Grimston is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.
Grimston is located east of King's Lynn and north-west of Norwich.
History In 1860, a substantial Roman villa was discovered in Grimston, which was excavated in 1905.
Grimston's name is of mixed Anglo-Saxon and Viking origin and derives from an amalgamation of the Old English and Old Norse for Grimr's farm or settlement.
In the Domesday Book, Grimston is recorded as a settlement of 142 households in the hundred of Freebridge. In 1086, the village was divided between the estates of Bishop Odo of Bayeux, William de Warenne, Roger Bigod of Norfolk and Berner the Bowman.
Grimston, and the nearby hamlet of Pott Row, were significant centres of pottery production from the 11th to 16th centuries, and important suppliers of this to Scandinavia. Grimstonware has been found as far afield as Italy and Spain. Pots often had faces carved just under the rim. Some of these can be seen in local museums including the Castle Museum, Norwich.
The parish also includes the deserted medieval settlement of Wyveling, which was probably abandoned due to the ravages of the Black Death.
Geography According to the 2021 census, Grimston has a population of 2,020 people which shows an increase from the 1,980 people listed in the 2011 census.
The B1153, between Narborough and Brancaster, passes through the village.
Grimston Warren Pit is a Site of Special Scientific Interest due to the abundance of fossils from the Lower Cretaceous Period.
St. Botolph's Church Grimston's parish church is dedicated to Saint Botolph and dates from the Thirteenth Century. St. Botolph's is located within the village on Gayton Road and has been Grade I listed since 1960. The church no longer holds Sunday services but is part of the Gayton, Grimston & Great Massingham Benefice.
St. Botolph's has an impressive collection of medieval bench-ends and a stained-glass window installed in 1851 by the workshop of Michael O'Connor depicting Saint Paul before Herod Agrippa.
Notable residents
Adam Thoroughgood- (1604-1640) Virginia settler, born in Grimston.
Governance Grimston is part of the electoral ward of Gayton & Grimston for local elections and is part of the district of King's Lynn and West Norfolk.
The village's national constituency is North West Norfolk which has been represented by the Conservative's James Wild MP since 2010.
War Memorial Grimston War Memorial is a tall stone wheel cross in St. Botolph's Churchyard which was restored in 1990. The memorial lists the following names for the First World War: +RankNameUnitDate of deathBurial/CommemorationSt1CAlfred RumblesHMS Pathfinder5 Sep. 1914Queensferry CemeteryCpl.Fred H. Cobb6th Bn., Durham Light Infantry1 Nov. 1918Niederzwehren CemeteryCpl.Walter W. Hammond8th Bn., Norfolk Regiment22 Oct. 1917Tyne CotCpl.Arthur W. Todd MM9th Bn., Norfolk Regt.15 Apr. 1918Tyne CotASn.William H. BolderoHood Bn., Royal Naval Division24 Mar. 1918Arras MemorialDvr.Reg V. Sheppard MMRoyal Army Service Corps13 Feb. 1919St Clement's Churchyard, Terrington St ClementGnr.Arthur Padgett191st Bty., Royal Garrison Artillery30 Oct. 1917Étaples Military CemeteryGnr.Thomas E. Turvey277th Bty., R.G.A.3 May 1918St. Botolph's ChurchyardGnr.Jonathan W. TwiteR.G.A.12 Apr. 1917Fosse No.10 CemeteryPte.Albert Sayer1st Bn., Border Regiment27 Jan. 1917Thiepval MemorialPte.George H. Hardy1st Bn., Cambridgeshire Regt.26 Sep. 1917Tyne CotPte.Ernest E. Mayes1st Bn., Cambridgeshire Regt.16 Jan. 1917Lijssenthoek CemeteryPte.Stanley C. Blake53rd Bn., Devonshire Regiment6 Nov. 1918St. Botolph's ChurchyardPte.William H. Bird13th Bn., East Surrey Regiment14 Jul. 1917Fins British CemeteryPte.James T. Smith1st Bn., Essex Regiment28 Nov. 1915Helles MemorialPte.Robert S. Smith10th Bn., Essex Regt.21 Sep. 1918Unicorn CemeteryPte.Frederick Brinkley MM7th Bn., Royal Fusiliers30 Oct. 1917Tyne CotPte.William H. Hooks2/5th Bn., Lancashire Fusiliers4 Nov. 1918St. Botolph's ChurchyardPte.Frederick Spooner8th Bn., Middlesex Regiment17 Aug. 1917Tyne CotPte.Cecil A. EllabyWellington Regt., NZEF8 Aug. 1915Chunuk Bair CemeteryPte.Lloyd F. Francklin1st Bn., Norfolk Regiment21 Apr. 1915Menin GatePte.George W. Mayes1st Bn., Norfolk Regt.12 Jul. 1915Perth CemeteryPte.Stephen Rudd2nd Bn., Norfolk Regt.27 Apr. 1916Amara War CemeteryPte.John Blake5th Bn., Norfolk Regt.19 Apr. 1917Gaza War CemeteryPte.Charlie Bunting5th Bn., Norfolk Regt.3 Aug. 1917Hadra War CemeteryPte.William Padgett7th Bn., Norfolk Regt.13 Oct. 1915Loos MemorialPte.Alfred E. Barnes8th Bn., Norfolk Regt.16 Aug. 1917Brandhoek CemeteryPte.Edward Bunting9th Bn., Norfolk Regt.7 Feb. 1919St. Botolph's ChurchyardPte.Samuel Smith9th Bn., Norfolk Regt.15 Apr. 1918Tyne CotPte.Arthur Matsell9th Bn., Sherwood Foresters3 Oct. 1918Quéant Road CemeteryPte.Reginald W. King5th Bn., Shropshire Light Inf.5 May 1917St. Sever CemeteryPte.William Rudd2nd Bn., South Wales Borderers4 Dec. 1915Helles MemorialPte.Fred C. Cooper7th Bn., Suffolk Regiment13 Oct. 1915Loos MemorialPte.William Stebbings11th Bn., Royal Sussex Regiment15 Mar. 1917Railway Dugouts Cem.Rfn.Walter M. G. Humphrey13th Bn., K.R.R.C.23 Oct. 1918Beaurain CemeteryRfn.Albert Seaman11th Bn., Rifle Brigade20 Mar. 1918Thiepval Memorial The following names were added after the Second World War: +RankNameUnitDate of deathBurial/CommemorationDvr.Paul E. Hammond284 Assault Sqdn., Royal Engineers20 Oct. 1944Adegem CemeteryPte.Robert H. Rumbles1st Bn., Royal Norfolk Regiment23 Nov. 1944Venray War Cemetery
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