Hilgay is a village and
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...
in
Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
, England, from
Downham Market
Downham Market, sometimes simply referred to as Downham, is a market town and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It lies on the edge of the Fens, on the River Great Ouse, approximately 11 miles south of King's Lynn, 39 miles west of Norwich and 30 ...
.
It covers an area of and had a population of 1,341 at the
2011 Census.
For local government purposes, it falls within the
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...
of
King's Lynn and West Norfolk.
Other places nearby are
Fordham,
Ryston
Ryston is a small village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It once had its own railway station.
The villages name means 'Brushwood farm/settlement'.
It covers an area of and had a population of 93 in 34 households at the 200 ...
,
Southery and
Denver
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
.
History
The name Hilgay is derived from the
Old English
Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th c ...
to mean 'island or dry ground in a marsh, of the followers of a man called Hytha or Hydla during
Anglo Saxon times.
Modney Priory built here by the monks of
Ramsey Abbey was a
Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, foun ...
cell.
Hilgay village sits on a raised isle, some above the surrounding
fen
A fen is a type of peat-accumulating wetland fed by mineral-rich Groundwater, ground or surface water. It is one of the main types of wetlands along with marshes, swamps, and bogs. Bogs and fens, both peat-forming ecosystems, are also known as ...
land. Its elevation has become more pronounced as the draining of the fenland has caused the ground to shrink. It was notable in
Saxon and early
Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
times for the large numbers of fish and eels found there. Hilgay Old Bridge still crosses the river, but the newer
A10 road bypass crosses just below it.
The scholar and poet
Phineas Fletcher
Phineas Fletcher (8 April 1582 – 13 December 1650) was an English poet, elder son of Dr Giles Fletcher, and brother of Giles the Younger. He was born at Cranbrook, Kent, and was baptized on 8 April 1582.
Life
He was admitted a scholar of E ...
(1580 -1650) became chaplain to Sir Henry Willoughby, who presented him in 1621 to the rectory of Hilgay, Norfolk, where he married and spent the rest of his life.
Captain
George William Manby
Captain George William Manby FRS (28 November 1765 – 18 November 1854) was an English author and inventor. He designed an apparatus for saving life from shipwrecks and also the first modern form of fire extinguisher.
Early life
Manby was b ...
, who lived for much of his life in Hilgay, is buried in the churchyard, and his memorial celebrates his invention of the
Manby mortar to send a line to ships in distress. He was awarded £2,000 by Parliament, as use of the device had saved 230 lives by 1823.
[Blair (2006)]
A Hilgay
village sign
In many parts of England, an ornamental village sign is erected to announce the village name to those entering the village. They are typically placed on the principal road entrance or in a prominent location such as a village green. The design ...
was erected in 1987.
The musical instruments on it are displayed in honour of Hilgay Silver Band, it was still going strong over 100 years after its formation around 1896. Its original members were agricultural workers from the local area. A Manby mortar is also represented.
The bridge depicted between the two instruments is Hilgay Old Bridge. The bridge was built in 1899 to transport traffic from the centre of the village over the River Wissey to the north. Within sight of the bridge, one hundred yards or so to the west, the A10 Hilgay bypass bridge now carries the majority of vehicles across the water.
A small plaque attached to the bottom of the supporting post states the village sign was 'Erected by Hilgay Parish Council 1987'.
In 2018 nine one-metre square test pits were dug as part of an archaeological investigation. The report was published in 2019.
Hilgay Parish Council are responsible for the local allotments, cemetery and
defibrillator
Defibrillation is a treatment for life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias, specifically ventricular fibrillation (V-Fib) and non-perfusing ventricular tachycardia (V-Tach). A defibrillator delivers a dose of electric current (often called a ''coun ...
.
There was once a
Hilgay railway station on the
Fen Line.
Governance
Hilgay is part of the
electoral ward of Hilgay with Denver. The population of this ward at the 2011 Census was 2,409.
References
Bibliography
*
External links
GENUKI(tm) page*
Villages in Norfolk
Civil parishes in Norfolk
King's Lynn and West Norfolk
{{Norfolk-geo-stub