| Dry Sandford | |
|---|---|
 St. Helen's parish church | |
  Dry Sandford Location withinOxfordshire | |
| OS grid reference | SP4600 |
| Civil parish | |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Oxford |
| Postcode district | OX13 |
| Dialling code | 01865 |
| Police | Thames Valley |
| Fire | Oxfordshire |
| Ambulance | South Central |
| UK Parliament | |
| Website | Wootton and Dry Sandford |
| |
Dry Sandford is a village in theVale of White Horse district of England, about 3 miles (5 km) north-west ofAbingdon. It is one of two villages in thecivil parish ofSt Helen Without. It was part ofBerkshire until the1974 boundary changes transferred the Vale of White Horse toOxfordshire.
TheDomesday Book of 1086 records the place as Sandford.[1] The "sandyford" must have been across the stream now known as Sandford Brook, a tributary of theRiver Ock, once known as the Lucringe.[2] The village became known as Dry Sandford by the 18th century.[1] Dry Sandford was amanor in the parish ofSt Helen's, Abingdon, and was held byAbingdon Abbey until theDissolution in 1538.[1]
TheChurch of England parish church ofSaint Helen is a 13th-century-styleGothic Revival building designed byJ.B. Clacy[3] ofReading[4] and built in 1855.[1][5] St. Helen's haslancet windows, anave,chancel,rib-vaultedapse[3] and abellcote on the gable above the chancel arch.[5] St. Helen's was made a separateecclesiastical parish in 1867,[1] but was united in a singlebenefice with St. Peter's,Wootton in 2000.[6]
Dry Sandford Pit is anature reserve just south of the village managed by theBerks, Bucks and Oxon Wildlife Trust.[7] The site is of geological importance for its exposure ofCorallian beds, and is designated aSite of Special Scientific Interest.[8]
The District of theVale of White Horse | ||
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