Population 4,170 Region South East Sovereign state United Kingdom Shire county Buckinghamshire District Wycombe District UK parliament constituency Beaconsfield | OS grid reference SU905905 Country England Post town HIGH WYCOMBE Local time Monday 2:05 PM Civil parish Chepping Wycombe | |
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Weather 14°C, Wind W at 13 km/h, 53% Humidity | ||
Loudwater is a hamlet in the parish of Chepping Wycombe (where the 2011 Census population was included) in Buckinghamshire, England. It is located in the valley to the east of the main town, on the A40 London Road.
Contents
Map of Loudwater, UK
History
The hamlet name refers to the River Wye nearby, that also flows through High Wycombe. Its literal meaning is 'noisy water'. In manorial records in 1241 the hamlet was referred to as La Ludewatere.
The brick built St Peter's Church dates from 1788 with a gothic style chancel added in 1903 and further improvements in recent years, including new windows. On the London Road there is a Victorian mansion called Burleighfield House that was once the studio of the stained glass designer Patrick Reyntiens.
There was once a blotting paper mill in the valley and Loudwater had its own railway station on the Wycombe Railway that opened in 1854 and closed in 1970.
Today there is little to distinguish the hamlet from the urban sprawl of High Wycombe, though it is signed along the London Road. A 1744 milestone can still be seen and there is also still a traditional village pub 'The Derehams Inn' in Derehams Lane.
Features
Loudwater is home to several retail and industrial concerns - a large Tesco supermarket, the world's largest envelope supplier,an industrial estate, a small retail park, a Brewers Fayre motel and also the office of the local newspaper, the Bucks Free Press. The M40 motorway crosses over the valley close to the village, and facilitates the eastbound only Junction 3, signposted as 'Wycombe East'.
Loudwater was once served by the High Wycombe to Bourne End railway line, the station being situated at the bottom of Treadaway Hill. The line and station closed in 1970. Also, just past St Peters Church, there is a primary school called Loudwater Combined School.