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Wooler


Wooler is an historic market town and parish in Northumberland, situated on the edge of the Northumberland National Park, and the Cheviot Hills. It is located by Wooler Water and is about 15 miles south of Berwick and 12 miles south-east of Coldstream on the Scottish border. In 1199 AD, Wooler was granted a licence to hold a market every Thursday.
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Wooler is a small town in Northumberland, England. It lies on the edge of the Northumberland National Park, by the Cheviot Hills and so is a popular base for walkers and is referred to as the "Gateway to the Cheviots". As well as many shops and pubs, the town boasts a youth hostel, many hotels and campsites. It lies on the St. Cuthbert's Way long distance trail between Melrose Abbey and Lindisfarne.

The main A697 runs by the town linking Morpeth to Coldstream on the Scottish Border. Wooler contains two schools; Wooler First School and Glendale Middle School.

Close by is Yeavering Bell crowned by a large iron-age fort, a stronghold of the Votadini.

History

Wooler was not recorded in the Domesday Book, because when the book was written in 1086, northern Northumbria was not under Norman control. However, by 1107, at the time of the creation of the 1st Baron of Wooler, the settlement was described as "situated in an ill-cultivated country under the influence of vast mountains, from whence it is subject to impetuous rains". Wooler subsequently enjoyed a period of prosperity and with its expansion it was granted a licence in 1199 to hold a market every Thursday. The St. Mary Magdalene Hospital was established around 1288.

Wooler is close to Humbleton Hill the site of a severe Scottish defeat at the hands of Harry Hotspur in 1402. This battle is referred to at the beginning of William Shakespeare's play Henry IV, Part 1 – of which Hotspur is the dashing hero.

Wooler also used to have a drill hall that was the local "picture house" which children were evacuated to in World War II. There also used to be a fountain situated at the top of Church Street in the town. There are three churches in the town, all of which are Grade II listed buildings. The Anglican St Mary's dates from 1765 but has had church on the site for 700 years, the Catholic St Ninian's dates from 1856 while the United Reformed Church in Cheviot Street dates from 1778.

Alexander Dalziel of Wooler (1781–1832) was the father of the celebrated Dalziel Brothers. Seven of his eight sons were artists, and became celebrated engravers in London. Their sister Margaret was also an engraver.

Between 1887 and 1965 the town was served by Wooler railway station on the Alnwick to Cornhill Branch.

Meaning of place-name

Wooler may be from Old English wella "well, spring" and ofer (ridge, hill). A record of the name as Welnfver in 1186 seems to suggest this origin. The well or spring referred to is the River Till. The Wooler Water, (part of which is also known as `Happy Valley'), is a tributary of the River Till and is formed by a confluence of the Harthope and Carey Burns which rise in the Cheviot Hills, to the south of Wooler.

The other origin may be "Wulfa's hillside", from the Old English personal name Wulfa "wolf" and őra "hillside, slope", although this word in place-names usually means "river mouth, shore". A record of the name as Wulloir in 1232 may suggest this origin.

It is not certain which is the actual origin.

Governance

An electoral ward in the same name exists. This ward stretches from the Scottish Border south-east to Ingram with a total population taken at the 2011 Census of 4,266.

Notable people

  • John Alexander (1830–1916) was born in Wooler,[6] and was Chief Clerk to Bow Street Magistrates' Court from 1877 to 1895.
  • Josephine Butler (1828–1906) was a feminist campaigner who led the repeal of the Contagious Diseases Act was born in Milfield not far from Wooler, and retired to a house in Wooler in her final years.
  • Grace Darling (1815–1842) was a shipwreck heroine who came to Wooler in the last stages of her fatal illness.[7]
Text from Wikipedia, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License (accessed: 11/11/2016).
Visit the page: Wooler for references and further details. You can contribute to this article on Wikipedia.
Northumberland Glendale Weetwood Bridge, over River Till Humbleton Green Castle, near Humbleton St. Cuthbert's Way Earle Wooler Water Bendor Middleton Hall, near Wooler Map and Aerial View Wooler Civil Parish Haugh Head Historic Buildings and Monuments in Wooler Civil Parish Church of St Mary Church of St Ninian, RC Former Masonic Hall Former Police Station, Church Street, Wooler Former Railway Station Glendale Community Middle School High Street Wooler Parish, 1848 Map and Aerial View No. 5, Church Street, Wooler No.1, High Street, Wooler Old Milepost, South Road, Wooler Pillboxes, Wooler Common Tankerville Arms Hotel The Angel Inn, Wooler The Black Bull The Old Mill, Wooler Tower Hill, Wooler United Reformed Church War Memorial Wooler at War Wooler Prisoner of War Camp (Camp 105) Wooler Youth Hostel
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Wooler High Street

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Weetwood Bridge 1

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Wooler High Street

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War memorial in Wooler

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Wooler and a blue sky

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St Ninians, Wooler

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Humbleton
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Humbleton
- Overview Map Street View Humbleton is a small hamlet below Humbleton hill, located between Akeld and Wooler in Northumberland.
Earle
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Earle
- Overview About Earle Map Street View Earle is a small rural village and a civil parish in Northumberland close to the Cheviot hills. The village is 2 miles south of …
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George Renton - Fundraiser - Path Head, Wooler

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Wooler

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Church Street rising to meet Market Place

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The Peth, Wooler

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The Co-op, Wooler

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Wooler Youth Hostel

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Ramsey's Lane, Wooler

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Junction of Cheviot Street with The Peth

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Bend in road near Horsdon Farm

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A church hall in Wooler

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The Wheatsheaf Hotel, closed

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The Glendale Hall

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Footpath to Wooler Haugh

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Wooler Youth Hostel

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The Old Fire Station, Cheviot Street, Wooler

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Peth Head, Wooler

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Glendale Business Park

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Cheviot Road, Wooler

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Weir below Wooler Bridge on Wooler Water

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Public conveniences, Wooler

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Wooler, The Peth and Cheviot Street

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Wheatsheaf Hotel

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A disused storage and distribution depot at Wooler

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Whitsun View

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Green doors on Ramsey's Lane

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Bridge over Wooler Water

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Wooler HWRC

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Brewery Road, Wooler

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St Cuthbert's Way, Wooler

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A shepherd's rendezvous

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The Anchor, Wooler

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Wooler Evangelical Church

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Wooler

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Garden of the Tankerville Arms

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Essence and Beauty, Wooler

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The Black Bull, Wooler

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The Black Bull public house, Wooler

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Shops in Wooler High Street

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The Angel Inn

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Junction and bridge, Wooler

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Filling station in Wooler

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Victoria Road, Wooler

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Former flour mill, Wooler

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Former flour mill and steps to Church Street

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Police station, Church Street, Wooler

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The bus station, Wooler

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The Angel Inn and the Black Bull

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Wooler : Market Place

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Ramsey's Lane/Common Road

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Wooler Bowling Club

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Tenter Hill, Wooler

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Glendale Road, Wooler

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The Iron Bridge leading into Wooler

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Wooler, Church Street

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Shops in Wooler

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Wooler : Market Place

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Bicycle storage lockers, Wooler

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Curio shop, Wooler

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Wooler Bowling CLub

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Hotel in Wooler at the foot of a steep hill

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Wooler bus station

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Red Lion, Wooler

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Police Station, Wooler

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Ramsey's Lane Wooler

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Beautician's shop

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Wooler Fire Station

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Ambulance Station

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Animal Hospital

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Farm Buildings

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Wooler Town Centre

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Shop front, Wooler.

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Highburn House Country Holiday Park

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Houses in Ryecroft Way, Wooler

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Burnhouse Road, Wooler

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Gallowlaw Hill

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Highburn House campsite

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Approaching Wooler town centre along Burnhouse Road

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Padgepool Place, Wooler

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The stag of Highburn House

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Cheviot Primary Care Centre

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Weetwood Bridge, over River Till
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Weetwood Bridge, over River Till
- Overview Map Street View Weetwood Bridge is a single span stone bridge over the River Till, located near Weetwood Hall, and about a mile and a half north-east of Wooler and …
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Glendale Gateway Trust
- "The Glendale Gateway Trust is based at the Cheviot Centre, Wooler. It is an independent charitable, community development trust set up to support the community of Glendale – one of …

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EPW040660 ENGLAND (1932). The village and Wooler Water, Wooler, from the south-east, 1932
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Wooler Library

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Historic Buildings and Monuments in Wooler Civil Parish
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Historic Buildings and Monuments in Wooler Civil Parish
- Listed buildings and scheduled monuments in Wooler Civil Parish, Northumberland, from the National Heritage List for England[1]. Use the Search (below) if looking for a specific building / monument. Structure …

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County: Northumberland
Grid sq: NT9828
Grid sq: NT9927
Grid sq: NT9928

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