The Village Of North Barsham

The village of North Barsham is to be found in the civil parish of Barsham in the English county of Norfolk. The small village is one of the four settlements comprising Barsham, the others being East Barsham, West Barsham and Houghton St Giles. All four of these settlement villages are roughly about 2 miles apart from each other with the River Stiffkey flowing through East Barsham, North Barsham as well as Houghton St Giles. North Barsham is located 5 miles from Fakenham in the north, 23 miles from Cromer in the west and 119 miles from London in the north. North Barsham may be accessed most easily via train and the closest railway station to the village is at Sheringham, which is on the Bittern Line running between Sheringham and Norwich. The nearest airport to Barsham is Norwich International.

Barsham in general is a quaint, quiet quintessentially English small parish covering an area of just over seven square miles. Home to just about 300 residents, Barsham is now located along Water Lane, which runs parallel to the River Stiffkey. The river is essentially a chalk stream which runs from its source lake near the village of Swanton Novers through the north of Norfolk, to the North Sea on the northern coast of Norfolk, near the town of Stiffkey. The old village of Barsham used to be sited along West Barsham Road, running from the village's old rectory to the now disused railway. There are few shops in the village and none in East Barsham. Barsham has only one pub and just two accommodation sites for visitors, making the village as serene and peaceful as it is quiet and remote.

Barsham is neighboured by the medieval pilgrimage centre, Walsingham. Walsingham is located just about a miles north of Houghton St Giles. Walsingham village's Roman Catholic National Shrine of Our Lady, which is also known as the Slipper Chapel, is to be found within the geographical limits of the civil parish of Barsham. Walsingham consists of two villages joined together, Great Walsingham and Little Walsingham. In addition to its famed religious shrines in honour of the Virgin Mary, Walsingham is also home to the ruins of two medieval monastic shelters. This civil parish became a significant pilgrimage site in the eleventh century when, according to the legend, a noblewoman had a vision of the Virgin Mary. In the vision, she was instructed to construct a replica of the home of the Holy Family in Nazareth. When it was built, this church was panelled with wood. It also housed a wooden figure of the Virgin Mary with the baby Jesus on her lap. In medieval times, this church was one of the busiest and most visited places in rural Norfolk.

Also neighbouring Barsham is the small town of Fakenham, which is geographically located on the River Wensum and a good base from which to explore north Norfolk. A market town since 1250, there continues to be a weekly market every Thursday in Fakenham. Fakenham's town centre has recently been refurbished, revitalized and pedestrianised, quite possibly as a response to mistaken reports which claimed that the town was voted the most boring place on earth. Attractions in Fakenham include a small cinema, a national hunt racecourse and a monthly farmers' market.

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