Calne
From Free net encyclopedia
Calne is a town located in Wiltshire, England. It lies on the River Marden, the Wilts and Berks Canal and the A4 road about 18 miles east of Bath or 90 miles West of London. It is a small (though expanding) town with a population of 13,606 according to the 2001 Census. Image:Calne coa.png
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History
Calne's best known industry was Harris Pork factory that dominated the town architecturally and provided employment directly and indirectly to many of the residents until the early 1980s - at its closure in 1983 for example it employed over 2,000 people out of a town population of 10,000. It is said that the pork curing industry developed because pigs reared in Ireland were landed at Bristol and then herded to London through Calne. The factory started in the second half of the 18th century when brothers John and Henry Harris started businesses which joined together in 1888 as C. & T. Harris & Co. The factory has now been fully demolished and the area where it used to be located redeveloped as shops, housing and a library. As a result of the closure of the factory unemployment in the town increased and for much of the 1980s Calne suffered many of the problems more normally associated with large cities. Calne has also been involved in the woollen industry in the past, and evidence of this can be seen on The Green in Calne, where many buildings such as cloth mills involved in this industry remain.
Notable buildings
Notable buildings in the town include St Mary's Church, the houses on the Green and particularly the new Library which has won awards for its innovative design.
Transport
Calne railway station opened in 1863 on a branch line from Chippenham but the station was closed as a result of Beeching Axe in 1965.
Education
St Mary's School [1] is a noted independent school in Calne.
Representatives
Calne is located in the Devizes constituency and governed by Calne Town Council [2], North Wiltshire District Council [3] and Wiltshire County Council [4].
Famous people from Calne
Notable people from Calne include Saint Edmund, John Pym and the athlete Walter Goodall George who held the world record for the mile from 1886 to 1915. The country estate of Bowood House lies near Calne. It was here that Joseph Priestley discovered oxygen in 1774; there is a plaque in the town centre commemorating this. There is also a plaque on the wall of the house where Samuel Taylor Coleridge stayed from 1814 to 1816 as part of the Morgan household whilst writing his Biographia Literaria.
Twin towns
Calne is twinned with the towns of:
- Charlieu in France
- Eningen in Germany
- Caln Township in Pennsylvania, USA (which was so named because it was established by people from Calne, Wiltshire in the early eighteenth century)
Nearby villages
Calne is surrounded by numerous villages including:
- Bremhill
- Calstone
- Cherhill
- Compton Bassett
- Derry Hill
- Heddington
- Hilmartin
- Lyneham
- Sandy Lane
- Stockley
- Yatesbury