The twisting road from Winchester
through Twyford to Bishops Waltham passes through the
village of Colden Common which was recorded in 1210 as Colvedene Hethe when a certain Arnoldo of Colvedene paid
his dues to the lord of the manor. In 1528 it become Coledown Hethe, eventually
becoming known as Colden Common.
Holy
Trinity Church, Colden Common
With itsIsolated farms and a few groups of dwellings it has now
become an ever growing dormitory for the commuters working in the
nearby towns.
But apart from a few light industries here is very little work to be
had in the village itself, though Palaeolithic finds indicate early trade in the
manufacture of flint implements using the Itchen waterway
for transport.
One of the
cottages in Colden Common
Brickmaking from local clay was one of the main industries but this is no longer carried out
though there are still traces of it in the names of Brickmakers Lane and
Kiln Lane.
The Welles family had a large house and land locally and
left their mark on history during the time of the
Reformation, Swithun Welles being martyred for his faith
as a Roman Catholic, and a window dedicated to him
in can be found in Colden Common parish church of Holy Trinity and a
school bearing his name in Chandler's Ford.
The infamous Tyre Fire in 1974 really put Colden Common on the map,
filling the newspaper headlines and causing fear, dismay and anger in the village.
It was in a roaring sea of flames that a huge
mountain of old rubber tyres burned and smouldered
uncontrollably for days, some houses being separated from
the blaze only by a bank of trees. The pall of smoke over Colden Common could be seen at Portsmouth and the Isle of
Wight. There were no deaths and no houses were damaged
thanks to the heroic efforts of the firemen, some of whom
were injured.
Even though the main road can become gridlocked ruing rush hours, a stroll through Colden Common still gives an air of
peace and quiet. Pretty, well kept gardens and the local girls riding their ponies and horses keep up
the rural atmosphere which makes Colden Common such a
lovely place to live in.
COLDEN COMMON NOSTALGIA
IMAGES OF
COLDEN COMMON
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