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You are here: Home / The Village History Website / Before Written Records

Before Written Records

Before Written Records

In this Section

  • Geological Foundations
  • Hooky’s Dinosaur
  • Ancient Britons and Romans
  • Invaders of the Dark Ages

 

The extensive periods for which no written records exist remain Hook Norton’s Dark Ages, and we must rely on other sources of knowledge.

A geological record exists that explains the physical context in which human life has developed here. The parish has had a soil that is fertile but lacks some important minerals and an ironstone rock that provided not only a building material but also, for sixty years, the basis for heavy industry. The geology also reveals that animal life existed here long before humans, most dramatically the dinosaur that left its remains in the parish about 175 million years ago.

The archaeological record shows that human beings lived in this locality in the Bronze and Iron Ages, leaving evidence of the burial mounds, the roads, forts and settlements they built in the two thousand years before Christ. Little has been found of British civilisation before the Roman conquest of 43 A.D., but some exciting discoveries show that there were Roman villas and other settlements in the area, probably well into the fifth century.

Sometime after the Anglo-Saxon invasion began about 450 A.D., such existing settlements as may have been here grew into a defined village and human behaviour begins to become visible to us. The first brief written record tells of war and death in 913 A.D. and our parish church had its origins sometime thereafter, but sadly that world still appears “dark” to us, even though we appreciate that the Anglo-Saxons and Vikings developed considerable civilisations of their own. Only with the last wave of invaders – the Normans – does a fuller record begin to make possible the writing of the fuller histories of Hook Norton that may be found in the next section, entitled The Middle Ages.

© Donald Ratcliffe

21/09/15

Help us to help you – report any road problems you see.

The roads around Hook Norton are in a particularly poor state of repair at the moment. Help us to report these issues to the County Council by clicking the sign to the right, and see which problems have already been reported below.

RSS Latest road problems in Hook Norton

  • Street lighting out, 22nd January January 22, 2021
    Various street lighting out on Goldings Roads these have been out for some months now and makes the area dark. There has also been a couple of break-ins and vehicle thefts. Nearest road to the pin placed on the map (automatically generated by Bing Maps): 45 Goldings Road, Hook Norton Report on FixMyStreet
  • Blocked drainage gullies cause flooding in road., 20th January January 20, 2021
    In the dip just past Redlands Farm heading out of Hook Norton the road regularly floods as the drainage gullies across the verges on both sides have been blocked by a recently fallen tree. Nearest road to the pin placed on the map (automatically generated by Bing Maps): Redland Farm Sibford Road, Hook Norton Report […]

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Report a pothole or a road problem to the council by clicking here.


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Wendy Gordon is the Parish Warden. If you spot any issues around the village please let Wendy know on 07779 737718 or email parishwarden@hook-norton.org.uk

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