Category: Knowle
June 28, 2021|Knowle
Knowle Hospital Farm
Knowle Estate When Knowle Hospital opened on 13 December 1852 the estate was 105 acres of land stretching from near Wickham to Funtley on both sides of the River Meon. The land included woodland, meadow, grazing and pasture. In 1898 the London and South West Railway (LSWR) purchased 7 acres of land from Knowle for…
Find Out More »May 7, 2020|Knowle
Murder most foul – The Crocker Hill tragedy
Ever looked at the Brazilian Steakhouse at Crocker Hill, halfway between Wickham and Fareham, and wondered about the history of this building? Some may remember it as a Thai restaurant, before that, Krakatoa, a shop specialising in furniture from the Far East, but it was originally built as the ‘new’ Old Vine public house in…
Find Out More »January 1, 2020|Knowle
Knowle and the Railway
Although there was already a railway line from London to Portsmouth, consent was given to build the Meon Valley Railway (MVR) by an Act of Parliament in 1897. In 1898 the London and South West Railway (LSWR) purchased 7 acres of land from Knowle. The following year, Wickham landowners were paid £7,500 for 23 acres…
Find Out More »December 30, 2019|Knowle
Knowle War Memorial
At the beginning of the last century, Knowle Hospital was home to about 1000 patients and staff and was a self contained ‘village’ with gardeners, carpenters, upholsterers, blacksmiths as well as those who undertook various duties caring for the hospital patients. As with many villages, members of the staff and estate residents answered the call…
Find Out More »December 26, 2019|First World War | Knowle | Military connections
A Casualty of the Great War – E. E. Pharoah
ERNEST EDWARD PHAROAH Gunner Ernest Edward Pharoah was one of the fourteen children of George, a local farmer, and his wife Mary. Ernest worked as a cowman on his father’s farm at Whiteley Pastures before becoming an attendant at Knowle Hospital. Enlisting at Brockhurst, Gosport in November 1915, Ernest became a gunner in the Royal…
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