<< Our Photo Pages >> St Milburgas Well (Much Wenlock) - Holy Well or Sacred Spring in England in Shropshire
Submitted by TimPrevett on Saturday, 30 October 2004 Page Views: 11139
Springs and Holy WellsSite Name: St Milburgas Well (Much Wenlock) Alternative Name: Wimperis Well, Whymperis WellCountry: England County: Shropshire Type: Holy Well or Sacred Spring
Nearest Town: Much Wenlock
Map Ref: SO625988
Latitude: 52.585703N Longitude: 2.554916W
Condition:
5 | Perfect |
4 | Almost Perfect |
3 | Reasonable but with some damage |
2 | Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site |
1 | Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks |
0 | No data. |
-1 | Completely destroyed |
5 | Superb |
4 | Good |
3 | Ordinary |
2 | Not Good |
1 | Awful |
0 | No data. |
5 | Can be driven to, probably with disabled access |
4 | Short walk on a footpath |
3 | Requiring a bit more of a walk |
2 | A long walk |
1 | In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find |
0 | No data. |
5 | co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates |
4 | co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map |
3 | co-ordinates scaled from a bad map |
2 | co-ordinates of the nearest village |
1 | co-ordinates of the nearest town |
0 | no data |
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Holy Wells or Sacred Springs in Shropshire
Two locations in Much Wenlock attributed as the site of St Milburga's Well, an ancient spring possessed with healing properties, and the ability to help young women find out whom their husband would be.
The first site is off Barrow Street, near the Guildhall - signs to a small plant nursery sometimes mark the street. The well is a little way down on the right hand side. Black railings enclose where once the water was at near ground level, with steps down inside, to an opening from where once the water flowed. A small stone top left marks "St Milburga's Well". Inside is dry with rubble and cobwebs.
The other site is further to the south east on Barrow Street, near the bottom left of St Miburga Row, and is marked as "Whymperis Well". This has flat Victorian well housing, fronted by a door that could easily be opened, with a several feet drop into a dry interior, and what appears to be monastic / ecclesiastical rubble strewn around. A very helpful woman in the tourist information & museum said that there are many variant spellings among locals; the most popluar is "Wimperis Well".
In 1913, all the wells were drained into the sewers. Long term flooding problems in the town necessitated this action. The town sits within a bowl, which was prone to flooding. There are some taller chimneys in the town - illustrating the fact that the town used to put its fumes higher up to help escape the town's bowl.
If you should be lucky enough to be in Much Wenlock when the Tourist Information and Museum is open, do pay a visit. It is well worth it.
A figure in the museum has puzzled archaeologists and historians, and could point to the well's earlier history. Some feel it could be a Romano-British deity, others a mediaeval artefact. Consensus of opinion and evidence escape the debate.
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1.1km N 349° Holy Trinity (Much Wenlock)* Ancient Cross (SO623999)
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