Whipsnade


Whipsnade is a small village and civil parish in the county of Bedfordshire. It lies on the eastward tail spurs of the Chiltern Hills, about 2.5 miles south-south-west of Dunstable on the top of the Dunstable Downs which drop away steeply to the south of the village.

Etymology

Whipsnade is a compound of the Anglo-Saxon personal name, Wibba, with the word “snæd” an area of woodland, so the name means “Wibba’s wood”.

History

The village is first mentioned in a coroners roll of 1274 when Whipsnade Wood as described as being within the parish of Houghton Regis. The Old Hunters Lodge at the Crossroads in the village is a Grade II Listed Building and was built in the early 17th Century. It is now a hotel and is the only licensed premises in the village outside of the ZSL grounds.
Edward John Eyre, explorer of Australia, was born in Whipsnade in 1815.
In the census of 2011 the population of Whipsnade was 420, a decline from 458 in 2001.

Landmarks

Whipsnade is home to Whipsnade Tree Cathedral and ZSL Whipsnade Zoo. A chalk image of a lion can be found on Bison Hill and is owned by the zoo. During the Second World War, the lion was covered with a black sheet in order not to attract attention from the German bomber planes. Whipsnade Park Golf Club is also in the vicnity, though it is actually in neighbouring Dagnall.
The local Wildlife Trust manages a small nature reserve north of the village called Sallowsprings.