NURSLING & ROWNHAMS
PORTRAIT ON HISTORY
MORE HISTORY​
Nursling & Rownhams
The history of Nursling goes back for over a thousand years and is mentioned in the Domesday Book (Liber Wintonia) of 1086.
Nursling was once a rural community, mainly situated in the west of the parish, next to the River Test. However in more recent times, after a motorway was built through the parish, urbanisation of the eastern part of the parish took place and this area has now become the focus of the community.
Rownhams was once a separate parish, created in Victorian times, which was later incorporated into the parish of Nursling & Rownhams.
Nursling Mill
Eco power is nothing new. There has been a mill at Nursling since before the Conquest. However this one was built in 1586 and uses the waters of the River Test to provide the power to grind the corn. It was part of the vast Barker-Mill Estate whose lands once stretched all along the Test valley. The mill has since been converted into a number of apartments.
An Historical Crossroads
The parish is divided by the M271 motorway, running north to south, from which access to two business parks can be acheived.
Nursling Business Park has been established for a number of years. It lies to the west of the motorway and was built adjacent to a possible large Roman settlement situated near a Test valley crossing point.
Adanac Business Park is to the east of the motorway and is still in development. It has recentley become the new home and HQ of the Ordnance Survey. It was created on land that was part of Adanac Farm which was once crossed by an east to west Roman road.
Rownhams House, Rownhams
Once a private house within acres of land in a rural setting it has retained a beautiful garden and is now used as a setting for a variety of celebratory events. It is now surrounded by a housing complex known as Rownhams House Park.
Grove Place, Nursling
Posted June, 2015
Grove Place is situated in the Upton area of Nursling. It was formally a 16th century Elizabethan Mansion which replaced an earlier nearby medieval house. It has had a number of owner's over the years including King Charles I.
Between 1831 and 1855 it became a private instution and asylum and then, after a number of years of unoccupation, it was bought by Lord Palmeston, one time Prime Minister who lived at Broadlands, near Romsey, who leased it out as a farmhouse. A new owner restored it as a house in 1895 and subsequent owners lived there until 1961 when it then became a school. In 2006 the school was sold and the site was developed as retirement and care residences.
