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Appleton Thorn is a village in the
Local schoolchildren dance around the tree in the style of a maypole chanting verses to the tune of ''
borough of Warrington
(God giveth the increase)
, image_skyline =Warrington from the Air - geograph.org.uk - 3153500.jpg
, imagesize = 280px
, image_caption = Aerial view of Warrington
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in Cheshire, England.
Appleton appeared in the Domesday survey
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 ...
as ''Epeltune'', meaning "the tun where the apples grew".
Bawming the Thorn
Each June, the village hosts the ceremony of "Bawming the Thorn". The current form of the ceremony dates from the 19th century, when it was part of the village's " walking day". It involved children from Appleton Thorn Primary School walking through the village and holding sports and games at the school. This now takes place at the village hall. The ceremony stopped in the 1930s, but was revived by the thenheadmaster
A head master, head instructor, bureaucrat, headmistress, head, chancellor, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school. In som ...
, Mr Bob Jones in the early 1970s. "Bawming the Thorn" occurs on the Saturday nearest to Midsummer's Day.
Local schoolchildren dance around the tree in the style of a maypole chanting verses to the tune of ''Bonnie Dundee
Bonnie Dundee is the title of a poem and a song written by Walter Scott in 1825 in honour of John Graham, 7th Laird of Claverhouse, who was created 1st Viscount Dundee in November 1688, then in 1689 led a Jacobite rising in which he died, beco ...
'', with the following repeated chorus:
''Bawming'' means "decorating" – during the ceremony the thorn tree is decorated with ribbons and garlands. According to legend, the hawthorn at Appleton Thorn grew from a cutting of the Holy Thorn at Glastonbury
Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbur ...
, which was itself said to have sprung from the staff of Joseph of Arimathea
Joseph of Arimathea was, according to all four canonical gospels, the man who assumed responsibility for the burial of Jesus after his crucifixion. The historical location of Arimathea is uncertain, although it has been identified with several ...
, the man who arranged for Jesus's burial after the crucifixion.
Famous places
Thorn Cross (HM Prison)
HM Prison Thorn Cross is a Category D Adult Male Institution for males aged 18-25. The prison is located in the village of Appleton Thorn (near Warrington) in Cheshire, England. Thorn Cross is operated by His Majesty's Prison Service.
His ...
is in Appleton Thorn, on the site formerly occupied by Royal Naval Air Station HMS ''Blackcap'', a wartime aircrew training and aircraft repair airfield. There are a number of graves of aircrew who died at HMS ''Blackcap'', mainly in flying accidents, in St Cross churchyard, known locally as "the war graves".
Administration
Appleton Thorn falls under the Warrington Borough ward of Grappenhall, and the UK House of Commons constituency of Warrington South, whose MP since 2019 is Andy Carter of the Conservative Party.See also
* Listed buildings in Appleton, CheshireReferences
Notes Bibliography * {{authority control Warrington Villages in Cheshire