Pulborough
Encyclopedia
Pulborough is a large village
and civil parish in the Horsham
district of West Sussex
, England
, with some 5,000 inhabitants. It is located almost centrally within West Sussex and is 50 miles (80.5 km) south west of London
. It is at the junction of the north-south A29
and the east-west (A283) roads.
The village is near the confluence of the River Arun
and the River Rother
. It looks southwards over the broad flood plain of the tidal Arun to a backdrop of the South Downs
. It is on the northern boundary of the newly established South Downs National Park
.
The parish covers an area of 2,098 hectares (5,183 acres). In the 2001 census there were 4,685 people living in 1,976 households of whom 2,333 were economically active.
Historically, it was a fording place over the River Arun used by the Romans
, who had a mansio
across the river at Hardham
, one day's march from Chichester
on the London road, Stane Street. The Saxons
bridged the River Arun here and at nearby Stopham
, north of its confluence with the River Rother. It became an important watering and overnight halt for cattle drovers providing easy access to water.
A mile to the north-west in woodland are the earthwork remains of a motte and bailey
castle known as Park Mound, dating from the eleventh century.
On August Bank Holiday, the Pulborough duck race society hosts its annual duck race, a charity event.
Pulborough is also home to the South Downs Light Railway
with its steam and diesel trains running regularly throughout the summer, and a more limited service through the colder months.
Pulborough also boasts one of the fastest growing and most popular Angling
Clubs in the South of England which has a number of initiatives to support local youngsters, including angling training as well as offering talks to local clubs, youth and conservation groups on the merits of angling and what anglers do to support, maintain and improve the habitat in conjunction with government departments and other groups.
has been played in Pulborough since 1799. Now based at the Recreation Ground, Pulborough Cricket Club boasts numerous Senior and Junior (Colts) teams. Previously a member club of the Sussex Invitation League, Pulborough's 1st and 2nd Elevens were invited to join the Sussex Cricket League ("the county league") from the 2004 season. A 3rd League XI plays in the West Sussex League, home matches being played nearby at Watersfield. Pulborough was a founder member of the North West Sussex Colts Cricket League (now known as the iDentilam League) in 1987, when it became apparent that schools were not providing adequate cricketing opportunities to local youth. Various age-groups (Under 9s, 10s, 12s, 14s and 16s) now provide ample opportunity to develop cricket skills, played in a competitive environment and ultimately secure the long term future of the club. The club also provides a mechanism for younger players to progress into senior cricket, with two non-league senior teams playing matches on Sunday afternoons. In 2006, the Sussex Cricket Board recognised the club's efforts towards youth sport, and awarded it ECB 'Focus Club' status. In 2008, the Club launches a junior girls team, thereby continuing the club's ongoing progressive and ambitious plans.
16 days earlier. Roy Whiting, a 42-year-old convicted paedophile, was found guilty of her murder on 12 December 2001 and sentenced to life imprisonment
.
On 19 April 2003, the body of 31-year-old Brighton
music teacher Jane Longhurst, who had been strangled some weeks earlier, was found at Wiggonholt Common. Her best friend's partner Graham Coutts
was found guilty of her murder on 4 February 2004 and sentenced to life imprisonment. The murder verdict was reduced to manslaughter
on 19 July 2006.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
and civil parish in the Horsham
Horsham (district)
Horsham is a local government district in West Sussex, England. Its council is based in Horsham. The district borders those of Crawley, Mid Sussex, Mole Valley, Chichester, Arun and Adur....
district of West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
, 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...
, with some 5,000 inhabitants. It is located almost centrally within West Sussex and is 50 miles (80.5 km) south west of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. It is at the junction of the north-south A29
A29 road
The A29 is a major road in England. It runs for approximately 34 miles from Capel, south of Dorking, leaving the A24, running through Billingshurst and Pulborough, crossing the South Downs at Bury Hill and passing Fontwell Park Racecourse before terminating on the B2166 on Bognor Regis sea...
and the east-west (A283) roads.
The village is near the confluence of the River Arun
River Arun
The Arun is a river in the English county of West Sussex. Its source is a series of small streams in the St Leonard's Forest area, to the east of Horsham...
and the River Rother
River Rother (Western)
The River Rother is a river which flows for thirty miles from Empshott in Hampshire to Stopham in West Sussex, where it joins the River Arun. It should not be confused with the River Rother, in East Sussex....
. It looks southwards over the broad flood plain of the tidal Arun to a backdrop of the South Downs
South Downs
The South Downs is a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen Valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, near Eastbourne, East Sussex, in the east. It is bounded on its northern side by a steep escarpment, from whose...
. It is on the northern boundary of the newly established South Downs National Park
South Downs National Park
The South Downs National Park is England's newest National Park, having become fully operational on 1 April 2011. The park, covering an area of in southern England, stretches for from Winchester in the west to Eastbourne in the east through the counties of Hampshire, West Sussex and East Sussex...
.
The parish covers an area of 2,098 hectares (5,183 acres). In the 2001 census there were 4,685 people living in 1,976 households of whom 2,333 were economically active.
History
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, who had a mansio
Mansio
In the Roman Empire, a mansio was an official stopping place on a Roman road, or via, maintained by the central government for the use of officials and those on official business whilst travelling.-Background:The roads which traversed the Ancient World, were later surveyed,...
across the river at Hardham
Hardham
Hardham is a small village in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the A29 road 1.2 miles southwest of Pulborough....
, one day's march from Chichester
Chichester
Chichester is a cathedral city in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, South-East England. It has a long history as a settlement; its Roman past and its subsequent importance in Anglo-Saxon times are only its beginnings...
on the London road, Stane Street. The Saxons
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
bridged the River Arun here and at nearby Stopham
Stopham
Stopham is a hamlet and civil parish in the District of Chichester in West Sussex, England located two kilometres west of Pulborough on the A283 road....
, north of its confluence with the River Rother. It became an important watering and overnight halt for cattle drovers providing easy access to water.
A mile to the north-west in woodland are the earthwork remains of a motte and bailey
Motte-and-bailey
A motte-and-bailey is a form of castle, with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised earthwork called a motte, accompanied by an enclosed courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade...
castle known as Park Mound, dating from the eleventh century.
Attractions
Each year, Pulborough hosts the 12 hour Lawn Mower race which runs continuously for 12 hours.On August Bank Holiday, the Pulborough duck race society hosts its annual duck race, a charity event.
Pulborough is also home to the South Downs Light Railway
South Downs Light Railway
The South Downs Light Railway is a gauge railway at Pulborough in West Sussex, England. The line operates around the grounds of a garden centre....
with its steam and diesel trains running regularly throughout the summer, and a more limited service through the colder months.
Pulborough also boasts one of the fastest growing and most popular Angling
Angling
Angling is a method of fishing by means of an "angle" . The hook is usually attached to a fishing line and the line is often attached to a fishing rod. Fishing rods are usually fitted with a fishing reel that functions as a mechanism for storing, retrieving and paying out the line. The hook itself...
Clubs in the South of England which has a number of initiatives to support local youngsters, including angling training as well as offering talks to local clubs, youth and conservation groups on the merits of angling and what anglers do to support, maintain and improve the habitat in conjunction with government departments and other groups.
Local cricket
Earliest records suggest cricketCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
has been played in Pulborough since 1799. Now based at the Recreation Ground, Pulborough Cricket Club boasts numerous Senior and Junior (Colts) teams. Previously a member club of the Sussex Invitation League, Pulborough's 1st and 2nd Elevens were invited to join the Sussex Cricket League ("the county league") from the 2004 season. A 3rd League XI plays in the West Sussex League, home matches being played nearby at Watersfield. Pulborough was a founder member of the North West Sussex Colts Cricket League (now known as the iDentilam League) in 1987, when it became apparent that schools were not providing adequate cricketing opportunities to local youth. Various age-groups (Under 9s, 10s, 12s, 14s and 16s) now provide ample opportunity to develop cricket skills, played in a competitive environment and ultimately secure the long term future of the club. The club also provides a mechanism for younger players to progress into senior cricket, with two non-league senior teams playing matches on Sunday afternoons. In 2006, the Sussex Cricket Board recognised the club's efforts towards youth sport, and awarded it ECB 'Focus Club' status. In 2008, the Club launches a junior girls team, thereby continuing the club's ongoing progressive and ambitious plans.
Other notable events
On 17 July 2000, Pulborough made the headlines when the body of missing girl Sarah Payne was found in a field off the A29 near the village. She had been reporting missing some 15 miles (24.1 km) away in LittlehamptonLittlehampton
Littlehampton is a seaside resort town and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England, on the east bank at the mouth of the River Arun. It lies south southwest of London, west of Brighton and east of the county town of Chichester....
16 days earlier. Roy Whiting, a 42-year-old convicted paedophile, was found guilty of her murder on 12 December 2001 and sentenced to life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
.
On 19 April 2003, the body of 31-year-old Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
music teacher Jane Longhurst, who had been strangled some weeks earlier, was found at Wiggonholt Common. Her best friend's partner Graham Coutts
Graham Coutts
Graham Coutts is the man convicted of murdering school teacher Jane Longhurst on 14 March 2003. At the time, he was a guitarist and part-time salesman living in Brighton, UK. Coutts claimed that Longhurst had died accidentally during consensual erotic asphyxiation, although the prosecution...
was found guilty of her murder on 4 February 2004 and sentenced to life imprisonment. The murder verdict was reduced to manslaughter
Manslaughter
Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates...
on 19 July 2006.