Whitchurch, Shropshire

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Whitchurch
Black Bear Inn at the junction of Church St. and High St.
Whitchurch shown within Shropshire
Population	8,944
OS grid reference	SJ541415
District	North Shropshire
Shire county	Shropshire
Region	West Midlands
Constituent country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	WHITCHURCH
Postcode district	SY13
Dialling code	01948
Police	West Mercia
Fire	Shropshire
Ambulance	West Midlands
European Parliament	West Midlands
UK Parliament	North Shropshire
List of places: UK • England • Shropshire

Coordinates: 52°58′08″N 2°40′58″W / 52.969, -2.6827

Whitchurch is a market town in North Shropshire, England. It is the oldest continually inhabited town in Shropshire.^[1] According to the 2001 Census, the population of the town is 8,673, and a more 2008 estimate puts the population of the town at 8,934.^[2] The town is located in the Whitchurch Urban civil parish, and is twinned with the French town of Neufchâtel-en-Bray.

1 History
2 Transport
3 Notable people
4 Sport
5 References

[edit] History

Originally a settlement founded by the Romans around AD 52 or 70, it was called Mediolanum, meaning The place in the middle of the plain. The settlement was located on a major Roman route between Chester and Wroxeter and Roman artifacts can be seen at the Whitchurch Heritage Centre.^[3]

The current name comes from White church, and refers to a church (from Norman times) made from white stone. As might be expected, there are other towns of the name Whitchurch in England. The current church of St Alkmund, built in 1712 using sandstone, stands on the site of the Norman church.

[edit] Transport

Whitchurch is a crossroads for roads from Nantwich, Chester and Shrewsbury with the A41/A49 bypass opening in 1992. Whitchurch railway station is on the line from Crewe down the English side of the Welsh border (the Welsh Marches Line) towards Cardiff. Whitchurch has its own short arm of the Llangollen Canal but is not a key stopping place for boaters as the arm stops about a mile short of the town centre.

[edit] Notable people

Whitchurch is the home of the JB Joyce tower clocks company, established in 1690, who are the oldest tower clock-making company in the world,^[4] and have earned Whitchurch the reputation as the Home of tower clocks. Joyce's timepieces can be found as far as Singapore and Kabul, while they also helped to build Big Ben in London.

Famous residents of the town include composer Sir Edward German, who was born in the town,^[5] particularly in what is now a local pub in the centre of town, The Old Town Hall Vaults, and is buried in the local cemetery. In Central Whitchurch there is a small street named after Sir Edward German and a local televised festival called the Sir Edward German festival is hosted by St Alkmund's Church every year. Participants include the local choir and primary schools including Prees, Lower Heath and the White House School. Victorian illustrator Randolph Caldecott lived in the town for several years and many of the town's buildings feature in his work, and bestselling author Kate Long moved to Whitchurch in 1990.^[6]

Sir Henry Percy - aka Sir Harry Hotspur, who was the inspiration in the naming of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club - was killed at the Battle of Shrewsbury and buried in Whitchurch only for his body to be later exhumed and quartered. Also buried in Whitchurch is Sir John Talbot, a military commander who fought Joan of Arc. He is buried under the porch of Saint Alkmund's church.^[7] Talbot is a major character in William Shakespeare's Henry VI, Part I, and the local secondary school " Sir John Talbots" is named after him.

[edit] Sport

The local football club, Whitchurch Alport, is one of the founder members of the Mid Cheshire Football League and currently plays in Division Two of that league.