Herbert John Pither (1871 – 29 April 1934) was a professional cyclist, engine manufacturer and aviation experimenter.
121-562: Pither was born in Reigate , Surrey, in 1871. He was the second eldest of 12 children of John and Lydia Pither, who emigrated to Canterbury on the Crusader arriving on 12 October 1875. As a teenager, in 1889 Pither and three others were convicted and fined for disturbing a public meeting at Greendale. The complainant was T H Adams. The first recorded race won by Pither was a 50-mile race at Leeston in 1891. Further races followed including
242-520: A cold front . The resulting wide diurnal range is characteristic of the BSk climate type; in summer the difference between the daily high temperature and the overnight minimum is frequently greater than 20 °C and may exceed 25 °C on sunny days following a cold front. The highest temperature recorded in Horsham of 47.9 °C (118.2 °F) on 20 December 2019 is the equal third-highest temperature ever recorded in
363-403: A Mr McKenna of Belfast began construction on another aircraft based on Pither's design. Its fate is unknown. Because there were no eyewitnesses, only a report by Pither to a friendly journalist several days later, there is no conclusive proof that Pither flew. However this self-report of a one-mile flight during a short weather window on 5 July has some convincing aspects, including the suggestion
484-760: A base to hunt megafauna on the plains of the Wimmera. Then "around the time of the arrival of the First Fleet, the Jardwa people were being forced south by either a Murray or northern Victorian tribe called the Wotjol ". By the time of European exploration and settlement, the Jardwadjali language (a dialect of the Wemba-wemba language group common across most of Western Victoria) ) was well established across
605-501: A block of land. By 1919 2,933 ex-servicemen had taken up the opportunity. The average size of the land grants were 250 to 500 acres (100 to 200 ha). When World War II started, men from Horsham again volunteered. The war effort was enthusiastically embraced, for example in May 1940, when King George VI made a Commonwealth-wide call to prayer, 1,800 people attended a religious service at the town hall. Returning servicemen were again given
726-416: A century later. A water-filled moat section was dug into the clay on the north side and a dry ditch was excavated around the remainder of the structure. The large size of the motte indicates that the castle was designed both as a fortification and as the lord's residence from the outset. Following the dissolution of the monasteries , the lords of the manor moved their primary residence to Reigate Priory, to
847-934: A free community breakfast on Australia Day . Local clubs include the Apex Club of Horsham, the City of Horsham Lions Club , the Horsham Combined Probus Club , the Horsham East Ladies Probus Club, Horsham Senior Citizens, the Lions Club of Horsham, the Rotary Club of Horsham and the Rotary Club of Horsham East. Sport and fitness are popular pastimes in Horsham. The Horsham Aquatic Centre contains an indoor and outdoor pool, gym, kiosk and child care centre, owned by
968-499: A level crossing on Dimboola Road, resulting in 11 deaths. The Horsham Streetscape was dramatically remodelled in the 1960s when planning laws were changed and shopfront verandahs were removed from the Post Office, The Bull and Mouth, and The White Hart pubs. The Horsham City council installed the first parking meters on Firebrace Street in 1963. A major fire damaged the new State Public Office on McLachlan Street in 1971. In 1995,
1089-401: A month at 1 pm on the 1st Sunday & 2nd Saturday of each month. Practice shoots for newcomers are held 1st & 3rd Fridays each month. The Horsham Cricket Association has four clubs based in the Horsham. The Wimmera Girls Cricket League (WGCL) inaugural season was held in early 2020. Season 2020/21 provided a competition aimed at girls aged 10 to 17 years. The Horsham Flying Club
1210-544: A one-mile handicap organised by the Pioneer Cycle Club at Lancaster Park on 1 January 1892. In April that year Pither broke the New Zealand 50-mile road cycling record in a time of 2 hours 59 minutes 30 seconds. The following year he broke the 100-mile record in a time of 6 hours 39 minutes and started competing in the events for the right to represent New Zealand in a race at Sydney in 1894. Pither also held
1331-445: A purely religious institution. The priory was built to the south of the modern town centre and a series of fish ponds was constructed in the grounds. Although the exact layout is uncertain, the buildings are thought to have been arranged around a central square cloister, with the church on the north side and the refectory on the south. In 1541, Henry VIII granted the former priory to William Howard, 1st Baron Howard of Effingham ,
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#17327987169281452-546: A rousing civic farewell at the Town Hall." However conscription "divided the community", with the Anti-Conscription League noting the high rate (6%) of conscription in the Horsham district. The Discharged Soldier Settlement Act of 1917 was created to give returning soldiers a head-start establishing farms in regional Australia. According to the act returning soldiers with farm-experience could apply for
1573-506: A succession of owners, including Lady Henry Somerset , who remodelled the grounds between 1883 and 1895, creating a sunken garden. Following her death in 1921, the estate was divided for sale and much of the land was purchased for housebuilding. The final private owner of the house was the racehorse trainer, Peter Beatty , who sold it to the Mutual Property Life and General Insurance Company, which relocated from London for
1694-548: A survey of the manor of Reigate noted a "Bowling Alley lying before the gate of the Tenement called Woodhatch". Alternatively, the name may derive from that of a local resident: A "Thomas ate Chert" is recorded as living at the settlement in the early 14th century and "Woodhatch" might instead mean "woodland of the ate Chert family". Reigate is in central Surrey , around 19 mi (30 km) south of central London and 9 mi (14 km) north of Gatwick Airport . The town
1815-521: A tower mill on Wray Common . In the early modern period, the parish had at least three other windmills and about a dozen animal-powered mills for oatmeal. In addition, there were watermills along the southern boundary of the parish, on the Mole and Redhill Brook. Although the opening of the Reigate Hill turnpike in 1755 provided an easier route to transport produce and manufactured items to London,
1936-752: Is Robyn Guilline. In the Legislative Assembly of Victoria Horsham is part of the Electoral district of Lowan and is currently represented by Emma Kealy . For the Legislative Council of Victoria Horsham is part of the Western Victoria Region and is currently represented by Jaala Pulford , Simon Ramsay , Gayle Tierney , Josh Morris and James Purcell . In the Federal Parliament of Australia
2057-586: Is a regional city in the Wimmera region of western Victoria , Australia. Located on a bend in the Wimmera River , Horsham is approximately 300 kilometres (190 mi) northwest of the state capital Melbourne . As of the 2021 census, Horsham had a population of 20,429. It is the most populous city in Wimmera, and the main administrative centre for the Rural City of Horsham local government area . It
2178-697: Is in the Vale of Holmesdale , below the North Downs escarpment. The average elevation in the centre is 80 m (260 ft) above ordnance datum (OD) and the area is drained by the Wallace Brook and its tributaries, which feed the River Mole . Woodhatch lies on the Weald Clay , a sedimentary rock primarily consisting of mudstone that was deposited in the early Cretaceous . Much of Reigate
2299-613: Is laid out in a grid plan south of the train line and is characterised by wide streets and several roundabouts. Firebrace Street, running north–south through the middle of the CBD is one of Horsham's original "thoroughfares" (first surveyed in 1849) and is named after a soldier from the British Army, Major William Firebrace (1795-1856). Residential areas extend north of the train line, west towards Natimuk and south-west towards Haven and south-east across Burnt Creek. A light industrial area
2420-740: Is located south of the Wimmera River. Due to the flat topography and floodplain clay, there are very few multi-story buildings. The five most prominent buildings in the city are the State Government Offices on McLachlan Street, the T&;G clocktower on Firebrace Street, St John Anglican church on the Western Highway, the Horsham Cinema and Horsham Town Hall, both on Pynsent Street. Due to Horsham's location in
2541-502: Is now only used by pedestrians. The Borough Council became responsible for local roads on its formation in 1865. The final tolls were removed from the turnpikes in 1881. The first station to serve Reigate area was at Hooley, Earlswood and opened in 1841. The following year, the South Eastern Railway opened the railway station at Redhill , which was initially named Reigate Junction. The railway line through Reigate
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#17327987169282662-479: Is now the corner of Darlot and Hamilton Street. A Post Office had opened a year earlier on 1 July 1848. By 1851 the small village of Horsham had been established, consisting of an estimated 18 homes. The 1851 census counted 2,019 people living in the Wimmera region. The Victorian gold rush connected Horsham with the rest of the state, when it became a stop-over point for the Gold Escort in 1851. Governance
2783-536: Is on the strata of the Lower Greensand Group . This group is multi-layered and includes the sandy Hythe Beds overlain by the clayey Sandgate Beds, which together form the high ground of Priory Park. Reigate Heath and the town centre are on quartz-rich Folkestone Beds and the water-filled part of the castle moat is dug into narrow band of clay present in the sandstone. To the north of the railway line
2904-669: Is recorded in Domesday Book in 1086 as Cherchefelle and first appears with its modern name in the 1190s. The earliest archaeological evidence for human activity is from the Paleolithic and Neolithic , and during the Roman period , tile-making took place to the north east of the modern centre. A motte-and-bailey castle was erected in Reigate in the late 11th or early 12th century. It was originally constructed of timber , but
3025-860: Is served by three newspapers, the Wimmera Mail-Times (a tri-weekly paid publication), the Weekly Advertiser (a free weekly) and the Horsham Times (a weekly paid publication) . Printed news from the Australian Broadcasting Company (ABC) Wimmera is available on the ABC Wimmera Facebook page and is also broadcast via its local radio station. Other available national radio stations in Horsham are ABC Classic , Radio National , ABC NewsRadio and Triple J . 3WM 1089 AM and MIXXFM 101.3 are
3146-678: Is the Gault Formation , a stiff, blue-black, shaly clay, deposited in a deep-water marine environment. At the base of the North Downs is a thin outcrop of Upper Greensand , above which lies the Chalk Group . Weald clay was dug for brickmaking at Brown's Brickyard in Woodhatch. Building sand was excavated from Barnards Pit, to the west of the town, and at Wray Common Road to the east. Seams of silver sand which occur in
3267-843: Is the city's main performing arts venue, attracting a wide range of national and international acts. It is operated by the Horsham Rural City Council also contains the Horsham Regional Art Gallery. The Wesley Performing Arts Centre, once the Wesley Church, was, until 2018, a second performance venue. However, it was closed indefinitely in June 2018 due to safety concerns. The Horsham Arts Council, formed in 1972 and based in Old Hamilton Road, regularly stages musicals. Horsham also hosts
3388-472: Is the eleventh largest city in Victoria after Melbourne, Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Wodonga, Mildura, Shepparton, Warrnambool, Traralgon, and Wangaratta. An early settler James Monckton Darlot named the settlement after the town of Horsham in his native England. It grew throughout the latter 19th and early 20th centuries as a centre of Western Victoria's wheat and wool industry, becoming the largest city in
3509-543: Is the home of sport aviation and gliding in the Wimmera Mallee region of Victoria. The club was formed in 1963 as Wimmera Soaring Club and later amalgamated with Wimmera Sports Aircraft Association. The city also hosts the longest-running gliding competition in Australia, Horsham Week, held yearly in the first week of February since 1967. Horsham Greyhound Racing Club has held regular greyhound racing meetings at
3630-522: Is the warmest month with a mean maximum temperature of 30.6 °C (87.1 °F). Horsham is prone to experiencing extreme heat days, particularly for its latitude, and records about 25 days annually with maximum temperatures above 35 °C (95 °F). These are confined to the months of November to March, with most occurring in January and February. On the other hand, overnight minimums during summer are typically quite cool, often dropping to 7 °C (44.6 °F) or lower during
3751-475: The Haven area. Horsham experienced significant flooding in successive years in 2010 and 2011 Victorian floods . During these events, the Wimmera reached 3.32 m and 4.71 m respectively. The 2011 event was particularly severe with the Wimmera River reaching a record peak; over 1,000 residents were evacuated as flood waters divided the city and damaged 600 houses pushing up to a metre of water into parts of
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3872-578: The M25 was opened between Reigate Hill and Godstone . The section to Wisley via Leatherhead was opened in October 1985. From much of its early history, Reigate was primarily an agricultural settlement. At the time of the Norman conquest, the common fields covered some 3,500 acres (1,400 ha) and in 1623 the total area of arable land was around 4,500 acres (1,800 ha). From the early 17th century,
3993-625: The Murray Basin , the area to the east and south of the city contain extensive deposits of Mineral Sands, primarily ilmenite , zircon and rutile . Preliminary exploration was conducted in the 1980s at Drung, a locality 20 kilometres (12 mi) east of Horsham. However, the Conservation Council of Australia opposed the exploration citing the long-term consequences of mining activity and the possibility of inadequate rehabilitation. In June 2018 new mining exploration leases for
4114-530: The North Downs , to the north of Reigate, is owned by the National Trust , including Colley Hill , 722 feet (220 m) above ordnance datum (OD) and Reigate Hill 771 feet (235 m) above OD. In the Domesday Book of 1086, Reigate appears as Cherchefelle and in the 12th century, it is recorded as Crichefeld and Crechesfeld . The name is thought to mean "open space by the hill or barrow". The name "Reigate" first appears in written sources in
4235-700: The Wimmera River , south of the Dooen Swamp and north of the River's junction with McKenzie Creek. The Wimmera River rises in the western slopes of the Pyrenees and then runs west towards Horsham before turning north at Quantong and heading north towards the Murray , but empties into Lake Hindmarsh . The Wimmera River is dammed by a weir at the southern edge of the city. A recent study in December 2017, found that
4356-451: The medieval and early modern periods , Reigate was primarily an agricultural settlement. A weekly market began no later than 1279 and continued until 1895. Key crops included oats , hops and flax , but there is no record of rye being grown in the local area. The economy initially declined in the 18th century, as new turnpike roads allowed cheaper goods made outside the town to become available, undercutting local producers. Following
4477-591: The "rei" element may have evolved from the Middle English ray , meaning a marshland or referring to a stream; this theory is considered unlikely as the Old English form of this word is ree rather than rey . Woodhatch may derive from the Old English word hæc meaning "gate", and the name may mean "gate to the wood". It is possible, in this instance, that the "wood" referred to is the Weald . In 1623,
4598-528: The 1190s. Similar forms are also recorded in the late medieval period, including Reigata in 1170, Regate in 1203, Raygate in 1235, Rigate in 1344 and Reighgate in 1604. The name is thought to derive from the Old English rǣge meaning "roe deer" and the Middle English gate , which might indicate an enclosure gate or pass through which deer were hunted. It has also been suggested that
4719-760: The Australasian professional racing circuit, Pither, who had been living in Sydney, returned to Christchurch in 1903. There he set up the Standard Cycle Works in Columbo Street as an engineer, making first bicycles, then small engines, before moving to the Southland town of Invercargill about 1906. He is reputed to have driven there in car he made himself. For a time Pither worked for G W Woods and Co, until in 1908 he set up his own business in
4840-687: The Australasian record for the 10-mile event in a time of 27 minutes 13 seconds. At that time he was riding for the Pioneer Bicycle Club. In 1895 Pither was the New Zealand and Australian cycling champion having defeated A A Zimmerman in a race at Sydney. Pither, in the late 1890s invented a submarine and using all his savings took his design to the War Office in London. There, over a period of nine months, he tried unsuccessfully to promote it, but could not gain entry. After retiring from
4961-583: The CBD. The Victorian government has recognised the Wotjobaluk , Jaadwa , Jadawadjali , Wergaia and Jupagik nations as the traditional owners for the Horsham area. These five nations are represented by the Barengi Gadjin Land Council Aboriginal Corporation . According to the 2021 census of population, there were 20,429 people in Horsham. The city of Horsham is situated on the floodplain of
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5082-457: The Confessor . The settlement included two mills worth 11s 10d, land for 29 plough teams, woodland and herbage for 140 swine , pasture for 43 pigs and 12 acres (4.9 ha) of meadow . The manor rendered £40 per year in 1086 and the residents included 67 villagers and 11 smallholders. The Domesday Book also records that the town was part of the larger Hundred of Cherchefelle . The non-corporate Borough of Reigate , covering roughly
5203-404: The Folkestone Beds were quarried for glass making and the caves beneath the castle may originally have been excavated for this purpose, before being used as cellars. There is also evidence of ironstone extraction in the town, although this practice is thought to have ceased by 1650. Reigate Stone was mined from the Upper Greensand from medieval times until the mid-20th century and was used in
5324-437: The Hillfield Hospital, but from 28 September 1915 it was affiliated to the Horton Hospital in Epsom. The Beeches Auxiliary Military Hospital, on Beech Road, was opened in March 1916 with 20 beds, but expanded to 40 beds that October. The hospital relocated to a larger facility in the same road in July 1917 and became affiliated with the Lewisham Military Hospital two months later. Some 5000 evacuees from London were sent to
5445-555: The Horsham Hornets Basketball Club, Wimmera Kart Racing Club, Natimuk and District Gymnastics Club, Horsham Little Athletics Centre, Horsham Motor Sports Club, the Horsham Panthers Rugby League Club, the Horsham Volleyball Association, the Horsham Golf Club and the Drung Golf Club. Other sports active in Horsham include: carpet bowls, hunting, karate, lawn bowls, netball, pistol shooting, rowing, smallbore rifle shooting, soccer, squash, swimming, table tennis, tennis, and water skiing. Former Sydney Swans footballer and 2014 Australian of
5566-452: The Horsham Magistrates' Court. The Horsham Botanic Gardens , managed by the Horsham Rural City Council, are located between the Horsham City Oval and Horsham Caravan Park and were designed by landscape architect William Guilfoyle . Sawyer park alongside the Wimmera River contains a sound shell and hosts the ANZAC day dawn service, Carols by Candlelight and Australia Day events. The Horsham Town Hall, rebuilt and enlarged in February 2016,
5687-448: The Horsham Rural City Council and operated by the YMCA . Horsham has an outdoor velodrome , indoor squash centre and basketball stadium. The City Oval located between Baker St and Hocking St next to the botanical gardens hosts a variety of football games and cricket matches. Cricket and tennis are the most popular summer sports in Horsham. The Wimmera Regional Sports Assembly Inc. is a volunteer based organisation established to support
5808-403: The McKenzie Creek Tramway. The 1870s saw significant economic and demographic growth in Horsham. During this period the foundry, the hospital, and the Horsham Agricultural Society were established, with the first Horsham show held in 1876. Geoffrey Blainey , notes in his History of Victoria , that the Victorian railway building boom of the 1870s enabled large-scale wheat production to begin in
5929-568: The Millennium drought decimated the Platypus population in the River leaving only a solitary colony south of the weir. Horsham has a cold semi-arid climate ( Köppen climate classification : BSk ) with a mean annual temperature of 14.7 °C (58.5 °F) and a mean annual rainfall of 379.3 mm (14.93 in). It experiences one of the coolest climates of this type in Australia, due to its southern latitude and close proximity to oceanic and mediterranean climate zones. Most summer days in Horsham are hot, clear and dry with low relative humidity . January
6050-475: The Moravian Order during the 1870s and 1880s, providing education and employment for the region's Indigenous people before it fell into decline in the 1890s and closed in 1902. Major Thomas Mitchell was the first European to pass through the area, naming the Wimmera River on 18 July 1836. After the explorer Edward Eyre passed through the region seeking an overland route between Port Philip and Adelaide, he reported to The Adelaide Gazette on 14 July 1838, that
6171-441: The Reigate and Redhill area at the start of the Second World War in September 1939, but by February of the following year around 2000 had returned home. The caves beneath Reigate Castle were converted for use as public air raid shelters and the first bombing raid on the town took place on 15 August 1940. There was a succession of raids in November 1940, including on the 7th when Colley Hill and Reigate Hill were attacked. Towards
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#17327987169286292-488: The Roman period, the Doods Road area was a centre for tile-making. An excavation in 2014 uncovered the remains of a 2nd- or 3rd-century kiln with several types of tile, identified as tegulae , imbrices and pedales . Artefacts discovered to the south west of the town centre in 2011 suggest that there was a high-status villa nearby. Coins from the reigns of Vespasian (69-79), Hadrian (117–138), Severus Alexander (222–235) and Arcadius (383-408), indicate that there
6413-401: The Rural City of Horsham was formed through the amalgamation of the Horsham City, Wimmera and Arapiles Shires. Horsham was named Australia's Tidiest Town in 2001 and was also named Victoria's tidiest town in 2015. The Black Saturday bushfires of 2009 affected Horsham, with 5,700 ha (14,000 acres) area burnt around the city's fringe including the golf club and eight homes destroyed in
6534-493: The Surrey County Council moved its headquarters from Kingston upon Thames to Woodhatch Place at 11 Cockshott Hill, in the Woodhatch area of Reigate. Two councillors, elected every four years, represent the town: Ward Six councillors sit on Reigate and Banstead borough council, which operates a council-elected-in-thirds system, allowing electors to vote for one candidate in three out of every four years: Ward Horsham, Victoria Horsham ( / ˈ h ɔːr ʃ əm / )
6655-464: The Wimmera and Western Victoria by the early 1910s. Horsham was declared a city in 1949 and was named Australia's Tidiest Town in 2001 and Victoria's Tidiest Town in 2021. Recent archaeological research of rock shelters by La Trobe University in the Grampians found clear evidence of Aboriginal occupation 3–4,000 years ago, and the possibility of occupation up to 22,000 years ago. The rock shelters would have provided reliable access to water and
6776-416: The Wimmera region were granted by the Victorian State Government. In 1993 the Kennett Government passed the Local Government (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill which resulted in council amalgamations across Victoria. So in 1995 the City of Horsham merged with the Wimmera and Arapiles shires to form the Horsham Rural City Council , making Horsham the seat of local government . The current mayor of Horsham
6897-424: The Wimmera. He also describes a unique migration of German farmers, mostly Lutherans from South Australia, who travelled across east in covered-wagons along with their families and herds of cattle and then settled in the Wimmera district. Blainey writes that "nothing in Australian history so resembles the opening of the American west as this trek of farmers to the Victorian plains in the 1870s'." Farming production in
7018-410: The Wray Stream, was culverted to improve the drainage and road surface of Bell Street. Secondly, Reigate Tunnel , the first road tunnel in England, was constructed at the expense of John Cocks, 1st Earl Somers the lord of the manor. Opened in 1823, it runs beneath the castle and links Bell Street to London Road. It enabled road traffic to bypass the tight curves at the west end of the town centre, but
7139-405: The Year Adam Goodes grew up in Horsham and the town currently has four players representing the town in the Australian Football League (AFL). The two local football and netball leagues are overseen by AFL Wimmera Mallee. The town has two Australian rules football teams competing in the Wimmera Football League The Central Wimmera Clay Target Club holds clay target shooting competitions twice
7260-467: The annual Art is...festival , some aspects of the biennial Nati Frinj Festival and Awakenings (Australia's only regional disability arts festival). Centre Cinemas manage a movie theatre on Pynsent St. An item of food said to be unique to Horsham is the florrie. A variation of the cordon bleu , it consists of a piece of beef steak thinly sliced, wrapped around slices of ham and processed cheese, and then crumbed. Introduced by local chef Alfonso Baviello in
7381-475: The arrival of the railway lines in the 1840s. At first, development was focused in the east of the parish. A new settlement, initially known as Warwick Town, was established on land owned by Sarah Greville, Countess of Warwick in the 1820s and 1830s. In 1856, the post office relocated its local branch to the growing village and the area became known as Redhill . Throughout the second half of the 19th century, Redhill expanded westwards towards Reigate town centre and
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#17327987169287502-453: The arrival of the railways in the mid-19th century, Reigate began to expand and the sale of much of the priory estate in 1921 released further land for housebuilding. Reigate is part of the London commuter belt , and since 1974 it has been one of four towns in the borough of Reigate and Banstead . The borough council is based at the town hall in Castlefield Road, and Surrey County Council has its headquarters at Woodhatch Place . Much of
7623-405: The castle grounds were among the defences installed in the town. Before being deployed to the Western Front , the 1st Battalion of the Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment (part of the Canadian Army , was encamped locally. On 19 March 1945 a U.S. Air Force B17G , returning from a bombing raid in Germany, crashed into Reigate Hill in low-visibility conditions. Two memorial benches, carved in
7744-434: The chalk. The entrances to the tunnels were destroyed in 1968, after several people had been injured in unauthorised attempts to access the site. During the Second World War, the defence of the town was primarily the responsibility of the 8th Surrey Battalion of the Home Guard , although the East Surrey Water Company and the London Passenger Transport Board formed separate units to defend local infrastructure. Tank traps in
7865-399: The city is represented in the Australian House of Representatives by the Division of Mallee . Currently held by Anne Webster and until the 2019 Federal Election was considered a very safe National party seat. The Horsham Police station on Roberts Ave, along with ordinary policing duties also handles traffic, firearm registration and crime investigation. Next to the Police station is
7986-436: The claimed date of Pither's flight. Pither moved to Australia where he married Sarah Hahir. In Australia he was a noted mechanic, making a car and marine engines. They had no children. Pither died in Horsham, Victoria , on 29 April 1934, aged 63. Reigate Reigate ( / ˈ r aɪ ɡ eɪ t / RY -gate ) is a town in Surrey , England, around 19 miles (30 km) south of central London. The settlement
8107-421: The construction of several local buildings, including the castle, Reigate Priory and St Mary's Church. To the north of the town are the remains of several old chalk pits and lime is thought to have been produced at a site at the base of Colley Hill , although the age of the workings is uncertain. The earliest evidence of human activity in the Reigate area is a triangular stone axe from the Paleolithic , which
8228-403: The curtain walls were rebuilt in stone about a century later. An Augustinian priory was founded to the south of the modern town centre in the first half of the 13th century. The priory was closed during the Reformation and was rebuilt as a private residence for William Howard , the 1st Baron Howard of Effingham. The castle was abandoned around the same time and fell into disrepair. During
8349-431: The eastern part of the Dorking and Horley Rural District. Since its inception in 1974, the council has been based in the Town Hall in Castlefield Road, Reigate. Reigate Castle was built in the late 11th or early 12th century, most likely by William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey . Taking the form of a motte-and-bailey castle , it was originally constructed of timber , but the curtain walls were rebuilt in stone around
8470-429: The end of the war, in 1944, the Tea House café on top of Reigate Hill was destroyed by a V-1 flying bomb . For much of the war, Reigate was the headquarters of the South Eastern Command of the British Army . The command was partly housed in purpose-built tunnels beneath Reigate Hill, excavated in 1939 by Welsh miners. The complex consisted of four large underground halls, linked by a network of passageways dug through
8591-434: The five petty boroughs of Santon, Colley, Woodhatch, Linkfield and Hooley. The two parts were reunited in 1863 as a Municipal Borough with a council of elected representatives chaired by a mayor. The Borough was extended in 1933 to include Horley, Merstham, Buckland and Nutfield. The Local Government Act 1972 created Reigate and Banstead Borough Council, by combining the Reigate Borough with Banstead Urban District and
8712-674: The following day back to Kingston. The withdrawal of the Royalists from Reigate was the final incident in the Civil War south of the River Thames before the execution of Charles I in 1649. In September 1914, Reigate became a garrison town. Members of the London's Own Territorials were billeted locally whilst undergoing training in the area and Reigate Lodge was used as an Army Service Corps supply depot . Reigate railway station
8833-511: The former YMCA building in Kelvin Street. His engineering shop repaired automobiles and made small agricultural and boat engines under the brand 'Peerless'. In 1909 Pither was approached by Simon McDonald about constructing an aircraft to his patented design. A suitable shed was leased and construction commenced with a flight planned for early 1910. McDonald was credited with designing the aircraft and both were constructing it. By June 1910
8954-529: The former route to Kingston diverged from the road to Guildford). It moved to the widest part of the High Street, close to the junction with Bell Street, in the 18th century. Cattle ceased to be sold in the late 19th century and the market closed in 1895, in part as a result of the opening of a fortnightly market in Redhill in 1870. Reigate has two surviving windmills : a post mill on Reigate Heath and
9075-424: The growth, development and promotion of sport and recreation at the grass roots level. The assembly provides a vital link between local clubs and state and national bodies. It has formed a solid partnership with Sport and Recreation Victoria and other strategic partners (including VicHealth, Local Government, and health agencies) to provide a quality service for Wimmera sports clubs and associations which encompasses
9196-416: The importance of manorial courts and the day-to-day administration of towns such as Reigate became the responsibility of the vestry of the parish church. By the early 17th century, the 20 km (5,000-acre) ecclesiastical parish had been divided for administrative purposes into two parts: the "Borough of Reigate", which broadly corresponded to the modern town centre, and "Reigate Foreign", which included
9317-461: The local commercial stations and Triple H 96.5 FM is the local community radio station. Horsham is also served by local transmission of free-to-air television networks ABC , Prime7 (Seven), Southern Cross (10), WIN (Nine) and SBS . A total of 60% of people in Horsham identified with Christianity at the 2016 national census (which is higher than the national average) although nearly 30% identified as "no religious affiliation", which reflected
9438-400: The majority between June and August. Rainy days - defined as days with any amount of rainfall - predominate in June to August, but the total winter rainfall received remains low relative to most locations in Victoria and is only slightly higher than that received in summer. Horsham's topography is flat, approximately 128 metres (420 ft) above sea level. The central business district (CBD)
9559-475: The manor began to specialise in the production of oatmeal for the Royal Navy , possibly due to the influence of Admiral Charles Howard, who lived at the priory. By 1710, 11.5% of the population was employed in cereal processing, but the trade dwindled in the mid-18th century and had ceased by 1786. Until the early 18th century, most goods were traded locally, but thereafter, London is thought to have become
9680-657: The mid 20th century and originally dubbed the Florentine, it can be purchased fresh at Horsham butcher shops or as a cooked meal in cafes and pubs. Horsham has community bands such as the Horsham City Brass Band and the Horsham Pipe Band with many towns surrounding the city having their own community bands. Some of the Horsham pubs host live music and the city hosts both the annual Kannamroo festival and Horsham Country Music Festival. Horsham
9801-466: The most important market for produce. The market in Reigate is first recorded in 1279, when John de Warenne , the 6th Earl of Surrey, claimed the right to hold a weekly market on Saturdays and five annual fairs . His son John , the 7th Earl, was granted permission to move the event to Tuesdays in 1313. The original market place was to the west of the castle, in the triangle of land now bordered by West Street, Upper West Street and Slipshoe Street (where
9922-539: The national average. The Horsham Ministers Association established the Christian Emergency Food Centre on Firebrace Street and help organise the annual Carols by Candlelight. The Lutheran Church oversees a local school (Holy Trinity Lutheran College) and nursing home (Sunnyside Nursing Home) and maintains a Christian bookshop, Jacob's Well. A Sunni mosque was built on Stawell Road in October 2014. The combined local services club host
10043-555: The needs and priorities of the region. The assembly office is at 22B Pynsent Street in Horsham and staff can readily provide information and support on a variety of sports related topics. Staff have a wide range of both experience and knowledge and would be pleased to assist wherever possible. Local sporting organisations include the Horsham Angling Club, the Horsham Badminton Association,
10164-415: The new road appears initially to have had a negative impact on the local economy, as goods produced elsewhere became cheaper than those made in the town itself. As a result, there was little growth in the population between the 1720s and 1821. In the late 18th century, the prosperity of the town began to recover as it became as stopping point on the London to Brighton coaching route. In 1793, over half of
10285-565: The next five decades, in 1894, 1903, 1909, 1915 and then in 1923. The flood in 1923 was the third largest on record. In response to this history of flooding, the council successfully applied in 1946 for money from the State Parliamentary Public Works Committee for flood management. Men from Horsham fought in the First World War . "By mid-August 1914 the first of Horsham's soldiers were given
10406-533: The novice pilot got a considerable scare from the unexpectedly different behaviour of the craft once airborne. In 2003, the Croydon Aircraft Company at Mandeville , near Gore , produced a replica of Pither's Bleriot-style monoplane, which microlight veteran Jerry Chisum flew. He declared the design controllable—just. On 22 March 2010, it was announced that a replica of Pither's aircraft would be flown on 3 or 4 July to celebrate 100 years since
10527-402: The opportunity to take up land grants at the end of the war, with the average size of the blocks being between 650 and 750 acres (260 and 300 ha). Horsham's population had reached 6,388 in 1947 and so it was declared a city on 24 May 1949. In 1950 Horsham celebrated its Centenary with a parade through the city. But then tragedy struck on 24 February 1951, when a train and bus collided at
10648-589: The parish. Excavations in Church Street in the late 1970s uncovered a Saxon glass jar and remains of a skeleton of uncertain age, but archaeological evidence from this period elsewhere in the town is sparse. Reigate appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Cherchefelle . It was held by William the Conqueror , who had assumed the lordship in 1075 on the death of Edith of Wessex , widow of Edward
10769-458: The plane was completed and Pither announced that he was considering competing in a Sydney to Melbourne air race. Pither flight-tested this craft at the western end of Oreti Beach off Bay Road for a week in mid-winter 1910. Burt Munro used the other end of the beach for his motorbike trials in the 1950s. In September 1910 at Timaru Pither unsuccessfully attempted to fly the machine. No further attempts at flight were reported, possibly because Pither
10890-517: The poor state of the roads and so, in 1691, local justices of the peace were given the role of appointing the surveyors. The first turnpike trust in Surrey was authorised by Parliament in 1697 to improve the road south from Woodhatch towards Crawley. The new road took the form of a bridleway , laid alongside the existing causeway between the River Mole crossing at Sidlow and Horse Hill, and
11011-406: The priory. In medieval times, the main road north from Reigate followed Nutley Lane, climbing Colley Hill in the direction of Kingston upon Thames , from where produce and manufactured items could be transported via the River Thames . Although the direct route to London via Merstham had a less severe gradient, it appears to have been little used for the transport of goods. The manor of Reigate
11132-558: The railway line and Reigate Road, was sold in 1897 and the first houses in Deerings Road appeared shortly afterwards. A major development occurred in 1921, when the Reigate Priory estate (which included much of the land in the town) was sold, enabling existing leaseholders to purchase the freehold of their properties and freeing up further land for construction. In the early 20th century, South Park continued to expand to
11253-419: The region dramatically increased, and wheat was established as the dominant agricultural crop. Although flooding along the Wimmera River was noted during the early period of the settlement, the first major flood was recorded in 1883 with the first flood causing serious damage occurring in 1889, when several buildings and the tramway were damaged. Several serious floods then occurred along the Wimmera River over
11374-540: The region was "well-watered and affording good pasturage for stock." The squatters were the first European settlers in the Wimmera. William J Bracewell made the first claim, claiming 100,000 acres at Dooen on 10 August 1842. Although Captain Chris Lewis was the first resident of the Wimmera, settling at Ledcourt Station at Glenorchy in 1840. Charles Carter, a Squatter from Van Diemen's Land established his property "Brim Springs" nearby in 1845. The Wimmera region
11495-723: The second half of the Second World War. In 1948, the borough council bought the grounds, having secured them as Public Open Space three years earlier. Also in 1948, the Reigate Priory County Secondary School opened in the main priory building, with 140 children aged 13 and 14. In 1963 the boys moved to Woodhatch School and the Priory School continued as an all-girls secondary school. In 1971, the secondary school closed and Holmesdale Middle School, which had been founded in 1852, moved to
11616-680: The shape of wing tips , were installed as a memorial at the crash site 70 years later. The town is in the parliamentary constituency of Reigate and has been represented at Westminster since July 2024 by Conservative Rebecca Paul . A previous MP. George Gardiner , was elected MP in 1974, but defected from the Conservatives to the Referendum Party two months before the 1997 general election . Geoffrey Howe , later briefly Deputy Prime Minister under Margaret Thatcher , represented Reigate from 1970 to 1974. In January 2021,
11737-649: The south and east. The sale of Woodhatch Farm in the 1930s released the land for housebuilding. Further expansion in Woodhatch occurred in the 1950s, with the construction of council housing on the Rushetts Farm estate. Although little fighting took place in Surrey during the Civil War , the Reigate Hundred was required to provide 80 men for the Parliamentarian army, but a force of only 60
11858-494: The south east of the town centre, and also led efforts to build houses at South Park, to the west of Woodhatch. At the end of the 19th century, the estates of several large houses were broken up, releasing further land for development. Glovers and Lesborne Roads, to the south east of the centre, were developed by the National Freehold Land Company c. 1893 . The Great Doods estate, between
11979-474: The south of the town. The castle was allowed to decay, with only small outlays recorded in the manor accounts for repairs, until 1686, when the buildings were reported as ruinous. Much of the masonry was most likely removed for local construction projects, but in around 1777, Richard Barnes, who rented the grounds, built a new gatehouse folly using the remaining stone. A century later, the Borough Council
12100-515: The southern portion of the Wimmera region. Wimmera Aboriginal people hunted and traded widely, with stone for their tools coming up from the Grampians in the Ararat district. Relations between Europeans and Aboriginal people, as across much of Australia, were mixed, featuring both conflict and cooperation. One of the last Aboriginal missions in Victoria, Ebenezer Mission , was run successfully by
12221-409: The state of Victoria . Horsham typically experiences cool, relatively long winters where cloudy days featuring light, misty rain and drizzle are common. July is the coolest month with a mean maximum temperature of 13.6 °C (56.5 °F). Horsham records minimum temperatures below freezing (0 °C / 32 °F) on about 26 days annually; these occur almost exclusively between the months of May and October, with
12342-513: The third Earl of Arundel . In 1580 both Earldoms passed through the female line to Phillip Howard , whose father, Thomas Howard , had forfeited the title of Duke of Norfolk and had been executed for his involvement in the Ridolfi plot to assassinate Elizabeth I . The dukedom was restored to the family in 1660, following the accession of Charles II . Reforms during the Tudor period reduced
12463-657: The town centre, was formed in 1295. It elected two MPs until the Reform Act 1832 when it lost one. In 1868, Reigate borough was disenfranchised for corruption, but representation in the House of Commons was restored to the town in the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 ( 48 & 49 Vict. c. 23). The manor of Cherchefelle was granted to William de Warenne when he became Earl of Surrey c. 1090 and under his patronage, Reigate began to thrive. The castle
12584-488: The traffic on the Reigate Hill turnpike was bound for the south coast and numbers swelled as a result of troop movements during the Napoleonic Wars . The opening of the turnpike through Redhill, appears to have had little initial impact on the numbers travelling through the town, as travellers preferred to break their journeys in Reigate, rather than bypassing the town to the east. Reigate began to expand following
12705-559: The two towns are now contiguous. A new residential area was established at Wray Park, to the north of Reigate town centre, in the 1850s and 1860s. St Mark's Church was built to serve the new community. Doods Road was constructed in around 1864 and Somers Road, to the west of the station, followed shortly afterwards. In 1863, the National Freehold Land Society began to develop the Glovers Field estate, to
12826-412: The uncle of Catherine Howard . The old church was converted to a private residence and the majority of the rest of the buildings were demolished. Richard Ireland, who purchased the priory in 1766, is primarily responsible for the appearance of the buildings today. A fire destroyed much of the west wing and Ireland commissioned its rebuilding. Following Ireland's death in 1780, the priory passed through
12947-463: The wrestler Moana Paratene. The plane was being re-engined with a 30 hp 95 lb engine as its original engine was not powerful enough. There was a report of McDonald going to fly an aircraft on the first day of the Gore Show in December 1911. Whether this was Pither's or another aircraft is unknown as there were no follow-up reports on any flight. In January 1912 at Invercargill, Paratene and
13068-461: Was Roman activity in the local area throughout the occupation of Britain . The former name Cherchefelle suggests that the most recent period of permanent settlement in Reigate began in Anglo-Saxon times. The main settlement is thought to have been located in the area of the parish church, to the east of the modern centre, although much of the population was probably thinly dispersed around
13189-652: Was closed between January 1917 and February 1919 as a wartime economy measure. By the end of the First World War, there were three temporary hospitals for members of the armed forces in Reigate. The Hillfield Red Cross Hospital opened on 2 November 1914 and was equipped with an operating theatre and 50 beds. As well as treating injured soldiers transported home from overseas, the facility also treated troops garrisoned locally. The Kitto Relief Hospital in South Park opened on 9 November 1914, initially as an annex to
13310-412: Was completed the following year and the old road via Nutley Lane was blocked at Colley Hill. In 1808, a second turnpike to the north was opened to Purley via Merstham. The new trust was required to pay £200 per year to the owners of the Reigate Hill road, in compensation for lost tolls. Two improvements to the road network in the town centre took place in the early nineteenth century. Firstly, in 1815,
13431-561: Was connected in 1875 and the main railway from Melbourne reached Horsham in 1879. The Horsham Borough Council and the Shire of Wimmera operated the McKenzie Creek Tramway from the town to a stone quarry, approximately 8 kilometres (5 mi) to the south. The horse tramway opened within the town in 1885 but had ceased operating by 1927. Special picnic trains operated from time to time conveying residents in open wagons along
13552-565: Was constructed by the Reading, Guildford and Reigate Railway and opened in 1849. It was designed to provide an alternative route between the west of England and the Channel ports, and serving intermediate towns was a secondary concern. Electrification of the section of line from Reigate to Redhill was completed on 1 January 1933. In February 1976, Reigate was joined to the UK motorway system when
13673-419: Was constructed shortly afterwards and the modern town was established to the south in the late 12th century. An Augustinian priory , founded by the fifth Earl of Surrey , is recorded in 1240. By 1276, a regular market was being held and a record of 1291 describes Reigate as a Borough . On the death of the seventh Earl, John de Warenne , in 1347, the manor passed to his brother-in-law , Richard Fitzalan ,
13794-741: Was formalised in 1858 when the Wimmera area was included in region's first electoral district, covering an area from the Murry River in the north, then south to the Wimmera River and then east to the Grampian Range. Then in 1862 the Horsham District Road Board was established, which later evolved into the Horsham Shire with the passing of the Local Government Act in 1864. The electric telegraph
13915-468: Was found in Woodhatch in 1936. Worked flints from the later Neolithic have been found on Colley Hill. Finds from the Bronze Age include a gold penannular ring , dated to c. 1150 – c. 750 BCE , and a barbed spearhead from Priory Park. The eight barrows on Reigate Heath are thought to date from the same period, when the surrounding area may have been marshland. During
14036-536: Was granted a long lease on the property, which had been turned into a public garden. Regular tours of the caves beneath the castle are run by the Wealden Cave and Mine Society. William de Warenne, the fifth Earl of Surrey, is thought to have founded the Augustinian priory at Reigate before 1240. Early documents refer to the priory as a hospital, but in 1334 it is described as a convent and thereafter as
14157-539: Was in financial trouble. In November Pither shipped the aircraft to Melbourne, Australia on the Manuka where he intended to offer it to the Federal Government. Pither was unsuccessful, adjudged bankrupt, and had his plane seized for non-payment of customs duty. At the subsequent court case in June 1911, Pither was fined £10 for evading the payment of duty. The plane was then returned to New Zealand and held by
14278-486: Was made part of the Portland Bay district in 1843 and then became its own district in 1846. Land ownership was formalised in 1847, and the "Wimmera squatters wasted no time in securing their land cheaply as leasehold." George Langlands, a merchant from Melbourne was encouraged by James Darlot to move to the Wimmera region and open a store. Langlands reached the Wimmera and opened a general store in October 1849 on what
14399-483: Was raised, including a captain and lieutenant. Troops were garrisoned in the town and by the summer of 1648, serious discontent was rising in the local area as a result. The Royalist , Henry Rich, 1st Earl of Holland , raised a fighting force and marched from Kingston to Reigate where his men plundered local property and briefly occupied the half-ruined castle. Parliamentary troops under Major Lewis Audley were sent to confront Rich, but he withdrew first to Dorking and then
14520-488: Was responsible for maintaining the roads in the local area, but repairs were carried out infrequently and improvements were often only funded by private donations. In 1555, the responsibility for local infrastructure was transferred to the parish, and separate surveyors were employed for the Borough and for Reigate Foreign. The inefficiency created by this division resulted in frequent complaints and court cases relating to
14641-430: Was unsuitable for wheeled vehicles. Repairs were also carried out on the route between Reigate and Woodhatch under the same Act. A second turnpike was authorised in 1755, to improve the route from Sutton to Povey Cross, near Horley , which involved creating a new road north from Reigate over Reigate Hill. A cutting was excavated at the top of the hill, using a battering ram to break up the underlying chalk. The new route
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