We always seem to be quoting things from the Church Records which are now in the safe keeping of the Hampshire Record Office at Winchester. Before they were sent off, John Willcocks took some slides of a few pages. It was not an easy task, but these few pictures should give a feeling of the original books.

The first entry shows how facts become corrupted over the years. Our records of Baptisms, Marriages and Burials were copied from the registers onto index cards nearly 60 years ago. The cards record of John Bone “...who in a fit of insanity killed himself”, whereas the original entry reads “....who in a fit of insanity hung himself”.

This entry from 1777 shows the presence of smallpox in the village

In 1765 William Draper was not ‘buried in woollen’ - Acts passed in 1677 and 1679 for ‘Burying in Woollen’ to help the wool trade. A forfeit of five pounds was paid.

This entry from the late 1700s records the price of 2 pence for a dozen sparrows.