Parks Surveys & Repairs

PRO E. 315/ 271
Accounts of bailiffs, farmers etc. 17-21 Henry VIII, 1525-1529. Maneria de Grafton et Hertewell.

1525 Account of Nicholas Mattock deputy of William Cary esquire, bailiff there. Arrears: from last year, £130-14s.-7d and a half and half a farthing: being arrears of John Pery, 106s.-8d. arrears of William Cary esq., £27-3s.-9d., of Thomas Marquess of Dorset £40, of Thomas Marayon £45-0s-14d three farthings. Tenants of Hartwell 119s.and a half penny, of Crike and Cley Coton 50s.-7d and half a farthing, of Simon Brymley and John Aldyngton 50s.
Farm of manor £60.

Wages: William Cary bailiff of both manors 40s. p.a.. The same William keeper of the Park of Grafton 60s-8d p.a.
20s. for buying hay to feed the king's beasts in Grafton Park.

Repairs. New building of a bridge of timber between Grafton manor and Bosnow mill in 17 Hen. VIII, 1525, 36s-5d. Repairs at mill, I pair of grindstones for same mill 100s-7d.

Repairs at Hartwell manor 105s.-10d.

For repairing the lodge within Grafton Park 1525 19s-6d. and a half.

Total repairs: £13-2s-4d. and a half.

Keeper of the park fence at Grafton. For felling and cutting 194 trees for inclosing the aforesaid park, carriage of the same in 248 cartloads for new structure and erecting 387 perches of paling around the aforesaid precinct. For sawing diverse pieces of timber for Lez Gates of the park with locks keys and nails £24-6s.-8d.

f. 22
23 Henry VIII John Russell knight bailiff, of both manors 40s. p.a. William Clerke deputy.
Farm of manor to John Williams Esq. £60, term 21 yrs.
20s spent on hay for the king's beasts in Grafton Park
For repairs done at Bosnow mill this year £28-18s-6d.

PRO E. 36/179
Certificatt of William Paultett and John Mordaunt knights and Edmund Knyghtley and Thomas Bonham esquires and John Burgoyn and Roger Wygston gents. Commissioners appoynted by the kynges highnes for the surveying and viewyng of the maners of Grafton Hertwell Crike and Cley Cotton, appointed by commission at our Paleys of Westminster the last day of Februarie in the seventeenth yere of our reign, 28th February 1525/26.
Commissioners to inquire: What every acre wolbe worth by yere to be leten.
Item: of the verye value of all wooddes groves and underwooddes.
Item: yf the woodys shold be sold felled and destroyed then of what yerely value the groundys where the seid woodys growe wolbe.
Item: what hurte shulde growe to the kynges towyns and milles adjoinyng or to kinges tenaunts yf all the woodys were destroyed.
Item: what wood sales be made by loppyng, croppyng or fellyng downe to the grounde.
Item: what quantitie of grounde maye be emproved within the lordship levyng sufficient comen to the tenaunts.
Item: what nombre of acres the kynges highnes hath within the lordshippes and maners.
Item: what townshippes or personnes clayme to have comen there and with what maner of cattall they shuld use commen there.
Item: whether any person doe encroach uppon the kyng in usyng ther comen.
Item: what new encroachments have been maide.
Item: in what case all and singuler the howses and tenements and other buyldynges in the said lorshippes and manours doo standing concerniyng the reparacions.
Item: what royalties knyghtes fees advowsons foundacions of abbeys bondmen and other advantages pleasures and commodities doo belong to the said lordshippes manours lands and tenements.

1546

PRO E. 101/464/1
Expenses done in and uppon the king's parke called Grafton Parke in the countye of Northampton anno 38 Henry VIII 1546-7 as followythe.
First to one carpenter at 12d per diem by space of 18 days.
To thre other carpenters at 10d per diem for 24 days 50s.
Six thousande of tile at 12s a thowsande 72s.
To two tilers for their wages per diem by space of 12 days 24s
To thre labourers to serve tilers at 8d per diem 12 days 24s.
For lyme towarde the same buyldinge 21s-7d.
To 12 labourers at 8d a peece for space of 15 days.
For casting of a ponde and making a ponde hede £6
Note: 4th August 1532 To lord Ferrers' servant for bringing an angle rod to the king at Grafton 15s.
For new palinge and mending of sundare places in the saide Parke 60s-6d.
Suma of the hole reparacions £20.
Signed John Mery

Note: The following may well be the pond mentioned above.
1748 An extract from a letter
'Mr. Prouse now in possession of Grafton, Diss Parked the Park, and cut down the Avenue of trees in the Park, which have been told, gave the Hosier very great pleasure, as believing he would prefer living at Wicken to Grafton.'

The large pond was destroyed, and had many very large carp in it, which all was sent to the \duke of Grafton Pond at Wakefield.

1553
SP46/124 f. 198
25th October 1553 Receyved of John Williams knight bailie there (Grafton) in part payment of the charges due at Michaelmas last past by hand of John Kyrkebie his deputie £14-18s-10d. Francis Savage deputy receiver.

Stoke. The park lies within one mile of the Queen's house of Grafton and was wholly made in 1529/1530.

Grafton The park is joined to the Queen's house at Grafton.
There is one lodge of eight bays and a stable of four bays in good repair; another lodge in great decay; the Queen is charged their repair.
Ibid. p. 374 no. 929 1558 Warrant to allow Lord Williams for 15 fodders

Calender of State Papers DOM 1553-8
Survey of the parks of Grafton, Stoke Bruerne, Potterspury and Hartwell before Giles Isham, John Marsh and William Gent.
Grafton Pasture 177 acres 1r. worth £17.14.6 p.a.
Arable 42 acres worth 28s
Woodland 88 acres 1r worth £19.2.6

Fee of John, lord William of Thane, keeper of the park 60s 8d p.a. Allowed for sustainance of the King & Queen's game 53s 4d. To rector of Grafton, for tithes 6s 8d. Sum less deductions £13.1.10
Grafton park within the parishes of Grafton and Alderton, 780 oak worth £327.8.0 Saplings 1014, worth £642.5.7 Ash trees - £10.3.4 Coppices £170.16.7 1 thorn grove 3 acres 14s Maple, oak and ash underwood 430 carucates £28 13 4

Park is joined to the queen's house at Grafton, and has been park since time immemorial; the residue about 146 acres was bought in in 1552/3 and since out of the fields of Grafton 76 acres and Alderton 70 acres. 400 deer there in 1552/3 now 500 Ric. Bradley underkeeper has 10 kine, 1 bull and 1 gelding in the park. There is one lodge of eight bays and stables of 4 bays in good repair and another in great decay. The enclosed pallets of the park are in good repair. There have been no wood sales and no spoil of wood since 1553/4

SP 11 /12 / No 68
Survey of Grafton manor, 12 February 1557/8.
There are 177 acres 1 rod pasture pertaining to 'The Quenes Majesties statelie mannor house of Grafton', there are 400 deer in the parke. The house was wholely made in 32 Henry VIII (April 1540-1541).

LR9/11/13
Warrant for trees to be fallen for repairs of Stoke Parke, Northants, £70 in money 2nd June 1607. Lodges, pales and rayles of Stoke Park Lodg within the honor of Grafton, 60 trees to be taken out of Whittlewood forest. £70.

LR 2/ 222 ff. 1-17
Pasture ground, various pieces 589 acres-1rod.
Sir John Harrington about the year 1656 dud destroy in the above mentioned grounds so much oak and ash that were valued to be to the king's Majesty's damage £95

f. 17
Grafton and Purty Park contains 1020 acres. The lord Mounson have cutt down and converted all the trees in Purty Park and the greater part of these in Grafton Park to his own use by selling them to the king's damage £3100 in Purty Park and also hath ploughed about 100 acres of Grafton Park that were formerly coppices, to the king's damage £3,300. Fardinando Marsham esquire holdeth the said parks for his life by grant from the late king.

1560
SP 46/27 f. 42
20th August 1560 To my lovinge frende Mr Howghton the Quenes Maiesty's woodwarde of Northamptonshere geve thes. W. Northampton.
After my hartie commendacons for as muche as I am credibly informed that the Quenes Majesty's lodgis in Grafton Parke Pery Park Stocke Parke and Hartewell Parke ar in muche decay for lacke of tylle, lyme dowers and wyndowes with workmanshipe which of necessitie must be amendyd before Wynter or ells the keepers shall not lye drye within the same. For the avoydynge of a greater charge that may insue to the Quenes Majesty for lacke of repaire therof in due tyme I have thowght good to desire for the which to vew the state of the same lodgis and where present neede is to see them amendyd and in so doinge I shall not only be a meanes to my lord of Sussex his deputie, for your allowance therin but also concyder your goodwill occasion shall require from the court.

E 320/N5
17th July 1650
Survey taken by William Ivory. December 1649. Lands of Charles Stewart.
Parcel of impaled ground called Grafton and Pottersperry parkes in Grafton, Perry, Yardley Gubbine, Paulersperry and Aldrington, abutting north on Aldrington town field, east on town of Grafton and on highway leading between Stony Stratford and Tocester on south, 1,003 acres 1 rod. And the lodge on the north side of the park and all houses, buildings, barns, stables etc. belonging. Also the messuage called Perry Lodge on the south side of Perry park. The woods, timber trees etc. are worth £4,982-17s-6d. per annum. The materials of the lodges over and above the charge of taking them down are worth £253-6s.-4d. The deer within the park worth £200. The township of Grafton claims a highway thru the park from Styes Gate to a Gate called Robbin Hoods Greene. Potterspury township claims 2 nags running in Perry park from May to 1st November and from November till May a Bulls gate and also one buck and one doe in their season. Yardley claims a highway for horse and cart from Yardley to Whittlewod forest. Paulers Perry claims taxes due for the three and a half coppices and part of Robbin Hoods Greene and regress through the Park to and from the mill. The rector of Grafton claims a tithe out of the park but what doth not appear.