Villages: Aston Magna – Dorn – Lower Lemington – Draycott; Blockley – Todenham – Batsford – Sezincote – Bourton-on-the-Hill – Stretton-on-Fosse – Evenlode – Broadwell.
Moreton-in-Marsh is a market town situated at the crossroads of the Roman Fosseway with the Oxford-Worcester road (A44). A thriving market town (the market still happens every Tuesday come rain or shine) it has a wonderful array of varied shops for the traveller and the tourist, but also as its residents love so much, a whole range of everyday stores – some of which have been here for generations. “Any town that still maintains a hardware store on its high street is alright by me” – Anon.
Moreton’s aesthetic and characteristics are different from that of its neighbouring towns in Stow, Broadway and Bourton in that the main High Street came about in a different way. Instead of being built as the grand facades they are now, many of the properties fronting the High Street would have started life as burgage plots and so feature a grand looking front – likely added after increased prosperity – with long, narrow plots which contain all the other buildings of the property. The mix of architectural style is a sight to behold and unique to Moreton, featuring red brick, the darker honey stone of the north and the lighter stone of the south Cotswolds; from the 16th century curfew tower, to the Georgian bank buildings (now closed) and the grander residences of ashlar situated on Oxford Street and in Old Town, all looking up to the great Victorian structure at Redesdale Hall, which now acts as the town hall.
There are no fewer than eighteen different names by which Moreton has been known throughout history, and the “the” which is conspicuous by its absence in the name Moreton-in-Marsh was used as recently as 1732. The modern town is characterised by its incredibly broad high street with the Redesdale Hall an obvious and towering landmark, built to commemorate the golden jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887, and which sits almost on the junction of the two main roads.
For many, Moreton provides everything you could need, having the full-house of assets a town needs to be self-sufficient in this day and age: A supermarket, two doctors, dentist, filling station, a hospital and a primary school, (which feeds into the Academy at Chipping Campden for secondary-aged students) and of course, the station on the Hereford-Paddington West Country mainline from where you can be in London inside 90 minutes.
At the north end of the town, on the Batsford Road, there is a tennis club and cricket ground, where apparently the legendary WG Grace played in his later years, and on the London Road to the East there is the football ground – Now home to Moreton Rangers – and skate park. Interesting fact – Newport County played their home games at Moreton in Marsh in the late 1980s when they went out of business and were unable to play at home, despite Moreton being in a different country, and 80 miles away. Their name, ‘The Exiles’ remains to this day.
The Moreton Show is a country show – the largest one-day festival of its kind in the country which is held each year on the first Saturday of September. Held since 1949, this really is a combined effort of local volunteers and serves to highlight the still-close-knit community that Moreton-in-Marsh and surrounding villages are lucky enough to enjoy. Moreton is a working town that feels alive and active. Check out these great places when you visit next.
– The Redesdale Arms Hotel https://www.kinghamhill.org.uk/welcome-to-kingham-hill-school
– Otis & Belle Artisan Bakery https://www.otisandbelle.co.uk/
– The White Hart Royal https://whitehartroyal.co.uk/
Churches in Moreton-in-Marsh
– Church of England – St David’s https://www.stdavids.org.uk/
Sports & Leisure activities for people moving to Moreton-in-Marsh
– Moreton Sports Centre at The Fire College – https://www.moretonsportscentre.co.uk/
– Moreton Cricket Club – https://moreton.play-cricket.com/home
– Moreton Tennis Club – https://www.moretontennis.co.uk/
– Moreton Bowls Club – https://www.moretoninmarshbowlsclub.co.uk/
– Moreton Rangers FC – http://www.moretonrangersfc.com/
– 1st Moreton-in-Marsh Scouts https://northcotswoldscouts.org.uk/scout-groups/1st-moreton-in-marsh-scout-group/
– Moreton History Society – http://www.moretonhistory.co.uk/
