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Ducklington is situated one and a half miles to the south of Witney, close to
the river Windrush. It is on the A415 road to Abingdon, but the village is
fortunate in having a bypass which relieves it of much traffic.
St Bartholomews church, commenced in Norman times, was once plundered by
Cromwells men and some of the damage can still be seen. They cut the heads off
eight statues, only those that stood in the shadows escaped. Present day
parishioners have embarked on mammoth fund-raising to rehang the bells which now
ring out over the village.
In a nearby field grows a rare plant, the Snakeshead Fritillary. These are
depicted in a stained glass window and on the altar cloth, and their flowering
is celebrated each year on Fritillary Sunday, usually the first Sunday in May.
The church is open to visitors with many interesting things to see and
refreshments are available in the nearby village hall. An elderly villager
relates that, as a lad he and his friends were paid to gather these beautiful
flowers and send them to market at Covent Garden. They are now protected and
must not be picked.
The village hail was once the church tithe barn. It was used for many years as a
meeting place and was known as the Parish Room. In 1974 the room was purchased
by the village, and much fund-raising and hard work resulted in a new hall
with modern facilities. It is now in great demand by all organisations, from
playgroup to pensioners.
A small book titled Living and Lifestyle in Ducklington 1640 to 1740 was
published by the village History Group who studied records from the period,
giving new insight into life at that time. The majority of 140 or so villagers
worked on the land but there were a few craftsmen who plied their trade such as
weavers, tanners and blacksmiths. It is very different today with only one
working farm in the village and a population of over 1,000. Most people go much
further afield to work, and all trades and professions are represented.
When the post office and shop recently closed, the building was converted into a
bungalow. An enterprising villager seized the opportunity and has reversed the
process, converting his bungalow into a post office and shop! This is the fourth
or fifth location of this business in living memory. This, together with a
ladies hairdresser, a garage and two congenial public houses are the only
traders in the village.
There has been little crime in the village, although one notable exception was
the theft of the post office safe. It was wheeled away in the early hours on a
trolley. Several people were awoken by the noise as it was trundled down the
road but although they saw two men pushing something, they did not seem to think
it unusual and went back to bed. The booty was later recovered from a ditch and
except for a broken handle was none the worse for its outing.
Author and broadcaster Mollie Harris spent her childhood in Ducklington, her
book A Kind of Magic depicts life in the village in the 1920s. Many of the
places she mentions have changed little since that time. The footpaths, streams
and rivers arc a constant source of pleasure to us, as they were to her then.
A short walk from the village leads to a lake, left in the mid 1970's from the
construction of the Witney bypass. It is inhabited by a wide variety of wild
fowl. Swans, grebe, Canada geese and ducks can frequently be seen. Early morning
visitors may catch a glimpse of a heron fishing
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