High Salvington

History

Pre-history

At the top of West Hill in High Salvington are remains of Neolithic huts, possibly used by Neolithic flint miners. High Salvington may have one of only a few flint mines in Britain, however since the fields containing the possible mines were disturbed by plough use this cannot be made definite.

Development and preservation of the South Downs

At High Salvington after 1923, despite the protests of preservationists, many large detached houses of various styles spread almost to the top of Salvington Hill. Housing in the locality reaches higher up the South Downs than anywhere else in Worthing, reaching the 120 metre contour. Many old trees and banks were retained, especially in Salvington Hill.

Unlike Salvington to the south, High Salvington was part of the parish of Durrington until it became part of the borough of Worthing in 1929.

Geography

High Salvington is on the sea-facing upper slopes of the South Downs north of Salvington and Worthing, and is separated from Findon Valley by The Gallops, a public parkland.

Landmarks

The main landmark is High Salvington windmill, which has been restored to a working condition over the last 30 years. The windmill is open every first and third Sunday afternoon during the months April to September, for the public to view.

Amenities

Commercial

Since 2022, the neighbourhood has had a micro pub/cafe/barbershop The Refreshment Rooms alongside regular street food vendors at the weekends.

Religious

• St Peter's Church, Anglican, was built in 1928 is largely made of corrugated iron and glass.
• St Michael's Catholic Church, which moved to its present location from Durrington in 1966.

Politics

Together with Findon Valley, High Salvington is part of the Cissbury electoral division of West Sussex.

Notable inhabitants

The actress Nancy Price lived in a cottage, 'Arcana', in Heather Lane.

References

References

1. [http://www.bournemouth.ac.uk/caah/landscapeandtownscapearchaeology/neolithic_flint_mines_of_sussex.html "Neolithic Flint Mines in Sussex"] {{webarchive. link. (2013-02-12 Introductory article to early European mining. [[Bournemouth University]]. Retrieved 2013-01-01)
2. "Worthing: Growth of the town | British History Online".
3. T P Hudson (Editor), A P Baggs, C R J Currie, C R Elrington, S M Keeling, A M Rowland. (1980). "Worthing: Growth of the town". Institute of Historical Research.
4. [http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/8333 Durrington Facts and Figures] A Vision of Britain (a public resource [[University of Portsmouth]] and a JSC academic statistics website).
5. "High Salvington windmill".
6. "Durrington | British History Online".
7. Elleray, D. Robert (1998). A Millennium Encyclopaedia of Worthing History. Worthing: Optimus Books. {{ISBN. 0-9533132-0-4.
8. "This is Findon - Margot and Nancy".