West Wycombe is an area located just north of High Wycombe in the United Kingdom and is the home of the West Wycombe Caves. The caves were a natural formation which was excavated in the 1750s by Sir Francis Dashwood to give work to the local community and to provide him with a location for members of the secretive Hellfire Club to meet.
The 18th Century church with its golden ball is a well-known landmark, visible for many miles due its hilltop location, dominating the village. The church was created by Sir Francis Dashwood. The hill is known as West Wycombe Hill and was an Iron Age hill fort. Also situated on the hill is the Dashwood Mausoleum.
The village of West Wycombe is home to West Wycombe Park, a stately home accompanied by 5000 acres (20 km²) of land which was built upon in the mid 18th century by Sir Francis Dashwood, founder of the Dilettanti Society and co-founder of the Hellfire Club.
West Wycombe village was purchased by the National Trust in 1929. There are many buildings of architectural value which were built between the 16th and 18th centuries.
WestWycombe is watered by the River Wye, a tributary of the Thames, which rises in Lang, or Long, Meadow on the WestWycombe estate and flows east through the park to High Wycombe.
Almost on leaving Wycombe the landscape ahead of the long, straight road is dominated by the huge circular earthwork inclosing the church and churchyard of WestWycombe, and surmounted by the large 18th-century mausoleum of the Dashwood family.
 At the west end of the village, on the south side of the road, are the entrance gates to WestWycombe House, the seat of Sir John L. Dashwood, bart., situated on rising ground in a park of 300 acres, and commanding a fine view of the surrounding valley.
Wycombe was completely dominated, socially and economically by the industry, so it came as no surprise that there were considerable problems of unemployment and social problems when the industry declined in the 1960's.
Wycombe is a town with a very diverse population; all kinds of different races and classes are housed in a small geographical area.
Wycombe was once renowned for furniture making (the town's football team is nicknamed the 'Chairboys') and furniture design remains an important element of the town's university, Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College.
Feeds |
Contact