Harvington

Past

Harvington is first mentioned in the Anglo Saxon charters of 709CE when it was known as Herverton; in the Middle Ages it was called Herwynton.

Notable residents

Adam de Harvington, Chancellor of the Exchequer 1327-1330, took his surname from his native village. William de Harvington, possibly Adam's cousin, was Abbot of Pershore Abbey 1307-1340.

Harvey

The famous portrait artist lives in Harvington. She recently staged a sell-out art exhibition involving a watermelon.

Present

Harvington has a number of amenities including a shop, farm shop and Post Office. There are two pubs - the Golden Cross and the Coach and Horses.

The Village is also home to Harvington Cricket Club, Winners of 4 Worcestershire League Titles which they achieved in 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2013. The club has enjoyed some of its most successful seasons in recent years and are currently residing in the top Division of the Worcestershire County League where they aim for their fifth league title and promotion to the Birmingham and District Premier League. The club hosts also hosts county matches at various representative levels. In 2010 1st XI player Nathan Gage, also won the prestigious Worcestershire Cricketer of the Year sponsored by Duncan Fearnley and the Worcester News. The Club now holds the prestigious ECB Clubmark award for excellence in Coaching, Club Management and Safeguarding Children. The club runs free coaching sessions for local schools and holds Junior practice on Friday Evening.

The local River Avon is close by and is very popular with local fishermen. A large section of the bank is owned and managed by Manor Farm Leisure, who also run the local golf course, fishing lakes and holiday caravan site.

The village is served by Harvington First School, a small school of approximately 100 pupils aged 5 – 10 years. Older pupils attend nearby St. Egwins Middle School and Prince Henry's High School which are in the local town of Evesham, St James Church and the Baptist Church.

Railways

Harrington railway station previously served the village as part of the Gloucester Loop Line. In July 1858 the Redditch Railway Act authorised a line to link Redditch with the Midland Railway's Birmingham and Gloucester line at Barnt Green. The Redditch Railway opened on 18 September 1859 but was operated from the start by the Midland Railway.

In 1868 the Evesham and Redditch Railway built a line south from Redditch through Evesham to a junction at Ashchurch. There were intermediate stations between Redditch and Evesham at Studley and Astwood Bank, Coughton, Alcester, Wixford, Broom Junction (for the Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway), Salford Priors, and Harvington.

British Railways (BR) closed the line under the notorious Beeching Axe south of Alcester on 29 September 1962 after suspending the passenger service between Redditch and Evesham due to poor track condition. Freight services continued between Redditch and Alcester until 1964 when BR closed the whole line south of Redditch.