Epworth, Lincolnshire

Short description: Town and civil parish in North Lincolnshire, England

Epworth

File:Epworth Market Pl - geograph.org.uk - 6334800.jpg

File:Market Cross in Epworth - geograph.org.uk - 6354305.jpg

File:Wesley Memorial Church, Epworth - geograph.org.uk - 4371440.jpg

File:Statue of John Wesley, Epworth - geograph.org.uk - 6336531.jpg

From the top, Epworth Market Place, Wesley Memorial Church, John Wesley Statue, St Andrew's Church and Market Cross

Epworth

Location within Lincolnshire

Population| 4,363 2021 Census
OS grid reference| SE780039
• London| Template:Infobox UK place/dist SSE
Unitary authority|

* North Lincolnshire

Ceremonial county|

* Lincolnshire

Region|

* Yorkshire and the Humber

Country| England
Sovereign state| United Kingdom
Post town| DONCASTER
Postcode district| DN9
Dialling code| 01427
Police| Humberside
Fire| Humberside
Ambulance| East Midlands
UK Parliament|

* Doncaster East and the Isle of Axholme

Website| www.epworthtowncouncil.com

List of places

England
Lincolnshire
[ ⚑ ] : 53°31′30″N 0°49′12″W﻿ / ﻿53.525°N 0.820°W﻿ / 53.525; -0.820

Epworth is a market town and civil parish on the Isle of Axholme, in North Lincolnshire, England.[1] The town lies on the A161, about halfway between Goole and Gainsborough. As the birthplace of John Wesley and Charles Wesley, it has given its name to multiple institutions associated with Methodism. Their father, Samuel Wesley, was the rector from 1695 to 1735.

## Contents

* 1 History
* 2 Landmarks
* 3 Demographics
* 4 Transport
* 5 Media
* 6 Events
* 6.1 Epworth Show
* 6.2 Festival of the Plough
* 7 Namesakes
* 8 Notable people
* 9 References
* 9.1 Notes
* 9.2 Bibliography
* 10 External links

## History

Epworth is in the Isle of Axholme. The Isle is so called because, until it was drained by the Dutch engineer Sir Cornelius Vermuyden in 1627–1629, it was an inland island, surrounded by rivers, streams, bogs and meres.

The Domesday Book in 1086 recorded:

> "Manor In Epeuerde, Ledwin had eight carucates of land to be taxed. Land to twelve ploughs. Geoffrey de Wirce has there two ploughs, and eight sokemen, with two carucates and five oxgangs of this land; and thirteen villanes and nine bordars with six ploughs, and eleven fisheries of five shillings, and sixteen acres [6.5 hectares] of meadow. Wood pasture one mile [1.5 km] long and one mile [1.5 km] broad.. Value in King Edword's time £8 now £5. Tallaged at twenty shillings.[2]

A grant of the common land to the freeholders and other tenants, made by deed in 1360 by John de Mowbray, Lord of the manor, gave privileges and freedoms over the use of common land, reed gathering, rights over fish and fowl and such wildlife as could be taken by the commoners for food. The deed caused repercussions in the reign of King Charles I (1625–1649) when Vermuyden was granted the task of draining the Isle and he and his Dutch partners came under regular attack in their stockade at Sandtoft. The draining of the land saw the ancient rights of the commoners encroached upon: as the land dried up they lost their supply of wildfowl for food, foraging rights and employment as mere men, swanniers, and ferry operators in addition to their grazing rights. A whole way of life that had seen annual otter hunts on the Trent, not to mention abundant salmon, was lost along with multiple livelihoods. The resentment felt by the Isle of Axholme towards the king doubtless explains their siding with Parliament in the English Civil War (1642–1651).[3] Nevertheless, Vermuyden's work, an outstanding piece of irrigation engineering, turned thousands of acres of marsh and bog, which had been impassable except in high summer or hard frost, into the rich arable farmland that the Isle benefits from today.

The Isle of Axholme was originally the eight parishes of Althorpe, Belton, Crowle, Epworth, Haxey, Luddington, Owston and Wroot.[4]

The Old Rectory, where the Wesley family lived in the 18th century

## Landmarks

St Andrew's parish church

The Old Rectory, a Queen Anne style building, rebuilt after the fire of 1709, has been completely restored and is now the property of the World Methodist Council. It is maintained as a museum. It is also the site of supposed paranormal events that occurred there in 1716, while the Wesley family was living in the house.[5][6]

The Church of England parish church of Saint Andrew is on a hill overlooking the town. Its architecture suggests[according to whom?] that its oldest part may have been built in the late 12th century with later additions in the 14th and 15th centuries. The Rev. Samuel Wesley, father of John and Charles Wesley, was Rector here (and is buried in the churchyard).

Wesley Memorial church

Epworth is described as the 'Home of Methodism' and there is a Methodist church in the centre of the town. This was built in 1888 (opened for worship in 1889) and continues to be a busy hub in the centre of the community. The church (along with the town as a whole) attracts hundreds of visitors from around the world each year tracing the history of the Methodist movement. There is a trail[7] around the town linking the sites which were significant for the Wesley family.

## Demographics

Epworth had a population of 4,363 at the 2021 Census. The ethnic makeup of the town was recorded at 97.9% White British and Ethnic Minorities were recorded at 1,1% of the population. Christianity has the highest religious following at 59.7% of the local population, followed by irreligious at 38.6% and Islam at 0.7%. Other religious and faiths were less than 0.5%.[8]

## Transport

Epworth is served by buses provided by Isle Coaches, Stagecoach Buses and First South Yorkshire which give the town services to towns such as Doncaster, Scunthorpe and Haxey.[9] The town was served by a station on the Axholme Joint Railway which ran from Goole to Lincoln via a connecting spur to the Doncaster to Lincoln Line. The station closed to passengers in 1933 and the line closing to freight and excursion services in 1956. The site has been redeveloped and is now occupied by a farm store. Another station was opened on the Doncaster to Lincoln Line in the town of Haxey. However, this station closed in 1964 lasting longer than the previous station of the same name. The nearest mainline station is now in the nearby town of Crowle.

## Media

Television signals are received from either the Emley Moor or Belmont TV transmitters. The town is served by both BBC Radio Humberside and BBC Radio Sheffield. Other radio stations are Greatest Hits Radio Yorkshire, Hits Radio East Yorkshire & North Lincolnshire, Hits Radio Lincolnshire and TMCR 95.3, a community based radio station which broadcast from its studios in Thorne.[10] Local newspaper is served by the Doncaster Free Press (formerly The Epworth Bells).[11]

## Events

Epworth Show Logo

### Epworth Show

The Epworth Show has been held for over 60 years, and takes place on the August Bank Holiday Monday.

Epworth Show has links with the three Epworth churches which come together for a prior Sunday evening service, and on show day share an information tent.

### Festival of the Plough

Epworth has hosted the Epworth Festival of the Plough agricultural fair for a number of years.

## Namesakes

Epworth gave its name to the city of Epworth, Iowa[12][13][14] and the unincorporated community of Epworth, Georgia,[15] both in the United States.

## Notable people

Beside John and Charles Wesley, other notable people associated with Epworth are:

* John de Mowbray, 4th Baron Mowbray, born in Epworth[16]
* William de Epworth, fourteenth century judge and Crown official in Ireland, born in Epworth [17]
* Alexander Kilham, founder of the Methodist New Connexion, born in Epworth[18]
* Ian Botham, cricketer, former resident [19]
* Benjamin Huntsman, inventor and manufacturer, born Epworth 1704[20]
* Sheridan Smith, actress, born Epworth in 1981[21]
* Mehetabel Wesley Wright (1697–1751), poet[22]

## References

### Notes

1. ↑ OS Explorer Map 280: Isle of Axholme, Scunthorpe and Gainsborough: (1:25,000) : ISBN 0 319 46432 6
2. ↑ "Epworth | Domesday Book". http://domesdaymap.co.uk/place/SE7803/epworth/. Domesday Online – Epworth
3. ↑ see James Boyce Imperial Mud: The Fight for the Fens, Icon Books, 2020
4. ↑ "Epworth Equestrian in the Isle of Axholme | Local Riding". https://www.localriding.com/epworth.html. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
5. ↑ Crain 2009, p. 109
6. ↑ Hall, Trevor H (1965). New Light on Old Ghosts. Gerald Duckworth. pp. 14–25. ISBN 0715602314.
7. ↑ Trail. Epworth Directory.
8. ↑ "Epworth (Parish, United Kingdom) – Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location". https://www.citypopulation.de/en/uk/yorkshireandthehumber/admin/north_lincolnshire/E04000555__epworth/.
9. ↑ "Epworth". https://bustimes.org/localities/epworth.
10. ↑ "TMCR 95.3". https://tmcrfm.org/.
11. ↑ "The Epworth Bells". 5 December 2013. https://www.britishpapers.co.uk/england-emids/the-epworth-bells/. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
12. ↑ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off.. pp. 120. https://books.google.com/books?id=9V1IAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA120.
13. ↑ "Profile for Epworth, Iowa, IA". ePodunk. http://www.epodunk.com/cgi-bin/genInfo.php?locIndex=7312.
14. ↑ The History of Dubuque County, Iowa, Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, &c. Western Historical. 1880. pp. 727. https://books.google.com/books?id=u9xDAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA727.
15. ↑ Krakow, Kenneth K. (1975). Georgia Place-Names: Their History and Origins. Macon, GA: Winship Press. pp. 73. ISBN 0-915430-00-2. http://www.kenkrakow.com/gpn/d.pdf.
16. ↑ John de Mowbray, 4th Baron Mowbray, 3rd par.; as seen July 15, 2013, 9.55pm CET-Summer.
17. ↑ Ball, F. Elrington The Judges in Ireland 1221–1921 London John Murray 1926
18. ↑ John Dunstan, 'Alexander's Daughter, Proceedings of the Wesley Historical Society, May 2008 https://biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/whs/56-5.pdf
19. ↑ [1]
20. ↑ Alexander, Don (2007). What made the Steel city. ISBN 1901587681
21. ↑ "Sheridan Smith. Musical talent through the generations...", S & N Genealogy Supplies
22. ↑ Bastian, Donald N.. "Susanna Wesley, Educator". https://justcallmepastor.wordpress.com/2011/06/27/susanna-wesley-educator/.

### Bibliography

* Crain, Mary Beth (2009). Haunted Christmas: Yuletide Ghosts and Other Spooky Holiday Happenings. Globe Pequot. ISBN 978-0762752751.

## External links

* "The Parishes of the Isle of Axholme: Epworth"; Axholme-fhs.org.uk
* Epworth on the Axholme.info website

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