Ashey

Ashey
The sea mark on Ashey Down
Ashey is located in Isle of Wight
Ashey
Ashey
Location within the Isle of Wight
Area12.2692 km2 (4.7372 sq mi) [1]
Population737 (2011)[2]
• Density60/km2 (160/sq mi)
OS grid referenceSZ581892
Civil parish
  • Havenstreet and Ashey
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townRYDE
Postcode districtPO33
Dialling code01983
PoliceHampshire and Isle of Wight
FireHampshire and Isle of Wight
AmbulanceIsle of Wight
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Isle of Wight
50°42′01″N 1°10′40″W / 50.70018°N 1.17789°W / 50.70018; -1.17789

Ashey is a hamlet and former civil parish, now in the parish of Havenstreet and Ashey, on the outskirts of Ryde, on the Isle of Wight, England. In 1931 the parish had a population of 1499.[3] The parish of Ashey was formed on 31 December 1894 from part of Ryde, on 1 April 1933 the parish was abolished and merged with Ryde and Newchurch.[4]

Ashey is the site every year of an amateur horse race known as the "Isle of Wight Grand National and Ashey Scurry". There are four races that include jumping over fences. It is open to horses and ponies of all sizes and breeds. Riders of all ages enter. It includes a beer tent and betting.

There was a racecourse opened in Ashey in 1884. It included a grandstand as well. It burned down in 1929 and was never rebuilt.

There is a railway station in Ashey, the Ashey railway station, which reopened in 1991 and is between the stations at Havenstreet and Smallbrook Junction. At one time, there was a separate station that serviced the Ashey Racecourse.

There is a manor in East Ashey called the East Ashey Manor. Ashey Down is the site of some ancient burial mounds. The summit of Ashey Down is a good viewpoint and this fact has been gratefully accepted by sailors in their use of the solid, white stump - the Ashey sea mark - which was constructed in 1735. In a variation on the medieval beacon system the Navy built four semaphore stations at key high points on the Island. These relayed to the admiral at Portsmouth details of all shipping seen off the island, and the final messages all passed through Ashey.

There is a story that in 1969, a Dr. White of St Helens and his wife saw some mysterious lights when driving by Ashey Down at night.

The hamlet of Ashey
  1. ^ Office of National Statistics: QS102EW - Population density retrieved 30 May 2017
  2. ^ "Civil Parish population 2011". Retrieved 19 October 2015.
  3. ^ "Population statistics Ashey CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  4. ^ "Relationships and changes Ashey CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 1 April 2023.