Abingdon has unveiled a new signpost outside the Guildhall and council offices in Bridge Street. This signpost points visitors towards the town’s five twin towns and two sister cities: Abingdon, Virginia (USA) and Thames, New Zealand.

The arrows on the signpost not only indicate direction but also display the distance to each location and the national flag of the respective town or city.

The formal unveiling ceremony, held on Europe Day (May 9th, 2024), was officiated by Mayor of Abingdon, Councillor Gwyneth Lewis. Plans are underway to install a new notice board near the signpost, providing further information about Abingdon’s twinning relationships.

The European flag flew over the County Hall during the day.

A new Church in Abingdon Church twinning banner is being shown at the different churches in Abingdon, starting at Trinity last week. It will also be taken to church twin town events. The first such event is where Abingdon Church Twinning hosts Abingdon’s twin towns for the long weekend from Thursday 27th to Monday 31st October 2022 to share in and discuss the ecological theme ‘Christian Stewardship of the Environment.’

Events will include:

1) Reports from each twin town about their ecological developments (and the John Ray Initiative)
2) Five Eco groups talking about their work.
3) A talk about the Heat Source at Peachcroft Christian Centre.

In 1961, the International Union of Local Authorities proposed a link between Abingdon and Bergen-op-Zoom in Holland. Exchanges of school children and young people took place.

In 1970, when the International Friendship estate in South Abingdon was built, one road was called Bergen Avenue. Bergen was an associate town, rather than a twin town, in the towns listed by the Abingdon (Town Friendship) Society in the 1970 Abingdon Directory. In the 1980 directory, Bergen was no longer listed among the associate towns for The Abingdon & District International Friendship Society.

A sign on the International Friendship estate in South Abingdon lists twin towns(T) and associate towns(A).

INTERNATIONAL FRIENDSHIP
The roads on this estate
are named after towns
in partnership with
Abingdon
ARGENTAN CLOSE(T). BERGEN AVENUE(A)
COROMANDEL(A). LUCCA DRIVE(T)
SCHONGAU CLOSE(T)
ST NIKLAAS CLOSE(T). VIRGINIA WAY(A)
MAY 1970

For more information about Town Twinning visit Abingdon and District Twin Towns Society. Information about the Bergen association is from the book To the Seventies – Two decades of achievement in Abingdon and District. That book also says that Abingdon became friendly with St Niklaas thanks to Mr Peter Marsh, Headmaster of St Nicolas School. St Niklaas already had links with Colmar, Lucca, and Shongau, and welcomed Abingdon into that European Community.