Hatfield, Hertfordshire
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Hatfield | |
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| Population | 27,883 [1] |
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| OS grid reference | |
| District | Welwyn Hatfield |
| Shire county | Hertfordshire |
| Region | East |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | HATFIELD |
| Postcode district | AL9, AL10 |
| Dial code | 01707 |
| Police | Hertfordshire |
| Fire | Hertfordshire |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| UK Parliament | Welwyn Hatfield |
| European Parliament | East of England |
| List of places: UK • England • Hertfordshire | |
Hatfield, originally Bishop's Hatfield, is in the Welwyn Hatfield district of Hertfordshire, in the south of England. It forms part of the Welwyn Hatfield constituency which also includes Welwyn Garden City, and has been twinned with the Dutch port town of Zierikzee since 1953. Its MP is Grant Shapps (Con.). It is known as the town where the first production-line jet airliner, the De Havilland Comet was built, and as the site of a tragic rail crash in 2000.
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[edit] Modern development
The town is the site of the original campus of Hatfield Polytechnic, which has since become the University of Hertfordshire. It is also the location of the de Havilland aircraft factory with an associated airfield where airliners such as the Dove, Heron, Comet, Trident and HS146 were built. Production of the latter type was transferred to Woodford in Cheshire during the 1990s by which time it was known as the British Aerospace 146 "Whisperjet". An early bizjet, the DH125, was also developed here although mass production took place at Hawarden in Cheshire. Some components of wind turbines were also developed here prior to the airfield's closure.
Until the early 1990s British Aerospace maintained a substantial presence within the town. Their vacated premises and surrounding grounds served as a film set for some of the night-time scenes of the BBC/HBO television drama Band of Brothers, which followed on from significant use of the site in the filming of the Steven Spielberg movie Saving Private Ryan. Subsequently, a large section of the land was purchased by the University of Hertfordshire and the £120 million de Havilland Campus, incorporating a £15 million Sports Village, was opened in September 2003. The university has closed its sites at Watford and Hertford, and faculties situated there have been relocated to the de Havilland Campus. The university maintains its campus at St Albans, which houses law students.
In addition to the new university campus, part of the former BAe land was also due to be the site of a £500 million new hospital to replace the Queen Elizabeth II hospital in Welwyn GC. Controversially the project has now been cancelled and the Queen Elizabeth II hospital is also under threat of closure.
The university is looking to expand its Nursing and Physiotherapy departments to accommodate and utilise the extra facilities available to it. Redevelopment of Hatfield town centre is also being planned. This will involve the construction of 275 flats and retail units and is forecast to finish by the end of 2009. Welwyn Hatfield Council. Hatfield Town Centre Redevelopment has now been granted planning permission subject to a section 106 legal agreement.
Hatfield's aerospace and military production history remains today mainly in the form of name only — streets such as Comet Way and Mosquito Way; pubs such as the Airfield and The Harrier; the previously mentioned university buildings along with the massive A1 motorway junction (named Olding's Corner), the land being gradually turned over to retail, offices, and housing.
[edit] Culture and recreation
Hatfield has one swimming pool, two sports/leisure centers, one nine-screen cinema, a factory outlet shopping center called The Galleria, situated above the A1(M), and two supermarkets - ASDA in the town centre and Tesco at the northern end of the town. Hatfield is most famous for being the location of Hatfield House (or Royal Palace of Hatfield), it is also regarded as being the birthplace of the jet airliner (the ill-fated De Havilland Comet).
[edit] Places of interest
- College Lane Campus and de Havilland campus of University of Hertfordshire are located in Hatfield.
- Hatfield House is where Queen Elizabeth I spent her childhood.
- A local history museum located at Mill Green, just off the A414-A1000 junction.
- Also at Mill Green is the Mill Green Watermill which still produces flour which can be bought there. There is also a café open Easter to September. The water mill is one of a very few in Hertfordshire. Regular events suitable for families are held at the mill.
- Tesco, ASDA, T-Mobile (UK) Limited, Computacenter, BDO Stoy Hayward and Porsche offices are also located in here.
- Green Lane Allotments located between Hatfield Garden Village and the A1(M)
[edit] Hatfield memorial garden
The area contains the site of a fatal rail crash on October 17, 2000. The incident brought track maintenance deficiencies to public attention, to the severe detriment of Railtrack, the company established to manage rail infrastructure, and set in motion the events that led to its insolvency. It is five miles north of Potters Bar, scene of a later fatal train derailment.
[edit] Nearby towns and villages
- Welwyn Garden City
- St Albans
- Stevenage
- London Colney
- Watford
- Welham Green
- Brookmans Park
- Potters Bar
- Colney Heath
- Lemsford
- Hertford
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] Trivia
The British 1970s rock band Hatfield and the North was named after the first road sign on the A1 motorway going North from London. Babe Ruth, a 1970s rock band came from Hatfield.
[edit] Gallery
 College Lane Campus, Main Building |
 Learning Resource Centre, De Havilland campus |
 The main hall of Hatfield House |
 The north front of Hatfield House, 1880 |
 Saint Peter Church, on Bishop Rise |
 The Air Field, on Comet Way |
 Hatfield Business Park |
 Porsche garage |
 T-Mobile offices |
 The Galleria |
 Ocado distribution centre |
 Rail crash memorial. |
 Onslow St Audrey's School |
 The A1(M) in Hatfield. |
[edit] Gallery
|
College Lane Campus, Main Building |
Learning Resource Centre, De Havilland campus |
The main hall of Hatfield House |
The north front of Hatfield House, 1880 |
|
Saint Peter Church, on Bishop Rise |
The Air Field, on Comet Way |
Hatfield Business Park |
Porsche garage |
|
T-Mobile offices |
The Galleria |
Ocado distribution centre |
Rail crash memorial. |
|
Onslow St Audrey's School |
The A1(M) in Hatfield. |
