Prestwood
| Prestwood | |
|---|---|
 Prestwood
|
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| Prestwood shown within Buckinghamshire | |
| OS grid reference | SP876006 |
| Civil parish | |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Great Missenden |
| Postcode district | HP16 |
| Dialling code | 01494 |
| Police | Thames Valley |
| Fire | Buckinghamshire |
| Ambulance | South Central |
| EU Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | |
Prestwood is a village in Buckinghamshire, England. It is located in the Chiltern Hills, about a mile west of Great Missenden, four miles north of High Wycombe.
The village name is Anglo Saxon in origin, and means 'Priest-wood'. There is evidence of settlement in Prestwood from the Middle Ages, when the village was mainly covered in oak, beech and ash trees. Hatches Farm is one of the buildings that dates from the medieval period.
By 1849, more of the woodland had been cleared to make way for agriculture and common land, around which approximately 100 houses now existed. Many villagers worked in cottage industries such as lace making, and a wheelwrights was also present in the village. Many of the villagers made use of the common land to graze animals; there were about 70 watering ponds. In addition, gorse was harvested for fuel.Beech trees made up the bulk of the woodland, and were used in the local furniture industry. The small village population was served by five separate public houses.
Prestwood came into being as an ecclesiastical parish in 1849, when the Holy Trinity Church was constructed. The new parish combined portions of the parishes of Missenden, Hughenden and Hampden. The first vicar of Holy Trinity planted a set of ornamental trees behind the church; this now forms Prestwood Park.
In the Victorian era, Prestwood and nearby Great Missenden lay on the road between London and Birmingham. The two villages became important resting points for travellers; several rest inns came into being. Prestwood's pubs – now numbering twelve – owe part of their legacy to this fact; the name of the Travellers' Rest pub being a notable example.
Following 1850, much of the common land was sold off for agricultural development. By 1900, only a small amount of common land remained; today, Prestwood Common on Nairdwood Lane is one of the only pieces of common land still present in the village. Some of the watering holes remained, in addition to wells which were used for drinking water until the pipe network reached Prestwood in the 1930s.
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Wikipedia