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Coordinates: 51°21′29″N 2°07′30″W / 51.358°N 2.125°W / 51.358; -2.125
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{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}}
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{{infobox UK place
{{EngvarB|date=August 2019}}
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{{Infobox UK place
|country=England
|country=England
|static_image=[[File:Bowerhill, Melksham.jpg|250px]]
|static_image_name=Bowerhill, Melksham.jpg
|static_image_caption=Falcon Way
|static_image_caption=Falcon Way
|coordinates = {{coord|51.358|-2.125|type:city(500)_region:GB-WIL|display=inline,title}}
|latitude=51.36
|longitude=-02.12
|official_name=Bowerhill
|official_name=Bowerhill
|population=
|population=
|civil_parish=[[Melksham Without]]
|shire_district=
|shire_county=[[Wiltshire]]
|unitary_england= [[Wiltshire Council|Wiltshire]]
|lieutenancy_england= [[Wiltshire]]
|region=South West England
|region=South West England
|constituency_westminster=
|constituency_westminster = [[Melksham and Devizes (UK Parliament constituency)|Melksham and Devizes]]
|post_town=MELKSHAM
|post_town=Melksham
|postcode_district=SN12
|postcode_district=SN12
|postcode_area=SN
|postcode_area=SN
|dial_code=
|dial_code=01225
|os_grid_reference=ST9162
|os_grid_reference=ST914621
}}
}}


'''Bowerhill''' is an outer suburb of [[Melksham]], belonging to the [[civil parish]] of [[Melksham Without]]. Central Bowerhill is approximately 1.75 miles (2.75 km) south of Melksham town centre. Bowerhill has a sizable industrial estate to the west of its residential area. This industrial area had been developed from a former [[Royal Air Force]] military base.
'''Bowerhill''' is a village near [[Melksham]], [[Wiltshire]], England, in the [[Civil parishes in England|civil parish]] of [[Melksham Without]]. Central Bowerhill is approximately {{Convert|1.75|mi|km|1}} south of Melksham town centre.


Bowerhill has a population of approximately 3,000{{Citation needed|date=March 2021}} and was separated from the town of Melksham by a narrow rural buffer or green swathe until 2022, when most of the buffer was obliterated by housing. To the west of Bowerhill's residential area is a commercial area which developed from a former [[Royal Air Force]] training school. Melksham's only secondary school, [[Melksham Oak Community School]], is on the north-east edge of Bowerhill.
Bowerhill has a population of approximately 6,000 inhabitants and is effectively a small satellite town of Melksham. In the early-2000s (decade), new residential developments such as Hunter's Meadow boosted Bowerhill's population further.


== History ==
== History ==
An area south-east of Melksham was anciently the [[tithing]] of Woolamore, which may have been a property of [[Amesbury Priory|Amesbury priory]].<ref name="vch">{{Cite book |author-last1=Chettle |author-first1=H. F. |url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol7/pp91-121 |title=A History of the County of Wiltshire, Volume 7 |author-last2=Powell |author-first2=W. R. |author-last3=Spalding |author-first3=P. A. |author-last4=Tillott |author-first4=P. M. |date=1953 |publisher=University of London |editor1-last=Pugh |editor1-first=R. B. |editor1-link=Ralph Pugh |series=[[Victoria County History]] |pages=91–121 |chapter=Parishes: Melksham |access-date=8 December 2022 |editor2-last=Crittall |editor2-first=Elizabeth |via=British History Online}}</ref>
Bowerhill was a rural area until early in 1940 when building work began on a new RAF station. In July the RAF School of Instrument Training moved here from Cranwell and later a branch of the RAF Armament School also moved here. In the following years other courses were run and in 1942 the Armament School moved out and was replaced by the RAF Electrical School from Hereford. Much specialised training was undertaken at RAF Melksham with not only RAF personnel but Polish, Free French and American members of the Allied Air Forces.


Towards the end of the Second World War a large number of Royal Naval Air Service Mechanics were trained here and many transport drivers also received instruction. From the end of the war, RAF Melksham resumed its role in Electrical and Instrument courses and continued with this and other education programmes until the early-1970s. The station was then decommissioned and used for a mixture of industrial, commercial and residential use, with much development in the 1980s.
Bowerhill was a rural area until early in 1940, when work began on a new RAF station. In July the RAF School of Instrument Training moved here from [[RAF Cranwell|Cranwell]] and later a branch of the RAF Armament School also moved here. In the following years other courses were run and in 1942 the Armament School moved out and was replaced by the RAF Electrical School from [[RAF Hereford|Hereford]]. Towards the end of the Second World War a large number of [[Royal Naval Air Service]] mechanics were trained here and many transport drivers also received instruction. After the war, RAF Melksham resumed its Electrical and Instrument courses and continued with these and other education programmes until the early 1970s.<ref>{{cite web|website=Wiltshire Community History|title=Melksham Without|url=https://apps.wiltshire.gov.uk/communityhistory/Community/Index/159|publisher=Wiltshire Council|access-date=28 December 2015}}</ref>


This legacy is remembered in the area's street names, many of which are taken from historical aircraft of the RAF. These includes Falcon Way, Lancaster Road and Fulmar Close. The local pub is called The Pilot, and was formerly named The Harrier.
After the departure of the RAF, the site saw a mixture of industrial, commercial and residential use, with much development in the 1980s. Its history is remembered in the area's street names, many of which are taken from historical aircraft. These include Falcon Way, Lancaster Road and Fulmar Close. The local pub is called ''The Pilot'', and was formerly named ''The Harrier''.


The commercial area is home to several small business, the Wiltshire Gymnastics Centre and a household recycling centre. The German engineering company [[Knorr-Bremse]] Rail Systems (formerly Westinghouse Brakes Limited, part of Westinghouse Brake and Signal Co. Ltd) established large modern offices in Bowerhill in 2005, and in 2015 [[Herman Miller (manufacturer)|Herman Miller]], American office furniture manufacturer, opened a factory and offices in a building designed by [[Nicholas Grimshaw|Sir Nicholas Grimshaw]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Yilmaz|first=Tanya|date=10 July 2015|title=Herman Miller unveils multi-million pound Melksham factory|url=http://www.wiltshiretimes.co.uk/news/13407426.Furniture_firm_unveils_multimillion_pound_manufacturing_facility_in_Melksham/|access-date=28 December 2015|website=Wiltshire Times}}</ref>
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The village had been bounded from south by [[Great Western Railway|GWR]] [[Devizes Branch Line]], until its closure in 1966. The land formerly occupied by the railway has only begun being developed for new buildings in 2007.


⚫
The village was bounded to the south by the [[Great Western Railway|GWR]]'s [[Devizes Branch Line]] until its closure in 1966. In the first decade of the 21st century, residential developments such as Hunter's Meadow increased Bowerhill's population.
== Source ==
[http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/community/getcom.php?id=159 Wiltshire County Council - Wiltshire Community History]


== Notable buildings ==
⚫
==External links==
The house known as Woolmore Manor is behind a tall hedge on the north side of the A365 Bath Road, next to Woolmore (or Woolamore) farm. It was built in 1631 in red brick for George Hulbert, citizen and [[vintner]] of London,<ref name="vch" /> and has four gabled roofs behind its three-bay front, forming a square plan. There is a large [[Tudor period|Tudor]] fireplace, and two more upstairs. The house is [[Listed building|Grade II* listed]].<ref>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1021762|desc=Woolmore Farmhouse, Bowerhill|access-date=28 December 2015}}</ref>
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{{Commons category inline|Bowerhill}}


== Amenities ==
⚫
[[Category:Villages in Wiltshire]]
Bowerhill has a primary school and a village hall. Bowerhill sports field (5.34 hectares) was part of the RAF training school.<ref>{{cite web|title=Bowerhill|url=http://www.melkshamwithout.co.uk/index.asp?page=bowerhill|publisher=Melksham Without Parish Council|access-date=28 December 2015}}</ref> Melksham's secondary school, [[Melksham Oak Community School|Melksham Oak]], is in Bowerhill on the other side of the [[A365 road|A365]] Melksham-Seend road.


== References ==
{{Reflist}}


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== External links ==
{{Wiltshire-geo-stub}}
*[http://www.rafmelksham.info RAF Melksham website]
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{{Commons category-inline}}


{{authority control}}
[[pl:Bowerhill]]

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[[Category:Villages in Wiltshire]]
[[Category:Melksham Without]]

Latest revision as of 10:22, 30 September 2024

Bowerhill
Falcon Way
Bowerhill is located in Wiltshire
Bowerhill
Bowerhill
Location within Wiltshire
OS grid referenceST914621
Civil parish
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townMelksham
Postcode districtSN12
Dialling code01225
PoliceWiltshire
FireDorset and Wiltshire
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Wiltshire
51°21′29″N 2°07′30″W / 51.358°N 2.125°W / 51.358; -2.125

Bowerhill is a village near Melksham, Wiltshire, England, in the civil parish of Melksham Without. Central Bowerhill is approximately 1.75 miles (2.8 km) south of Melksham town centre.

Bowerhill has a population of approximately 3,000[citation needed] and was separated from the town of Melksham by a narrow rural buffer or green swathe until 2022, when most of the buffer was obliterated by housing. To the west of Bowerhill's residential area is a commercial area which developed from a former Royal Air Force training school. Melksham's only secondary school, Melksham Oak Community School, is on the north-east edge of Bowerhill.

History

[edit]

An area south-east of Melksham was anciently the tithing of Woolamore, which may have been a property of Amesbury priory.[1]

Bowerhill was a rural area until early in 1940, when work began on a new RAF station. In July the RAF School of Instrument Training moved here from Cranwell and later a branch of the RAF Armament School also moved here. In the following years other courses were run and in 1942 the Armament School moved out and was replaced by the RAF Electrical School from Hereford. Towards the end of the Second World War a large number of Royal Naval Air Service mechanics were trained here and many transport drivers also received instruction. After the war, RAF Melksham resumed its Electrical and Instrument courses and continued with these and other education programmes until the early 1970s.[2]

After the departure of the RAF, the site saw a mixture of industrial, commercial and residential use, with much development in the 1980s. Its history is remembered in the area's street names, many of which are taken from historical aircraft. These include Falcon Way, Lancaster Road and Fulmar Close. The local pub is called The Pilot, and was formerly named The Harrier.

The commercial area is home to several small business, the Wiltshire Gymnastics Centre and a household recycling centre. The German engineering company Knorr-Bremse Rail Systems (formerly Westinghouse Brakes Limited, part of Westinghouse Brake and Signal Co. Ltd) established large modern offices in Bowerhill in 2005, and in 2015 Herman Miller, American office furniture manufacturer, opened a factory and offices in a building designed by Sir Nicholas Grimshaw.[3]

The village was bounded to the south by the GWR's Devizes Branch Line until its closure in 1966. In the first decade of the 21st century, residential developments such as Hunter's Meadow increased Bowerhill's population.

Notable buildings

[edit]

The house known as Woolmore Manor is behind a tall hedge on the north side of the A365 Bath Road, next to Woolmore (or Woolamore) farm. It was built in 1631 in red brick for George Hulbert, citizen and vintner of London,[1] and has four gabled roofs behind its three-bay front, forming a square plan. There is a large Tudor fireplace, and two more upstairs. The house is Grade II* listed.[4]

Amenities

[edit]

Bowerhill has a primary school and a village hall. Bowerhill sports field (5.34 hectares) was part of the RAF training school.[5] Melksham's secondary school, Melksham Oak, is in Bowerhill on the other side of the A365 Melksham-Seend road.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Chettle, H. F.; Powell, W. R.; Spalding, P. A.; Tillott, P. M. (1953). "Parishes: Melksham". In Pugh, R. B.; Crittall, Elizabeth (eds.). A History of the County of Wiltshire, Volume 7. Victoria County History. University of London. pp. 91–121. Retrieved 8 December 2022 – via British History Online.
  2. ^ "Melksham Without". Wiltshire Community History. Wiltshire Council. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  3. ^ Yilmaz, Tanya (10 July 2015). "Herman Miller unveils multi-million pound Melksham factory". Wiltshire Times. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  4. ^ Historic England. "Woolmore Farmhouse, Bowerhill (1021762)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  5. ^ "Bowerhill". Melksham Without Parish Council. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
[edit]

Media related to Bowerhill at Wikimedia Commons

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