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| HER Number | MWB19676 |
|---|
| Record Type | Monument |
|---|
| Name | Marsh Benham, Speen |
|---|
Summary
Linear hamlet of mainly 19th century estate buildings, but with earlier origins
Associated Legal Designations or Protected Status
- Conservation Area: Benham Park
- Registered Park or Garden (II) 1000173: Benham Park
Monument Type(s):
- HAMLET (Mid 18th - Mid 19th century to Early 21st century - 1750 AD to 2050 AD)
Full Description
Marsh Benham is shown on Rocque's map of 1761 <1> as a linear settlement on the south side of the road, to the southwest of Benham Park. The Ordnance Survey First Edition map of 1880 <2> shows several cottages ranged along the road. The revised Pevsner guide <3> notes 'mid-Victorian estate cottages grouped around a courtyard', though it is not clear which cottages are meant.
The hamlet includes a stud farm (very early 20th century), many estate cottages and the Red House public house. This thatched building is first named as a beer house on the OS Second Epoch map of 1899 <4>, but its appearance suggests that it may be older than many of the estate cottages.
Apart from the timber framed former Manor House, there are no designated buildings within this historic settlement.
A gazetteer of markets and fairs <5> suggests Marsh Benham as the location of a market granted by King John in 1200 to Hugh de Nevill at an unidentified place in Berkshire. The market seems likely to have been within the Benham estate.
A Dame School for infants existed at Marsh Benham in the 1870s though its location is unclear; however a field on the Benham Estate is known as 'School Garden' <6>.
Sources and further reading
| <01> | Rocque, J. 1761. Rocque's Map of Berkshire. 1:35,000 (approx). [Map / SWB7242]
https://www.rct.uk/collection/700042/rocques-map-of-berkshire (Accessed 09/02/2021) |
| <02> | Landmark. 1872-85. Digital Ordnance Survey Mapping Epoch 1, 1:2500 (25 inch). Digital. 1:2500. [Map / SWB14341] |
| <03> | Tyack, G, Bradley, S and Pevsner, N. 2010. The Buildings of England (Berkshire). p162. [Monograph / SWB147855] |
| <04> | Landmark. 1899-1900. Digital Ordnance Survey Mapping Epoch 2, 1:2500 (25 inch). Digital. 1:2500. [Map / SWB14455] |
| <05> | Letters, S. 2003-2009. Online Gazetteer of Markets and Fairs in England and Wales to 1516. [Website / SWB147588]
http://www.history.ac.uk/cmh/gaz/gazweb2.html (Accessed 25/09/2015) |
| <06> | Sands, Rev N. 1984. The Stockcross Story. p21. [Monograph / SWB14189] |
Related Monuments
| MWB22952 | Benham Stud, Marsh Benham (Building) |
| MWB3760 | Manor House, Marsh Benham (Building) |
| MWB22949 | Site of a laundry and drying ground, Marsh Benham (Monument) |
| MWB22947 | Site of a pound, Marsh Benham (Monument) |
| MWB22950 | Site of a smithy, Benham Valence, Marsh Benham (Monument) |
| MWB17366 | Site of unnamed farm, Marsh Benham (Monument) |
| MWB20740 | The Red House, Marsh Benham (Building) |
| MWB19675 | Three timber ranges at Benham Stud, Speen (Building) |
| MWB16432 | Benham (settlement) (Place) |
Associated Excavations and Fieldwork
None recordedIf you have any comments or new information about this record, please email us.
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