Helpston in the 17th & Early 18th Centuries

Helpston was essentially a small farming village, situated between Stamford and Peterborough.

Social Structure and Occupations

Helpston was almost self-sufficient and most residents were employed in the production of food. The only exceptions were 2 masons, a carpenter, a butcher, a blacksmith, a weaver, and a miller at the windmill between Ashton and Bainton.  Surprisingly there was no shoemaker.

Getting about was not easy

The old Roman Road, now called King Street, was just west of the village and there was a road between Stamford and Glinton, which roughly was the route followed by the railway line 200 years later.

Maintenance of the roads

This was a parish responsibility, and they were at times impassable.  Maxey Road and Heath Road were no more than tracks.  The nearest market was at Stamford, about 7 miles away.

Where the properties were situated

Most of the houses were close to the church on Woodgate and the village end of West Street, and many of the old stone cottages are still occupied.  The Exeter Arms had served as the court house since 1578. Some of the farmhouses may date from this time and the manor houses, now Helpston House and Woodhall had become working farms.

Hearth Tax

There must have been overcrowding problems in the cottages.  The estimated population was about 200. Only 49 houses were listed in the 1674 Hearth Tax records, though the poorer households were exempt. However, John Bunning, who lived at (what is now) Helpston House, had 6 chimneys!

It also recorded that 29 of the 41 cottages had a single hearth.  There was either one room for warmth, cooking, eating and sleeping or one end  was used mainly for sleeping. This may have been what they called the ‘parlour’ in which the bed was the main item of furniture.  Another 13 cottages had 2 hearths and they probably had 2 rooms on the first floor, approached by a staircase or ladder.

Yeoman and Husbandmen

It appears that some of the Helpston yeomen may have inflated their status, based on the ownership of a small close and a cottage.  The average yeoman’s holding in Cambridgeshire was 92 acres.

Land and buildings were people’s most valuable possessions. Land owning farmers were known as yeomen and 22 claimed yeomen status, but only 5 of these gave details of land held, 8 did not divulge acreage, and 9 apparently held no land at all.

The next tier in the hierarchy were husbandmen, including the 2 who tilled the land and a number of leaseholders, followed by the 12 who described themselves as labourers, and who worked for a wage.

The simple classifications used above need to be viewed in the light of the changes in land ownership and society which had taken place in the 16th century.

Closes

The back gardens had been enclosed and some extended.  They were known as closes and were an acre or more in extent.  They were used mainly to grow vegetables but some were also used to keep livestock.

Fields and Croplands

There were still 3 large arable open fields in Helpston. Villagers leased strips from landowners, such as the old manors and the crown, to grow crops.

Helpston was unusual because of early enclosure, creating closes.  Some were bought as investments and leased. The Fitzwilliam family did not start to  acquire land and property in Helpston until the mid-16th century.

Leasing land

Freehold leases could be inherited. Copyhold leases had to be renewed annually and both the owner and the tenant kept a copy of the lease.  They too often appear to have been inherited.

Ordinary people beginning to own land

Another development was that some labourers were starting to own land. John Vine, 1710, who described himself as a labourer, had hay and firewood in his barn and owned a cart, a mare, a cow and a calf, a ewe and a hog.

Another labourer, Richard Lavender, 1617,  had 3 acres of arable land and an acre of meadow. Two Helpston residents, Robert Styles and John Buning (Bunning) had considerable estates, but it’s impossible to be precise because their documents are damaged and incomplete.

Robert Styles  In 1639, he had a house with barns, stables, yard and gardens as well as his own land in Helpston and arable land and meadows in Etton and Woodcroft.  There were also 2 closes and cottages, one with 10 acres and the other with 3 acres, which were rented out.  His entire estate appears to have been divided up after his death.

John Buning (Bunning)  In 1716, he had a house, 36 acres of arable land and 10 acres of pasture in Helpston.  There was also a cottage rented out and another 4 acres of arable land.  He leased 5 roods of arable land, copyhold, of Torpel Manor and held land in Etton, Maxey and Deeping Gate.  (A rood was three quarters of an acre).

John Shelton  In 1690 a yeoman, who owned 13 acres of arable land as well as over 14 acres recently purchased, some of it from the Fitzwilliam family

Livestock

Animals were also regarded as very valuable possessions.  A small number of owners  kept more than one or two animals.

The Position of Women

Married women were not allowed to hold any possessions in their own name but shared their husband’s possessions during his lifetime.

Village Lives

The centre of the community was the church. Attendance was compulsory and no one questioned its teachings despite the frequent changes in liturgy during this period.

There was also a village poor rate, paid by those who could afford it.  Since the 1661 Poor Law Act the parish was responsible for the care of its poor.

The pace and conditions of daily life in Helpston changed very slowly. The overall impression compared with neighbouring villages, was one of a quiet village not in the forefront of progress.  In neighbouring Ufford, for example, a much smaller village, there were 3 mansion houses, one with 12 hearths and two with 9 hearths  and there was a building boom at this time.

The family

The cornerstone of society was the family, and the priority in people’s wills was the inheritance of land and possessions.  Frequently the land holding remained intact and was handed down to the eldest son. Daughters and younger sons were left goods and sometimes money.

Cash flow and debt problems

The causes of debt can be explained by erratic sources of income, for example the absence of work for farm labourers in midwinter, and the absence of banks for people to deposit and save any spare cash.

Before there were banks and opportunities for the common man to save money, there were serious cash flow and debt problems.  Surplus money was often invested in land and property which was then leased and the rents brought in a steady income.

Source:
Margaret Spufford – Contrasting Communities. English villages in the 16th and 17th centuries ( Cambridgeshire 1575-1700)