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BURITON
When man first came to Britain the South Downs was one of the first places he exploited. People have lived in the area ever since and they have all left their marks on the landscape that we see today.
Until relatively recently, agriculture was the main activity in the area, with thousands of sheep grazing on the Downs and high quality hops being grown in lower parts of the parish. But there is also evidence of a range of other crafts and industries including a 16th century glass ‘factory’, families of parchment makers and a number of chalk pits and lime works.
The Norman church of St Mary’s is to be found at the end of the High Street, at the foot of the Downs and by the Village Pond. It was begun between 1150 and 1200, located on the site of an earlier building that is listed in the Domesday Book. There have been many alterations to St Mary’s since the 13th century but the nave and the chancel date from that time. The original tower was destroyed in 1712 when it burnt down following a ‘terrible tempest of thunder and lightning nigh the top’ according to churchwarden’s records.
The Village Pond has always had an important role in village life. Carts and carriages were brought here to be washed and horses watered. Water from the pond was also used for hop-washing each year, to help prevent pests and diseases until the hops were ready for picking. A pump and tank were located by the southern end of the pond and a special solution mixed there was pumped by traction engine, all the way to the hop gardens. At the end of each working day in the nearby lime works, the horses which had been hauling trucks on the narrow-gauge railway were brought here to be washed. They would be ridden bareback down Kiln Lane and through the High Street by the pony boys. Then they would race back up to the lime works – an exciting sight for the village children.
Buriton Village Pond
Home to mallards and some giant carp
In the days when sheep used to graze all over the Downs, they were brought into the village for shearing and dipping each year. This was a great event in village life. The sheep were washed in an enclosure across the road from the pond. Men would stand in the water in wooden tubs to make sure every sheep was ducked. Once washed the sheep would go out through a brick arch and into the field beyond to dry.
For over 70 years, up until the Second World War, there was a great deal of industrial activity on the hillsides above the village. Scores of workers excavated the chalk and burnt it in a series of lime kilns. During the War the Admiralty used the site for enemy mine disposal and important mine countermeasures. At the end of the War much of the site was abandoned to the local flora and fauna and it has subsequently become a local Nature Reserve – Buriton Chalk Pits. Two walks take you around the site – one through the Quarry which is steep and the other a more gentle woodland walk. Both have steps.
Visit
For information about the Buriton Heritage Bank visit
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