Places in Great Linford
From left to right: Grange Farm, Interior of Windmill Hill Farm barn and The Nags Head.
From a once bustling High Street to the serene private water gardens of the manor park and the farms that once dominated the landscape, the Great Linford of even a hundred years ago would have looked a very different place; go back further to medieval times, and it would be unrecognisable. But there is plenty that has survived or can be discerned; a part of the High Street would still be familiar to residents of a century ago, and the almshouses, church and manor house are fixtures of great permanence in the landscape that have endured for many centuries.
Lost completely are many of those farmsteads that dotted the parish and the fields that surrounded them, but even for those that have disappeared completely, echoes remain, in a name on the High Street like Windmill Hill, or a remnant of a moss encrusted gate post and a rusted piece of farm machinery by the side of the old railway line. From this page you can explore the historic buildings and landscapes of Great Linford, those that remain, and those that can be brought back to life through the stories of the people who once called these places homes and businesses.
Lost completely are many of those farmsteads that dotted the parish and the fields that surrounded them, but even for those that have disappeared completely, echoes remain, in a name on the High Street like Windmill Hill, or a remnant of a moss encrusted gate post and a rusted piece of farm machinery by the side of the old railway line. From this page you can explore the historic buildings and landscapes of Great Linford, those that remain, and those that can be brought back to life through the stories of the people who once called these places homes and businesses.
Farms
It may be hard to believe, but there were once at least a dozen distinct farms within the parish of Great Linford, four of them with busy farmsteads on the High Street. Others were to be found on the extremities of the parish, such as to the north and south of Linford Wood and in what is now the Giffard Park estate. Almost all were owned in perpetuity by the Lords of Great Linford manor, who rented out farmhouses and land to tenant farmers.
The farms varied greatly in size, from the tiny 30-acre Marsh Farm, whose occupiers earned a living as market gardeners, to Grange Farm, The Mead and Wood End Farm, who’s combined 357 acres were at one point all in the occupation of a single wealthy farmer, Eli Elkins, who left 88 ounces of silver plate in his will.
Farmers came to Great Linford from far and wide; one, James Morris of Grange Farm, hailed from Wales and stayed a Welshman through and through, whilst milk was sent as far afield as London by train. At its height, the Great Linford estate comprised in the region of 2000 acres of profitable and productive farmland, largely given over to diary, but with arable crops also grown. The surviving farmhouses such as Church Farm, The Mead and Linford Lodge are now all private residences. Click here to learn more about farms in Great Linford.
The farms varied greatly in size, from the tiny 30-acre Marsh Farm, whose occupiers earned a living as market gardeners, to Grange Farm, The Mead and Wood End Farm, who’s combined 357 acres were at one point all in the occupation of a single wealthy farmer, Eli Elkins, who left 88 ounces of silver plate in his will.
Farmers came to Great Linford from far and wide; one, James Morris of Grange Farm, hailed from Wales and stayed a Welshman through and through, whilst milk was sent as far afield as London by train. At its height, the Great Linford estate comprised in the region of 2000 acres of profitable and productive farmland, largely given over to diary, but with arable crops also grown. The surviving farmhouses such as Church Farm, The Mead and Linford Lodge are now all private residences. Click here to learn more about farms in Great Linford.
Industry and commerce
You might imagine the Great Linford of the past to be a rural and wholly bucolic place, but though it was indeed long dominated by farming, there were substantial industrial activities in the parish, notably a trio of imposing brick kilns with a tall chimney stack, where bricks were produced and then loaded on to horse drawn barges for transport to customers up and down the Grand Junction Canal. The Wharf itself would have been busy with all manner of trade, even more so after a spur was added to Newport Pagnell in 1817, but though canal traffic was to subsequently decline, the village would maintain its connection to the outside world with the arrival of the Wolverton to Newport Pagnell railway line in 1865. Click here to learn more about industrial places in Great Linford.
The Manor Park
The manor park is home to some of the most important architectural gems in the parish, not least the manor house, the construction of which began circa 1790. But there is also the majestic almshouses, with its three-story school-house, overlooking the now fully restored water gardens. Click here to learn more about Great Linford Manor Park.
Places of worship
The church of St. Andrews dates to at least the 12th century, but there are earlier phases of construction subsumed within its fabric, with evidence uncovered for a smaller late Saxon or early Norman church on the same site. Religious observance is something that can create passionate disagreement, and nearby Newport Pagnell was a particular hotbed of dissent. Clandestine places of worship in people’s homes would have been common in less tolerant times, but in 1833 the dissenters of Great Linford felt emboldened enough to raise their own chapel on the High Street, despite the strenuous objections of the parish priest. Click here to learn more about places of worship in Great Linford.
Pubs
For a small village, there were certainly plenty of places to drink and socialise, with at one time, three public houses to choose from, as well as several beer houses from which liquid libation could be sought. Two pubs continue to operate to this day, The Nags Head and The Black Horse Inn, while the former Wharf Inn has been transformed into a private dwelling.
Predating the original trio of public houses, the signs of The White Horse and The Six Bells are recorded, though their location remains uncertain. Indeed, these two pubs may arguably have been the same establishment, the sign having been changed from one to the other. The latter was undoubtedly named in homage to the installation of a sixth bell in the tower of St. Andrew’s church in 1756, so a shrewd publican may have seized on the occasion to court favour with the Lord of the Manor, who had paid for the new bell. Perhaps the name was even changed again; the building accommodating The Black Horse Inn predates its earliest recorded use as a public house, and arguably it may have traded under other older signs. Click here to learn more about the pubs in Great Linford.
Predating the original trio of public houses, the signs of The White Horse and The Six Bells are recorded, though their location remains uncertain. Indeed, these two pubs may arguably have been the same establishment, the sign having been changed from one to the other. The latter was undoubtedly named in homage to the installation of a sixth bell in the tower of St. Andrew’s church in 1756, so a shrewd publican may have seized on the occasion to court favour with the Lord of the Manor, who had paid for the new bell. Perhaps the name was even changed again; the building accommodating The Black Horse Inn predates its earliest recorded use as a public house, and arguably it may have traded under other older signs. Click here to learn more about the pubs in Great Linford.
Schools
The oldest known school in the parish is located in the centre of the almshouse complex in the manor park and was built circa 1700 by the then lord of the manor, Sir William Prichard. It provided education for boys only, girls having to wait for the construction of St. Andrews Church of England school on the High Street, the first phase of which was completed in 1875. Prior to this, the only likely source of education for girls might have been Sunday school at the church, or a lace making school on the High Street, though if anything other than lace making was taught at the latter is unknown, and if it was, it would have been extremely rudimentary. One other school is known to have operated in the village, a private girl’s school, which was run from the manor house between circa 1877 and 1883. Click here to learn more about schools in Great Linford.
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