Place:Crowthorne, Berkshire, England

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source: Family History Library Catalog

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Crowthorne is a large village and civil parish in the Bracknell Forest district of south-eastern Berkshire. It has a population of 6,711. Crowthorne is best known for Broadmoor Hospital, one of three high-security psychiatric hospitals in England, which lies in the village.

The village was only a small hamlet until Wellington College was opened to educate sons of British Army officers in 1859, followed by Broadmoor in 1863. Crowthorne railway station, originally known as Wellington College for Crowthorne station, was opened in 1860, and the village grew quickly. In the 1960s, the Transport Research Laboratory opened in Crowthorne, and this is now the main employer for those who do not commute.

The Crowthorne urban area spills over into the neighbouring parish of Wokingham Without. (The parish of Wokingham Without consists of an area surrounding the town of Wokingham on its south-eastern side, but its name does not mean outside Wokingham. Historically when the parishes were church parishes, there was a local area which belonged to Wiltshire which was therefore known as Wokingham Without (i.e. outside) Berkshire, whereas the Town was ‘within’ Berkshire.) But the majority of Crowthorne is in the Bracknell Forest district. Edgbarrow Woods are between Sandhurst and Crowthorne.

There is one secondary school which covers the whole of Crowthorne and Little Sandhurst, Edgbarrow School. There are also 5 feeder schools; Hatch Ride primary, Wildmoor Heath (originally called Broadmoor Primary), Oaklands junior, New Scotland Hill and Crowthorne CofE primary. However, strongly CofE children are often sent to Ranelagh School in Bracknell and some of the academically successful children are sent to Kendrick or Reading Grammar Schools.

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