The Sign
The sign shows two main themes: The pottery at the top which goes back to Roman times and still exists today due to the abundance of Mica Clay and the wheat/corn sheaf below the name representing the importance of agriculture in the area. The sign was erected to commemorate the Queen's Silver Jubilee, but not unveiled until 1980.

The Name and Population
Called Wate(s)felda or Watlesfelda in 1086 and Watlesfeld in 1150. Name probably means "The open land of a man called Waetel or Hwaetel", from Old English. The population was 475 at the 2011 census.

Other Points of Interest
From 1967 to 1971, it was occupied as both a home and art restoration studio by famous art forger Tom Keating, and his business partner and lover, Jane Kelly. While running their picture cleaning and repair business, Keating secretly continued painting large numbers of Sexton Blakes his rhyming slang for fakes (Wikipedia).