Sandy, Bedfordshire
Encyclopedia
Sandy is a small market town
and civil parish in Bedfordshire
, England
. It is between Cambridge
and Bedford
, and on the A1 road from London
to Edinburgh
. The area is dominated by a range of hills known as the Sand Hills. The River Ivel
runs through Sandy. The dedication of the Anglican
church is to St Swithun. The town itself is also the location of numerous schools the biggest being Sandy Upper School
.
Sandy is probably best known today as the headquarters of the RSPB. The Society moved to The Lodge
, on the outskirts of the town in 1961. The Shuttleworth Collection
is also nearby, around 2 miles (3.2 km) south west of Sandy.
Sandy was originally a Roman
settlement and was probably an important trading centre and staging post in the Roman era. An ancient hill fort, now heavily wooded and known as "Caesar's Camp" although more commonly called "the sand hills" or "the lookout", still overlooks the town.
Sandy is referred to in the Domesday Book
, as Sandeia, a derivation from the Old English Sandieg, meaning a sand-island. In 1086 Sandy was listed in the Domesday Book as being held by Eudo Fitzhubert, who is likely to have been the Saxon tenant. He was probably also known as Eudo the Dapifer, who was a High Steward for William the Conqueror, and based in Colchester Castle
.
In addition there were also two mills listed, and both of these would have been water-powered. There are still references to one of them in the road name "Mill Lane" which runs along the river Ivel however the mill has since been replaced by housing. Further down the river from the site where the mill once stood is Sandye Place Academy where it is believed there was a Danish camp which was built to protect Danelaw in 886.
, and the Unitary Authority
of Central Bedfordshire
. It is within the Parliamentary constituency
of North East Bedfordshire.
Sandy is situated on the A1 which hugs the western edge of the town. The A603 leads west towards Bedford
; the B1042 leads east towards Potton
and Cambridge
. There are a number of bus routes, principally the M3 from Biggleswade to Bedford.
Sandy has a railway station
which is on the East Coast Main Line
. Services north to Peterborough
and south to London King's Cross are provided by First Capital Connect
.
The Varsity Line
, which connected Oxford
to Cambridge, also ran through Sandy. From Bedford to Sandy, the line is now part of the NCR 51
cycle route.
in France since 1982, as a result of which the Sandy Twinning Association was also established. The Association has also recently developed links with the town of Skarszewy
in Poland.
is commemorated by a garden and monument, at Girtford Bridge. It was unveiled on 23 September 1934 as more than 4,000 watched W. P. Cook, president of the Anfield Bicycle Club and the Road Records Association, perform the unveiling ceremony. The rector of Sandy blessed the memorial. The garden is triangular with a wall of local stone on one side. In its centre, a stone reads: “This garden is dedicated to Frederick Thomas Bidlake, a great cyclist, a man of singular charm and character, an untiring worker for cyclists 1867-1933”. A sundial in the centre of the garden is marked “He measured time”. A facsimile milestone is engraved “F. T. B. Few have known this road as he. London 48 - York 148”.
There is a statue of William Peel VC in the south transept of Saint Swithun's Church. Opposite the church across the High Street stands the Sir William Peel pub.
Market town
Market town or market right is a legal term, originating in the medieval period, for a European settlement that has the right to host markets, distinguishing it from a village and city...
and civil parish in Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is between Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
and Bedford
Bedford
Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire, in the East of England. It is a large town and the administrative centre for the wider Borough of Bedford. According to the former Bedfordshire County Council's estimates, the town had a population of 79,190 in mid 2005, with 19,720 in the adjacent town...
, and on the A1 road from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
to Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
. The area is dominated by a range of hills known as the Sand Hills. The River Ivel
River Ivel
The River Ivel is a river in the east of England. It is a tributary of the River Great Ouse.-Course of the Ivel:The river Ivel rises just north of Baldock in Hertfordshire, but most of its course lies within Bedfordshire. It flows through Stotfold, Arlesey, Henlow, Langford, Biggleswade, Sandy and...
runs through Sandy. The dedication of the Anglican
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
church is to St Swithun. The town itself is also the location of numerous schools the biggest being Sandy Upper School
Sandy Upper School
Sandy Upper School and Community Sports College is an upper school located in Sandy, Bedfordshire, England.The school educates 13 - 16 year olds, mainly from the town of Sandy and some surrounding villages. In addition, the school offers further education for 16 - 18 year olds through its Sixth...
.
Sandy is probably best known today as the headquarters of the RSPB. The Society moved to The Lodge
RSPB The Lodge
RSPB The Lodge is a nature reserve run by the RSPB, named after the building there, The Lodge, which is their headquarters. It is located south-east of the town of Sandy, Bedfordshire, in England.- Reserve :...
, on the outskirts of the town in 1961. The Shuttleworth Collection
Shuttleworth Collection
The Shuttleworth Collection is an aeronautical and automotive museum located at the Old Warden airfield in Bedfordshire, England. It is one of the most prestigious in the world due to the variety of old and well-preserved aircraft.- History :...
is also nearby, around 2 miles (3.2 km) south west of Sandy.
History
An archaeological dig in May 2006 revealed that the town's ancestors may date back further than 250 BC.Sandy was originally a Roman
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
settlement and was probably an important trading centre and staging post in the Roman era. An ancient hill fort, now heavily wooded and known as "Caesar's Camp" although more commonly called "the sand hills" or "the lookout", still overlooks the town.
Sandy is referred to in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
, as Sandeia, a derivation from the Old English Sandieg, meaning a sand-island. In 1086 Sandy was listed in the Domesday Book as being held by Eudo Fitzhubert, who is likely to have been the Saxon tenant. He was probably also known as Eudo the Dapifer, who was a High Steward for William the Conqueror, and based in Colchester Castle
Colchester Castle
Colchester Castle in Colchester, Essex is an example of a largely complete Norman castle. It is a Grade I listed building.-Construction:At one and a half times the size of the Tower of London's White Tower, Colchester's keep is the largest ever built in Britain and the largest surviving example in...
.
In addition there were also two mills listed, and both of these would have been water-powered. There are still references to one of them in the road name "Mill Lane" which runs along the river Ivel however the mill has since been replaced by housing. Further down the river from the site where the mill once stood is Sandye Place Academy where it is believed there was a Danish camp which was built to protect Danelaw in 886.
Government
Sandy is governed by two tiers of local government: the town councilTown council
A town council is a democratically elected form of government for small municipalities or civil parishes. A council may serve as both the representative and executive branch....
, and the Unitary Authority
Unitary authority
A unitary authority is a type of local authority that has a single tier and is responsible for all local government functions within its area or performs additional functions which elsewhere in the relevant country are usually performed by national government or a higher level of sub-national...
of Central Bedfordshire
Central Bedfordshire
Central Bedfordshire is a unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It was created from the merger of Bedfordshire County Council, Mid Bedfordshire and South Bedfordshire on 1 April 2009...
. It is within the Parliamentary constituency
United Kingdom constituencies
In the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies:...
of North East Bedfordshire.
Transport
Bedford
Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire, in the East of England. It is a large town and the administrative centre for the wider Borough of Bedford. According to the former Bedfordshire County Council's estimates, the town had a population of 79,190 in mid 2005, with 19,720 in the adjacent town...
; the B1042 leads east towards Potton
Potton
Potton is a town and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England. It is 10 miles from Bedford and the population in 2001 was 4,473 people. In 1783 the 'Great Fire of Potton' destroyed a large part of the town. The parish church dates from the 13th Century and is dedicated to St Mary...
and Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. There are a number of bus routes, principally the M3 from Biggleswade to Bedford.
Sandy has a railway station
Sandy railway station
Sandy Railway Station serves the town of Sandy in Bedfordshire, England. The station is north of London Kings Cross on the East Coast Main Line. Sandy is managed and served by First Capital Connect....
which is on the East Coast Main Line
East Coast Main Line
The East Coast Main Line is a long electrified high-speed railway link between London, Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield, Leeds, York, Darlington, Newcastle and Edinburgh...
. Services north to Peterborough
Peterborough
Peterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of in June 2007. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Situated north of London, the city stands on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea...
and south to London King's Cross are provided by First Capital Connect
First Capital Connect
First Capital Connect is a passenger train operating company in England that began operations on the National Rail network on 1 April 2006...
.
The Varsity Line
Varsity Line
The Varsity Line is an informal name for the railway route that formerly linked the English university cities of Oxford and Cambridge, operated successively by the London and North Western Railway, the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, and British Railways...
, which connected Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
to Cambridge, also ran through Sandy. From Bedford to Sandy, the line is now part of the NCR 51
NCR 51
National Cycle Route 51 is an English long distance cycle route running broadly east-west connecting Colchester and the port of Harwich to Oxford via Bury St Edmunds and Cambridge.Links to:* National Cycle Route 1 at Colchester and Ipswich...
cycle route.
Twinned towns
Sandy has been twinned with the town of MalaunayMalaunay
-Places of interest:* The church of St.Nicolas, dating from the nineteenth century.* An old manorhouse.-External links:* *...
in France since 1982, as a result of which the Sandy Twinning Association was also established. The Association has also recently developed links with the town of Skarszewy
Skarszewy
Skarszewy is a small town 40 km south of Gdańsk in Starogard Gdański County, Pomeranian Voivodeship, northern Poland. Located between Kościerzyna and Tczew. Population: 6 809...
in Poland.
Commemoration
Frederick Thomas BidlakeFrederick Thomas Bidlake
Frederick Thomas Bidlake was an English racing cyclist of the late 19th century who became one of the most notable administrators of British road bicycle racing during the early 20th century. The annual Bidlake Memorial Prize, was instituted in his memory...
is commemorated by a garden and monument, at Girtford Bridge. It was unveiled on 23 September 1934 as more than 4,000 watched W. P. Cook, president of the Anfield Bicycle Club and the Road Records Association, perform the unveiling ceremony. The rector of Sandy blessed the memorial. The garden is triangular with a wall of local stone on one side. In its centre, a stone reads: “This garden is dedicated to Frederick Thomas Bidlake, a great cyclist, a man of singular charm and character, an untiring worker for cyclists 1867-1933”. A sundial in the centre of the garden is marked “He measured time”. A facsimile milestone is engraved “F. T. B. Few have known this road as he. London 48 - York 148”.
There is a statue of William Peel VC in the south transept of Saint Swithun's Church. Opposite the church across the High Street stands the Sir William Peel pub.