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Bengeo

Coordinates: 51°48′14″N 0°04′44″W / 51.804°N 0.079°W / 51.804; -0.079
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Bengeo
Bengeo is located in Hertfordshire
Bengeo
Bengeo
Location within Hertfordshire
OS grid referenceTL3213
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townHertford
Postcode districtSG14
Dialling code01992
PoliceHertfordshire
FireHertfordshire
AmbulanceEast of England
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Hertfordshire
51°48′14″N 0°04′44″W / 51.804°N 0.079°W / 51.804; -0.079

Bengeo /ˈbɛn./ is a suburb and former village and civil parish on the north-west edge of the county town of Hertford in Hertfordshire, England.[1][2] It is an electoral ward of Hertford.[3] In 1891 the parish had a population of 2586.[4] In 1894 the parish was abolished to form Bengeo Rural and Bengeo Urban.[5]

Toponym

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River Beane towards Molewood
Taken from Beane Road

Bengeo is on a rise between the River Beane and River Rib overlooking Hartham Common. Its toponym is derived from an Old English name meaning spur or ridge over the River Beane.[6] The Domesday Book of 1086 records it as Belingehou.[7] It evolved through forms including Beneggho and Beningho in the 13th century, Bengeho in the 15th century and Benjow in the 16th century before reaching its current form.[2]

Geography and amenities

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The Avenue

Other than the south-east corner which adjoins Hertford, Bengeo is mostly surrounded by countryside. Informally (the terms having no official status) Bengeo consists of Upper and Lower Bengeo; Upper Bengeo is the area at the top of Port Hill leading out of Hertford town centre, while Lower Bengeo is the area on the side of the hill and centred on Byde Street. On an approximate north–south trajectory Bengeo is bisected by the B158, known as Port Hill as it leaves Hertford and climbs the hill to Upper Bengeo and then as Bengeo Street as it continues through, and then out of, Bengeo to the north. Leaving Port Hill to the east runs The Warren, an ancient footpath along the edge of the River Beane and Hartham Common leading to the ancient church of St Leonard.[8]

Bengeo has various amenities[9] including a post office, local shops, several public houses, two veterinary practices, a number of sports teams, two churches and a Plymouth Brethren Meeting Room. There are two State primary schools, Mill Mead Primary School in Port Vale in Lower Bengeo close to Hertford and, at the opposite end of Bengeo on the north end of The Avenue, Bengeo Primary School; on the east side is Duncombe School, an independent preparatory school.[10]

Notable buildings

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Holy Trinity parish church, New Road
Bengeo Watertower

The former parish church of St Leonard, Bengeo, is a 12th-century Norman building and the oldest building in Hertford.[2] It was the parish church of Bengeo until 1855, when it was succeeded by the new Holy Trinity parish church designed by Benjamin Ferrey.[11] St. Leonard's is still used for regular Sunday services in summer months, as well as hosting exhibitions and concerts.[12]

Close to St Leonard's Church along St Leonard's Road are three of Hertford's oldest houses, Revels Hall, built in the mid sixteenth century,[13] Bengeo Old House, formerly the vicarage, built in the late sixteenth century[14] and Bengeo Hall, built in the late seventeenth century[15] and home to landscape painter Joshua Gosselin.[16] All are Grade II* listed buildings.

On the west side of Bengeo are two further Grade II listed buildings, The Old Pest House and Little Molewood. The former, on the corner of Byde Street and Fanshawe Street, was built in 1763 as a smallpox isolation hospital;[17] the latter, situated on The Avenue, is an arts and crafts style house, built in 1904 for the Graveson family of Hertford by the architects Barry Parker and Raymond Unwin, who were the architects and planners of Letchworth Garden City.[18]

The prominent concrete water tower on The Drive was built in 1929 and opened in 1930 to boost the water supply to new housing which could no longer be adequately accommodated by the then (but no longer) existing pumping station and water tower on Tower Street. The Drive was developed after the construction of the tower.[19] Today it has an array of aerials on the top, providing inter alia a local television relay from Crystal Palace transmitting station.

Notable people

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References

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  1. ^ Archbishops' Council. "Holy Trinity with Christ Church, Bengeo". A Church Near You. The Church of England. Archived from the original on 27 May 2014.
  2. ^ a b c Page, W.H., ed. (1912). A History of the County of Hertford, Volume 3. Victoria County History. pp. 423–427.
  3. ^ "Hertford Bengeo Ward". East Herts Council. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015.
  4. ^ "Population statistics Bengeo AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
  5. ^ "Hertford Registration District". UKBMD. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
  6. ^ Williamson, Tom (2000). The origins of Hertfordshire. Origins of the Shire. Manchester: Manchester University Press. p. 65. ISBN 0-7190-4491-X.
  7. ^ "Browse, Family History: Domesday Book". Documents Online. The National Archives.
  8. ^ "Discover Hertford, Accessed 3 November 2013". Archived from the original on 14 November 2013. Retrieved 3 November 2013.
  9. ^ "Reading, writing and playing in Bengeo". Hertfordshire Life. 29 December 2011.
  10. ^ "Private Prep & Pre-Prep School in Hertfordshire - Duncombe School". Duncombe School.
  11. ^ Greely, Cliff. "Our History: Holy Trinity". Our History. The Parish of Bengeo. Archived from the original on 1 November 2013.
  12. ^ "Introduction to St Leonard's". St Leonards. The Parish of Bengeo. Archived from the original on 29 July 2013.
  13. ^ "Revels Hall". British Listed Buildings Online. English Heritage.
  14. ^ "Bengeo Old House". British Listed Buildings Online. English Heritage.
  15. ^ "Bengeo Hall". British Listed Buildings Online. English Heritage.
  16. ^ Gosselin, Joshua. "View from Bengeo Hall". Wikigallery.
  17. ^ "The Old Pest House". British Listed Buildings Online. English Heritage.
  18. ^ "Little Molewood". British Listed Buildings Online. English Heritage.
  19. ^ "Bengeo Water Tower". ourhertfordandware.org.uk.
  20. ^ Harris, Roger. "A Brief Biography of Captain W.E. Johns, Part One". William Earl Johns, Born Sunday 5th February 1893 - Died Friday 21st June 1968. Roger Harris.
  21. ^ Turnor, Lewis. "History of the ancient town and borough of Hertford". Pages 166-169 contain details about Dimsdale. Steven Austin and Sons. Archived from the original on 12 November 2013.
  22. ^ "The Old Pest House, Hertford, Hertfordshire". britishlistedbuildings.co.uk.
  23. ^ "Thomas Dimsdale | NatWest Group Heritage Hub". www.natwestgroup.com.
  24. ^ "Football Statisticians Obituaries".[dead link]
  25. ^ Sir John Rennie at www.stanford.edu
  26. ^ "Arthur Percival Biography". Archived from the original on 10 May 2012. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  27. ^ McMann, Evelyn de Rostaing (1 January 2003). Biographical Index of Artists in Canada. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 9780802027900 – via Google Books.
  28. ^ History of High Park
  29. ^ "FEILDE, Edmund (1620-76), of Shephalbury and Marden Hill, Herts. | History of Parliament Online". www.historyofparliamentonline.org.
  30. ^ "LEE, Sir Walter (c.1350-1395), of Albury, Herts. | History of Parliament Online". www.historyofparliamentonline.org.
  31. ^ Oscar Wilde's Last Stand: Decadence, Conspiracy, and the Most Outrageous Trial of the Century, 1997, Philip Hoare, Arcade Publishing Ltd.
  32. ^ Taylor, Barry. "Kenneth B. Gardner (1924-1995)". www.bl.uk.
  33. ^ "OBITUARY : Kenneth Gardner". The Independent. 1 May 1995.
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Media related to Bengeo at Wikimedia Commons