Aston is a village about south of

Witney Witney is a market town on the River Windrush in West Oxfordshire in the county of Oxfordshire, England. It is west of Oxford. The place-name "Witney" is derived from the Old English for "Witta's island". The earliest known record of it is as ...

West Oxfordshire West Oxfordshire is a local government district in northwest Oxfordshire, England, including towns such as Woodstock, Burford, Chipping Norton, Charlbury, Carterton and Witney, where the council is based. Area The area is mainly rural downland ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The village is part of 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 ...

Aston, Cote, Shifford and Chimney Aston, Cote, Shifford and Chimney is a civil parish in the West Oxfordshire district of Oxfordshire in England. As the name suggests, the parish includes the villages of Aston, Oxfordshire, Aston and Cote, Oxfordshire, Cote, and the hamlets of Shif ...

. The southern boundary of the parish is the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 1,374.

History

Until the 19th century Aston was a township in the ancient parish of Bampton. In 1866 the civil parish of Aston and Cote was separated from Bampton. In 1931 Aston and Cote was united with

Chimney A chimney is an architectural ventilation structure made of masonry, clay or metal that isolates hot toxic exhaust gases or smoke produced by a boiler, stove, furnace, incinerator, or fireplace from human living areas. Chimneys are typic ...

to form the civil parish of Aston Bampton, which was merged with

Shifford Shifford is a hamlet in the civil parish of Aston, Cote, Shifford and Chimney in Oxfordshire, England. It is on the north bank of the River Thames about south of Witney. Archaeology There was a modest Iron Age and Roman-era pastoral settlemen ...

in 1954 to form the parish of Aston Bampton and Shifford.Crossley & Currie, 1996, pp. 62–80
/ref> The parish was later renamed Aston, Cote, Shifford and Chimney.

Parish church

The

Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ca ...

of Saint James was built in 1839 with only a low squat tower and one bell. Later a spire and second bell were added. The Gothic Revival architect Joseph Clarke restored the building in 1862, even though it was only 23 years old at the time. The architect HGW Drinkwater made further alterations in 1885–89. The present

ring Ring may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell :(hence) to initiate a telephone connection Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...

of six bells was cast by John Taylor & Co. of

Loughborough Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England, the seat of Charnwood Borough Council and Loughborough University. At the 2011 census the town's built-up area had a population of 59,932 , the second larg ...

in 1883, the two original bells being taken in part exchange. Two brass plates in the church commemorate the names of local clergy and churchwardens at the time of the bells' dedication and benefactors who contributed to the cost, the balance of which was raised by public subscription. In 1992 the bells were restored and re-hung by White's of Appleton following two years of local fund-raising. In 1857 Aston, Cote and Shifford were made part of the

ecclesiastical parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish priest ...

of Bampton Aston. It now forms part of the

benefice A benefice () or living is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The Roman Empire used the Latin term as a benefit to an individual from the Empire for services rendered. Its use was adopted by ...

of Bampton with Clanfield, which also includes the parish of Lew.

Pottery

Aston PotteryAston Pottery
/ref> was founded in 1990 and now employs 50 people producing over 120 different patterns on 45 different shapes. The pottery also has a café and gardens.

References

Sources

* *

External links

The Parish of Aston, Cote, Chimney & Shifford
* {{Authority control West Oxfordshire District Villages in Oxfordshire