Bitton is a village and civil parish of South Gloucestershire in England, to the east of the

Greater Bristol Greater Bristol is a term used for the conurbation which contains and surrounds the city of Bristol in the South West of England. There is no official "Greater Bristol" authority, but the term is sometimes used by local, regional and national au ...

area on the

River Boyd The River Boyd is a river of some in length which rises near Dodington in South Gloucestershire, England. It is a tributary of the Bristol Avon, running in a southerly direction and joining near Bitton. The flow rate at Bitton is an average . ...

. It is in South Gloucestershire. The parish of Bitton has a population of 9,307, and apart from the village itself, includes

Swineford Swineford is a hamlet in the South Gloucestershire council area, very close to the boundary with Bath and North East Somerset. It is located around 1 km south-east of Bitton, and lies on the River Avon, on which the Swineford Lock is sited. ...

Upton Cheyney Upton Cheyney is a village near to Bitton and Bristol in South Gloucestershire South Gloucestershire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, South West England. Towns in the area include Yate, Chipping Sodb ...

, Beach,

Oldland Common Oldland Common is a village in the far south region of South Gloucestershire, England, on the outskirts of Bristol. It is in the civil parish of Bitton, approximately 8 miles between the centres of cities Bristol and Bath. Oldland Common is ...

, North Common and part of

Willsbridge Willsbridge is a village in the unitary authority of South Gloucestershire, England, located on the outskirts of Bristol. Willsbridge Castle, situated on a prominent hillside site, was built around 1730, with crenellations added in the nineteen ...

Governance

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

with the same name exists. This ward does not cover as much of the outskirts of Bristol as the parish. The total population of the ward taken at the 2011 census is 3,509.

Transport

The A431 road runs through the village. Beyond Bitton the road routes north-west to

and south-east to Kelston. The

heritage Heritage may refer to: History and society * A heritage asset is a preexisting thing of value today ** Cultural heritage is created by humans ** Natural heritage is not * Heritage language Biology * Heredity, biological inheritance of physical c ...

Avon Valley Railway The Avon Valley Railway (AVR) is a three-mile-long heritage railway based at Bitton station in South Gloucestershire, England, between Bristol and Bath and is operated by a local group: The Avon Valley Railway Company Ltd. The railway follows th ...

is based at

Bitton railway station Bitton railway station is the main station (and headquarters) of the Avon Valley Railway. It is located near the village of Bitton, South Gloucestershire. Facilities Bitton station contains a booking office, gift shop and buffet - as well a ...

. The National Cycle Network

Bristol and Bath Railway Path The Bristol and Bath Railway Path is a off-road cycleway, part of National Cycle Network NCR 4, National Cycle Route 4. It has a wide tarmacked surface, and was used for 2.4 million trips in 2007, increasing by 10% per year. It was built by ...

runs alongside the railway. Bus Routes 19, 37, 441, 443 and 684 run down the A431 and go towards

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

and bristol City Centres and suburbs.

Sport

Bitton A.F.C. Bitton Association Football Club is a football club based in the South Gloucestershire suburb of Bitton, in England. Affiliated to the Gloucestershire County Football Association, they are currently members of the and play at the Recreation Gro ...

are the local football team and Bitton CC are the local cricket team. They both play at the Recreation Ground, immediately south of the A431, just west of the village. Bitton Road Runners is a running club based in the east of Bristol which caters for all running abilities. Founded in 1986 to help people better enjoy the sport of running, it is a thriving club with over 300 members in both junior and senior sections.

Notable people

H. T. Ellacombe Henry Thomas Ellacombe or Ellicombe (1790-1885), was an English divine and antiquary. He was the inventor of an apparatus to allow a single ringer to ring multiple bells. Life Ellacombe was born in 1790, the son of the Rev. William Ellicombe, re ...

, the inventor of the Ellacombe apparatus used for bell-ringing, was curate from 1817 to 1835, and vicar from 1835 to 1850. His son

H. N. Ellacombe Henry Nicholson Ellacombe (1822–1916) was a British plantsman and author on botany and gardening. Life Ellacombe, the son of Henry Thomas Ellacombe, was born at Bitton, Gloucestershire in 1822. He attended Bath Grammar School and Oriel Coll ...

, vicar from 1850 to 1916, was active in the 1860s in the distribution of the robust, large, early-flowering snowdrop '' Galanthus nivalis'' 'Atkinsii' "''that grew at the south wall in his garden in Bitton.''"Page 65 of Stern F C, ''Snowdrops and Snowflakes – A study of the Genera Galanthus and Leucojum'', The Royal Horticultural Society, 1956 Bitton is the birthplace of author

Dick King Smith Ronald Gordon King-Smith OBE (27 March 1922 – 4 January 2011), was an English writer of children's books, primarily using the pen name Dick King-Smith. He is best known for ''The Sheep-Pig'' (1983). It was adapted as the movie ''Babe'' (1995) ...

and actress Richenda Carey, and was home to television presenter Noel Edmonds. Also Harold Crofton Sleigh the founder of H.C.Sleigh Shipping Company & Golden Fleece Petroleum Company, Melbourne,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, lived in Belmont House with his parents, in 1881.

Bibliography

Ellacombe, Henry Thomas ''History of the Manor of Bitton'', 1869. Ellacombe, Henry Thomas ''History of the Parish of Bitton'', 1881.

References

External links

Parish Council website

Parish Church of St Mary's, Bitton

Website of Bitton Road RunnersLocal History Group (Bitton Parish History Group)
{{Authority control Villages in South Gloucestershire District Civil parishes in Gloucestershire