Abington, Northamptonshire

Abington
18th century pigeonry tower in Abington Park
Abington is located in Northamptonshire
Abington
Abington
Location within Northamptonshire
Population9,668 (Ward. 2011)
OS grid referenceSP778617
• London66 miles
Civil parish
Unitary authority
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townNORTHAMPTON
Postcode districtNN1
Dialling code01604
PoliceNorthamptonshire
FireNorthamptonshire
AmbulanceEast Midlands
List of places
UK
England
Northamptonshire
52°14′53″N 0°51′43″W / 52.248°N 0.862°W / 52.248; -0.862

Abington is a district of the town of Northampton and former civil parish, now in the parish of Northampton, in the West Northamptonshire district, in the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, situated about 2 miles (3.2 km) east of the town centre.[1] The population of the ward of Northampton Borough Council at the 2011 census was 9,668.[2]

The name 'Abington' means 'Farm/settlement connected with Abba'.[3]

Originally a small village outside the borough boundary of Northampton, Abington is mentioned in The Domesday Book.[4] In the 17th century the village was enclosed and depopulated. The outlines of the village's streets can still be seen as can the village's fishpond (although this is now a garden) in Abington Park. The park was given to the town by the Wantage family in the 19th century.

Abington Park Museum in May 2023

The area known as Abington became part of the borough of Northampton in the late 19th century as the town expanded. Its close location to Abington Park causes this to be a highly sought-after residential area. Abington has often been described as "the Greenwich Village of Northampton."[citation needed]

The Wellingborough Road (locally known as the "Welly Rd") passes through the centre of Abington containing many restaurants, pubs and supermarkets and is the heartbeat of the area. St Edmunds Hospital was once open on the Wellingborough Road before being closed in 1997 and demolished to make way for new development. Housing is mixed with former warehouses becoming converted flats, terraced housing and council housing.

Wantage Road in Abington is home to Northamptonshire County Cricket Club[5] and was formerly the home of Northampton Town Football Club on Abington Avenue before the club moved to Sixfields in modern premises west of the town.

  1. ^ Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 152 Northampton & Milton Keynes (Buckingham & Daventry) (Map). Ordnance Survey. 2014. ISBN 9780319231715.
  2. ^ "Northampton Ward population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
  3. ^ "Key to English Place-names".
  4. ^ Abington in the Domesday Book
  5. ^ "Northants County Ground: How to find us". www.northantscricket.com. Retrieved 27 January 2016.