Freshwater, Isle of Wight
| Freshwater | |
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.jpg) Freshwater Bay, December 2013 |
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 Freshwater
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| Freshwater shown within the Isle of Wight | |
| Population | 5,369 (2011 census) |
| Civil parish |
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| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | FRESHWATER |
| Postcode district | PO40 9 |
| Dialling code | 01983 |
| Police | Hampshire |
| Fire | Isle of Wight |
| Ambulance | Isle of Wight |
| EU Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | |
Freshwater is a large village and civil parish at the western end of the Isle of Wight, England. Freshwater Bay is a small cove on the south coast of the Island which also gives its name to the nearby part of Freshwater. Freshwater sits at the western end of the region known as the Back of the Wight or the West Wight which is a popular tourist area.
Freshwater is close to steep chalk cliffs. It was the birthplace of physicist Robert Hooke and was the home of Poet Laureate Alfred Lord Tennyson.
Freshwater is famous for its geology and coastal rock formations that have resulted from centuries worth of coastal erosion. The "Arch Rock" was a well-known local landmark that collapsed on 25 October 1992. The neighbouring "Stag Rock" is so named because supposedly a stag leaped to the rock from the cliff to escape during a hunt. Another huge slab fell off the cliff face in 1968, and is now known as the "Mermaid Rock". Immediately behind Mermaid Rock lies a small Sea cave that cuts several metres into the new cliff.
Freshwater's beach is very popular. It is mostly sandy but it is also covered in chalk from the nearby cliffs, which is frequently gathered by tourists as souvenirs.
Freshwater features an excellent example of a surviving Victorian Beach hotel, The Albion. The Albion was built around the time Freshwater became popularised as a coastal resort, and is still popular today. However, the heavy storms which often lift rocks and other debris from the beach means that the building's exterior walls often have to be repainted, with cracks, chips and dents in the walls often being repaired too.
The hills above Freshwater are named after Tennyson. On the nearby Tennyson Down is a Cornish granite cross erected in 1897 in tribute to Tennyson, "by the people of Freshwater, and other friends in England and America." There is also a hill in the area called 'Hooke Hill', named for Robert Hooke.
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Wikipedia