Witham-on-the-Hill

This village is mentioned in the Domesday Book, the great land survey ordered by William the Conqueror in 1086 to assess land tax and other dues in his domain, and is, as the name suggests, on a hill and a steep incline leads to the village green and by the side of this large expanse of grass are the mediaeval stocks, a relic of the village's ancient past.

The stocks were a device for the punishment of certain criminal offenders, often for trivial infringements of the law, and were usually the fate of vagabonds and other petty offenders. A tiled canopy protects the wooden baulks of timber that were padlocked together to imprison the feet of miscreants for a set period and this suggests that justice at Witham was tempered with mercy for those incarcerated were protected from the elements. Stocks were last used in England in the middle of the 19th century. The blue plaques on the wall commemorate awards to the parish council in the Best Kept Village Competition which is held in the countryside every year to stimulate pride in the community and this is a very pretty village indeed.

St Andrew's Church (above)  and the spacious interior (below)

The spacious church of St Andrew was built largely during the 15th century and contains several examples of Norman architecture including the south aisle and the arch and doorway of the south porch. The church tower and spire were rebuilt in 1738 after the earlier ones had collapsed. Distinctive ornamental urns decorate the base of the spire. Central heating has been installed and the flowers are fresh while the blue hand-embroidered hassocks in the pews bear witness to the dedicated following this church has for each bears the name of the individual who worked them.

The church has possessed a clock for over 400 years and this is one of the earliest instances known in a church tower, dating back before the invention of the pendulum. The first clock existed in 1548 but it was destroyed in 1736 when the steeple collapsed. A new tower and spire were built in 1738 when a new clock was fitted at a cost of £28. This lasted until 1862 when the present clock was installed by Joseph Farrine for which he was paid the sum of £141 6s 9d and it was subsequently completely restored in 1994 by Mr Derick Brown of Tinwell, near Stamford. The south porch has a Norman arch but the figure in the niche over the doorway is modern and replaces the old figure of St Andrew. Those who died in the village prematurely are remembered with a Children's Corner in the churchyard and one of the more touching tributes is a grave in the form of a Garden of Happy Memories with appropriate statues and a stone seat although this elaborate design does not deserve such neglect.

The parish hall is one the community's curiosities. It was built in 1857 as the village school and the tower housing the bell that summoned generations of village children to their lessons remains while the schoolmaster's house stands nearby. The hall was refurbished during 2000 with the aid of a £50,000 grant from the national lottery fund and during the work, old oak beams and a wealth of 19th century woodwork were discovered when the roof was opened up for the first time since the building was closed as a school fifty years before and have been retained as a feature. An inscription on the front wall below the roof of the hall also reminds us of the building's past endeavours in learning:

The largest and most famous building at Witham-on-the-Hill is Witham Hall which dates back to the 18th century. The core of the house, just five bays to the east and west, was built between 1752 and 1756 but nothing Georgian remains inside and much has been added to the exterior by A N Prentice between 1903 and 1905. He gave the house an H-plan and added a range to the east side. Along the west side of the house to the entrance, i e along the drive, there is a vista of pseudo-Jacobean arches dated in order 1876, 1830 and 1906. The house was long occupied by the Johnson family, descendants of Archdeacon Johnson, founder of Oakham and Uppingham Schools, but today is hidden by stone walls and high hedges and is used as an exclusive preparatory school for boys and girls and is generally closed to the public.

Palace Farm in the main street at Witham-on-the-Hill was formerly the manor house, with village huts built around it. The name Palace Farm is derived from the fact that it was once the southern palace of the Bishops of Lincoln, conveniently situated just a day's ride from the city of Lincoln. King John is reputed to have stayed here shortly before his death at Newark in October 1216. Palace Farm today is only one third of the original building, which was badly damaged by fire.

Palace Farm (left) and West Farm (right) on the outskirts of the village

The hill in the village name rises boldly between the winding valleys of the rivers Eden and Glen and the church spire on its summit is a prominent landmark. The church dominates the village and it can be seen to good effect from the extensive recreation field adjoining the churchyard. An impressive Victorian country house stands by the side of the country road halfway between Witham-on-the-Hill and Little Bytham. It is approached by a long drive and a low stone wall marks out its gardens. This is West Farm and beyond are the homes built for farm workers and known as West Farm cottages.

The Six Bells has not always been the village pub at Witham-on-the-Hill. In earlier centuries it was the Black Dog that was situated opposite the gates of Witham Hall and the grooms from the stables were often to be found there, much to the displeasure of their employer Squire Fenwick, who then owned the estate. He therefore closed it down in the early 20th century, replacing it with the Six Bells public house that was built at the very end of the village out of temptation's way and the licence was transferred at the Licensing Sessions at Bourne on 21st April 1908. It is a handsome, stone-built inn, set in its own grounds in a splendid position with picnic tables on the terrace at the front and others in a pleasant garden at the side. Inside there is a charming feature known as Ye Olde Wishing Wall with a notice informing customers that the management is not responsible for wishes that are not granted.

There is an ancient cow paddock halfway down the main street at Witham-on-the-Hill. It is disused and overgrown with patches of yellow buttercups and white parsley sprouting up through the long grass. This paddock is unchanged since Victorian times with a number of old barns and cattle sheds nearby and sometimes you can see a lone red and yellow kniphofia, more commonly known as a torch lily or red hot poker, growing from a windblown seed wafted in on the breeze from one of the gardens in the vicinity. Many of the old farm cottages are bought up as they become vacant by professional people working in the towns and they modernise the properties and plant flowers in their gardens rather than vegetables which they can afford to buy from the supermarket and so this is an example of unusual plants beginning to colonise our countryside.

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