Overview of Emsworth

Emsworth is a large village the south coast of England, situated on the Hampshire side of the border between Hampshire and West Sussex. The village lies at the north end of an arm of Chichester Harbour, a large but shallow inlet of the English Channel. Emsworth has a population of approximately 10,000 people. In the 19th century Emsworth had as many as 30 pubs and beer houses, probably to do with the fact that Emsworth was a fishing village. In some places the old oyster-beds can still be seen at low tide. The village has a basin for small yachts and a few fishing boats opposite the millpond, an artificial lake which fills at high tide can be emptied through a sluice at low tide. The River Ems, which is named after the village (not, as often believed, the town named after the river) also flows into the Slipper millpond, and although the mill is no longer in use it now houses a number of offices and an art gallery. Adjacent to Emsworth is Thorney Island, formerly in Hampshire but now in West Sussex.