Erbistock

Erbistock
Welsh: Erbistog
The River Dee, seen from the churchyard of St. Hilary's church, Erbistock
Erbistock  Erbistock shown within Wrexham
Population	409 (2001 Census)
OS grid reference	SJ3558941494
Community	Erbistock
Principal area	Wrexham
Ceremonial county	Clwyd
Country	Wales
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	WREXHAM
Postcode district	LL13
Dialling code	01978
Police	North Wales
Fire	North Wales
Ambulance	Welsh
EU Parliament	Wales
UK Parliament	Wrexham
Welsh Assembly	Wrexham
List of places: UK • Wales • Wrexham

Erbistock (Welsh: Erbistog) is a village and a local government community, the lowest tier of local government, part of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. The village lies on the banks of the River Dee.

The community area, governed by Erbistock Community Council (Welsh: Cyngor Cymuned Erbistog) also includes the small villages of Crabtree Green and Eyton; it had a total population of 409 at the 2001 census.

History

Erbistock was one of the ancient townships of the Lordship of Bromfield, and was mentioned in the Domesday Book. It later became one of the parishes of the pre-1974 county of Denbighshire but a part lay in the detached part of the old county of Flintshire formerly known as the Maelor Saesneg, the Denbighshire portion having been attached to the Maelor Gymraeg. The Wrexham historian Alfred Neobard Palmer noted that this division was very old, and resulted from the desire of Edward I of England to strengthen English influence in the border borough of Overton. In April 1300 a writ was issued to Richard de Massey, the justice of Chester, to bargain with "certain Welshmen" holding lands in Overton with the offer of exchanging them with parts of the king's demesne lands in Erbistock.

A parish church dedicated to Saint Erbin was mentioned as far back as the 13th century but the present church, dedicated to Saint Hilary, was constructed in 1860. Palmer suggested that the name derives from "Erbin's stoke" meaning Erbin's stockaded ford.

The corresponding civil parish of Erbistock absorbed the neighbouring parish of Eyton in 1935. According to Palmer, Eyton was mentioned as early as 1043, when it was given by Leofric, earl of Mercia, to the minster he had founded at Coventry, and at the time of the Domesday Book survey was held by the bishop of Lichfield.

The village and its picturesque surrounding area have been defined as the Erbistock Village and Conservation Area by Wrexham county borough council.

Important Buildings

Erbistock has two popular pubs. The Cross Foxes at Overton Bridge, dating back to 1748, was built by the Wynnstay Estate for its workers. The famous 17th century Boat Inn stands beside the River Dee. The inn takes its name from the hand-operated chain ferry which once crossed the river at this point, with remnants of the pull mechanism still existing nearby.

On the riverbank next to the Boat is the Grade II listed St. Hilary's church. It was built in 1860, replacing a Georgian structure which had itself replaced an earlier timber-framed and thatched building, and was funded by Caroline Boates of Rose Hill and her daughter. Members of the Boates family also contributed the elaborate stained glass windows; the church contains an 18th century chandelier and a font bowl that may be Norman in origin.

Bibliography

Alfred Neobard Palmer, "A History Of Ancient Tenures Of Land In North Wales And The Marches" (1910)

Further reading

• Gordon Emery, Curious Clwyd (1994) ISBN 1-872265-99-5

External links

• St Hilary's at the CPAT web site
• St Hilary's at the Open Church Network
• Photos of Erbistock and surrounding area on Geograph
• Map sources for Erbistock