| Holton | |
|---|---|
 St Bartholomew parish church | |
  Holton Location withinOxfordshire | |
| Area | 6.63 km2 (2.56 sq mi) |
| Population | 885 (2001 census)[1] |
| • Density | 133/km2 (340/sq mi) |
| OS grid reference | SP6006 |
| Civil parish |
|
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Oxford |
| Postcode district | OX33 |
| Dialling code | 01865 |
| Police | Thames Valley |
| Fire | Oxfordshire |
| Ambulance | South Central |
| UK Parliament | |
| Website | Holton Parish Council |
| |
Holton is a village andcivil parish inSouth Oxfordshire about 5.5 miles (9 km) east ofOxford. The parish is bounded to the southeast by theRiver Thame, to the east and north by the Thame's tributary Holton Brook, to the south by London Road and to the west by field boundaries with the parishes ofForest Hill with Shotover andStanton St John.
Holton'stoponym is derived from theOld English for "hidden nook".[2] It is aSaxon village that was probably established in the 10th century.[2] TheDomesday Book records that in 1086 theNorman noblemanRoger d'Ivry was themanor of Holton'sfeudal overlord. In 1112 d'Ivry's last heir died and his estates passed tothe Crown.[2] The Crown granted Holton to the Saint Valery family, whereby it became part of theHonour ofSt Valery and later the Honour ofWallingford.[2] By 1317 Holton had amanor house with adovecote.[2]
During theEnglish Civil War the Whorwood family that owned the manor and lived in the house wereRoyalists but in 1643 it was held by aParliamentarian garrison that controlledWheatley Bridge across the River Thame.[2] In January 1647 a Parliamentarian commander,Henry Ireton, and Bridget, a daughter ofOliver Cromwell, were married at the manor house.[2] A new dovecote was built for the manor house in the 17th century and new stables were added in the 18th century.[2] By 1801 the house was a mostly 17th century building with traces of 15th century work.[2] It was dilapidated and in 1805 it was demolished, but the stables, dovecote and moat of the old house all survive.[2]
A newGeorgianneo-Gothic house, Holton Park, was built by Elisha Biscoe in the deer park of the demolished manor house between 1808[2] and 1815.[3] In 1948 the Oxfordshire Education Committee bought Holton Park house and turned it into a girls' grammar school.[2] It is nowWheatley Park School.
TheChurch of England parish church ofSaint Bartholomew was built in about 1200. It is cruciform and is in the transitional style betweenNorman architecture andEarly English Gothic.[4] Early in the 14th century itschancel was rebuilt and given aDecorated Gothic east window.[3] TheGothic Revival architectE.G. Bruton built the rectory in 1882.[3] St. Bartholomew's parish is now part of a singleChurch of England benefice with St. Mary's parish, Wheatley and the benefice is part of alocal ecumenical partnership with Wheatley'sRoman Catholic,United Reformed andfree churches.[5]
The Domesday Book records that by 1086 Holton had awater mill.[2] This may have been on the River Thame. The present mill is 17th century[2] and is on the Thame 550 yards (500 m) upstream of Wheatley Bridge. Lyehill Quarry in the west of the parish belonged to Holton Manor.[2] It was in use by the early part of the 15th century, when it supplied limestone for the building ofThomas Wolsey'sCardinal's College in Oxford.[2]
In 1684 Rev. Edward Rogers,Rector of Holton, died leaving £200 to be invested to provide an income to educate poor children of Holton.[2] In 1787 classes were held in the Kings' Armspublic house in Wheatley but by 1790 Holton had a purpose-built schoolhouse.[2] It was run by the same schoolmaster, John Sawyer, from then until 1821, by which time he was so incompetent, old and deaf that he had lost all his pupils.[2] The school was empty from then until it reopened with a new master in 1824.[2] In 1833 it was only a boys' school but in 1835 a girls' and infants' school was opened.[2] The two schools were merged by 1854 and the old building was demolished and replaced in 1861.[2] Early in the 20th century pupil numbers declined and in 1915 the Oxfordshire Education Committee closed the school.[2]
During theSecond World War aUnited States military hospital was built in Holton Park.[2] TheLady Spencer-Churchill College of Education was built at Holton in 1966[3] and merged with Oxford Polytechnic in 1974.[6] In 1992 the polytechnic becameOxford Brookes University. The former Lady Spencer-Churchill College is now Oxford Brookes' Wheatley Campus.[6]
