Wickwar

Wickwar is a village and civil parish in South Gloucestershire, England, located between Chipping Sodbury and Charfield. At the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 1,943. The Wickwar brewery is a popular local producer of cask ale.The village is on the main Bristol–Birmingham railway line, and once had a station, but this closed in January 1965. To the south, the line passes through a tunnel 1401yd long. Wickwar also lies near to the source of the Little Avon River, which rises in woodland to the east.HistoryThe place-name 'Wickwar' is first attested in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'Wichen', meaning 'dairy farm or settlement'. The manor was given to John la Warre by King John and was held by Roger la Warre in 1285, when it was referred to as 'Warre Wyke'. Warre is a Norman family name which gave its name to Wickwar. The village originally lay on the Old Saltway from Droitwich to Chipping Sodbury and Pucklechurch, and was developed in the late 13th century by the de la Warre family with the establishment of a market in 1285. The main street, the present High Street, was laid out around the market place with uniform burgage plots and rear access lanes. Burghers paid an annual fixed rent to the overlord, but they could sell their tenancies much as in the free market today. In addition they often carried on trades and crafts which, together with their property rights, distinguished them from the feudal peasant. Livestock were often kept on the burgage plots behind the house, and this necessitated the rear access lane.