Parishes: Pampisford

PAMPISFORD

Pampisford, known until the 17th century as 'Pampesworth', is a small parish 7 miles south-east of Cambridge. (fn. 1) Its eastern boundary follows the Roman road that runs north from Stump Cross, and sections of the western and northern boundaries coincide with the river Cam or Granta and the river Granta respectively, while for the rest the edges of the parish follow irregular field boundaries. In 1801 an ancient cross stood at the south-east corner of the parish. (fn. 2) Pampisford covers 1,607 a. Its western half is all below 100 ft., but in the east the land rises from 100 to 175 ft. on the edge of the Essex uplands. The soil is light, lying over the Middle Chalk. (fn. 3) Unlike the adjoining parish of Sawston, Pampisford has remained predominantly agricultural throughout its recorded history. The land was farmed in open fields until inclosure in 1801.

The parish contains the western half of the Brent ditch, the most southerly of a series of five ancient earthworks. The ditch was known locally from the Middle Ages as the green ditch. (fn. 4) Its original purpose was probably defensive: excavation in 1968 revealed the remains of a bank on the north side of the ditch. (fn. 5) The ditch has been filled at the point where the Icknield Way crosses it.

About 25 inhabitants were at Pampisford in 1086. (fn. 6) By 1279 there were at least 64 tenants there, and in 1377 109 people paid the poll tax. (fn. 7) In 1524, however, there were only 39 taxpayers, and 31 households were recorded in 1563. (fn. 8) Population had probably changed little by the 1660s, when there were c. 35 households. (fn. 9) Eighty-nine adults were enumerated at Pampisford in 1676. (fn. 10) There were 40 families by 1728, (fn. 11) and 46 in 1801 comprising 202 people. The population rose gradually to a peak of 359 in 1851, but as in other Cambridgeshire villages it declined thereafter, reaching its lowest point in 1931 with 237 people. The growth of the village since then has increased its population to 340 in 1951 and 370 in 1971. (fn. 12)

Three main roads run through the parish. The Royston-Newmarket road bisects it from southwest to north-east: several 16th-century testators left loads of stones to repair it. (fn. 13) It was a turnpike from 1769 to 1874. (fn. 14) The road from Stump Cross to Newmarket and the road from Saffron Walden to Cambridge, which crosses the south-west corner, were both turnpiked under an Act of 1724 and disturnpiked in 1870. (fn. 15) The Sawston bypass, opened in 1968, diverges from the main road in Pampisford parish. (fn. 16) The railway line from Chesterford to Six Mile Bottom, opened in 1848 and closed only three years later, ran close to the eastern boundary of the parish, where the embankment survived in 1973. (fn. 17) A station was built near Bourn Bridge on the site later occupied by the Railway Inn. (fn. 18) The line from Great Shelford to Haverhill, opened in 1865, ran across the northern part of the parish, and Pampisford station was built close to the former Bourn Bridge station. The line was closed in 1967, (fn. 19) and by 1973 the tracks had been removed and the station was derelict.

The half of the parish south-east of the RoystonNewmarket road was uninhabited until Pampisford Hall was built there in the 19th century, when much of the surrounding land became gardens and parkland. The village had grown up c. 400 yd. northwest of the road along a single street, with Manor Farm and the old vicarage at each end of the street and the church in the middle. Settlement has always been fairly dispersed, however, and other houses stand along the minor roads linking the village with the main road and with Sawston. Throughout its recorded history the village has been small and poor. The church, which underwent substantial alterations and additions in the 12th, 13th, and 14th centuries, is the only surviving medieval building, and Rectory Farm, the old vicarage, and the Chequers are all that remain of a number of 16th- and 17th-century farm-houses. Some cottages in Brewery Road and Beech Lane date from the 17th and 18th centuries.

The population in 1851 was 'almost entirely composed of poor people', (fn. 20) but the Parker Hamonds, the first lords of the manor to live in the parish since the 15th century, brought improvements by supporting the school, the church, a Workmen's Institute, and other institutions. (fn. 21) The establishment of a brewery, and the growth of industry nearby at Sawston, provided more employment, but Pampisford remained poor and the vicar in 1877 reported some emigration. (fn. 22) Part of Sawston's leather industry spread into the parish of Pampisford, when the Eastern Counties Leather Co. Ltd. was established in 1879 at Langford Arch. (fn. 23) From c. 1880 houses began to spread eastwards along Brewery Road from Sawston. A few council houses have been built in the 20th century in Brewery Road and Church Lane, but most recent building in Pampisford has been by infilling near the centre of the village, particularly in Hamond Close and Glebe Crescent, two new roads created by developers. (fn. 24)

The Chequers, a 16th-century building in the centre of the village, was probably open as an inn by 1792. (fn. 25) Its thatched roof was destroyed in a fire in 1973. (fn. 26) The White Horse, at the junction of Brewery Road and the road from Cambridge to Saffron Walden, was open by 1841 (fn. 27) and survived in 1973, as did the Railway Inn, opposite Pampisford station, opened c. 1900. (fn. 28) The Ploughboy, open in 1871, closed c. 1965. (fn. 29)

The village feast was held in the 1880s on the first Monday in July. (fn. 30) On Plough Monday farm workers used to pull a plough down the main street to Manor and Home Farms. (fn. 31)

John Webb of Pampisford, a leader of the Peasants' Revolt in Cambridgeshire, was prominent in the attack on Steeple Morden manor and the sale of its goods. He was beheaded at Royston on 6 July 1381. (fn. 32)

Manors and Other Estates.

A large estate in Pampisford was given to the abbey of Ely by the ealdorman Beorhtnoth from his death in 991. (fn. 33) In 1086 the estate comprised 2¾ hides, and another 10 a. were held from the abbot by Hardwin de Scalers, and under him as in 1066 by Snellinc. (fn. 34) The Ely lands, known as the manor of PAMPISFORD, were granted by Bishop Hervey by 1127 to his nephew William, archdeacon of Ely, for 1 knight's service. Bishop Niel recovered the manor in 1135, but by or after 1166 it was granted away again as 1 knight's fee to Walter of Pampisford. (fn. 35) Walter of Ely held the land c. 1212 and in 1224. (fn. 36) By 1271 it was in the possession of Henry son of Aucher, who had married Ela, heir to the estate, and in 1272 was granted free warren at Pampisford. (fn. 37) On Henry's death in 1303 the manor passed to his son Aucher, (fn. 38) who was still alive in 1331. (fn. 39) His widow Joan married Sir John Shardelowe, who held the manor in 1346. (fn. 40) They released it in 1353 to John Cloville whose wife Christine is said to have been Aucher's daughter and heir. (fn. 41) The manor passed after 1374 to John's son William; he or his eldest son William (d.s.p.) owned it in 1412. (fn. 42) Catherine Cloville, probably the widow of the elder or younger William, held both the Pampisford manors in 1428. (fn. 43)

Walter Cloville, brother of William the younger, had succeeded her by 1434. On his death in 1444 or 1445 the manor passed to his younger brother Henry (d. 1453). (fn. 44) Henry's son John died in 1489, having enfeoffed his son Henry of his manors. (fn. 45) Henry Cloville (d. 1514) was succeeded by his son William (d. 1526); (fn. 46) William's widow Mary held Pampisford in 1547 and was followed by their son Francis (d. 1562) and Francis's son Eustace. (fn. 47) In 1584 Eustace Cloville sold his estate to Thomas Marsh (d. 1587), a Star Chamber notary, whose son Thomas, sheriff of Cambridgeshire in 1594, held it until his death in 1624 and was succeeded by his son Thomas, sheriff in 1648. (fn. 48) The third Thomas died in 1657, leaving the manor to his grandson Thomas who was knighted in 1661 and died in 1677. Sir Thomas's son Edward died without issue in 1701, having devised Pampisford to his wife Grace for life with remainder to William Parker, her eldest son by a previous marriage. (fn. 49)

William Parker (d. 1728) was lord of the manor by 1711, (fn. 50) having probably succeeded his mother in 1706. (fn. 51) William's widow Elizabeth still held the lordship in 1751. (fn. 52) Their only son William had succeeded her by 1756 and died without issue in 1776, (fn. 53) and his estates were divided between his sisters Grace and Elizabeth. Grace died in 1781, having devised her moiety to her sister, the widow of William Hamond (d. 1777). The whole manor descended on Elizabeth's death in 1789 to her son William Parker Hamond, (fn. 54) who died in 1812. The estate descended to his son William Parker Hamond (d. 1873) and grandson of the same name (d. 1884). On the death of the third William Parker Hamond the estate passed to his cousin, Col. R. T. Hamond, who sold the lordship and most of his Pampisford lands in 1893 to James Binney. (fn. 55) Binney was succeeded in 1935 by his son, R. C. C. J. Binney, who died in 1966 when the estate passed to his brother Mr. H. B. Binney.

The manor held of Ely probably had a manorhouse in 1303, perhaps on one of the two moated sites north-east of the village. (fn. 56) Manor Farm, also called Lordship Farm, was called a manor-house in 1806, (fn. 57) but the lords of the manor were non-resident from the mid 15th to the mid 19th century. Pampisford Hall was built by William Parker Hamond c. 1830 on former farm land. The house was apparently a moderate-sized villa with the principal rooms along the south-east front. The service wing was probably rebuilt and the roofs altered in the mid 19th century. Shortly after the sale of the family estate at Croydon (Surr.) in the 1860s (fn. 58) Parker Hamond enlarged Pampisford Hall and put in a new grand staircase and dining-room from designs by George Goldie. All the principal rooms were redecorated in the Italian and French Renaissance styles in 1875, when William Parker Hamond (d. 1884) succeeded to the property, and they have been little altered since that time. (fn. 59) In 1912 a ballroom was built on the northern end of the house, replacing the servants' hall, and a new west wing was added. The park, which covered 164 a. in the 1860s, was already notable for its trees by the mid 19th century. (fn. 60) The formal gardens were designed by G. Marnock. The park contains a fine collection of conifers including over 1,000 foreign species specially imported by the Parker Hamond and Binney families. (fn. 61)

The land which became the second manor of PAMPISFORD was held before 1066 by Almar from Eddeva the fair, and covered over 1¼ hide. At the Conquest it was given to Count Alan of Brittany, from whom it was held in 1086 by two knights, Ralph de Banks and Ralph Brito. Its overlordship descended thenceforth with the honor of Richmond. (fn. 62) Ralph de Banks was lord of the manor in 1224, and c. 1235. (fn. 63) By 1271 Sir Hugh de Brok held it in right of his wife Isabel, (fn. 64) with whom in 1281 he granted it to Robert Ludham for life. Ludham still held it when, after Hugh's death c. 1290, Isabel granted the reversion in 1293 to John, parson of Long Itchington (Warws.), (fn. 65) from whom it passed to Sir Richard of Wells. By 1302 Wells had granted it to Richard le Breton and his wife Joan for her life, and in 1306 granted his reversionary interest to William Goldington. (fn. 66) In 1309 Goldington granted the reversion, from the death of Joan, then remarried to Sir John de Crek, lord in 1316, to John Hinton. In 1319 Hinton conveyed it to Aucher son of Henry, who in 1321 bought out Crek's and Joan's life-interest. (fn. 67) The two manors subsequently descended together. (fn. 68)

In 1086 there were also several smaller estates. Picot the sheriff had ¾ hide, held from him by Ralph de Banks, and formerly held freely by Edric, the man of Alfric Child; Hardwin de Scalers held, besides his 10 a. of Ely land, 15 a. held in 1066 by two sokemen from King Edward. Eudes the steward's 5 a. were probably attached to his Sawston estate, being held from him by Pirot, and formerly by Burro from Alfric Campe. (fn. 69) None of those estates has been traced after 1086.

Two small estates in Pampisford were attached to Hinxton manor. About 1235 William Ferrard and Robert Saffrey (d. by 1242) had held ½ hide of the honor of Richmond. (fn. 70) In 1279 John Martin held 30 a. and Robert Saffrey 60 a. of John de Camoys, lord of Hinxton. (fn. 71) John Martin still held his land in 1302–3, and a namesake held it in 1346, but by 1428 that fee had passed to Catherine Cloville. (fn. 72) William Saffrey, or Reed, held in 1286 from John Stourton, lord of Hinxton, two-thirds of the 100 a. which he held at his death in 1325. (fn. 73) His son Brian Saffrey, then aged 14, died in 1349, leaving as heir his daughter Alice. (fn. 74) Adam Cove (d. after 1412) (fn. 75) owned Brian's lands by 1395. The estate, known as Saffreys in 1402, had by 1519 been acquired by Queens' College, Cambridge. (fn. 76) The college then held 187 a. in Pampisford, which had increased by 1524 to 232 a., probably by the addition of an estate called Cockfarnams. (fn. 77) The two estates were always leased separately by the college; Saffreys in 1768 covered 170 a., and Cockfarnams, or Cock farm, 50 a. (fn. 78) The college owned 200 a. after inclosure in 1801, but held no land in the parish by 1873, and in 1893 College farm with 258½ a., the former Queens' estate, was sold with the Hamond lands. (fn. 79) William Saffrey had a capital messuage in 1325. (fn. 80) There was a tenement with Saffreys in 1530, which in 1571 stood next to Saffreys grove which was surrounded by a hedge and ditch, suggesting a former moated site. (fn. 81) In the later 17th century the college's lessees occupied the largest house in the village, taxed on 9 hearths. (fn. 82)

The rectory of Pampisford, valued at £11 5s. in 1535, (fn. 83) had been appropriated to Blackborough priory (Norf.) in 1377. (fn. 84) The priory was dissolved in 1536, and the rectory was sold by the Crown in 1553 to Thomas Wren and Edward Slegge. (fn. 85) In 1561 Charles Huddleston, younger son of John Huddleston (d. 1530), conveyed it to John Lockton. (fn. 86) Edward Wood of Fulbourn owned the rectory in 1579, and died in 1599. His son John sold it in 1600 to James Alington (fn. 87) (d. 1626). James devised it to his nephew Sir Giles Alington of Horseheath, who was succeeded in 1638 by his son William. (fn. 88) By 1641 the owner was Theophilus Tyrrell of Bartlow. (fn. 89) He or a namesake held the advowson until his death in 1707. The rectory passed then to Elizabeth Tyrrell, widow, perhaps his daughter-in-law, who presented to the vicarage until her death in 1767. (fn. 90) Pampisford rectory was bought before 1799 by John Mortlock, the Cambridge banker, whose family had been settled at Pampisford since the 15th century. At inclosure in 1801 he was awarded 110 a. for the rectorial glebe and 235½ a. for the great tithes. (fn. 91) On John's death in 1816 the land and advowson descended to his second son Thomas (d. 1859), and then to Thomas's nephew E. J. Mortlock (fn. 92) who had sold Rectory farm by 1892. It belonged in that year to H. J. W. Asplen; the owner in 1925 was A. E. Fordham (d. 1949). (fn. 93)

Economic History.

Of the 5 hides in Pampisford in 1086, the abbot of Ely held a quarter in demesne. There were 3 servi on his estate, and the Ely and Richmond demesnes were cultivated by 3 of the 9 plough-teams. The rest of the land was worked by 14 villani and 10 or 7 bordars. Apart from the Richmond estate, which had temporarily fallen in value at the Conquest, all the estates were worth the same in 1086 as in 1066. (fn. 94)

In 1279 Sir Hugh de Brok held 160 a. of arable in demesne, Robert Saffrey 60 a., and John Martin 30 a.; each estate had some free and some customary tenants. Holdings of more than 5 a. were rare, except that of the recorded 15 villeins of Henry son of Aucher 7 held 9 a. each. All the villeins on his manor owed services, including up to 4 harvestboons, and in at least three cases the obligation to appear at the eyre with the reeve and 4 men. Three tenants on the Hinxton fees owed 1 or 2 boon-works, the others rendering only rents. (fn. 95) In 1303 Henry son of Aucher had 20 free tenants, besides 24 customary tenants who paid rents of assize and worked on one day a week between Easter and Michaelmas only. (fn. 96) Some of William Saffrey's tenants owed works in 1299, but by 1395 all the services on the estate had been commuted. (fn. 97)

The pattern of the open fields was settled by the 15th century, when Branditch, Middle, Mill, and Down or Dean fields were recorded. (fn. 98) The same field-names were used from then until inclosure, (fn. 99) though Dean field may have been small or only occasionally cultivated, for there were only three open fields in 1794 and a note of the fields' acreage in 1799 omitted Dean field altogether. On the eve of inclosure Middle field covered 301½ a., Branditch field 493½ a., and Mill field 353 a. (fn. 100)

Sheep were recorded in 1086, (fn. 101) and sheep-farming was widely practised in the 14th century, although there were no very large flocks; in 1347 John Shardelowe contributed 9½ stone of wool, and his shepherd Nicholas another 4 stone, to the parish's total of 53 stone paid for a levy of wool, the rest of the assessment coming from 32 others. (fn. 102) Livestock remained less important than arable farming: in 1794 there were c. 400 sheep at Pampisford; their numbers were expected to fall as a result of inclosure. (fn. 103) The only liberty of foldage recorded belonged to Queens' College in 1652 and 1689. (fn. 104)

The main crops mentioned in the 16th century were barley, some of which was malted, and rye. (fn. 105) Saffron was grown by 1527, and until the early 18th century. (fn. 106) Turnips were grown in the 18th century, (fn. 107) and there were over 100 a. of wheat in 1806. Arable production was expected to rise by one-sixth as a consequence of inclosure. (fn. 108)

Ownership of land in the parish was already concentrated in a few hands by the 16th century. The non-resident lords of the manor owned a large estate, which they often leased to yeomen from neighbouring parishes. (fn. 109) Leases of the Queens' College farms were also sometimes held by outsiders, (fn. 110) and the group of yeoman farmers in Pampisford was a small one. The Mortlock and Turtylby families were both prominent: John Mortlock owned 72 a. at his death in 1613. (fn. 111) By the 18th century only Queens' College and the lords of the manor held estates of any size.

The parish contained a 'moor' or common of c. 150 a. by the 16th century, on which cows and horses were pastured in summer and sheep in winter. (fn. 112) Of the 155 a. called the Hay 51 a. were intercommonable with Sawston, and in 1675 there was also an intercommon in Branditch field, probably shared with Great Abington. (fn. 113) About 20 a. of meadow by the river Cam or Granta were intercommonable with Whittlesford from the end of the hay harvest until Lady Day (25 March), with a bite on Easter Sunday which destroyed most of the hay crop when Easter fell late. (fn. 114)

The parts of the parish unsuitable for tillage were used for pasture and meadow: old inclosures half belonging to the lord covered 180 a. in 1801. (fn. 115) There were closes in the Brent ditch and at least 27 crofts in the parish ranging in size from ½ a. to 28 a. in the later 16th century. (fn. 116) An Act for inclosing the whole parish was obtained in 1799, (fn. 117) and the award was made in 1801. There were then c. 1,250 a. of open fields and commons. The allotments confirmed the dominance of the few large proprietors; William Parker Hamond thereafter owned 535a., about a third of the parish, John Mortlock had 365 a. for the rectory, Queens' College 200 a., and its lessee, Alexander Ross, 65 a. R. J. Adeane was allotted 95 a., which he immediately exchanged for land in his own parish of Babraham. No other proprietor possessed more than 50 a.; four, besides the vicar and the charity, had between 10 and 50 a., 158 a. altogether, and 15 others with 6 a. or less had only 47 a. between them. (fn. 118)

A large area in the north-east corner of the parish was taken out of cultivation to create the park around Pampisford Hall in the earlier 19th century, and the Parker Hamonds also acquired the Queens' College land before 1893. The number of large farms therefore remained much the same; Rectory, College, Mill, and Manor farm-houses were all standing by 1799; Home farm, as in 1973, had some cottages and farm-buildings but no farm-house. (fn. 119) By 1872 the 600 a. of Manor farm were divided, the farmstead and some of the land being leased with Home farm, and part added to Mill farm. (fn. 120) Rectory farm, with 400 a., was the only large farm in the parish not sold in 1893 with the Parker Hamond estate, which passed undivided to the Binney family apart from Mill farm, bought by the Eastern Counties Leather Co. Ltd. and sold by them in 1926. (fn. 121) Rectory and College farms were working in 1973; Manor Farm was used as a guest-house, and its land was farmed from Sawston.

Although some sheep-farming was practised on the large farms and there were three shepherds in the parish in 1851, (fn. 122) agriculture in Pampisford has remained largely arable. Home farm and College farm, each with c. 250 a. land in 1893, had only 32 a. and 36 a. of pasture respectively. (fn. 123) By 1905 there were 1,053 a. of arable in the parish compared with 177 a. of permanent grass and 101 a. of woods and plantations. (fn. 124) The main crops grown were wheat and barley, with a little oats. Farms with land by the two rivers also maintained small dairy-herds, and several farms had dairymaids in 1871. (fn. 125)

A water-mill worth 20s. on the river Cam or Granta belonged to the Ely manor in 1086. (fn. 126) It was recorded in 1303, 1571, (fn. 127) 1639, and 1707. (fn. 128) John Waldock, the miller, went bankrupt in 1876, (fn. 129) but the mill continued to be used for grinding corn and seeds for oil. It was bought with Mill farm from Col. Hamond in 1893 by the Eastern Counties Leather Co. Ltd., which sold the mill in 1941. (fn. 130) Pampisford mill was disused by 1960, (fn. 131) and by 1973 had been converted to residential use.

Most of the adult males in the parish were agricultural labourers in 1841 and 1851, and it was only with the growth of Sawston's leather and paper industries in the 1850s that any alternative employment became available. The factory of the Eastern Counties Leather Co., built in 1879 at Langford Arch in Pampisford, brought the leather industry closer to the village, and some of the 100 people employed in 1973 making gloves and chamois leather were from Pampisford. (fn. 132) Brewing was the only other local industry providing employment from the late 19th century. Apart from those employed on the farms, most inhabitants of Pampisford in 1973 worked at Sawston or in the Langford Arch factory, or in Cambridge.

Brewing was carried on at Pampisford in the mid 19th century by members of the Scruby family, who were also tenants of Rectory farm. William Scruby in the 1840s and Charles Scruby in the next three decades worked a brewery and malt-house, (fn. 133) at a site north of the road to Sawston (later Brewery Road) chosen for the purity of a well there. (fn. 134) Their business was bought c. 1880 by Bathe & Co., who in 1882 built a new brewery close to the old one. (fn. 135) By 1891 it belonged to P. L. Hudson, who considerably enlarged the brewery and its business; beer was supplied to his own 22 public houses as well as free houses, three malt-houses were needed to produce enough malt, and the brewery employed 50 people. (fn. 136) Hudson died in 1914 and his family sold the brewery in 1932 when they left Pampisford. (fn. 137) It was later reopened as a malt vinegar brewery, with several changes of ownership. (fn. 138) The Pampisford brewery closed c. 1950, and its buildings gradually became derelict. In 1965 Mr. Bernard Dixon, whose family had owned it, started a new company called Sealmaster on the same site, to manufacture door seals and draught excluders; most of the old buildings were demolished in 1972, although the engine-house was preserved, and in 1973 a new factory was under construction there. (fn. 139)

Local Government.

Although view of frankpledge for Pampisford was held c. 1235 by the lord of the Richmond manor, (fn. 140) in 1299, 1303, and 1325 a court with view of frankpledge belonged to the Ely manor. (fn. 141) Henry son of Aucher claimed the assize of bread and of ale as well as view of frankpledge in 1299. (fn. 142) William Saffrey had a court baron for his tenants in 1299. (fn. 143) There are court books for 1678–1867 and 1869–91. In the 18th century courts were held every two or three years, mainly for transfers of copyholds, although a few agricultural orders were occasionally made. Most copyhold tenements were enfranchised in the mid and later 19th century. (fn. 144) There were two constables in 1316 and in 1753, (fn. 145) and the court appointed two pinders in the 18th century. (fn. 146)

Parish resources were adequate to deal with poverty until the late 18th century, when the poorrate suddenly increased. (fn. 147) Nonetheless, only 12 people were on permanent relief in 1803. (fn. 148) Expenditure on poor-relief reached its highest point at £298 in 1822, but conditions improved gradually over the next 10 years and very few people were unable to find work in 1831. (fn. 149) Pampisford was incorporated in the Linton poor-law union in 1835; with the rest of Linton R.D. it became part of the South Cambridgeshire R.D. in 1934, (fn. 150) and of South Cambridgeshire in 1974.

Church.

A half-yardland in Pampisford was held from Countess Judith in 1086 by a priest, (fn. 151) whose presence suggests that there was then already a church, though the earliest part of the existing parish church dates from the mid 12th century. The benefice was a rectory until 1377, when the church was appropriated to the Benedictine nunnery of Blackborough (Norf.) and a vicarage was ordained. (fn. 152)

The right of presentation to the rectory was in dispute in 1224 and 1271 between the tenants of the two manors, (fn. 153) but by 1279 the conflict had been resolved in favour of Sir Hugh de Brok, lord of the Richmond manor. (fn. 154) The advowson was included in the grants to Robert Ludham for life, and to John, parson of Long Itchington, but not in that to Joan Breton and her successive husbands. Passing instead with the reversion of the manor, it was acquired from John Hinton in 1319 by Aucher son of Henry. (fn. 155) In 1328, however, Hinton sold it to William Lalleford, rector of Rivenhall (Essex), who was licensed in 1329 to assign it to Blackborough priory (Norf.), founded by Roger de Scales, ancestor of Isabel de Scales, of whom Lalleford was said to hold it. (fn. 156) The priory presented to the vicarage from 1388 until its dissolution; under a grant made by the prioress in 1527 Robert and William Turtylby and John Hodgkin presented in 1539. (fn. 157) The advowson passed with the rectory thereafter, with only a few exceptions: Henry Calton presented in 1571, James Robinett who farmed the rectory presented in 1615, Theophilus Tyrrell was granted one turn by William Alington for 1638, and either the Crown or the bishop of Ely presented by lapse in 1806. (fn. 158) The advowson was retained by E. J. Mortlock when he sold the rectory estate before 1892. On his death in 1902 the advowson passed to J. J. Emerson, who had also purchased most of the Mortlocks' Abington lands. (fn. 159) When Emerson died in 1918 it was bought by James Binney, (fn. 160) and passed with the manor to his heirs.

Picot the sheriff in 1092 granted two-thirds of the tithes from his demesne in Pampisford to his foundation at Barnwell; the grant was later commuted to an annual pension, worth 22s. in 1254 and 20s. in 1535. (fn. 161) Bishop Niel also, in the 12th century, assigned to the scriptorium of Ely two-thirds of the demesne tithes of the Ely estate in Pampisford, taxed at 50s. in 1254 and commuted for a pension of 66s. 8d. by 1535. (fn. 162) After those outgoings, the rectory, which was endowed with 32 a. by 1279, (fn. 163) was taxed at 12 marks in 1254 and 26 marks in 1291. (fn. 164)

Pampisford vicarage was one of the poorest livings in the deanery. In 1535 it was valued at only £8, and in 1650 was said to be worth £24. (fn. 165) It was let for £20 in 1707, but the vicar's expenses in travelling to Pampisford and his Sunday dinners reduced the income to less than £15. (fn. 166) The vicarage was augmented with £200 from Queen Anne's Bounty in 1777, but was still worth only £75 in 1810 and £78 in 1873. (fn. 167)

Before the Reformation Blackborough priory paid the vicar 40s. a year, 2 qr. of wheat, and 4 qr. of barley. (fn. 168) The rectory was sold subject to that charge in 1553, (fn. 169) and the payment was still being made in 1707. (fn. 170) The vicar also received the small tithes. By 1639 money payments were made for cows, as well as 10s. from Pampisford mill and 2s. 6d. from a dovecot, and by 1707 the vicar had a composition for most other tithes. (fn. 171) The vicarage was allotted 37 a. for tithes and the corn-rent due from the impropriator at inclosure in 1801. (fn. 172)

A little glebe was attached to the living by 1615, amounting to 9 a. in 1707, (fn. 173) and 10 a. were awarded at inclosure for glebe, making the total allotment 47 a. (fn. 174) It had been sold by 1973. (fn. 175) There was a vicarage house by 1604, probably the small early16th-century building, the cross-wing of a house, used as a post office in 1973. (fn. 176) The vicar was admonished for its decay in 1638, but the incumbent was resident there in 1665. (fn. 177) Few incumbents lived in Pampisford after the 17th century, partly because of the smallness and poor condition of the house; in 1783 it was inhabited by a poor family, and the curate in 1836 described it as a cottage not more than 16 ft. square. (fn. 178) A new large house, of brick with gabled roofs, was built next to the church between 1841 and 1857. (fn. 179) In the 20th century it proved too large and expensive for such a poor living; one incumbent resigned in 1919 after only a year, because he could not afford to keep up so large a house and garden, and the vicar in 1936 moved into a flat converted from the stables to avoid high rates, and resigned the following year when the vicarage was used to house Basque refugee children without any payment to him. (fn. 180) Since 1960 incumbents have lived outside the parish, and the vicarage house was sold in 1961. (fn. 181)

A guild in the parish church in 1389 had recently been founded for the repair of the roof. (fn. 182) Money was left in 1517 to the wardens of the guild of St. Peter and St. Paul, whose stock was taxed in 1524. (fn. 183) Small sums and pieces of land, including 7 a. in 1527, were given for obits and anniversaries in the earlier 16th century and as late as 1547. (fn. 184)

Chaplains, perhaps of a chantry, were mentioned in the 14th and 15th centuries. (fn. 185) Two members of the Cloville family were buried in St. Mary's chapel in the church, (fn. 186) and in 1527 there was an image of Our Lady. (fn. 187)

The first known rector of Pampisford, Richard of Ludham, accompanied Edward I's representative to Rome in 1298, (fn. 188) but later medieval incumbents appear in rentals and as witnesses to wills and were probably resident. (fn. 189) The vicar 1472–1500 was Robert Turtylby, a Benedictine monk from York and prior of the Benedictine students at Cambridge, whose institution suggests that incumbents for such a poor benefice were hard to find. (fn. 190) Another vicar of the same name, 1518–39, farmed the rectory in 1523 from Blackborough priory. (fn. 191) Curates served the living from 1539, paid either by the vicar or by the farmer of the rectory. (fn. 192) Robert Baker, vicar 1560– 71, also held the vicarage of Sawston, where he lived, and did not preach. (fn. 193) His successor, Anthony Fletcher, 1571–85, also held Sawston until forced to resign his second benefice. (fn. 194) Michael Crudd, vicar of Pampisford 1585–9, was master of Linton school, and William Wadye who succeeded him was also vicar of St. Andrew's, Cambridge. (fn. 195) In 1605 the vicar was presented for not using the cross in baptism and refusing to wear a surplice, and the reading desk was ordered to be removed from the central aisle in 1638, signs of puritan feeling in the parish. (fn. 196) The church still lacked books of Canons and of Homilies and needed a new Prayer Book and a Bible in the latest translation in 1665; a parishioner gave copies of Erasmus's and Jewel's works in 1692. (fn. 197)

After the Restoration incumbencies became shorter: fourteen men held the living between 1663 and 1718, and six between 1772 and 1788. The benefice was mainly attractive to fellows of colleges, who usually lived in Cambridge and exchanged the living for a richer one as soon as possible. John Bartow, vicar 1697–1706, was a missionary for the S.P.G. in New York for the last four years of his incumbency. (fn. 198) In 1728 and 1775 communion was held only three times a year. (fn. 199) Matthew Mapletoft, nephew of Elizabeth Tyrrell, the patron, (fn. 200) was vicar 1718–44, and was succeeded by his brother Edmund Mapletoft 1745–72, who like his predecessor lived in Bartlow where he was rector. Edmund's son Edmund was briefly vicar of Pampisford from 1772 to 1776. (fn. 201) The only other long ministry in the period was that of Thomas Cautley, sequestrator of Pampisford 1788–1806, and also vicar of Sawston.

Until the new vicarage was built c. 1850 incumbents of Pampisford were rarely resident; in 1836 the vicar lived in Devon, and the parish was served by a curate who was also responsible for Stapleford. (fn. 202) In 1807 the congregation attended Sawston church when there was no service at Pampisford. (fn. 203) Adult attendance at the morning service in 1851 was 54, and in the afternoon 97, and the vicar reported in 1877 that he had given up weekly communions because of small attendance. (fn. 204) The small income and the size of the vicarage made it difficult for incumbents without private means to remain at Pampisford for long, and fourteen vicars held the living between 1911 and 1967. Since 1947 Pampisford has been held in plurality with Babraham by dispensation. (fn. 205)

The income from Pampisford's charity estate was intended to be used for church repairs, any surplus being devoted to poor-relief. (fn. 206) The church-rate was paid from the charity in 1728. (fn. 207) Money from the charity was used for major church repairs c. 1820, when the fund was £68 in debt, in 1854–5 for restoration, and in 1889 for repairing the north arcade. (fn. 208) The charity's net income was divided into two by a Scheme of 1905, one half being devoted to the maintenance of the church. (fn. 209)

The church of ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST, bearing that dedication by 1753 but named from St. Peter and St. Paul in the 15th century, (fn. 210) is built of field stones with dressings of ashlar and has a chancel with north vestry, nave with north aisle and south porch, and west tower with small lead-covered spire. The nave is mid-12th-century and retains its original south doorway with a carved tympanum. A north aisle was added c. 1200, when the arcade of four bays was cut through the old wall, and the chancel must have been rebuilt at about the same time. The west tower, which is similar in design to that at Sawston, was added in the earlier 14th century when new windows were also put into the nave and chancel. Minor alterations, including the rebuilding of the chancel arch and the insertion of a rood screen, were made in the 15th century and a porch was added c. 1527. (fn. 211)

During the later 16th century the chancel was frequently in need of repair, (fn. 212) but its condition may have been better in the 18th century. (fn. 213) In the 1850s there was an extensive restoration under P. C. Hardwick. The nave was re-roofed and retiled, the north aisle was rebuilt to a greater width, two new windows were put in, most of the other stonework was renewed, and a new south porch put up. (fn. 214) Another major restoration was carried out in the 1890s under the direction of Sir Arthur Blomfield. The vestry was added, apparently on the foundations of a medieval chapel which was decayed in the late 16th century, and the chancel was re-roofed and refurnished. (fn. 215)

There were three bells and a sanctus bell in 1552. (fn. 216) A new fourth bell was cast by J. Eayre in 1743, and the other three are by Thomas Mears and C. and G. Mears of London, 1841 and 1848, replacing bells of 1615 and 1617 by John Draper. (fn. 217) One of two chalices with silver patens was confiscated in 1552. (fn. 218) There was a silver chalice and a pewter flagon and plate in 1837, and c. 1960 the plate included a cup of 1569. (fn. 219) The parish registers begin in 1565, and are virtually complete.

Nonconformity.

Robert Turtylby, a yeoman of Pampisford, a suspected member of the Family of Love in 1582, had left the parish, (fn. 220) and no nonconformists were reported there until the late 18th century. Two houses were licensed for worship in 1797 and 1798, and in 1807 the vicar reported that the number of Calvinist dissenters had recently increased, although there was no meeting-house. (fn. 221) In 1825 the curate thought that most inhabitants attended dissenting chapels in neighbouring parishes because only one service a week was held in the parish church and there was no resident Anglican minister. (fn. 222) A building in Pampisford was registered for nonconformist worship in 1833; (fn. 223) since there was no chapel in the parish, however, numbers of dissenters remained low, being estimated at 20 to 30 in 1873, 3 Independents and 3 Baptists in 1877, and 3 households in 1897. (fn. 224)

Education.

No school or schoolmaster was mentioned in the parish until 1807, when there was a Sunday school. (fn. 225) Two small schools taught c. 30 children in 1818. (fn. 226) A day-school for small children was kept by a dissenter in 1825, and by 1833 there were an infants' school with c. 20 pupils and a dayschool with c. 16 girls paid for by a lady resident in the parish. (fn. 227)

Shortly before 1847 a school was built opposite the church by William Parker Hamond; supported by subscriptions and payments, it was used as a day-school and a Sunday school, and had 56 pupils in 1847. (fn. 228) Between 40 and 45 children attended it in 1873, and there was also an evening school for adults, although the vicar in 1877 refused to hold a night-school, saying that it would do more harm than good. (fn. 229) A school board was formed for Pampisford in 1875, and used the school at a nominal rent. (fn. 230) The school was closed for nearly two years in 1876–7 while the buildings were extended, and Col. R. T. Hamond further enlarged the school in 1887. (fn. 231) Average attendance was 58 in 1888, and 48 in 1897. (fn. 232)

A new school and teacher's house were built beside the old school in 1899 by James Binney. Attendance fell from 43 in 1900 to 40 in 1908 and 29 in 1912. (fn. 233) Senior pupils were transferred to schools at Sawston in 1922, and to the village college there in 1930. The Pampisford school was closed in 1963, the younger children also going to Sawston, (fn. 234) and the building in Church Lane became the village hall.

Charities for the Poor.

The property later known as the Church and Poor estate was given in or before 1604 by an unknown donor, the income to be used for church repairs and any surplus to be devoted to poor-relief. (fn. 235) The feoffees possessed 20½ a. after inclosure in 1801, and in 1837 also owned 3 cottages, (fn. 236) and 6 in 1864 and 1905. (fn. 237) Small plots were sold in 1921 and 1936, and in 1959 the three remaining cottages, all derelict, were sold, leaving c. 15 a. to the charity, some of it used as allotments. (fn. 238)

Expenditure on the church left only £9 a year for the poor from 1822 to 1827, and payments in coal to the poor fell even lower and ceased altogether from 1832 to 1835. Two cottages, divided into seven dwellings, were occupied rent-free by the aged poor. In 1864 the whole income of £60 was applied to the church. (fn. 239) A Scheme of 1905 divided the net income equally between the church and the poor of Pampisford, but the amount given to the poor fell from £20 in 1905 to £6 in 1907 because of the costs of obtaining the Scheme. (fn. 240) The charity's income was £65 in 1952, c. £160 in 1962, and £94 in 1971. Until 1959 part of the income was devoted to maintaining the cottages, but since then expenditure has been on fuel and Christmas presents for widows and old-age pensioners. (fn. 241)

By will proved 1636 John Jefferie of Sawston charged his property in Pampisford and Babraham with 4 bushels of barley each Christmas for the poor of Pampisford. (fn. 242) The corn was given in 1786 and 1816, but had been lost by 1835. (fn. 243)