Committee members enjoyed a successful afternoon at the fete in Milton on July 13th, where our stall attracted a steady stream of visitors.
Once again, as is a feature for us at these events, our photo displays generated lots of conversations. Most of these start with the regular refrain along a theme: “Look, that’s my uncle/sister/ grandad/…” and the stories emerge.
We were pleased this year to include in our display, the model by the late Arthur Ashton of the sailing ship “Cospatrick”. This attracted much interest: a puzzle for some, moments of recognition for others.
We were grateful to the organisers of the fete for the ease of set-up, and pre-event publicity which ensured a good attendance and festive atmosphere.
Members of the Society recently enjoyed a visit to the remains of North Leigh villa which sits in a sunny, sheltered spot on the banks of the river Evenlode.
Members at the Mosaic: June 28th 2024
The Villa Layout
At its maximum extent in the early 4th century, a great ‘courtyard villa’ stood on the site with a range of buildings on each of three sides of a rectangle, with a corridor and a gatehouse closing the courtyard on the fourth side. This created a large, enclosed open space which may have been laid out as a garden. This villa was provided with three bath suites, 16 of its rooms had mosaic floors and 11 were provided with under-floor heating.
Underfloor Heating, North Leigh Villa: May 2023
Today little remains of this once vast residence with only the foundations of the north and west ranges, including the bath complex, being exposed. The remains of the rest of the villa are buried to protect it from destruction by the elements.
The Mosaics
Local volunteers (the site is in the care of English Heritage but has not had a custodian present for many years), met us on site and opened the ‘mosaic shed’ so we could see the one remaining early 4th century mosaic.
North Leigh Villa: Mosaic June 28th 2024
Although damaged over time the mosaic, made by mosaicists from a workshop in Cirencester, still looks impressive. We were also shown copies of detailed drawings of other elaborate mosaics made when the site was excavated in the early 19th century, which were subsequently removed by souvenir hunters.
The volunteers explained that the villa had its origins in the pre-Roman Iron Age with the first stone structures replacing earlier earth and timber buildings in the 1st or early 2nd century AD.
Cleaning the Mosaic: September 2021
North Leigh Villa Developments over Time
It is assumed that the same, probably extended, family continued to live here after the arrival of the Romans. Its likely they benefitted from increased trade and improvements in transport, trade and farming methods that came with Roman rule. As their fortunes improved so did their accommodation, with the addition of ‘home improvements’ including a bath house and the gradual expansion of accommodation for themselves, their guests and servants.
Viewing the Layout Plans: June 28th 2024
Aerial photographs and geophysical survey have revealed that there were further, extensive buildings beyond the south-west range which may have formed a home farm for the villa. A system of ditched fields surrounded the villa. The villa probably declined and was abandoned in the 5th century AD, following the withdrawal of Roman troops from Britain and the consequential breakdown of central administration in the province.
Ongoing Care of the Villa
It was good to hear that after many years of neglect English Heritage are now working with local volunteers to make the site more accessible and are implementing a conservation plan that includes the installation of a new roof on the old mosaic ‘shed’, repairs to the old custodian’s cottage, and the conservation of the ruins themselves.
North Leigh Villa: Snails, September 2021
Before leaving we were introduced, via their empty shells, to some of the edible (at least in the Roman period) snails first introduced by the Romans. These snails have never felt the need to stray far from this perfect spot where they were originally bred, and can still be seen around the villa today.
North Leigh Villa Audio Tour
Sadly, unlike the snails, the volunteers aren’t always there, but they have created an audio tour which you can use to guide yourself around the site. It can be found here and downloaded free to your phone.
The society was pleased to support the Ascott under Wychwood Family and Local History event at Tiddy Hall on June 22nd.
Part of the WLHS Photo Display
We organised a display of photos from Wychwoods villages, as well as demonstrations of our extensive digital photo library. It was a welcome opportunity to hear and share memories and put some names to several photos (group and individuals). Often these come to us with missing or incomplete information, and so it is always a benefit to fill in gaps and continue the learning process.
The Ascott Martyrs Family Tree
On show also was the amazing Ascott Martyrs Family Tree and some of the tools used by farmers before mechanisation. Also on show was a stand organised the Oxfordshire Family History Society, who were on hand to give advice and help for those looking to develop their family tree, or perhaps start their own journey of family history discovery.
As an extra treat, visitors were regaled with music and dance from the Charlbury-Finstock Morris who performed traditional Ascott dances outside the hall.
The Oxfordshire Family History Society
Taking a closer look …. The Wychwoods Local History Display
Here we reproduce an article by the late Janet Wallace from the society’s Journal No 28, published in 2013. In doing so, we revisit the political and social circumstances around these perilous enterprises.
The sailing ship Scimitar. She also plied the New Zealand Route
These themes are particularly in focus in Wychwoods villages, in this 150th year of the loss of the Cospatrick whilst undertaking a similar voyage.
Janet’s article examines local emigration to New Zealand in the bad agricultural times of the 1870s. She documents Milton families leaving for a new life on the S.S. Mongol.
Reports and diary entries show just how dangerous the voyage was for those leaving these shores. Many of those that arrived safely wrote home to say the risk of leaving was worthwhile. Life, though hard, was much better than it was in this country.
Here is an article by Carol Anderson written to accompany an exhibition of photographs currently on show in the Wychwoods Library in Milton.
Carol’s review – available to download here – covers the varying cricketing activities in Ascott and Milton as well as the successes enjoyed by Shipton teams over the years.
Cricket has been played in the Wychwoods since at least the mid-19th century. Jackson’s Oxford Journal records a match between Shipton and Ascott, played on 24th August 1861 (Shipton scored 89, Ascott 35).
Shipton Cricket Club: Historic Moments
The Shipton Cricket Club website records that it is believed that village matches were staged in a field on the edge of Shipton near Fiveways. This is the junction of Leafield and Swinbrook Roads, Mawles and Plum Lane.
The club also records that country house cricket was played on the present ground in the late 19th century. This was made possible by the levelling and draining of the area by the Pepper family. This family were the owners of Shipton Court, which locals will know, stands opposite Shipton’s cricket ground.
A historic timeline of Shipton Cricket Club appearson the club website here. This includes links to videos of some of the early 21st century games played by Shipton Cricket Club at Lord’s.
The club first entered the National Village Knockout Competition in the mid-90s , reaching the final in 1997.
Sam Mendes, who was a regular player at this time, hosted a meal for the team at the Groucho Club on the eve of the match. In the event the final is overshadowed by the overnight death of Princess Diana. There are doubts about proceeding with the match but it goes ahead. The result was a defeat to Caldy of The Wirral.
Here is a video of pre-match interviews, and many slices of action from the match.
.. and here are some images from Shipton’s later visit to Lord’s in 2010:
Following the success of the first village trails of Milton and Shipton, The Arts Society Cotswolds (TASC) has launched the third in the series at Ascott.
The new Ascott trail is in three parts, each beginning and ending on the village green.
Part one is focused on the centre of the village. Part two goes along the High Street and includes an optional longer footpath to Manor Farm and the site of Ascott D’Oyley castle. Part three takes you in the direction of Tiddy Hall and the site of Ascott Earl Castle.
The Village Trails created by TASC are being publicised around each village.
The New Ascott Village Trail Poster and QR Code
The Shipton Village Trail Poster and QR Code
Each trail comprises a description and image of individual landmarks in each village and invites answers to simple questions about those landmarks. All three trails have language simple enough for children to follow, but they are also suitable for all ages.
There are optional amounts of walking required. The trails need not be completed in one session.
How to get my Village Trail Copy?
Milton Village Trail Poster with QR Code
In various locations around each village, there are posters which have a QR code on them, so that the trail can be downloaded on to a smart phone or tablet and printed off as necessary.
Paper copies of the trails are also available free of charge at many locations in each village.
Or you can download from the Arts Society of the Cotswolds website here, using these links:
This post is created for the benefit of visitors from the Milton Heritage Trail, offering some more detail around the history of Bruern Abbey, associated with the Heritage Trail Bruern Bridleway Stone (2024).
This post is created for the benefit of visitors from the Milton Heritage Trail, offering some more detail around the history of Bruern Abbey, associated with the Heritage Trail Bruern Bridleway Stone (2024).
Here is a record by Jim Pearse of his time at Honeydale farm (formerly part of the larger Coldstone Farm) where he grew up as a child and where in 1952 his family bought the part called Honeydale. Honeydale Farm was a place Jim could call home all his working life, until its sale to present owner Ian Wilkinson in September 2013.
Jim records many anecdotes and key events at Honeydale, all of which will be of great interest to visitors of Ian Wilkinson’s FarmED which now occupies the site.
After the AGM, our final talk of the season included 3 presentations from WLHS Committee members, featuring stories from our archive using newly-discovered historic photographs, letters and oral history recordings
First we had a short review of the society’s work on audio recordings and oral histories by David Betterton. He played a few sample clips which typified the variety and human interest found in this archive. [ Overview here ]
John Bennett gave a review of a recently-acquired album of photographs of Milton under Wychwood dating from 1891. This album – we call it the “Marshall Album” is a treasure trove of historic images of Milton houses, from which John selected several individual properties and compared them to their appearance today. The Album itself was a gift from the guest of a prominent Baptist family in the village.
In the final presentation, Carol Anderson took us on a fascinating audit trail of the Baughan family in Milton, derived from her research around an intriguing box containing apparently random notes, receipts and letters – a box she titled “A Box of Baughans”. Her work on this revealed fascinating insights, for example, on the role of women in business administration.
Wychwoods Local History Archive Room
Further research is planned for the Marshall Album and the “Box of Baughans”, and work continues on creating extracts from the society’s oral history files.
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