Visit Purton Places

Welcome to Visit Purton Places
The Walkfo guide to things to do & explore in Purton

  

Purton Places Overview: History, Culture & Facts about Purton

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Purton history

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Purton is derived from the Old English pirige for “pear” and tun for “enclosure” or “homestead” Purton means “penetron” and “turban” in the English toponym. Purton was first called Purton in 18th century.

Early history

Ringsbury Camp is considered to be an Iron Age hill fort dating from about 50 BC. There is a suggestion that the remains of a Roman villa lie under the soil at Pavenhill. At the Fox on the east side of the village, grave goods and bodies from a pagan Saxon cemetery have been excavated.

Civil War

A cannonball was discovered in the Restrop area and several place names refer to a battle. A mile away are Battle Lake in Braydon Wood, and Battlelake Farm.

19th century

Purton station opened in 1841 to the north of the village, in the hamlet of Widham. The Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway which runs south-east to north-west through the parish was. The tithing of Braydon, in west of the parish, became a separate civil parish in 1866.

Second World War

There are a number of concrete pillboxes in the parish, which were part of the defences of Southern England during the Second World War. RAF Blakehill Farm, north of Purton Stoke, was a RAF Transport Command station that operated from 1944 until 1946. United States troops were stationed in Braydon Wood and attended dances at the Angel Hotel.

Local studies

A study of the interconnections of people within the parish, based on the registers and other historical evidence, is being prepared (2006) under the working title, The Plenteous Pear Tree: Pedigrees and Progress of Purton’s People Past and Present. Volume 18 of the Wiltshire Victoria County History, published in 2011, covers Purton.

You can visit Purton places with Walkfo Purton to hear history at Purton’s places whilst walking around using the free digital tour app. Walkfo Purton has 19 places to visit in our interactive Purton map, with amazing history, culture & travel facts you can explore the same way you would at a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout Purton, being in the moment, without digital distraction or limits to a specific walking route. Our historic audio walks, National Trust interactive audio experiences, digital tour guides for English Heritage locations are available at Purton places, with a AI tour guide to help you get the best from a visit to Purton & the surrounding areas.

“Curated content for millions of locations across the UK, with 19 audio facts unique to Purton places in an interactive Purton map you can explore.”

Walkfo: Visit Purton Places Map
19 tourist, history, culture & geography spots

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Purton historic spots	Purton tourist destinations	Purton plaques	Purton geographic features
Walkfo Purton tourism map key: places to see & visit like National Trust sites, Blue Plaques, English Heritage locations & top tourist destinations in Purton

  

Best Purton places to visit

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Purton has places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are a selection of the varied Purton’s destinations you can visit with additional content available at the Walkfo Purton’s information audio spots:

Renault Centre The Renault Centre (or the Renault Distribution Centre) is a high tech building in Swindon commissioned by the French car company Renault for their UK operations. Designed by the British architect Norman Foster of Foster Associates, it opened in 1982 and Renault moved out in 2001.

Mouldon Hill Country Park Mouldon Hill Country Park is a country park to the north west of Swindon, within the parish of Haydon Wick and close to Thamesdown Drive. The park is named after a small hill within it that rises from the River Ray and peaks at 105 metres above sea level.

Blunsdon railway station Blunsdon railway station is a former railway station, located north of Swindon in Wiltshire. It was built to serve the village of Blunsdon, north of Swindon, England. It is now operating as a heritage railway station.

St Mary’s Church, Purton St Mary’s Church is in the village of Purton in north Wiltshire. It is one of only three churches in England to have both a western tower and a central spire. It has been designated a Grade I listed building by English Heritage.

Ringsbury Camp Ringsbury Camp is an Iron Age hill fort thought to date from approximately the year 50BC. It is located in the civil parish of Purton in Wiltshire. The site is a scheduled monument.

Visit Purton plaques