Structures and Buildings
Woodford has the
unusual feature of having two War Memorials. Following the end of the
First World War a committee was formed in order to oversee the erection of
a memorial to those who had lost their lives. When the decision was made
that it should be in the form of a crucifix, many objected and under the
name of The Comrades Club proceeded to arrange for a memorial on the
village green. As a result two memorials were erected.
Further details of some of the deceased
can be found on the Commonwealth
War Graves Commission Web Site.
The
Village Memorial
This
War Memorial is situated on the village green and is constructed from
Weldon Stone. It was unveiled by Colonel Malcolm Romer, and dedicated by
Rev. Edgar Chew (former chaplain to the Forces, BEF) The event took place
on Woodford Feast Sunday 1921 at 3pm under a very hot sun, and the service
was conducted by Rev G M Davidson. At the end of the service the memorial
was handed over to the village and accepted on behalf of the Parish
Council by Mr F Matthews.
The names of the
fallen inscribed on the four sides of the memorial, for the record are:
Donald Davidson was the son of Rev G M Davidson (former
Woodford Rector) and was a member of the special services (forerunner to the SBS) and was
killed in the Far East.
The Memorial
At
the foot of the Church
Tower on the north side stands
the second war memorial. This memorial once again was erected in
remembrance of those “who made the Great Sacrifice” between 1914 and
1919. On Saturday October 15th 1921 at 3.30pm the Bishop of
Peterborough led a dedication service for this memorial. Col. S G Stopford-Sackville unveiled the memorial, which is in the form of a
Crucifix. Following the dedication service wreaths were laid. A tablet
engraved with the names of those that lost their lives is found adjacent
on the wall of the Church.
The tablet includes
the additional names of Edward Bonser, Arthur Smith and Arthur Tarrant
when compared to the memorial on the green but omits J Taylor
The Baptist Movement in Woodford started in 1812, and the
present Church formed on 22 May 1822. The present building was
first used for a service in October 1823. The chapel is situated
between the High Street and Rose Terrace and can be reached from
either road, although vehicular access is easier from Rose
Terrace. Regular Services are held and further information is
available by clicking here.
The Temperance Hall
The Temperance Hall was built in 1883 (the same
year as the school on the village green - two large public building
works at the same time). The cost was £500 including the site. Mr
Abraham Mansell of Thrapston was the builder. The foundation stone was
laid on February 14th of that year and the opening took place on June
27th. The hall was used for lectures and entertainment. Kelly's
Directory 1890 states the hall could accommodate up to 300 persons,
although later records indicate a maximum of 200 persons.
By the 1970's Mr Basil Southgate had taken over
the building and ran a general store selling all manner of items. He
was succeeded by Mr Wittering who eventually closed down in 1995
owing to the ever increasing competition from the large out of town
superstores.
Since that time the building has been used as a
store. The ownership of the hall is managed by the Woodford
General Charity (Temperance Hall).
Whellens directory of 1849, states that there is a
charity school in the village in "which 12 poor children are educated and
clothed free by the Hon. Miss Arbuthnot (Woodford House). The "National
School" in Church Street was instigated by Rev Smythe and his wife) and
was erected in 1858 with masters residence, and enlarged in 1872 to
accommodate 170 children with the average attendance in 1890 of 150
pupils. The Infants school built in 1883 adjacent to the green could
accommodate 200 children but the average attendance was 120 in 1890.
One has to remember that most children of this era left school at the age
of 14 (or earlier) to start work and until 1931 there was no
secondary education in this area. The two schools operated as
separate entities under the leadership of different head teachers until
the early 1970s, before being amalgamated to form a Primary School.
In
September 1974 the present
school accommodating up to
150 pupils was opened. The design comprised
five classrooms around a central hall linked to a kitchen for
the provision of mid day hot meals (since discontinued). Since that time
space requirements per pupil have changed and realistically the maximum
number of pupils that could be accommodated is between 110 and 120. The
site also has enough space for a six a side football pitch and a
netball court.
Further historical details and photographs of
the old schools are available on the history page of the school's own
website -
http://www.woodford.northants.sch.uk/history.htm
Structures further afield
The Water Tower
In complete contrast, the
village water tower, stands at the high point of the parish. The tower was
erected in 1934 (construction lasting six months) and can be seen from many
miles around. The water tower stands 85 feet tall.
In the late 1980’s the tower
was given a face-lift and in more recent years has also become the site of many
mobile telephone transmitters.
The photograph above shows the water
tower prior to the aerial / mast additions.
Woodford Lock
The River Nene was first made navigable between
Northampton and Peterborough in 1731, when most
probably the wooden locks (or similar) pictured were
installed.
Improved navigation by the Nene Catchment
Board in the 1930's under Chairman George Dallas
resulted in the locks pictured being removed. Like
many other locks on the River Nene it was replaced by
a vertical steel guillotine like door at the
downstream end and two doors pointing upstream at the
opposite end. the distance between the two sets of
gates is the lock chamber, which is about 80 feet
long.
Woodford House
Information to follow
Twywell Station
Information to follow
The Wesleyan Methodist Chapel
The Methodist Chapel at the junction of Pleasant Row, Constable Walk
and Newtown is a small brick building and was built in 1869 as part of the
Newtown development. It was known locally as the "little buster". The
chapel closed in the early 1970's becoming a carpentry workshop,
before being converted into a private dwelling in the 1980's
