Hitchin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hitchin
View from Market Square in Hitchin, with St Mary's Church in the background
Hitchin
Population	33,352 (2011)
OS grid reference	TL181292
District	North Hertfordshire
Shire county	Hertfordshire
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	HITCHIN
Postcode district	SG4, SG5
Dialling code	01462
Police	Hertfordshire
Fire	Hertfordshire
Ambulance	East of England
EU Parliament	East of England
UK Parliament	Hitchin and Harpenden
List of places UK England Hertfordshire 51°56′49″N 0°16′59″W / 51.947°N 0.283°W / 51.947; -0.283

St Mary's, the Hitchin parish church

Hitchin is a market town in the North Hertfordshire district in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 33,350.

History

Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce people mentioned in a 7th-century document, the Tribal Hidage. The tribal name is Brittonic rather than Old English and derives from *siccā, meaning 'dry', which is perhaps a reference to the local stream, the Hiz. It has been suggested that Hitchin was the location of 'Clofeshoh', the place chosen in 673 by Theodore of Tarsus the Archbishop of Canterbury during the Synod of Hertford, the first meeting of representatives of the fledgling Christian churches of Anglo-Saxon England, to hold annual synods of the churches as Theodore attempted to consolidate and centralise Christianity in England. By 1086 Hitchin is described as a Royal Manor in Domesday Book: the feudal services of Avera and Inward, usually found in the eastern counties, especially Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire, were due from the sokemen, but the manor of Hitchin was unique in levying Inward. Evidence has been found to suggest that the town was once provided with an earthen bank and ditch fortification, probably in the early tenth century but this did not last. The modern spelling 'Hitchin' first appears in 1618 in the "Hertfordshire Feet of Fines".

Panel representing the foundational history of Hitchin mentioning: King Offa, the River Hiz and the Hicce tribe. Now on the front of Hitchin Library, it was on the Sainsburys on Brand Street until the supermarket relocated to the Bancroft area.

The name of the town also is associated with the small river that runs through the town, most picturesquely in front of the east end of St. Mary's Church, the town's parish church. The river is noted on maps as the River Hiz. Contrary to how most people now pronounce the name, that is to say as spelt, the 'z' is an abbreviated character for a 'tch' sound in Domesday Book, (as in the name of the town). It would have been pronounced 'River Hitch'.

Hitchin is notable for St. Mary's Church, which is remarkably large for a town of its size. The size of the church is evidence of how Hitchin prospered from the wool trade. It is the largest parish church in Hertfordshire. Most of the church dates from the 15th century, with its tower dating from around 1190. During the laying of a new floor in the church in 1911, foundations of a more ancient church building were found. In form, they appear to be a basilican church of a 7th-century type, with a later enlarged chancel and transepts, perhaps added in the 10th century. This makes the church older than the story (not recorded before the 15th century) that the church was founded by Offa, king of Mercia 757-796.

In 1697, Hitchin (and the nearby village of Offley) were subject to what is thought to have been the most severe hailstorm in recorded British history. Hailstones over 4 inches in diameter were reported

The town flourished on the wool trade, and located near the Icknield Way and by the 17th century Hitchin was a staging post for coaches coming from London. By the middle of the 19th century the railway had arrived, and with it a new way of life for Hitchin. The corn exchange was built in the market place and within a short time Hitchin established itself as a major centre for grain trading.

The latter half of the 20th century has also brought great changes in communication to Hitchin. Motorways have shortened the journey time and brought Luton, a few miles away on the M1, and the A1 (M) even closer. By the close of the 20th century, Hitchin had become a satellite dormitory town for London. Hitchin also developed a fairly strong Sikh community based around the Walsworth area.

During the medieval period, both a priory (Newbigging, now known as The Biggin) and a friary (now known as Hitchin Priory) were established, both of which closed during Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries. They were never reformed, although The Biggin was for many years used as almshouses.

The British Schools Museum in Hitchin is home to the world's only known complete Lancasterian Schoolroom, which was built in 1837 to teach boys by the Lancasterian method (peer tutoring).

Girton College—a pioneer in women's education—was established on 16 October 1869 under the name of College for Women at Benslow House in Hitchin, which was considered to be a convenient distance from Cambridge and London. It was thought to be less 'risky' and less controversial to locate the college away from Cambridge in the beginning. The college moved to Cambridge a few years later and adopted its present name, Girton College.

Transport

Rail

Hitchin railway station is on the East Coast Main Line Great Northern Line, and is also on the Cambridge Line as the last stop before it diverges towards Cambridge, 1.42 kilometres (0.88 mi) to the north east of Hitchin. The station is a call on services provided by Govia Thameslink Railway under its Great Northern and Thameslink brands. These provide direct connections to Cambridge, Letchworth Garden City, Peterborough and London Kings Cross; as well as St Pancras International, Gatwick Airport, Three Bridges and Brighton. Journeys to London and Cambridge typically take 33 minutes. Journeys to Stevenage take 5 minutes, Peterborough 45 minutes, and Gatwick Airport 78 minutes.

Hitchin Rail Users Group serve as the local voluntary group actively consulting with train companies on behalf of local people.

Road

The A505, A600 and A602 roads intersect in Hitchin, which is about three miles (5 km) from the A1(M) motorway and about ten miles (16 km) from the M1 motorway.

Aviation

Hitchin is about 14.48 km (9.00 mi) from Luton Airport, with a direct bus service linking the two. The connections are provided by National Express (number 787) or Arriva in Herts and Essex (100 Saphire services).

Culture and community

Lavender fields near Hitchin

In March 2013 a poll in The Times voted Hitchin the 9th best town in the UK in which to live. Hitchin is the venue for the annual Rhythms of the World festival. Now in its twentieth year, over 140 acts performed in 2011, with acts from India, Cuba, Australia, Congo, China, Senegal, Singapore and Germany taking part. Once the largest free festival of world music in Europe, an entry fee has been charged since 2008. It is part of the three-week Hitchin Festival which includes picnics, concerts, theatre, ghost walks, art exhibitions, comedy club, summer fetes and fireworks. Since 2014, Hitchin has hosted the yarn festival Festiwool, organised and run by members of Hitchin Stitchin.

There are a number of organisations for young people, including air, army and sea cadets and various scouting groups.

The main burial ground for the town is Hitchin Cemetery on St. John's Road.

Hitchin is twinned with:

• Nuits-St-Georges, France
• Bingen am Rhein, Germany

Districts of Hitchin

• Bearton
• Benslow
• Poets Estate
• Purwell
• Sunnyside
• Walsworth
• West Hitchin
• Westmill

Nearby settlements

Ickleford is a village situated on the northern outskirts of Hitchin, and to the south is St Ippolyts, Charlton and Gosmore. The nearest towns are Letchworth, Baldock, Stevenage and Luton.

Filmography

Part of the 2010 BBC TV series Just William was filmed at the British Schools Museum.

Scenes from the BBC drama series Doctor Foster were filmed in Hitchin

Miscellaneous

In 1960 Hitchin Urban District Council was the first in Britain to introduce 'black bags' for refuse collection.

Elizabeth the Queen Mother's birth in 1900 was registered at Hitchin, which is a few miles from her parent's English country house, St Paul's Walden Bury, where she spent much of her childhood.

Actor and comedian Bob Hope "claimed to have inherited his sense of humour from his paternal grandfather from Hitchin".

The 1951 book My Turn to Make the Tea by Monica Dickens is set in Hitchin (renamed Downingham in the book).

Sport in Hitchin

Top Field, the home ground of Hitchin Town F.C.

Rugby Union

Hitchin Rugby Club was founded in 1954 and competes in rugby union at all age levels within the Hitchin area. This includes teams at ages 7 to 12, 13 to 17, under 19s, seniors, over 35s, and a Ladies side.

The club's highlights have included playing at Twickenham in the final of the national Junior RFU Cup in 1993 and the establishment of the country's first Academy. Currently membership stands at over 500 people. The club are also active as a voluntary group with their community development programme.

Association Football

Hitchin Town F.C. was established in 1865 and later reformed in 1928. It is one of only three clubs who competed in the inaugural FA Cup, paying the then £25 entry fee (£2,892 in 2019 adjusted for inflation), and continue to compete. They claim to be the second oldest club in English football, but some dispute this due to the reformation in the 1920s.

The side currently compete in the Southern League Premier Division Central, the seventh tier of English football. The club play at 4,554-capacity ground Top Field, in the north of the town, and came close to achieving promotion in the late 2010s, but have recently come into a more troubled spell.

Their highlights include wins in the F.A. Cup against higher ranked sides Hereford United in 1994 and Bristol Rovers in 1995 during which period they developed a reputation for "giant-killing".

The side count Hitchin-born England international Jack Wilshere among their supporters. Wilshire studied at the Priory School in the town and now runs a youth scheme called the Jack Wilshere Soccer School.

The club were featured by Sky Sports during their coverage of Non-League Day 2019 (taking place on 12 October each year), with the broadcaster following the match day experience at the club.

Other sports

Hitchin is also home to Blueharts Hockey Club, a leading club since 1946, with 7 men's teams and 7 women's team plus a thriving junior section.

It also houses Hitchin Cricket Club, which has been an important cricket club within the area since 1866.

Hitchin Swimming Club are based locally and competes at local, county and regional level.

The Hitchin Nomads Cycling Club, which caters for many competitive and non-competitive cycling disciplines, was formed in the town in 1931. It is affiliated to British Cycling, the Cyclists' Touring Club, Cycling time trials and local cycling associations. Notable former members include pre-eminent cycling travel writer Harold Briercliffe and Max Pendleton, father of Olympic gold-medallist and track cycling World Champion Victoria Pendleton.

Formed in 2003 and known as FVS TRI until November 2009, Team Trisports is a Hitchin-based triathlon club. In addition to triathlon, the club an England Athletics and British Cycling affiliate.

Hitchin Running Club was formed in 2008 and is one of the most popular clubs in the town. They enjoy a large fan base and many local people of all abilities take part in the social activities. They are based at the rugby club and are a not for profit organisation.

Education

There are several primary schools in Hitchin. Secondary education is provided at Hitchin Girls' School, Hitchin Boys' School and the Priory School. There is a campus of the North Hertfordshire College in Hitchin, and it is also the home of the Benslow Music Trust which provides music education for adults, while North Herts Music School adjoined to Hitchin Girls' School delivers music lessons & activities for children & young people.

The Emil Dale Academy is located on Wilbury Way in Hitchin. EDA is a drama school where students train and study for a BA (hons) degree in Musical Theatre in partnership with the University of Bedfordshire. The school also has a sixth form and a weekend school.

North Hertfordshire Museum has an extensive collection that tells the story of the town and wider area from prehistoric times. The British Schools Museum is housed in original Edwardian and Victorian school buildings.

Notable people

Images for kids

• 

  The Queen Mother Theatre in the town

See also

In Spanish: Hitchin para niños