Abingdon-on-Thames

About

Abingdon-on-Thames ( AB-ing-dən), commonly known as Abingdon, is a historic market town and civil parish on the River Thames in the Vale of the White Horse district of Oxfordshire, England. The historic county town of Berkshire, the area was occupied from the early to middle Iron Age and the remains of a late Iron Age and Roman defensive enclosure lies below the town centre. Abingdon Abbey was founded around 676 AD, giving its name to the emerging town. In the 13th and 14th centuries, Abingdon was an agricultural centre with an extensive trade in wool, alongside weaving and the manufacture of clothing. Charters for the holding of markets and fairs were granted by various monarchs, from Edward I to George II. The town survived the dissolution of the abbey in 1538, and by the 18th and 19th centuries, with the building of Abingdon Lock in 1790 and the Wilts & Berks Canal in 1810, Abingdon was on important routes for goods transport. In 1856 the Abingdon Railway opened, linking the town with the Great Western Railway. The canal was abandoned in 1906 but a voluntary trust is now working to restore and re-open it. Abingdon railway station was closed to passengers in September 1963. The line remained open for goods until 1984, its role including serving the MG car factory, which operated from 1929 to 1980. Abingdon's brewery, Morland, makers of Old Speckled Hen ale, was taken over and closed in 1999; the site of the brewery has been redeveloped into housing. The rock band Radiohead

Coordinates

51.6717, -1.2783

County

Oxfordshire

District

Vale of White Horse

Parish

Abingdon on Thames

Postcode

OX14 3JT

Parliamentary constituency

Oxford West and Abingdon

Phone

01235 523703

Nearest railway station

Radley — 3 km

Opening

Tuesday to Sunday 10am–4pm; closed 24 Dec–2 Jan

Official site

www.abingdon.gov.uk

Sources

• wikipedia: Abingdon-on-Thames (CC BY-SA 4.0)