Lydney

Lydney is a town and civil parish in the English county of Gloucestershire. It is on the west bank of the River Severn, in the Forest of Dean District, and is 16 miles (25 km) southwest of Gloucester as the crow flies. The town has been bypassed since 1995 by the A48 road. The population was about 8,960 in the 2001 census,[1] reducing to 8,766 at the 2011 census.[2]

Lydney

Newerne Street, Lydney
Lydney
Location within Gloucestershire
Population8,766 
OS grid referenceSO634032
Civil parish
  • Lydney
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townLYDNEY
Postcode districtGL15
Dialling code01594
PoliceGloucestershire
FireGloucestershire
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
Railway lines in Lydney

For canal icons used below, please refer to waterways legend.

Dean Forest Railway
Severn and Wye Railway
Mineral Loop
Princess Royal Colliery
Tufts Junction
Tinworks
Tufts Bridge
Norchard High Level
Norchard Low Level
Engine Shed
Middle Forge Junction
 Lydney Town
 St Mary's Halt
Lydney Junction
Severn Bridge Tunnel
 Severn Bridge
Lydney
Gloucester–Newport line
Lydney Harbour Branch
Pidcock's Canal
Severn Railway Bridge
(Dismantled 1970)
Forges
Lydney Canal
Lower Docks
Upper Docks
River Severn
Swing bridge over
Gloucester & Sharpness Canal
Locks onto River Severn
River Severn
Severn Bridge Railway

Lydney has a harbour on the Severn, created when the Lydney Canal was built. Adjoining the town, Lydney Park gardens have a Roman temple dedicated to Nodens.

History
St Mary's Church, Lydney

In the Iron Age a promontory fort was established at Lydney Park and later used for iron ore mining. In the late Roman period, a Roman temple to Nodens was built on the site of the fort.

In 1588 the Vice-Admiral of England Sir William Winter was granted the manor of Lydney in recognition of his services against the Spanish Armada.[3] In 1723 the Winter family sold their Lydney estate to the Bathurst family[3]

In 1810, docks were constructed to capitalise on the town's location, close to the River Severn. The River Lyd flows through the town and into the Severn.

In 1935, Charles Bathurst was created Viscount Bledisloe of Lydney upon his retirement as Governor-General of New Zealand.

On 31 August 1962, the Beatles played at Lydney Town Hall[4][5]

The Lydney Murder, 1964

In 1964 the town was the site of the Lydney Murder, a significant case in the history of the use of entomology to assist criminal investigations.[6][7][8] On 28 June 1964 a body was found in woods near Bracknell. By studying the maggots found on the body, forensic entomologist Professor Keith Simpson was able to establish a date of death of around 16 June 1964. Missing persons records for that date led the police to believe that the body was that of Peter Thomas, who had gone missing from his home in Lydney. Fingerprints confirmed the identification. William Brittle, a business partner of Peter Thomas, was convicted of the murder. The Lydney Murder was the subject of an episode of the Discovery Channel documentary: "Crime Museum UK with Martin Kemp".

Transport

The Severn Railway Bridge crossed just north of Lydney from Purton to Sharpness on the eastern bank. Built in the 1870s, it was damaged beyond repair by a pair of oil tanker barges in 1960. The barges hit Pier 17 bringing down two bowstring girders. There have been several plans to renew the link.[9]

Lydney railway station, run by Transport for Wales which serves the town, is located on the Gloucester to Newport Line, with connections from the town centre by the Dean Forest Railway. Lydney Canal was once an important harbour for shipping timber, coal and iron from the Forest of Dean. It is now a harbour for pleasure craft.

A map of Lydney from 1946

The original name of Mumford Body & Engineering Company Limited was changed to Lydney Coachworks Limited in 1947 to continue bus bodybuilding work. Orders came mainly from local companies such as Red & White, United Welsh and Newbury & District plus a surprise order from Leigh Corporation in Lancashire. After only a short time the coachworks closed down in March 1952, the uncompleted orders being transferred to Bristol TCC and Eastern Coach Works.

Government and politics

Lydney is covered by a three-tier system of local government. The upper authority is Gloucestershire County Council which is based in Shire Hall, Gloucester. The second tier being Forest of Dean District Council, based in Coleford which is a non-metropolitan district council.

The lowest tier of local government is Lydney Town Council which covers an area of approximately 8 square miles. The council was awarded "Quality Gold" standard in September 2015[10] in a national award scheme for local councils.

Secondary education
  • Lydney Grammar School (1903–1973)
  • Whitecross School (1973–2012)
  • The Dean Academy (2012 to present)

Sport, recreation and arts

The town's rugby football club plays rugby union and is based at Regentsholme. The club had successful runs in the John Player Cup during the 1980s, including a match against Sale F.C. which was televised on the BBC's Rugby Special. There is also a leisure centre which contains an indoor swimming pool, a gym and more.

Cricket is also popular within Lydney, with the local side running three teams in various leagues, as well as having a popular social scene located within the club. Former Glamorgan captain and England opening batsman Steve James began his career at the club. Lydney was also the first English club of England wicket-keeper Geraint Jones.

Lydney has an outdoor swimming pool, the Bathurst Swimming Pool built in the 1920s, open from May until early September. It is operated by volunteers (excluding the life guards).

Lydney Town F.C. is based at the town's recreation ground, they run a total of 4 sides playing Hellenic Football League, Gloucestershire Northern Senior League and 2 sides in the North Gloucestershire Football League.

Lydney Hockey Club (Field Hockey) and Lyndean Netball Club play their home games at Whitecross School.

Freedom Leisure Lydney is located at the Dean Academy, the local secondary school.

Lydney Golf Club was a nine-hole course located off Lakeside Avenue. The club has built a new course on a site located on the opposite side of the Lydney Bypass.[11]

Lydney Twonkers Scrabble Club play their home games at the town's library. The Twonkers were Western Area Scrabble League champions in 2001 and 2005 and were twice runners-up in the National Scrabble Club Knockout Tournament in 1999[12] and 2003.

Bathurst Park in the centre of the town (not to be confused with Lydney Park on the town's outskirts) is home to several senior and junior football and cricket teams.

Lydney Town Band operates as a non-competitive training band.

Lydney parkrun started on 2 January 2016 - the free 5k timed weekly run, starts near to the garage block at Lydney Boating Lake and comprises three laps.[13]

Tourism

Twinned towns

Organisations

Notable people

See also

References
  1. "Neighbourhood Statistics for Lydney". Archived from the original on 11 October 2016. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  2. "Town population 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2015". Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  3. "Tudors and Stuarts". Archived from the original on 18 October 2006. Retrieved 2 November 2006.
  4. http://www.macca-central.com Archived 27 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  5. "Lydney Town Hall". Archived from the original on 18 May 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2008.
  6. discoverychannel.co.uk
  7. quincy.ca Archived 17 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  8. "derekbentley.com". Archived from the original on 23 June 2008. Retrieved 21 December 2008.
  9. Cork, Tristan (1 February 2018). "Plans for a third Severn bridge unveiled". Bristol Live. Archived from the original on 30 November 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  10. "Town council joins 'gold' club". Forest of Dean and Wye Valley Review. Retrieved 24 June 2019.
  11. "Lydney golfers move into new home". The Forester. 2 June 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  12. http://archive.thisisbradford.co.uk
  13. "Lydney". Park run. Archived from the original on 29 September 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  14. deanforestrailway.co.uk Archived 6 May 2003 at the Wayback Machine
  15. "TS Royal Forest – The Forest of Dean Sea Cadets". Sea Cadets. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
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