Petworth Heritage Partnership
History
1000s
1085
St.Mary’s church and a Mill mention as part of Burton Manor first mentioned in Domesday book.
1086
Coultershaw site of several corn mills.
1100s
Every year a fair is held in the centre of Petworth on St.Edmunds day, a tradition that dates back to the 12th Century.
1150
The land where Petworth House and Park now sits was given as a royal gift from the widow of Henry I to her brother Jocelin de Louvain who married into the renowned Percy family, Earls of Northumberland.
1200s
The current St. Mary’s church building dates back to 1200s.
1300s
1309
First record of a manor house on the present site of Petworth House.
1500s
1541
The first evidence of market square, although some believe it to have been there for at least 300 years before.
1600s
1653
A traveller passing through Burton wrote of seeing ‘those hot swarthy Vulcans, sweating, puffing, hammering and drawing out those rusty Sowes into Barrs, by rumbling, noysing, Bedlam-water-Mills’
1669
First documentary evidence of Petworth’s Dissenting community. Reported to be 60 strong and served by three ministers.
1688
Grand re-building of Petworth House as a Baroque Mansion began, following marriage of Elizabeth Percy to 6th Duke of Somerset.
1700s
1750
With no male heir, the Petworth House estate went to the 7th Duke of Somersets brother-in-law, Sir William Wyndham and the name associated with Petworth became Earls of Egremont.
1750s
Capability Brown commissioned to landscape Petworth Park.
1763
First evidence of a workhouse in Petworth.
Workhouse, Petworth
1780
Burton Mill built on the foundations of an earlier hammer forge.
1782
Coultershaw Beam Pump installed to provide water supply for Petworth House and town.
1788
Petworth Gaol, or ‘house of corrections’ opened to deliver hard labour and solitary confinement to petty criminals and vagrants. On present day site of Rosemary lane.
1793
3rd Earl of Egremont instructed for the current Leconfield Hall to be built.
1794
The River Rother improved for navigation from the Arun at Pulborough – the building of the Wey & Arun Canal in 1816 allowed boats to travel to London.
1800s
1800
Petworth to Chichester turnpike was diverted to cross the River Rother at Coultershaw.
Mid 1800s
400 cottages built for Leconfield Estate (part of Petworth House) workers, including Egremont Row and Percy terrace.
Percy Street, Petworth
1851
Town gave Obelisk streetlamp gifted to Lord Leconfield as a token of thanks for providing the town with gas lighting.
1855
Congregational Chapel (now United Reformed) opened in Golden Square.
1857
Construction of railway line from Midhurst to Petworth began.
1877
Closure of the Chichester Turnpike.
1888
Commercial use of the Rother Navigation ceased.
1890
Historic Image show Greengrocers, Saddlers and Bakers on Lombard Street.
1896
First Mass celebrated in the New Catholic Church of The Sacred Heart, Angel Street.
1900s
Flour milling ceased at Burton Mill. The mill was subsequently converted into a sawmill.
1901
Mrs Cummings took on tenancy of 346 High Street, now known as Petworth Cottage Museum.
1923
Coultershaw Mill burnt down and was replaced the following year with a reinforced concrete mill.
1940s
Toronto Scottish regiment stationed in town in WW2. Polish War Camp in Petworth Park.
1942
Bombing of boys school.
1947
Steeple removed from St.Marys Church. National Trust took on stewardship of Petworth House and Park.
1953
Petworth House opens to the public.
1955
Passenger services at Petworth railway station ended.
1960
Beam pump stopped pumping water to Petworth. Demolition of Petworth workhouse.
1966
Petworth Station closed to goods.
1972
Coultershaw mill closed and demolished the following year.
1980
The restored beam pump at Coultershaw pumped water for the first time to the fountain. Volunteers from the Sussex Industrial Archaeology Society restored the Coultershaw Beam Pump and converted the disused Burton Mill back into a flour mill.
1996
Petworth Cottage Museum, Mrs Cummings Cottage opened to public.
