51º56N 1º44W, pop (2000e) 2100. Town in Gloucestershire, SWC England, UK; located at several crossroads, high in the Cotswold Hills; granted royal charter, 1107; birthplace of Sir Frederic Bartlett; many buildings are of the distinctive local honey-coloured limestone; dry stone walls form alleyways called tures formerly used on market days for sheep sales; town's prosperity built on former wool industry; tourism; Stow Fair (May, Oct); famous annual horse fair.
Stow-on-the-Wold, an historic English market town in the county of Gloucestershire, sits on top of an 800 ft (244 m) hill, at the convergence of a number of major roads through the Cotswolds, including the Fosse Way (A429).
Location
See map.
Although Stow itself has no train station, there is a train station in Moreton in Marsh (approx. 4 miles from Stow), which lies on the line from Hereford to London Paddington, and another in Cheltenham (approx. The main towns around Stow on the Wold are Cheltenham and Gloucester (approx.
History
Stow on the Wold is said to have originated as an Iron Age fort on this defensive postion on a hill. This was replaced by Edward IV in 1476 with two 5-day fairs, two days before and two days after the feast of St Philip and St James in May, and similarly in October on the feast of St Edward the Confessor (the saint associated with the town). The aim of these annual fairs was to establish Stow as a place to trade, and to remedy the unpredictable passing trade. These fairs were located in the Square, which is still the town centre.
As the fairs grew in fame and importance, the town grew more prosperous, and the fairs became bigger. Reportedly, 20,000 sheep changed hands at one 19th century fair.
Nowadays, however, the Fair has changed considerably. As the wool trade declined, people began to trade in horses, and these would be sold at every Fair. This practice still continues today, although the Fair has been relocated from the Square, and is currently held in the large field towards the village of Maugersbury every May and October. It is still a very popular Fair, with the roads around Stow being blocked for many hours on the day as people visit for the day. Even in the rain, the Fair continues to draw visitors, and the field is frequently filled with traders and customers.
More recently, there has been controversy surrounding Stow Fair. In the run-up to the most recent Fair, there was an enormous amount of public attention, and a debate and vote were held to decide what should be done. the majority, it seemed, said they would like more policing and more street cleaners, and the last Fair passed fairly well. However, the future of the Fair still remains uncertain.
Stow's chief claim to history is its role in the English Civil War.
Places to Visit
There is a toy museum in the town.
Trivia
The columnist and restaurant reviewer A A Gill in his 2005 book The Angry Island called Stow "catastrophically ghastly" and "the worst place in the world", resulting in an angry response from the town's mayor.
The free local newsletter Stow Times is delivered to every dwelling in Stow and surrounding villages.
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