W is for Whittlesey - AlphaPet Traditional Geocache
W is for Whittlesey - AlphaPet
-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(micro)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
Whittlesey, historically known as Whittlesea (as the name of the railway station is currently spelt) or Witesie, is an ancient Fenland market town around six miles (10 km) east of Peterborough.
The meaning is "Wit(t)el’s island", deriving from either Witil, "the name of a moneyer", or a diminutive of Witta, a personal name; + "eg", meaning "'island', also used of a piece of firm land in a fen. Before the draining of the fens, Whittlesey was an island of dry ground surrounded by the marshy fens. Whittlesey was noted for its brickyards, around which the former hamlet of King's Dyke was based for much of the 20th Century, although only one now remains. The town was also infamous for its number of public houses; folk lore dictates that, at one time, there were 52 - one for each week of the year. In 1797, a local farmer, when writing his diary, noted that 'they like drinking better than fighting in Whittlesea'.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Sbyybj gur guvpx qvntbany oenapu qbja gb gur tebhaq, jurer vg fcyvgf vagb gjb, naq ybbx orgjrra gurz.