WYMERSLEY HUNDRED 



HORTON 



lains from 1282 to 1415.' All the rights of a parish 

 church were confirmed to it in 1281. The mayor and 

 burgesses of Northampton were patrons, but the 

 Bishop of Lincoln decreed in 1281 that their presenta- 

 tions must receive the consent of the prior of St. 

 Andrew's and the vicar of Hardingstone.^ 



Robert Lucas, divine and poet, was curate at Hard- 

 ingstone 1778-82.' The Independent minister, Ris- 

 don Darracott, began tiis labours here about 1738.* 

 A Baptist chapel was registered for marriages in 1875.' 

 Charity Estates. These estates which 

 CHARITIES consisted of three closes of land con- 

 taining in all 27 a. 2 r. 36 p. together 

 with a yearly sum oi £1 6s. SJ. issuing out of lands in 

 Collingtree are understood to have been in part derived 

 under gifts of freeholders and inhabitants of the parish 

 and were partly purchased with sundry benefactions 

 for the poor and for apprenticing children. The charity 

 is now regulated by a Scheme of the Charity Commis- 

 sioners dated 17 January 1908 under the provisions of 

 which a body of 5 representative trustees and 6 co- 

 optative trustees were appointed. The land has been 

 sold and the proceeds invested, the income amounting 

 to about ;^30 10/. 



The Church Charity. A yearly sum of 10/. is paid 

 by the trustees of the Charity Estates to the vicar of 

 Hardingstone subject to the condition that he preaches 

 a sermon on Easter Monday in the parish church. 



Clark's Charity. John Clark by will dated 26 October 



1762 bequeathed £z 50, the income thereon to be laid 

 out by the vicar of Hardingstone in buying four new 

 warm cloth coats to be given to four of the most in- 

 digent poor men of the parish. The endowment now 

 consists of ;{^27o 2j°o Consols held by the Official 

 Trustees the dividends on which amounting to £6 i 5/. 

 annually are applied by the vicar in accordance with 

 the trusts. 



Murray's Charity. Elizabeth Murray by will proved 

 about 1776 gave ^(^300, the interest therefrom to be 

 applied to clothing four poor women in the parish. 

 The charity is now regulated by a Scheme of the 

 Charity Commissioners dated 27 June 191 3 whereby 

 a body of 4 representative trustees and 2 co-optative 

 trustees was appointed. The income arising from the 

 endowment consisting of ^^348 6s. id. 2j°o Consols is 

 applied in clothing. 



Everard William Bouverie by his will proved in 

 1 872 gave ;^500 3 "o Annuities, the income thereof to 

 be distributed amongst ten poor industrious families 

 or persons of good character and sober habits in the 

 parish. The charity is administered by the vicar and 

 4 trustees appointed by the parish council and the in- 

 come amounts to £\z 10/. 



Unknown Donor. An annual sum is payable as a 

 rent or acknowledgement for a small piece of land in 

 Great Houghton. In lieu of the rent a coat of the value 

 of j^2 is now given annually to a poor man. The origin 

 of the payment is unknown. 



HORTON 



Horton (xi cent.); Hortun (xiii cent.). 



The parish of Horton lies 6i miles south-east from 

 Northampton on the road to Newport Pagnell, with a 

 station on the Northampton and Bedford branch of 

 the L.M.S. railway. The area is 1,930 acres of land 

 and 6 of water and the soil is clay and marl with subsoil 

 of stone. The chief crops are wheat, oats, and beans, 

 and there is some pasture. The land lies between about 

 300 ft. to 400 ft. above the ordnance datum. There 

 is a group of six cottages north of the church, and a 

 few scattered farms, but no real village. Horton 

 House, standing in a park of about 200 acres, in which 

 there is a long lake fed by several streams, was pulled 

 down in 1936. It was a large 18th-century stone man- 

 sion of two main stories and an attic, with an Ionic 

 portico, built by Lord Halifax. The park also contained 

 a building formerly used by Lord Halifax as a mena- 

 gerie. To the south of the parish lie Horton wood 

 and Little Horton wood now (1936) being felled. 

 Little Horton House, a small Georgian house, stands 

 in its own grounds of about 30 acres off the Horton- 

 Bra field road. 



In the early 1 8th century the parish was inclosed 

 and contained 8 or 9 families. By Local Government 

 Board Order of 24 March 1884, a detached part of 

 Great Houghton was added to this parish and Cheney 



Brand's farm' transferred from Cogenhoe. The popula- 

 tion in 193 1 was 844 in the civil parish. 



In 1066, 3 virgates in HORTON wcte. 

 MANORS held by Turbern of the Bishop of Cou- 

 tances,^ 2 hides by Otbert of Walter the 

 Fleming,* and half a hide by Turbern of the Countess 

 Judith, who also held I hide of socland as a part of the 

 manor of Yardley Hastings.' In the 12th-century sur- 

 vey these three fees were described respectively as 

 6 virgates held by Walter fitz Winemar of the fee of 

 Olney;'" 2 hides, I small virgate held by .^ouf de 

 Merk, son of Otbert, of the fee of Wahull;" and 6 

 virgates held by Turgis de Quenton of King David, 

 who had 3 small virgates in addition.'^ 



The holding of Walter fitz Winemar passed to his 

 descendants, the Prestons of Preston Deanery, and its 

 history can be traced under their part of Preston which 

 was held of the fee of Chester (q.v.). In 1235-6 

 William de Scrlingford {sic) was said to hold one 

 knight's fee in Horton of Olney.'^ This was possibly 

 an over-estimate, as his holding seems to correspond to 

 the 4j virgates and other land there held by Sarah de 

 Scrimplingford of Gilbert de Preston in 1274,''' and 

 Gilbert was said to hold of the king by service of one 

 eighth of a knight's fee, and in the following year his 

 heir held half a fee in Preston, Hackleton, and Horton 



' See Bridges, op. cit. 363-4. 



' Ibid, j y.C.H. HiTikanis, ii, i6o. 



' Did. Nat. Biog. 



* Ibid. 



' Lend. Gaz. 15 March 1875, p. 1637. 



' John son of Robert Chcync com- 

 plained, about 1 570, that John Clerkc and 

 others had perambulated the bounds of 

 Ravenstone, Bucks., so as to include 

 'Cokenowe Brande', which had always 



been part of the manor of Cogenhoe : Chan. 

 Proc. (Ser. 2), file 31, no. 74. 



' y.C.H. Korihanti. i, 311*. This 

 was held by Frano in the time of King 

 £dward. 



' Ibid. 34oi. 



» Ibid. 351, 352*. 



'» Ibid. 376a. 



" Ibid. 375*. 



'» Ibid. 376J. 



" Bk. of Ftti, 502. Fitter {Hcnort and 

 KnigAii' Frei, ii, 19) appears wrongly to 

 have taken this to refer to Horton, co. 

 Buckingham. 



'* Cai. Incj. p.m. ii, no. 69, p. 49. Fines 

 concerning the family of Preston in Hor- 

 ton are Feet of F. case 173, file 37, no. 

 579; case 174, file 46, no. 819. 



259 



