Merstone is a hamlet on the
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...
. It is home to
Merston Manor, built in 1605 in the
Jacobean style
The Jacobean style is the second phase of Renaissance architecture in England, following the Elizabethan style. It is named after King James VI and I, with whose reign (1603–1625 in England) it is associated. At the start of James' reign there ...
by Edward Cheeke, and rebuilt in the
Victorian era
In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...
. Merston Manor was first mentioned in the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
, and the present structure is arguably the oldest brick house on the Island. Prior to the
Norman Conquest
The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...
, Merston Manor was owned by the Brictuin family. The manor now belongs to the ''Crofts'' family. According to the Post Office the population of the hamlet was at the 2011 Census included in the
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 authority ...
of
Arreton.
Although the manor was considered the most important residence, from 1928 onwards, the ''Latheys'' (distant relatives of
Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn (; 1501 or 1507 – 19 May 1536) was Queen of England from 1533 to 1536, as the second wife of King Henry VIII. The circumstances of her marriage and of her execution by beheading for treason and other charges made her a key ...
-
Henry VIII
Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...
's second wife) were considered to be the most important family to reside in the hamlet, bringing about change and somewhat encouraging the residents to modernise more hastily. One prominent member of the Lathey family, ''Michael Lathey Jnr'' became infamous among the occupants of the hamlet due to a string of practical jokes paid on the townsfolk of
Newport
Newport most commonly refers to:
*Newport, Wales
*Newport, Rhode Island, US
Newport or New Port may also refer to:
Places Asia
*Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay
Europe
Ireland
*Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...
and its people. One of which was risking his safety to venture into Newport alone and steal the town crest during the great feud (see below) - which was only recently recovered in 1998.
While Merstone has always been considered to be in the Newport district, conflicts have broken out between rival clans; the Merstone ''Goldwings'' and the Newport ''Broadleaves'', the quarrels began after a farmer hailing from Merstone accused a man who lived in Newport of stealing three sheep. No-one was killed in the clashes but homes were torched and property vandalized. However, since the early 1900s the disagreements were settled as Newport residents thought it would be better for the town and hamlet to get along since the citizens of Newport needed to use the newly built railway to
Ventnor
Ventnor () is a seaside resort and civil parish established in the Victorian era on the southeast coast of the Isle of Wight, England, from Newport. It is situated south of St Boniface Down, and built on steep slopes leading down to the sea. ...
.
Merstone is near the centre of the Island, roughly equidistant from
Blackwater to the northwest,
Horringford to the east, and
Godshill
Godshill is a village and civil parish on the Isle of Wight, England, with a population of 1,459 at the 2011 Census. It lies between Newport and Ventnor in the southeast of the island.
History
Godshill is one of the ancient parishes that exis ...
to the south.
In 1875
Merstone station was opened on the Newport to
Sandown railway line. In 1897 the station became the starting point of a branch opened by the
Isle of Wight Central Railway
The Isle of Wight Central Railway (IoWCR) was a railway company on the Isle of Wight, United Kingdom. It was formed in 1887 by the merging of three earlier railways, the Cowes and Newport Railway (opened 1862), the Ryde and Newport Railway (opened ...
to
St. Lawrence
Saint Lawrence or Laurence ( la, Laurentius, lit. " laurelled"; 31 December AD 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the persecution of the Christians that the Roman ...
, and completed to
Ventnor West in 1900. In 1952 the branch closed, and in 1956, the station and original railway line skirting the hamlet were also closed. The
island platform
An island platform (also center platform, centre platform) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange. Island platforms are popular on ...
of the former station is still visible adjacent to
National Cycle Route 23
The partially signed route passes through Basingstoke, Eastleigh and Southampton; once across the Solent, it continues through Cowes and Newport.
Route
Reading to Basingstoke
Reading , Basingstokemap
Basingstoke to Alton/Winchester
Basings ...
.
Well-known island
architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
Percy Goddard Stone, born 15 March 1856, died in The Cottage at Merstone on 21 March 1934. Stone was responsible for many stone monuments on the Island, such as the County War memorial at
Carisbrooke Castle, and war memorials in
Arreton,
Bembridge and
Yarmouth
Yarmouth may refer to:
Places Canada
*Yarmouth County, Nova Scotia
**Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
**Municipality of the District of Yarmouth
**Yarmouth (provincial electoral district)
**Yarmouth (electoral district)
* Yarmouth Township, Ontario
*New ...
, as well as the
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...
memorial in Newport and churches in
Wootton and
Cowes
Cowes () is an English seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina, facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east bank. The two towns are linked by the Cowes Floa ...
.
Public transport is now provided by
Southern Vectis
Southern Vectis is a bus operator on the Isle of Wight. The company was founded in 1921 as "Dodson and Campbell" and became the "Vectis Bus Company" in 1923. The company was purchased by the Southern Railway (Great Britain), Southern Railway b ...
on Route 2, which operates between Newport and
Sandown via
Shanklin including intermediate villages.
References
External links
Article about Percy Stone
{{authority control
Villages on the Isle of Wight