Brighstone

Brighstone

Brighstone Village
Brighstone
 Brighstone shown within the Isle of Wight
Population 1,603 (2011)[1]
Civil parishBrighstone
Unitary authorityIsle of Wight
Ceremonial countyIsle of Wight
RegionSouth East
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post town Newport
Postcode district PO30
Dialling code 01983
Police Hampshire
Fire Isle of Wight
Ambulance Isle of Wight
EU Parliament South East England
UK ParliamentIsle of Wight
List of places
UK
England
Isle of Wight

Coordinates: 50°38′38″N 1°24′00″W / 50.644°N 1.400°W / 50.644; -1.400

Brighstone is a village and civil parish[2] on the Isle of Wight, 6 miles southwest of Newport on the B3399 road. Brighstone was previously known as "Brixton". The name derives from the Saxon name "Ecgbert's Tun".

Brighstone is the largest village in the area locally known as the Back of the Wight [3] and extends toward Limerstone and Mottistone. In Roman times a villa was built to the north, to take advantage of the clean waters of the Buddle Brook.[4]

History

Brighstone parish was formed in 1644. The civil parish comprises the main village of Brighstone together with the smaller villages of Brook, Hulverstone, Limerstone and Mottistone. The entire parish lies within an area of the Isle of Wight AONB and its coastline is designated as Heritage Coast and Site of Special Scientific Interest.

St. Mary's Church, Brighstone is a venerable old church that has stood for more than eight centuries. The village also features Brighstone Shop and Museum, owned by the National Trust, displaying exhibitions on village life in the 19th century and contains a wealth of information about the Brighstone lifeboats.[5]

Today

Brighstone is very popular to tourists for its thatched cottages and local shops. There are several large events each year hosted in the village that include the Brighstone Show, Art exhibitions and the Brighstone Christmas Tree Festival. The local scout hut functions as a Youth Hostel during the summer.[6]

Notables

The village pub is called The Three Bishops,[7] named after three rectors of Brighstone parish who went on to become famous bishops.[8] The first was the 17th-century Bishop Ken who wrote the famous hymns "Awake my soul and with the sun" and "Glory to Thee my God this night". Bishop Samuel Wilberforce became rector in 1830, and used to entertain his father, anti-slavery campaigner William Wilberforce. Wilberforce Road is named after him, and Brighstone's village hall is called the Wilberforce Hall. The third bishop, Doctor George Moberly, was headmaster of Winchester College before changing career to become rector of Brighstone in 1866.

Another notable person who lived in the village in the 19th century was the clergyman and amateur palaeontologist William Fox (palaeontologist) who discovered several species of dinosaur in Brighstone Bay.

Bus routes

The village is linked to other parts of the island by Southern Vectis bus route 12, serving Freshwater, Totland and Newport as well as intermediate villages.[9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Civil Parish population 2011". Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  2. ↑ English Parishes & Welsh Communities N&C 2004 Archived 9 January 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
  3. ↑ http://www.iwight.com/just_visiting/towns/brighstone[]
  4. ↑ http://www.brighstoneparish.org/
  5. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 11 September 2011. Retrieved 2014-01-07.
  6. ↑ http://www.yha.org.uk/find-accommodation/south-east-england/hostels/brighstone
  7. ↑ http://www.threebishopspub.co.uk
  8. ↑ Flickr image of plaque in Brighstone church. By ROBERTFROST1960
  9. ↑ "Southern Vectis - bus route 12". www.islandbuses.info. 2011. Retrieved 2011-06-14.
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