the house has been offered.