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A History of Preston in Hertfordshire
A snapshot of Preston hamlet circa 1680
This ambitious article is intended to provide a snapshot of Preston life in around 1680.
It will show what houses were inhabited and by whom. Details of individuals are included where
known, including their families, their wills and any further information.
There is a rich vein of material to be mined from this time such as manorial documents, hearth
tax records, notes from Hertfordshire sessions, North Herts notes re: listed buildings and decrees
from St Marys at Hitchin.
Because this will be a lengthy exercise, it will be added to occasionally.
Although the Kings were prominent at Preston during the latter half of the seventeenth century,
because of the problems of maintaining accurate parish records at this time, it is impossible to draw
an accurate tree of the family. The fragmented pedigree that follows has been extracted from wills and
manorial records, with occasional references to parish burial records:
What this attempts to portray is that Edward and Robert King were brothers; Leonard King married
Elizabeth Swain (whose father was William, as revealed by Leonard’s will) and they had at least three
children - William, Mary and Elizabeth. The information that is lacking is the relationship between
Leonard King and the brothers, Edward and Robert - although from the little we know, one of these
was likely Leonard’s father. Edward was old enough to hold property in 1663 and as Mary and
Elizabeth had not married when William made his will in 1709, I suggest that Leonard was born at
least fifty years earlier (ie around 1660).
There is a transcription of a baptism of Leonardus Kynge on 24 February 1651 at Stevenage which is
recorded on the Family Search website. His father was Roberti and Mariae Kynge. This may well
confirm the origins of Preston’s Leonard King as Leonard is a fairly uncommon name. It is also
possible that his wife, Elizabeth Swain, was baptised at Offley, Herts on 30 April 1663 as her father
there was William.
On firmer ground, the first definite glimpse of the Kings at Preston is of Edward King paying tax for
one hearth in Preston (Hitchin parish) in May 1663. Shortly afterwards, it was confirmed that this was
for what we know today as Fig Tree Cottage on Preston Green. In fact, it was noted that he was the
owner of two cottages in 1664, Fig Tree and its neighbour, Vine Cottage.
The next year, Edward transferred Fig Tree Cottage to his brother, Robert. Edward was clearly a
tradesman and when he was buried in 1685, he was described as a ‘collar maker’ (ie a maker of
horse collars). As Robert didn’t pay hearth tax in 1670 or 1674, he evidently sold this property during
the late 1660s.
At this point a map (dated 1811) will illustrate how the Kings were living in the heart of Preston,
around the hamlet’s green
Red Lion
Fig Tree and Vine Cottages
Gentle’s Cottage
The Old Forge
It was Leonard King who left a significant mark on Preston’s history. Although probably being a young
man, he purchased the Red Lion sometime after 1674 (as he is not included in the Hearth Tax list of
1673) and later sold the inn to Edward Swain in 1704.
During this time, Leonard was involved in a responsible activity which may provide some clues as to
his character. The dispute between the officials of St Mary’s Hitchin and the inhabitants of Preston has
been described earlier. Herts Sessions informs us that “On the 12th July, 1686, the Court ordered that
the hamlets of Preston and Langley should in future be rated with the town of Hitchin, and not
separately as they have been, and that the overseers of the hamlets should join with those of Hitchin.
Then, an order was passed, ‘…that the differences between Hitchin and the "Hamlets of Preston cum
Langley within the Chapellry of Minsden" be referred to the next Sessions. In the meantime, Leonard
King is appointed to receive and pay their "collect money" without any prejudice to the right on either
side.’ Leonard himself was listed when ‘twenty-four actions were brought against the dwellers in
Preston and Langley’ for non-payment of he rate in 1688. His rate of 1/6d was one of the highest of
of rates apart from those levied on farmers, which may indicate that he owned the Red Lion at that
time.
Leonard was clearly viewed as a reliable and responsible person, but he would not have been popular
as the person who collected the disputed rates.
In 1699, Leonard was included in the list of ‘copyholders and freeholders with estates worth £10 pa’.
After selling the Red Lion, he and his wife, Elizabeth, then invested in a small cottage, later known as
Gentle’s Cottage, near Preston Green on the north side of Church Lane, buying it from Richard
Dearmer in April 1710.
In 1910, this cottage was described as brick and tiled with a kitchen, wash-room and two bedrooms. It
was later described by a later resident thus, ‘I lived in a little cottage called Rose Cottage, which
faced the side of the Bunyan Chapel. The cottage was of clap-board construction and had a barn
attached to one side, with a bedroom built over the barn’.
When Leonard bought this property, the manorial record states that he was a wheelwright who was
living at Preston in the parish of Ippollitts. This most likely refers to a home in the area from Spindle
Cottage on the Hitchin Road to Castle Farm which encompasses the north side of Chequers Lane.
He still owned the cottage in 1709 when he made his will, as we will see.
Leonard’s next move was to relocate to what is known today as the Old Forge at Church Lane. North
Hertfordshire Urban District Council notes that this house was built in the early eighteenth century.
This is confirmed by the Temple Dinsley Manorial Records. The first mention of this property was
probably in 1713 when Leonard King was recorded as having been the tenant of ‘a certain property
and certain lands at Preston’.
However, Leonard died in August 1711, after making a provision for his son, William King (a victualler
at Walkern, Herts), to inherit The Old Forge (rent 2/-) and the cottage on the north side of Church
Lane (rent 4d) following the death of his wife. Thus, included in the Temple Dinsley Survey of Rents in
1714 were the holdings of ‘William King, previously Leonard King’ assessed as a combined 2/4d.
Leonard was buried at St Marys, Hitchin on 12 August 1711:
Leonard left a will and an inventory was made of his home at The Old Forge.
He was infirm in January 1709 when he made his will. In it, Leonard described himself as a ‘wheeler’
(ie. a wheel-wright, making wheels). His will began with a lengthy preamble which affirmed his
religious faith. As he had already transferred The Old Forge to William, his son, his will dealt only his
cottage at Preston in Ippollitts parish and the residue of his estate. This cottage was occupied by
John Till?? together with Edward and Elizabeth North (who possibly married at Luton in February
1686). Leonard’s wife, Elizabeth, was to hold the cottage for six years after which it was to pass to
their two daughters, Elizabeth and Mary. (They were not given surnames, so it may be inferred that
they had not yet married. An Elizabeth King married John Sutton [who was from Ripsford,
Worcestershire] at Hitchin on 15 July 1712. In January 1716, a John Sutton was found guilty of
trading as a baker at Preston without serving an apprenticeship. Later, The Old Forge was home to
Preston’s baker. The residue of Leonard’s estate was left to his wife, Elizabeth.
Leonard was literate, signing his will with a firm hand.
Probate was granted to Elizabeth around seven months after
Leonard was buried.
Leonard’s inventory was listed on 14 March 1711 by Thomas Canfield, William Joyner and Thomas
Gutteridge. The following items were noted:
Wearing apparel £1 10s 0d
In the hall: one long table; six join stools (ie stools with four legs that could be joined
together; three kettles; three ? ; ten ? ; eleven pewter flagons; nine plates;
ten pairs of tongs, ten pothangers (used to hang pots over a fire to cook or boil water);
six chairs; ten warming pans and other lumber 5 10 0
In the parlour: one table; one chest of drawers; seven chairs; one pair of andirons
(which supported logs in the fireplace; one bed and bedding and pair of sheets 3 0 0
In the buttery (or store): one boiler (?); ten kettles; one ? and other lumber 1 6 8
In the shop; one table; and shop goods 1 0
0
In the chamber (bedroom) over the hall: one bed and bedding, ten chests;
one hanging press; six chairs and three 3 6 8
In the chamber over the parlour: one trundle-bed (a bed on wheels which could be
pushed under another item of furniture); bedding; one chest and one table; 1 0 0
(for linen): ten pairs of sheets; six pillow-bears (cases); twelve napkins
and ten table clothes 2 10 0
In the upper barn: wood 1 0 0
In the other out-house: one grindstone and lumber 1 15 0
One con ? 3 15 0
For ? in the yard and one 6 8
Historic England’s appraisal of what is now a listed building states in part, ‘house forge and baker’s
shop. Early C18 - SW wing and formerly separate E wing a few years later’. If this is accurate, and
Leonard and Elizabeth were in residence there in 1709, they may well have been its first owners, even
having the cottage built.
House, forge and baker's shop, now a private house. Early C18, south-west wing and formerly separate
east wing a few years later, brick casing, east bay, and linking building early C19, the east bay heightened
in later C19 and east wing cased in brick. Timber frame house and south-west wing, sandy red brick
casings and east bay, dark weather-boarding to north end of east wing. Red tile roofs. A two-storeys, four
windows long house facing north with single-storey long wing at east linked to house by a lower recessed
building with one window. Main part has its first floor window at lower level and a large C20 mullioned bay
window to ground floor. It shows signs of being heightened to be roofed uniform with the main range which
has smaller windows in the middle with two-lights, and three-lights windows on each floor on each side.
Flush Yorkshire sliding casement windows. Former central door now the two-lights lower window. Originally
a two-bays framed structure with large east gable chimney and stair beside it to rear. Entry was into the
heated room which has exposed axial beam and joists. The west bay has a crossbeam supporting the
exposed joists and small internal gable chimney added later. Gabled single-bay, south-west rear wing has
lower floor levels and was presumably a service room. E wing has unjowled posts and inclined queen-posts
to roof trusses.
The Old Forge in the twenty-first century and how the facade may have originally looked
The King family
(To be continued)