Binsted
Binsted Village Hall
Binsted is on the banks of the River Wey about 3 miles south of Bentley and four miles away from Alton.
Alice Holt Forest is part of the parish, and the area has been a source of timber since mediaeval times. Binsted has a number of Oasthouses which are now private houses as it was the centre of the hop growing industry for many years. Another private home of interest is Telegraph House which was built by the Admiralty in around 1829 as a semaphore station. It was one of a chain of such stations linking London and Plymouth which was never completed as the electric telegraph was invented before the line could be finished.
A famous former resident is Field Marshall Viscount Montgomery of Alamein (known as ‘Monty’) who lived at Isington Mill from 1947 until his death in 1976. Following a state funeral, to which he was entitled as a Knight of the Garter, Viscount Montgomery was buried in a simple grave in the Churchyard at Binsted Parish Church, where he was a regular worshipper.
The village prides itself on its annual fete, and its school, which was built in 1875 on land belonging to the Wickham Estate and constructed from stones brought from the nearby River Hill Pit. It has now been serving the local community for 122 years.
Bentley and Binsted village website (opens in a new window)
