There are several suggestions as to how Ancroft got its name. It might be an abridged version of "Aidan's-croft" - the croft of St Aidan who was the first Bishop of Lindisfarne (Holy Island). Alternatively, it might be that as the church is dedicated to Saint Anne, the village took its name from the church - "St Anne's croft". A third suggestion is simply that it means one croft or solitary croft - "ane croft".
St Anne's Church, Ancroft
There was surely more than one croft here when the church was built, probably towards the end of the 11th century; but in common with most of this region, the community declined in the latter part of the 13th century because of the continual border raids by the Scots. This turbulent history is reflected in the number of castles and peel towers in the vicinity, besides the fortified tower that was added to the church in the thirteenth century.
Because of the repeated incursions by Scots, this northern part of what we now call Northumberland was placed in the charge of the prince-bishops of Durham. They were powerful and wealthy men who had the resources to defend the border. That is why this area was still part of County Durham until the mid 1800s.[3]
After the accession of James I (James VI of Scotland) to the throne of England in 1603 there seems to have been a return of people to the village. But in 1667 the plague struck Ancroft, The victims were carried out into the fields where they were covered with shelters made from branches of broom. After death both bodies and shelters were burned in a rudimentary and fruitless attempt to control the spread of the disease. To this day a field to the south of the village is called "Broomie Huts". In desperation the authorities of the day ordered that the plague-affected cottages should be burned to the ground. The mounds where the cottages stood, and the former village street, can still be seen in the field between the main road and the burn.
By the time of Queen Anne (1702–1714) the village was flourishing once more, with a population of over one thousand. The main industry, other than farming, was shoe and clog making. Sailors of the Royal Navy wore shoes or slippers from Ancroft. The naval specification required footwear with no metal parts - an obvious precaution to avoid sparks in a wooden ship loaded with gunpowder and tarred rope! Boots were also made for the British army - the Duke of Marlborough's troops marched to victory shod in Ancroft boots. A village tradition claims that each of the one hundred trees on the southern skyline represents a cobbler.
Several of the local settlements originated around coal mines, an industry which is being redeveloped in today's open cast sites.
^. Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
^. Archived from the original on 6 July 2015. Retrieved 30 June 2015.
^. Archived from the original on 21 April 2012. Retrieved 13 October 2013.
External linksedit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ancroft.
(Accessed: 19 November 2008)
Northumberland Communities (Accessed: 19 November 2008)
January 01, 1970
ancroft, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, december, 2007, le. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Ancroft news newspapers books scholar JSTOR December 2007 Learn how and when to remove this message Ancroft is a village and civil parish which includes the village of Scremerston in Northumberland England Prior to 1844 Ancroft lay within the Islandshire exclave of County Durham It is south of Berwick upon Tweed and has a population of 885 1 rising slightly to 895 at the 2011 census 2 AncroftAncroft ManorAncroftLocation within NorthumberlandPopulation895 2011 census OS grid referenceNU0045Unitary authorityNorthumberlandCeremonial countyNorthumberlandRegionNorth EastCountryEnglandSovereign stateUnited KingdomPost townBERWICK UPON TWEEDPostcode districtTD15Dialling code01289PoliceNorthumbriaFireNorthumberlandAmbulanceNorth EastUK ParliamentBerwick upon TweedList of places UK England Northumberland 55 41 N 2 00 W 55 69 N 02 00 W 55 69 02 00 There are several suggestions as to how Ancroft got its name It might be an abridged version of Aidan s croft the croft of St Aidan who was the first Bishop of Lindisfarne Holy Island Alternatively it might be that as the church is dedicated to Saint Anne the village took its name from the church St Anne s croft A third suggestion is simply that it means one croft or solitary croft ane croft St Anne s Church Ancroft There was surely more than one croft here when the church was built probably towards the end of the 11th century but in common with most of this region the community declined in the latter part of the 13th century because of the continual border raids by the Scots This turbulent history is reflected in the number of castles and peel towers in the vicinity besides the fortified tower that was added to the church in the thirteenth century Because of the repeated incursions by Scots this northern part of what we now call Northumberland was placed in the charge of the prince bishops of Durham They were powerful and wealthy men who had the resources to defend the border That is why this area was still part of County Durham until the mid 1800s 3 After the accession of James I James VI of Scotland to the throne of England in 1603 there seems to have been a return of people to the village But in 1667 the plague struck Ancroft The victims were carried out into the fields where they were covered with shelters made from branches of broom After death both bodies and shelters were burned in a rudimentary and fruitless attempt to control the spread of the disease To this day a field to the south of the village is called Broomie Huts In desperation the authorities of the day ordered that the plague affected cottages should be burned to the ground The mounds where the cottages stood and the former village street can still be seen in the field between the main road and the burn By the time of Queen Anne 1702 1714 the village was flourishing once more with a population of over one thousand The main industry other than farming was shoe and clog making Sailors of the Royal Navy wore shoes or slippers from Ancroft The naval specification required footwear with no metal parts an obvious precaution to avoid sparks in a wooden ship loaded with gunpowder and tarred rope Boots were also made for the British army the Duke of Marlborough s troops marched to victory shod in Ancroft boots A village tradition claims that each of the one hundred trees on the southern skyline represents a cobbler Several of the local settlements originated around coal mines an industry which is being redeveloped in today s open cast sites Landmarks editThe Devil s Causeway passes the village less than 1 mile 2 km to the east The causeway is a Roman road which starts at Port Gate on Hadrian s Wall north of Corbridge and extends 55 miles 89 km northwards across Northumberland to the mouth of the River Tweed at Berwick upon Tweed References edit Census 2001 Archived from the original on 13 June 2011 Retrieved 31 January 2009 Parish population 2011 Archived from the original on 6 July 2015 Retrieved 30 June 2015 GENUKI The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland 1868 Ancroft Archived from the original on 21 April 2012 Retrieved 13 October 2013 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ancroft GENUKI Accessed 19 November 2008 Northumberland Communities Accessed 19 November 2008 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ancroft amp oldid 1106343560, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
