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Carlby
| Carlby is four miles south west of Bourne, just off the A6121, but a detour is worthwhile because the village is isolated and surprisingly picturesque with a mix of attractive properties both ancient and modern, not least the old inn, now a private
residence that still boasts the wooden support post but no sign.
St Stephen's Church is predominantly Early
English and has a tower with a slender broach spire that is 700 years old.
It is situated in a quiet corner of the village that gives it an air of secluded calm which must be beneficial because a previous incumbent, Thomas Toller
Hurst, who is remembered by a tablet in the chancel, ministered
here for 53 years until he died in 1844.
Most of the church dates from the 13th century
with the upper portion being 15th century work. Some may be even
earlier, around 1200, and the church contains what is thought ot
be a Saxon coffin lid. The interior is
spacious with some remains of 17th century woodwork and fragments of
a mediaeval Doom painting above the chancel arch. |
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The church fell into disrepair
during the late 19th century and in 1912, the nave, roof and north
aisle were supported by scaffolding to prevent total collapse.
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The
building was saved by a tremendous fund raising drive, including
the proceeds from annual fetes, and restoration work began in 1933
with further work being carried out in 1980. Remains of mural
paintings were found during the first period of restoration and
although all could not be preserved because of damp and decay,
sufficient were uncovered to indicate that the entire church
interior had once been painted.
The churchyard is well kept with a
variety of interesting tombstones including one finely carved and
enriched with a cross and a memorial tablet that reminds us of the
feeble grasp we all have on life because it announces that Oliver
Smith "died suddenly in his chair" on May 21, 1872, aged 54
years: "In
the midst of life we are in death."
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| A new village sign was erected on the
village green in 2001 at a cost of £3,200 to mark the millennium. It
was worked in oak by the Northamptonshire woodcarver Norrie Dinning
and depicts familiar local features including the church, horses and
a plough and the famous Mallard locomotive that set a world steam
record on the nearby main east coast railway line in the summer of
1938. A brass plate on the supporting post is inscribed: "Presented
to the village by Carlby Parish Council to commemorate the
millennium September 14, 2001." |
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Two large ornamental crowns made from concrete greet visitors at the main entrance to the Eastern Farm Implements premises on the A6121 at Carlby. They
are the work of Major Cuthbert Fitzwilliams, owner of Greatford Hall, who had a
reputation for garden design and were made to celebrate the Coronation of King
George VI in 1937. Others can be found in the locality, notably in the front gardens of a pair of stone cottages in the main street at Greatford, two miles away.
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The village no longer has a public house since the
Plough Inn was shut in 1970 when Watneys, the brewery which owned it then, decided
that it was no longer viable to keep it open, especially as they faced
massive costs to upgrade the facilities, notably the outside lavatories.
It is now a private home although the sign post remains, without a sign,
and there is a plough in the front garden to remind passersby of its past
existence. In addition, residents hold a pub night in the village hall
every two or three months with drinks and the usual bar games such as
darts, dominoes, quizzes, draughts and karaoke, as a reminder of the way
things were. The public house, which dated back to 1775, is pictured above
in 1950 when it was owned by the Northampton Brewery Company Limited, with
mine host Bill Simons and his wife Alice at the front wall. He was the
last publican before the hostelry closed. |
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See also
Major Cuthbert Fitzwilliams Greatford
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