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About North Waltham
North Waltham lies 7 miles South West of Basingstoke and 2 miles from the M3. It has a vilage pond, church, victorian school and a recreation ground. The centre of the village consists of a number of older mixed architecture houses circled by a backcloth of trees. North Waltham is a desirable village not only in terms of character but also because of its convenience to major employment centres and ease of access to major road and rail networks. Between 1961 and 1971 the village population expanded by some 50%. In the Census of 2001, the village population was 840. Archaeological remains from the Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age indicate continuous occupation in North Waltham from pre-historic times. North Waltham, or Wealtham, belonged from an early date to the See of Winchester, and the manor was included in the Domesday Survey under the heading of Overton. The land continued to be the property of the bishops of Winchester until 1648, when it was sold to George Wither and John Yate. At the Restoration the land reverted to the bishopric and John Yate continued to occupy the manor house. The sites of three Roman buildings have yielded tiles, pottery, tesserae and metal goods. The fourteenth century Church of St Michael was rebuilt in 1865-6 and contains some of the original fabric together with a fifteenth century font from Popham church. Until the early 1950s, North Waltham had its own troupe of mummers, who performed traditional plays at Christmas as characters including St. George (or King George in some venions), Father Christmas, Turkey Snipe (corrupted from Turkish Knight) and Little Johnny Jack (who represented Everyman): actors wore elaborate costumes to disguise their identity so the magic of their ritual performance would not be spoilt. "Quishions, Kewerings and a Poul Cat - A View Of North Waltham From The Parish Records" has lots of interesting information about the village - visit www.nwsadhs.co.uk
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