View source for Bourne End, Buckinghamshire

{{Short description|Village in Buckinghamshire England}}
{{merge from|Coldmoorholme|date=November 2024}}
{{EngvarB|date=May 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2016}}
{{for|the village in Hertfordshire|Bourne End, Hertfordshire}}
{{Infobox UK place
|country = England
|official_name = Bourne End
|population = 5320
|coordinates = {{coord|51.581737|-0.713382|display=inline,title}}
|civil_parish = [[Wooburn and Bourne End|Wooburn]]
|unitary_england = [[Buckinghamshire Council|Buckinghamshire]]
|lieutenancy_england = [[Buckinghamshire]]
|region = South East England
|constituency_westminster = [[Beaconsfield (UK Parliament constituency)|Beaconsfield]]
|post_town = BOURNE END|postcode_district = SL8
|postcode_area = SL
|dial_code = 01628
|os_grid_reference = SU895875
|static_image_name=Bourne End and the Thames - geograph.org.uk - 516767.jpg
|static_image_caption=[[Georgian architecture|Georgian]] and [[Victorian architecture|Victorian]] houses, downstream from Bourne End Marina
|static_image_2_name=New apartments at Bourne End - geograph.org.uk - 948318.jpg
|static_image_2_caption=21st century development by the Thames
}}
'''Bourne End''' is a village mostly in the [[civil parishes in England|parish]] of [[Wooburn and Bourne End|Wooburn]], but partly in that of [[Little Marlow]] in [[Buckinghamshire]], England. It is about five miles (8&nbsp;km) south-east of [[High Wycombe]] and three miles (5&nbsp;km) east of [[Marlow, Buckinghamshire|Marlow]], near the boundary with [[Berkshire]] and close to where the Buckinghamshire [[River Wye, Buckinghamshire|River Wye]] empties into the Thames.<ref name="WDC">{{Cite web |url=http://www.wycombe.gov.uk/uploads/documents/Community%20and%20living/Wooburn%20parish%20fact%20file.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060927004406/http://www.wycombe.gov.uk/uploads/documents/Community%20and%20living/Wooburn%20parish%20fact%20file.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=27 September 2006 |title=Wooburn and Bourne End parish fact file, December 2005 |access-date=21 June 2006 |df=dmy}}</ref>
==History==
Bourne End's original location differed from today's established village centre, and was a half-mile downstream on the River Thames. The name refers to the end of the river (''bourne'' being an obsolete term for river), and derived from the mouth of the River Wye. Then a hamlet, it appears on Morden's 1722 map of Buckinghamshire as "Born end".<ref name="Map">{{Cite web |url=http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~genmaps/genfiles/COU_files/ENG/BKM/morden_bkm_1722.html |title=Buckinghamshire 1722, Robert Morden in Camden's Britannia |access-date=17 December 2007}}</ref> It was noted in the 19th century, however, that the name had been corrupted to "Bone End", apparently through local mispronunciation and thence on official maps and documents. In 1858, the vicar of [[Wooburn]] succeeded in reversing the change, and the corrected name remains in use today.<ref name="BBW">{{Cite book |last=Wheals |first=Brian Brenchley |year=1983 |title=Theirs Were But Human Hearts |publisher=H. S. Publishing |isbn=0-9509053-0-5}}</ref>
The length of the River Wye was the provider of water power for many [[watermill|mill]]s in the valley for hundreds of years, and Bourne End was no exception. There were four on the final stretch of the river: Princes Mill, Jacksons (or Gunpowder) Mill, Hedsor Mill and Lower Mill. These mills were historically the predominant employers in the area, along with the local farms and two [[wharf]]s on the Thames.
In the early nineteenth century, the settlement known as Bourne End was a [[Hamlet (place)|hamlet]] of [[Wooburn]] parish, along with others such as Spring Gardens, Eghams Green, [[Cores End]], Heavens Lea and Upper Bourne End. This changed with the emergence of the [[Wycombe Railway|Wycombe Railway Company]] in 1846. By 1854, [[Isambard Kingdom Brunel]] had designed and constructed a railway linking [[Maidenhead]] to [[High Wycombe]], via Bourne End. The station at Bourne End was originally named Marlow Road; then in 1873 a branch line to [[Marlow, Buckinghamshire|Marlow]] was built, and a year later the station was renamed [[Bourne End railway station|Bourne End station]] to avoid confusion with the new station at Marlow town.<ref name="MMP">{{Cite web |url=http://www.mmpa.org.uk/history.html |title=Maidenhead and Marlow Passengers Association |access-date=3 February 2005}}</ref> The railway created more travel opportunities for locals and greatly benefited the mills, and thus Bourne End expanded, on a greater scale than other similar settlements in the surrounding area. ''See [[Marlow Branch Line]] and [[Marlow Donkey]] for more information.''
The hamlets soon merged into what is now known as Bourne End, as did [[Well End, Buckinghamshire|Well End]] and [[Coldmoorholme]] in the neighbouring parish of Little Marlow. Both a church and school were built at the turn of the century for the residents' convenience. The Parade became established as the focal point of the village for shops and services.
In the 1920s Bourne End became home for two distinguished literary figures; [[Enid Blyton]], a perennially popular children's writer, moved into Old Thatch on Coldmoorholme Lane, and [[Edgar Wallace]], a prolific crime author and dramatist, bought Chalklands off Blind Lane. Another resident at this time was [[Louis Blériot]], the French aviator and aircraft builder, who lived at New York Lodge beside the Thames.<ref>Christopher Winn: ''I Never Knew That about the Thames'' (London: Ebury Press, 2010), p. 112.</ref>
The Royalty Cinema opened in The Parade in 1934. The late 1940s saw extensive development in Bourne End, of the Chalklands estate and the [[Council Estate]] north of The Parade. The 1960s saw the building of the Community Centre and Library in Wakeman Road after some years of local campaigning.
The [[Beeching Axe]] hit the village in 1969, as it was announced that the line between Bourne End and [[High Wycombe]], which had suffered reduced usage after the direct connection between Wycombe and London by the opening of the [[Great Western and Great Central Joint Railway]] in 1899, would be closed. The track bed was lifted soon after closure in 1970. A commercial estate was developed adjacent to the station, though most of the course taken by the railway remains as a footpath between the village and [[Wooburn]].
==Geography==
===Locale===
Bourne End lies between the [[M4 motorway|M4]] and [[M40 motorway|M40]] motorways, and retains its railway station on the [[Maidenhead railway station|Maidenhead]] to [[Marlow Branch Line]]. With rail and road accessibility to London, it has become a popular place for [[commuters]] to live.
All of the mills along the Wye Valley have now been shut down and demolished, Jacksons Mill in Furlong Road being the last (in Bourne End) in the late 1980s. These have been replaced by houses, offices or industrial estates, which has led to the continuation of the village as an employment centre.
Bourne End remains a distinct settlement, although the continued house-building over the past century means it is threatened by the evident [[ribbon development]], through to High Wycombe. In 1997, when the Local Plan was in preparation, the Residents Associations of Bourne End and Wooburn successfully lobbied to stop Slate Meadow (the field which separates the two settlements) being designated for housing for the time being. Other undeveloped land around the village looks likely to remain so, as it has been specified as [[Green Belt]], an [[Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty]], a [[Site of Special Scientific Interest]], or a combination of the three. In parts, Bourne End is surrounded by [[Farmland (farming)|farmland]]. Somewhat further away, [[Cliveden]] and [[Hedsor]] overlook the village from higher ground to the south east.
===Community===
Bourne End sustains many businesses and services whilst still retaining a village atmosphere. There is a Community Centre in the centre of the village, with a large hall, function rooms and a bar, which is open for member's use. It is, for many, considered the focal point of village activity.
In the early 2000s, a Twinning Association was established, and subsequently [[Octeville-sur-Mer]], a town on the north coast of France, was chosen to be its twin town. Frequent events are held by members of the association to foster and enhance the relationship between the two settlements.
===Administration and services===
The local government of the village is made up of two tiers. [[Wooburn and Bourne End|Wooburn and Bourne End Parish Council]] (formerly Wooburn Parish Council, until 2005), based in [[Wooburn]];  and [[Buckinghamshire County Council]], based in [[Aylesbury]] which was established as a unitary authority in 2020. The local police force is [[Thames Valley Police]]. Local healthcare services are commissioned by [[National Health Service|Buckinghamshire Primary Care Trust (PCT)]]; [[General Practitioner|GPs]] operate from The Hawthornden Surgery in Wharf Lane, and The Orchard Surgery in Station Road. Pound House Surgery at Wooburn Green is part of the same group of practices and nurses and other medical staff operate between all three.  There are two dentists, the Bourne End Dental Practice, and Advance Dental Services, both in Station Road.
==Leisure==
[[Image:Bourne End Marina.JPG|thumb|Bourne End Marina on the River Thames]]
The village has two recreation grounds (Furlong Road and Blind Lane), riverside open space at the [[marina]] and Spade Oak Reach, a Junior Sports Club and fitness centre and the long-established Upper Thames Sailing Club. For many residents and visitors alike, the river is the central attraction of Bourne End, and many leisure pursuits involve or revolve around it. The Sailing Club traditionally host a week-long regatta every year in June, known as ''Bourne End Week''.
Bourne End hosts a number of restaurants of varying cuisines. There are also a number of [[public houses]].
Near Bourne End, across the River Thames, is [[Cock Marsh]], an area of [[common land]] and [[floodplain]] owned by the [[National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty|National Trust]]. It is a [[Site of Special Scientific Interest]] and includes a prehistoric burial mound. Cock Marsh is accessible via the footbridge attached to the [[Bourne End Railway Bridge|railway bridge]] over the river, and footpaths continue to [[Cookham]], [[Cookham Dean]] and beyond.
The [[Thames Path]] National Trail follows the River Thames through Bourne End; upstream on the Buckinghamshire side, crossing the river at the footbridge, and downstream through Berkshire.
==Education==
Bourne End has three schools:
*Westfield School, on Highfield Road, a [[special school]] which was the village [[First School]] until 1995.
*Claytons Primary School, in Wendover Road, the village [[junior school]] which was formerly a [[Middle School]] and was merged with Westfield.
*[[Bourne End Academy]], in New Road, an [[upper school]] which has [[Specialist school|specialist]] [[Sports College]] status. Before its amalgamation with Pembroke School, [[Flackwell Heath]], in 1985, this was known as Deyncourt School, and subsequently as Wye Valley School until 2014. From late 2012 to late 2014, the school was suffering from poor results in [[OFSTED]] evaluations, and was ultimately placed into Special Measures and given the academy status.
There are a number of pre-schools and nurseries across the village.
==Religion==
The village currently has three active churches. The [[Anglican]] parish church, in Station Road, is dedicated to [[Saint Mark|St Mark]]. It was built in 1889 as a daughter church of St Paul's, Wooburn. The [[Roman Catholic]] church of [[Saint Dunstan|St Dunstan]] is in the centre of the village, off Cores End Road. The longest established is the [[United Reformed Church]] in Cores End, which was founded as a [[Congregational church|Congregational Chapel]] in 1773, as a nonconformist alternative to St Paul's in Wooburn.
Bourne End had a [[Methodist Church]] in Furlong Road, which closed in 2002. Well End once had a Congregational mission hall, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; this is now a residential house named The Chapel.
Bourne End also has the only UK branch of the [[Ramakrishna Mission]], Ramakrishna Vedanta centre .
==Shopping==
Bourne End continues to support a bustling array of shops, chiefly in The Parade. Community events focused on the village centre, such as "Fun Night" in December, have attempted to turn residents' attention to upholding local trade and businesses. There is a small parade of shops in Furlong Road, including the main Post Office.
==Noted inhabitants==
*[[Louis Blériot]] (1872–1936), French aviator, inventor, and engineer.
*[[Enid Blyton ]] (1897–1968), English children’s writer
*Sir [[Bernard Chacksfield]] (1913–1999) Royal Air Force officer.
*[[Bud Flanagan]] (1896–1968), British music hall and vaudeville entertainer and comedian)
*Sir [[Arthur Harden]] FRS (1865–1940), Nobel Prize-winning biochemist
*[[Renée Houston]] 1902–1980), Scottish comedy actress and revue artist
*[[Beatrix Lehmann]] (1903–1979), British actress, theatre directress, writer and novelist.
*[[John Lehmann]] (1907–1987), poet, publisher, man of letters.
*[[Rosamond Lehmann]] (1901–1990), novelist and translator
*[[Edgar Wallace]] (1895–1932), Crime writer, war correspondent, journalist, novelist, screenwriter, and playwright.
==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
==External links==
{{Commons category|Bourne End, Buckinghamshire|Bourne End}}
{{Wikivoyage|Bourne End}}
*[https://bourneendcommunitycentre.org.uk/ Bourne End Community Centre website]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090130061237/http://www.bourneendbucks.com/ Bourne End, Bucks — community website]
*[http://www.bebta.ukgo.com/ The Bourne End (Bucks) Twinning Association website]
*[http://www.cjo.fr/ The Octeville sur Mer Twinning Association website]
{{Wycombe}}
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[[Category:Villages in Buckinghamshire]]
[[Category:Populated places on the River Thames]]