Stratton History

Stratton St. Margaret, once a small village, has now become the north-east corner of Stratton and is still a popular community within Swindon. The area of the Parish was originally much larger than it is now.

Most of Gorse Hill was part of the Parish until it was taken into Swindon in 1890 and all of the housing estate of Penhill, which was once fields in Stratton St. Margaret, was taken by Swindon 1950. Stratton became part of the new ‘Thamesdown’ in 1973.

Stratton derives its name from the Latin strata (“paved way” or “street”) after the former Roman road whose course traverses the parish north to south which ran from Glevum (Gloucester) via Corinium (Cirencester) to Durocornovium (Wanborough) where there was a Roman settlement on to Calleva Atrebatum (Silchester).

Circular pre-historic earthworks were found between Stratton & Swindon New Town in fields of Marsh Farm, Late Mesolithic finds were found when Crematorium was built dating to 8000-5100 BC.

Doomsday Translation – STRATONE Owner Spirtes, a priest, Tenant Nigel the Physician – originally in the hundreds of Scipe, afterwards in that of Highworth.  There are two manors, Stratton Superior and Inferior, recorded in the Nom. V: ll, both of which, from the large extent of this estate, which was assessed at thirty hides, are no doubt included in it.  The village consisted of three hamlets: The Street; the area around Green Road and Dores Road and including the few houses at Kingsdown and Stratton Green, mainly around Tilleys Lane. Footpaths and coffin-ways joined the hamlets, in 1086 there were 24 villagers, 18 small holders & 12 ploughs.  The mill was worth 2/-.  Land was 8f x 5f to meadow and 1 league x 5f to Pasture.

The village really grew when the Great Western Railway made Swindon its main centre for building railway engines. More houses were needed for its workmen and within a few decades the agricultural village of Stratton, a couple of miles from the factory, changed into almost an urban community.