Woodhorn
Woodhorn is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Newbiggin by the Sea, in Northumberland, England, about 2 miles (3 km) east of Ashington. In 1931 the parish had a population of 219.[1] The village is sometimes identified with Wucestre, given to St Cuthbert by King Ceolwulf when he gave up his throne in 737 to become a monk at Lindisfarne. A medieval bell at Woodhorn, inscribed "Ave Maria", is said to be one of the oldest in existence.[2]
Governance
[edit]On 1 April 1935 the parish was abolished and merged with Newbiggin by the Sea and Ashington parishes.[3]
Economy
[edit]The main employment was at the coal mine. The mine has since closed and the site has been landscaped incorporating a lake and known as Queen Elizabeth II Country Park. Some of the mine buildings have been retained and are used as a visitor centre.
Landmarks
[edit]Woodhorn Colliery Museum is situated in a country park with a 40-acre (16 ha) lake. With sound effects, models, paintings, working machinery etc., the museum gives an insight into life in a local coal-mining community.[2]
The site of the old pit is now the location for Northumberland Record Office, a purpose-built building having been constructed to replace the two previous buildings at Morpeth and Gosforth.
Religious sites
[edit]The Church of St Mary the Virgin, Woodhorn (commonly known as 'Woodhorn Church') is dedicated to St Mary[4] and is the oldest building in Wansbeck, with parts dating back to the 11th century, but has not functioned as a church since 1973. In recent decades, the building has housed at various times a museum and artists' studios. Newbiggin Town Council has set up the Woodhorn Church Working Group to discuss the future use of the now vacant building.[5]
Woodhorn Church was once the mother church in the Parish of Woodhorn with Newbiggin. When she was declared redundant in 1973, that role passed to St Bartholomew's.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ "Population statistics Woodhorn AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
- ^ a b "Linden Hall". Retrieved 11 December 2008.
- ^ "Relationships and changes Woodhorn AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
- ^ Purves, Geoffrey (2006). Churches of Newcastle and Northumberland. Stroud, Gloucestershire, England: Tempus Publishing Limited. p. 178. ISBN 0-7524-4071-3.
- ^ "Woodhorn Church Working Group – Newbiggin by the Sea Town Council". Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 26 December 2012.
- ^ "St Barholomews Church, Newbiggin by the Sea". 11 August 2013. Archived from the original on 11 August 2013. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
External links
[edit]Media related to Woodhorn at Wikimedia Commons
- GENUKI (Accessed: 27 November 2008)
- Experience Woodhorn[usurped] (Woodhorn colliery museum and country park, and the Northumberland archives)