England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Wickham St Nicholas

The Parish

The parish of Wickham lies in southern Hampshire roughly 4 miles north of the town of Fareham. Wickham sits on the A32 road which links Fareham with Alton. Wickham consists of two distinct portions bisected by the River Meon, the original village sat on the eastern banks of the river around the parish church, in 1269 Wickham was granted a charter to hold a market & fair and a planned settlement was created around a prominent square on the western banks. The market has not lasted, largely due to the proximity of its larger neighbour of Fareham but the small town nevertheless grew around that square into a mini-market town. The A23 road is joined from the northwest by the A334 from Eastleigh, the two forming a fork within which most of Wickham is contained. For most of its existence Wickham was a centre for trade, especially in the local livestock, and specialist skills, the wider parish, which is quite extensive, being largely farmed in mixture of arable and pastoral methods roughly equal in percentage, today vineyards have started to appear as conditions for grape growing improve. The usual market town industries of tanning and brewing developed based upon the clean water supply of the Meon and with the opening of the turnpike system Wickham also grew as a coaching stop. Much of Wickham's trade today comes from its independent retailers gathered around the square maintaining the small market town ethos. Modern developments have come and gone from the parish, a branch railway line headed northwards along the Meon valley having close leaving only bridges and cuttings along this stretch of its former route. Wickham is drained southwards by the Meon which reaches the English Channel at Titchfield Haven. Wickham is sited between 20 metres above the sea at the Meon's bridge to over 50 metres in its northwestern edges, to the northeast the highest ground is Lodge Hill which just fails to reach the 100 metre contour. Wickham parish. whilst large for a southern rural parish, is surrounded by much larger ones, it covered just over 2,400 acres and would have supported a population of close to 1,150 parishioners. In Domesday times Wickham was a mere 26 households, this being before the laying out of the market square, held by Hugh de Port it offered 9 ploughs, typical meadows & woodland but held 2 mills, presumably powered by the Meon.

The Church

St Nicholas' church stands east of the main centre today but would have been central to the original pre-market town village. The church stands at the junction of the A32 with the B2177 (Southwick Road), it stands within a circular mound which is believed to indicate an early Christian religious site similar to the "llans" of Wales, a foundation as early as 670 is mooted. The earliest fabric remaining in today's church is, however, 12th century, the re-set doorway within the western tower. That re-setting indicates the principal issue with dating St Nicholas, the extensive restorations and almost rebuilding that occurred in Victorian times. Snippets of the medieval remain, the 13th century Early English Gothic western respond of the arch from chancel to southern chancel chapel for example. Most of the fabric of the main body was probably of a similar date but that is masked by the rebuilding. Work began on upgrading the church as early as 1803 when the southern transept was rebuilt, a thorough restoration of 1862 is largely responsible for the western tower complete with its intricate bell stage and shingled splayfoot spire, further work progressed over a lengthy phase from 1872-1877. Even into the 20th century work has been ongoing, the interior being reorder in 1960 -57 whilst the southern transept and chapel were again restored in 1967. As the church stands at the junction of two busy road parking close by can be an issue, a pair of laybys south of the site on the A32 offering hope but often full. A winding pathway leads from the junction to the church through an unfenced churchyard which is beset by trees making for a challenging church for the photographer to adequate record.