Walkern

Walkern ('Walchra' in Domesday) is a village and civil parish in East Hertfordshire. It is about two miles from Stevenage.

Walkern

Walkern High Street
Walkern
Location within Hertfordshire
Population1,541 (2011 Census including Ardeley)[1]
OS grid referenceTL363292
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townSTEVENAGE
Postcode districtSG2
Dialling code01438
PoliceHertfordshire
FireHertfordshire
AmbulanceEast of England
UK Parliament

The River Beane, a chalk stream, crosses the village street of Church End at a ford, which is overlooked by the medieval Bridgefoot Farm and thatched Wych Elm cottage.

The village has several shops, including a convenience store, a hair and beauty salon, a craft shop, a shop that features homestyle products, a tea shop, a drum shop, a petrol station and Walkern Gallery near the White Lion public house. Other pubs include the Yew Tree.[2] The village also has a primary school, doctors' surgery, recreation ground and a range of seasonal clubs; according to the time of year there is cricket, football and many other clubs based in the Walkern Sports and Community Centre towards the end of the village near the War Memorial and opposite an old watermill.

Parish church

The parish church of St Mary the Virgin is the oldest village church in Hertfordshire, with a Saxon wall and rare chalk rood (crucifix) dating back to the mid-10th century. St Mary's also has a fine Purbeck-marble effigy, possibly that of William de Lanvalei, baron of Walkern in the early 13th century and one of the 25 sureties named in Magna Carta elected to ensure that King John adhered to the Law of the Land set down in the charter in 1215.[3]

People from Walkern

Walkern is noted as the home of Jane Wenham, who in 1712 was the last woman in England to be convicted of witchcraft and condemned to death (although the sentence was not carried out).[4]

References
  1. "Civil Parish population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
  2. http://www.hertfordshire-genealogy.co.uk/links/walkern-pubs.htm
  3. http://www.magnacartabarons.info/walkern
  4. http://www.walkernhistorysociety.co.uk/index.php/historical-highlights/jane-wenham



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