Cosham ( or ) is a northern suburb of
Portsmouth lying within the city boundary but off
Portsea Island. It is mentioned in the
Domesday Book of 1086 along with
Drayton Drayton may refer to:
People
* Drayton (surname)
Legal cases
* ''United States v. Drayton'', 536 U.S. 194 (2002)
Places Australia
*Drayton, Queensland, a locality in the Toowoomba Region
*Shire of Drayton, a former local government area in Queen ...
and
Wymering
Wymering is a residential area of the city of Portsmouth in the English county of Hampshire. Unlike the majority of Portsmouth, it is located on the mainland rather than Portsea Island.
Wymering was one of the estates held by Hampshire's bigges ...
(mainland) and Bocheland (
Buckland), Frodington (
Fratton) and Copenore (
Copnor) on the island.
Toponymy
The name is of
Saxon
The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic
*
*
*
*
peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...
origin (shown by the -ham suffix) and means "Cossa's homestead". Originally pronounced , since the latter half of the 20th century has become more widely used. Until the 1920s it was a separate small village surrounded by fields (including on the north end of
Portsea Island).
History
Extensive suburban growth then expanded around the village and both east and west along the slopes of
Portsdown Hill. It has been for many years a local route centre as a pinch point for buses travelling in and out of Portsmouth and offers three railway routes to London. Cosham railway station was until 1935 the terminus for City
trams and
trolleybuses from the south and
Portsdown and Horndean Light Railway
The Portsdown and Horndean Light Railway SU657058 > SU660061 > SU666064 >SU674086 > SU683094 > SU690108 > SU698126> SU702128 ) --> was a tram service that ran initially from Cosham to Horndean in Hampshire, England.
History
Authorised in 1 ...
trams to the north. The High Street is a significant local shopping centre. Few traces of the original village now remain; the oldest houses (Chalk Cottage of 1777 and Mile Stone Cottages of 1793) were demolished in the 1960s and replaced by a car park, but the old milepost showing mileage to
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
,
Petersfield and
Portsmouth remains. The interior of St Philip's Church (1938) in Highbury is cited as a fine example of
Ninian Comper's work. Indeed, ''England's 1000 Best Parish Churches'' (by
Simon Jenkins
Sir Simon David Jenkins (born 10 June 1943) is a British author, a newspaper columnist and editor. He was editor of the ''Evening Standard'' from 1976 to 1978 and of ''The Times'' from 1990 to 1992.
Jenkins chaired the National Trust from 20 ...
) regards St Philip's as the only parish church within Portsmouth worth visiting on architectural merit.
Economy
Cosham is also home to the UK headquarters of
IBM UK Ltd. The site known as 'North Harbour' was built in the 1970s, the location being selected due to the job cuts by the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were foug ...
during the time.
Local amenities
The
Queen Alexandra Hospital is situated in the north of the area at the bottom of Portsdown Hill. Locally referred to as simply QA, it is the major hospital for the south-east Hampshire and south-west
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an a ...
area.
Cosham railway station provides frequent services by 3 train companies to destinations including;
Brighton,
London Waterloo,
London Victoria,
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city i ...
,
Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...
&
Southampton
Southampton () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire, S ...
.
Education
The main campus of
Highbury College is situated in the south east of Cosham on the Highbury estate.
References
{{Authority control
Areas of Portsmouth