Barcombe - (Village in three places)

General Details

Barcombe in East Sussex is a village split into three, with the old village centre by the church being abandoned during the Black Death in the middle of the 14th century, with the population moving to Barcombe Cross . The area of Barcombe Mills which is by the river Ouse has always been important for milling. Barcombe lies on the path of Ermine Street , the old Roman road from Newhaven to London.

The village was mentioned in the Domesday Book as having a church and 3 and 1/2 flour mills, as one mill was in both Barcombe and Isfield as it straddled the river Ouse. The present church was started at the end of the 1100's which seems to be the time much church building within the area took place.

It is likely that Simon de Montfort and his troops passed through the area on his way to and from the Battle of Lewes in 1264, as he was known to have been at Fletching before the Battle and at Isfield afterwards.

On October 18th 1858 the station at Barcombe Mills was opened, and was a stop on the Uckfield to Lewes line which provided access for the local produce from the mills and farms nearby to the towns in the area, but was shut on 23rd February 1969. Nowadays the Lavender Line Preservation Society runs 600 yds of track at nearby Isfield as a memorial to the ages of the Southern Region Railway. This village is associated with the Sussex Bonfire Societies , who provide noisy processions, unbelievable outfits and fantastic firework displays throughout the month of November - a spectacle not to be missed.

Views

Barcome Cross is now the current centre of population, and the village is quite attractive, the views to the south encompass the South Downs at Lewes.

The Church is about 1 1/2 miles away from Barcombe in East Sussex Cross on a back lane, but is surrounded by very pretty old buildings, including a thatched open pound, a very large ancient barn and a duck pond.

The third part of the village is at Barcombe Mills which lies about 1 mile from the village on the river Ouse, with its attractive river banks and wild animals.

Services

The village centre at Barcombe in East Sussex Cross is quite well serviced by local shops and other businesses. The area of the old village by the church, and the area of Barcombe Mills have no services.

The nearest major shopping centre is at Lewes a few miles south or Uckfield a few miles north, which is also where the local trains run from.

Map

Barcombe is shown as the red symbol on the map.

Nearby Villages
(click on symbol to see the village page)