Hellesdon

Hellesdon

St Paul's Church, Hellesdon
Hellesdon

 Hellesdon shown within Norfolk
Area  5.24 km2 (2.02 sq mi)
Population 11,177 (2001 census)
    - Density  2,133 /km2 (5,520 /sq mi)
OS grid reference TG200105
District Broadland
Shire county Norfolk
Region East
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town NORWICH
Postcode district NR6
Dialling code 01603
Police Norfolk
Fire Norfolk
Ambulance East of England
EU Parliament East of England
UK Parliament Norwich North
List of places: UK • England • Norfolk

Hellesdon is a thriving suburb of Norwich in the District of Broadland in Norfolk, England. It lies approximately 4 miles (6.4 kilometres) north-west of Norwich and has 11,177 inhabitants.[1]

Contents

[hide]

History

Situated to the north-west of Norwich, Hellesdon is a popular suburb with a large population.

Hellesdon has signs of very early settlement as a variety of flint instruments have been unearthed in and around this suburb; it is thought that they date back at least 4,000 years. A collection of bronze axe heads were found near Hellesdon Hall and a skeleton dating from around 600 AD was discovered next to Hellesdon Lodge in Low Road. The name Hellesdon comes from "Hell's Den" as it was refereed to because women accused of witchcraft were often burned on it's tallest hill.

In the 1880s the railways reached Hellesdon linking it to nearby Norwich. In 1915 Mann Egerton built H1s, Spads and Type B seaplanes in Hellesdon and, in the 1920s, construction of the Ring Road began, making Hellesdon much more accessible.

Hellesdon was the home of the old Firs raceway (home of the Norwich Stars and of Ove Fundin, who was World Speedway Champion on a number of occasions in the early 1960s). The stadium was sold for housing in 1964 which brought the Norwich Stars Speedway team to an end.

The area has now developed into a major suburb of Norwich.

Amenities

Hellesdon has a number of small shops, an Asda supermarket, a B&Q store, six schools (one high school, two junior schools and three infant schools), and Norwich International Airport, which flies throughout Europe as well as the British Isles and is owned by Omniport. The high school, Hellesdon High School, is a specialist Technology College and shares a Sixth Form partnership with Taverham High. There is also a community centre for use by local clubs such as Hellesdon Horticultural Association, and a library. There are three remaining pubs in Hellesdon: The Bull At Hellesdon, The Falcon and The Whiffler. Former pub The Man On The Moon is now the Hellesdon doctors surgery, another former pub, The Bignold Arms, is now a fish restaurant and takeaway and "The Firs" is now a Tesco Express. It once had its own Hellesdon railway station, which closed in the 1950s.

Notes

  1. ^ Census 2001 Retrieved February 19, 2008

External links