Hardley and Langley Village Sign

I’m not sure that I’ve seen a village sign with two different village names on it, but this is the sign for Hardley and Langley. The two villages have somewhat merged together and their formal name is now ‘Langley with Hardley’, which were both historically separate parishes.

According to the village’s own web-site, both parishes had their own council in 1894, but they were amalgamated in 1928. There was some debate about dropping the name of Hardley, but the residents of Langley must have been a vocal bunch, and so their parish wasn’t forgotten. The school districts had already been merged in the 1870s, so it looks like harmony prevailed in the end.

The Hardley side of the sign has Hardley Church on it, along with birds and sweeping views of the landscape, whilst the Langley side of the sign has Langley Abbey and a wherry on it. All colourful and bright, a rather lovely village sign and it’s also been placed pretty much on the official boundary between the two villages.