Faringdon
Sign in to saveFaringdon is a historic market town in the Vale of White Horse, Oxfordshire, England, south-west of Oxford, north-west of Wantage and east-north-east of Swindon. Its views extend to the River Thames in the north and the highest ground visible is on the Ridgeway in the south. Faringdon was Berkshire's westernmost town until the 1974 boundary changes transferred its administration to Oxfordshire. The civil parish is formally known as Great Faringdon, to distinguish it from Little Faringdon in West Oxfordshire. The 2011 Census gave a population of 7,121; it was estimated at 7,992 in 2019. On 1 Fe
Key facts
- UK place.os_grid_reference
- SU286954
- UK place.population
- 7,121
- UK place.population_ref
- (2011 Census)
- UK place.civil_parish
- Great Faringdon
- UK place.shire_district
- Vale of White Horse
- UK place.shire_county
- Oxfordshire
- UK place.region
- South East England
- UK place.country
- England
- UK place.post_town
- Faringdon
- UK place.postcode_district
- SN7
- UK place.postcode_area
- SN
- UK place.official_name
- Faringdon
- UK place.static_image_name
- Faringdon, old Town Hall.JPG
- UK place.static_image_width
- 180px
- UK place.static_image_caption
- The Old Town Hall
- UK place.dial_code
- 01367
- UK place.constituency_westminster
- Witney
- UK place.website
- Faringdon Town Council
via Wikipedia infobox
Article
21 sectionsContents
- History
- Places of interest
- All Saints' Church
- Local legend
- Old Town Hall
- Faringdon Folly
- Faringdon House
- Geology
- Transport
- Roads
- Buses
- Railway
- Media
- Cultural pursuits
- Notable residents
- Nearby places
- Twin towns – sister cities
- See also
- References
- Sources
- External links
Faringdon is a historic market town in the Vale of White Horse, Oxfordshire, England, south-west of Oxford, north-west of Wantage and east-north-east of Swindon. Its views extend to the River Thames in the north and the highest ground visible is on the Ridgeway in the south. Faringdon was Berkshire's westernmost town until the 1974 boundary changes transferred its administration to Oxfordshire. The civil parish is formally known as Great Faringdon, to distinguish it from Little Faringdon in West Oxfordshire. The 2011 Census gave a population of 7,121; it was estimated at 7,992 in 2019. On 1 February 2004, Faringdon became the first place in south-east England to be awarded Fairtrade Town status.
==History== The toponym 'Faringdon' means 'hill covered in fern'. Claims, for example by P. J. Goodrich, that King Edward the Elder (reigned 899–924) died in Faringdon are unfounded. Domesday Book of 1086 records Farendone as a large settlement with 45 households (in the top 20% of all settlements in England for population) in the ancient hundred of Wyfold in Berkshire. Faringdon was one of many settlements owned by the king so had the benefit of paying no geld, a land tax.