Eaton, Oxfordshire

Eaton
The Eight Bells public house
Eaton Location within Oxfordshire
OS grid reference	SP4403
Civil parish	Appleton-with-Eaton
District	Vale of White Horse
Shire county	Oxfordshire
Region	South East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Abingdon
Postcode district	OX13
Dialling code	01865
Police	Thames Valley
Fire	Oxfordshire
Ambulance	South Central
UK Parliament	Oxford West and Abingdon
Website	Appleton with Eaton Parish

Eaton is a hamlet about 4+1⁄2 miles (7 km) west of Oxford and about 5 miles (8 km) northwest of Abingdon. Eaton is in the civil parish of Appleton-with-Eaton, which was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire.

History

Eaton is on a single-track road leading to the River Thames at Bablock Hythe, where there was an important vehicular ferry across the river. The village is built on land belonging to St John's College, Oxford. St John's College, Oxford had the Manor House built in 1677 as a refuge from the Plague for dons. It is now a farmhouse and what had been five farms have been merged into two: Manor Farm and West Farm.

Amenities and public transport

Eaton has a public house, The Eight Bells, which has a darts team and an Aunt Sally team. A ghost called Libby is reputed to haunt the pub.

Oxfordshire County Council subsidised bus route 63 between Oxford and Southmoor serves Eaton five times a day in each direction from Monday to Friday. There is no service on Saturday, Sunday, or Bank Holidays. The current contractor operating the route is Thames Travel.

Source

• Ditchfield, PH; Page, William, eds. (1924). A History of the County of Berkshire. Victoria County History. Vol. IV. assisted by John Hautenville Cope. London: The St Katherine Press. pp. 335–341.