Merrington is a small village in
Shropshire, England. It is situated to the north of the larger village of
Bomere Heath and lies in the
parish of
Pimhill
Pimhill is a geographically large civil parish in Shropshire, England, to the north of Shrewsbury. It is named after a hill, which rises to 163m, sometimes spelt Pim Hill. In recent times the parish is more well known as " Bomere Heath and Dis ...
. Nearby, to the west, is the hamlet of
Old Woods
Old Woods is a hamlet in Shropshire, England, located to the north-west of Shrewsbury. It is alternatively known and spelt as Oldwood, Oldwoods and Old Wood.
Situation
It is situated on a lane between the small villages of Merrington (to the e ...
.
History and attractions
The village can be dated back nearly a
millennium, with a record of a
manor
Manor may refer to:
Land ownership
*Manorialism or "manor system", the method of land ownership (or "tenure") in parts of medieval Europe, notably England
*Lord of the manor, the owner of an agreed area of land (or "manor") under manorialism
*Man ...
held here by Hunning in 1066. It was recorded as "Gellidone" in the
Domesday Book, by which time (1086) it was held by a
Norman noble.
["A Guide to Shropshire", Michael Raven, 2005, p 132]
The famous gardener, horticulturist and broadcaster,
Percy Thrower, built his own house in the village, called "The Magnolias", in 1963 on land he acquired with a friend. This gave him a garden of about one and a half acres to "play with", something which he had never had before. The garden subsequently became the location for some of the episodes of ''
Gardeners' World''. He opened the garden to the public in 1966, and this became an annual event to raise money for charity. Long after his death the house was demolished after falling into structural problems in 2014.
The village also has a notable Victorian
pump and deep well, paid for by
Robert Aglionby Slaney and his wife, members of a local wealthy family.
Just to the west of the settlement is Merrington Green. An area of heathland/woodland here is
common land, owned by
Shropshire Council and managed by the
Shropshire Wildlife Trustbr>
Fishing ponds have also recently been established at the nearby Hayes Far
The Green was a
US Army camp during
World War II and German
prisoners of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold priso ...
were kept here for a time.
The centre of Merrington is situated at 104m above
sea level; at Merrington Green there is a small hill which summits at 122m. The area is quite well
wooded, with Merrington Green, the woods towards Old Woods, and the woodland to the east at
Pim Hill.
Public transport
A frequent Monday-Saturday bus service (presently the 576) connects Merrington with
Oswestry
Oswestry ( ; ) is a market town, civil parish and historic railway town in Shropshire, England, close to the Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5, A483 and A495 roads.
The town was the administrative headquarters of the Borough of ...
,
Baschurch
Baschurch is a large village and civil parish in Shropshire, England.
It lies in North Shropshire, north-west of Shrewsbury. The village has a population of 2,503 as of the 2011 census. The village has strong links to Shrewsbury to the south-e ...
, Bomere Heath and
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...
.
See also
*
Listed buildings in Pimhill
References
External links
Villages in Shropshire
Shrewsbury and Atcham
{{Shropshire-geo-stub