Great Amwell
| Amwell | |
|---|---|
 St John the Baptist, Great Amwell | |
| OS grid reference | TL365125 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | WARE |
| Postcode district | SG12 |
| Dialling code | 01920 |
| Police | Hertfordshire |
| Fire | Hertfordshire |
| Ambulance | East of England |
Amwell (Great and Little), is a village in the county of Hertfordshire, England, located 1½ miles (S.E. by S.) from Ware, and about 20 miles north of London. Great Amwell is also the name of the civil parish within East Hertfordshire district.
The Anglican church is dedicated to St John the Baptist. The East India College was founded here in 1806, for the education of young men intended for the civil service of the East India Company in India. It is now a public school, Haileybury College.
The New River runs through the village.
On a hill above the church is an ancient mound, the remains of a fortification; and in Barrow field, on the road to Hertford, is a large tumulus.
Great Amwell has been the residence of some celebrated literary characters, among whom are:
- Izaak Walton, (1593–1683) the noted angler.
- John Scott of Amwell, (1730–83), author of several poems and tracts, who built a grotto, containing several apartments, which still exists.
- John Hoole, (1727–1803), the distinguished translator of Tasso, and biographer of John Scott of Amwell.
Others buried in Amwell include:
- The remains of William Warner, (1558?-1609), the poet and historian, are interred in the churchyard.
- Alexander Small, (1710-1794), Scottish surgeon and frequent correspondent of Benjamin Franklin.
- Harold Abrahams, in 1978, the Olympian who was depicted in Chariots of Fire.
Richard Warren (d 1628) a passenger on the Mayflower in 1620, who settled in Plymouth Colony and co-signed the Mayflower Compact, married on April 14, 1610 at St. John the Baptist Anglican Church, Great Amwell, Elizabeth Walker, daughter of Augustine Walker. Richard and Elizabeth are the ancestors of two U.S. Presidents, Ulysses S. Grant and Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
A hamlet called Amwell also exists a mile south west of Wheathampstead, also in Hertfordshire.
Transport
The village has no railway station, the nearest being Ware or St Margarets both of which are on the Hertford-London Liverpool Street line which passes through the parish. There are a few bus routes, these are Route 310 (Arriva) Hertford-Waltham Cross which operates every 30 minutes Monday to Friday Daytime and,[1] Route 311 (Arriva) Hertford-Waltham Cross which operates every 30 minutes Monday to Friday Daytime and,[2] Route 351 (Centrebus) Hertford-Bishops Stortford which operates every two hours Monday to Saturday Daytime and hourly Monday to Friday peak hours,[3] Route 524 (SM Coaches) Harlow-Hertford which operates hourly Monday to Saturday Daytime, Route 724 (Arriva Green Line Coaches) Harlow-Heathrow Airport which operates hourly Daily.
See also
References
- ^ "Arriva Bus Timetable". Route 310 Timetable. Arriva. Retrieved 2010-02-08.
- ^ "Arriva Bus Timetable". Route 311 Timetable. Arriva. Retrieved 2010-02-08.
- ^ "Intalink Bus Timetable". Route 351 Timetable. Intalink. Retrieved 2010-02-08.
Further reading
- Heath, Cyril The Book of Amwell Barracuda Books Limited, 1980 ISBN 0-86023-085-6
- Doree, Stephen and Perman, David Amwell and Stanstead's Past in Pictures Publisher: The Rockingham Press 1997, ISBN 1-873468-57-1
External links
- Local Amwell amenities list Provided by Hertfordshire County Council - Accessed February 2007
- Amwell (A Guide to Old Hertfordshire)
- A Brief History of Hertford Heath based on a note written by Esme Nix of Rush Green and describing Little Amwell
