Water Oakley is a hamlet on the
River Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
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 authorit ...
of
Bray in the county of
Berkshire, England.
It is the location of both
Bray Studios
Bray Productions was a pioneering American animation studio that produced several popular cartoons during the years of World War I and the early interwar era, becoming a springboard for several key animators of the 20th century, including the ...
and the
Oakley Court
Oakley Court is a Victorian Gothic country house set in overlooking the River Thames at Water Oakley in the civil parish of Bray in the English county of Berkshire. It was built in 1859 and is currently a hotel. It is a Grade II* listed bu ...
Hotel.
History
It first appeared on maps around 1800. However, the name 'Oakley' 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 ...
''ac-leah'' which translates as 'a clearing in an oak wood'. Local folklore suggests a
Saxon church there was demolished around 1293 to build
St Michael's Church in Bray.
Geography
Water Oakley has a
site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) just to the north of the village, called
Bray Pennyroyal Field
Bray Pennyroyal Field is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest between Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire.
This field is a filled in gravel pit next to the River Thames. It is the only site in the county for the nationally rare p ...
.
References
External links
Royal Berkshire History: Water Oakley
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Hamlets in Berkshire
Bray, Berkshire