A brief history
The name Shiplake most likely means 'stream where sheep are washed' (sheeplake) but it has also been suggested that it could be named after the final resting place of a Viking ship (ship loss) as the river was too shallow to navigate above Shiplake.
In the Domesday book(1086) it was part of the 'Binfield Hundred' and the area named as Lysbrook, later Lachebroc (a sluggish stream) and Bolchede, later Bolney. The Lashbrook and Bolney names still exist today in street names.
For more see the History section of the Shiplake Villages Plan Report (large PDF file)
Shiplake - Beyond Domesday …….
To recap - at the time of the Domesday recording Shiplake was two medieval manors, Bolney and Lashbrook (with a smaller estate at Crowsley). Tenant in Chief of Lashbrook was Walter Giffard and he had made Hugh of Bolbec Lord of the Manor. Tenant in Chief of Bolney was Earl William and lord of the manor was Gilbert de Bretteville.
Article created / last edited: 25 May 2021
Where Smooth Waters Glide
An online exhibition marking 250 years of caring for the River Thames.
Article created / last edited: 11 May 2021
Shiplake in the time of the Domesday Book
The Domesday Book is a great land survey that was commissioned in December 1085 by William the Conqueror to assess the amount of land and resources in England, and thus the value of the taxes he could raise. Information was collected and recorded by hand. The first draft was completed in August 1086 and contained records for 13,418 settlements in the English counties. William died before it was fully completed.
Article created / last edited: 25 April 2021
Shiplake Watercolours by Janet Duncan
Janet Duncan lived in Shiplake and painted many watercolours of the river landscape.
Her husband Clive Duncan has contributed some photos of her work for the website, with the accompanying text:
My late wife Janet was an exceptional watercolour artist and when we moved to Shiplake in 1970, she recorded the river landscape over forty years. She was born in Marlow and so the Thames was a major part of her life. The Swan Uppers always invited her to go with them from Henley to Wallingford and she painted many studies of the tradition. After twenty nine one-woman-shows and the coveted prize for her work from the Royal Watercolour Society, she painted hundreds of studies of Shiplake.
Many years ago, several of her paintings had a greenish mark on the paper. This was caused by curious cattle coming up to her on the hill overlooking the river in Shiplake and licking her watercolour paper. She loved Shiplake and she loved cows!
Article created / last edited: 19 March 2021
Shiplake a Long Long Time ago .....
This is the second article in our series on the history of Shiplake. It covers early inhabitants of the area, archeological finds and the geology of the area.
Article A Long Long Time ago
Article created / last edited: 15 March 2021
History of the Old Mill at Shiplake
Following on from the publication in January of a painting of ‘Shiplake Mill and Eel traps’ , our local historian Janet Matthews offered to provide a monthly article on local history for the website.
Note from Janet: This is the first of those articles and I thought it might be appropriate to start with some further information on the Mill. Can I just say at the outset however, that to produce these missives, my facts are taken from the books of others and from articles on the internet. I hope that there are no errors, but am happy to be corrected if there are!
Article History of Shiplake Mill
This Map shows the site of the mill (according to an extract from deeds dated 2nd April 1824).
Article created / last edited: 10 February 2021
The Old Mill at Shiplake
Located by the Lock and Weir, Shiplake Mill was a corn mill later converted to paper. It closed in 1907/8 and nowadays only some remnants of the foundations remain. The Mill is referenced in Domesday – worth 10 shillings with twenty-two acres of meadow. The Charters of Missenden Abbey contains reference to a farm (probably Lashbrook farm) run by the profits of the mill.
The flour mill originally ground corn taken there by local farmers. Later the paper made was used by Huntley and Palmers based in Reading for cake and biscuit wrappings. Oxford University ordered ‘special watermarked paper’ for use by students sitting their examinations.
The basket structures in the picture are eel traps. This was a thriving industry in the nineteenth century. Eels were sent by river to the London fishmarkets. Click on the picture to enlarge it.
Editor's note
With thanks to Mark Lumsden who thought the photo would be of interest to Shiplake.
Also thanks to Janet Matthews who provided the information about the mill. Janet is going to contribute monthly articles for the website about the history of Shiplake, starting in February. Before lockdown Janet gave talks about local history which were very popular. Hopefully it won't be too long before these talks can resume.
Article created / last edited: 12 January 2021