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Tilehurst
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tilehurst is a suburb some three miles to the west of Reading town centre in the English county of Berkshire. It is also, with different boundaries as described below, a civil parish.
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Tilehurst is situated on the high ground to the west of Reading, which rises gradually from central Reading with its highest point at the extreme west of Tilehurst. The area is bounded to the north by the valley of the River Thames, to the south by the valley of the River Kennet and to the west by the valley of the Rivers Pang and Bourne. In contrast to the gentle rise from the east, the drops into all three of these valleys are steep, as instanced by the steep road inclines of Kentwood, Langley, Norcot and Sulham Hills.
Because of this high ground, the main roads and railway lines of the area by-pass Tilehurst, with the Bath Road and railway line to the West Country in the valley to the south, and the Oxford Road and Great Western Main Line to Bristol, South Wales and the Midlands in the valley to the north. Tilehurst railway station, on the latter railway line, is in the extreme north of the Tilehurst area.
Position: grid reference SU667736
Nearby towns and cities: Reading
Nearby villages: Sulham, Tidmarsh, Theale, Purley-On-Thames, Pangbourne
Nearby suburbs: Calcot, Fords Farm, Southcote, Coley
Changes to local government boundaries over the years have split local government responsibility for Tilehurst. This fragmentation tends to lead to confusion and political controversy.
The eastern part of Tilehurst (sometimes referred to as Tilehurst Within) is in the Borough of Reading, forming the Tilehurst, Kentwood and Norcot wards of that borough. All local government responsibility for this part of Tilehurst lies with the borough council.
The western part of Tilehurst (sometimes referred to as Tilehurst Without) forms the civil parish of Tilehurst, which has an elected parish council. This part of Tilehurst falls within the area of the unitary authority of West Berkshire. Both the parish council and the unitary authority are responsible for different aspects of local government.
All of Tilehurst falls within the Reading West parliamentary constituency.
The name Tilehurst comes from tigel or tile and hurst or wooded hill. Tile manufacturing was present in the district until recent times.
- 1167: First mention as Tigelhurst
- 1189: Founding of St. Michael's Church, Tilehurst
- 14th century: Now Tygelhurst
- 16th century: Tylehurst
- Later Tilehurst
The manor house of Tilehurst is at Calcot Park within the ancient parish. It was, for many years, the home of the Blagrave family, whose members include the mathematician, John Blagrave, and the regicide, Daniel Blagrave. In March of 1894 JH Blagrave sold an area of land to the Church wardens and overseers of the parish of Tilehurst. This land later became known as the Blagrave Recreation Park (or the Rec). It was agreed that the land was there for the children of the area to use. Since then, it has been used by people of all ages, from various backgrounds. In March 1898 Tilehurst Parish Council were appointed as trustees being replaced by the forerunner of Reading Borough Council in February 1914.
William Lloyd, the late 17th century bishop of St Asaph, Lichfield and Coventry, and Worcester was born in Tilehurst in 1627.