Harwell: Village for a thousand years

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  • Harwell Book – Full text of ‘Village for a thousand years’
    • Introduction
      • Contents
    • Beginnings – The Beginnings of Harwell
      • The Beginnings of Harwell
      • The Charters
      • Close
    • Middle Ages – The Late Middle Ages
      • Harwell Church
      • The Medieval Manors
      • Cruck Buildings
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    • Tudors – Tudors to Charles II
      • The Tudor period
      • Berkshire Farmers and their Homes
      • The Harwell Mug
      • Harwell: The Family Name
      • Trade Tokens
      • In the Civil War
      • Close
    • Charities – Harwell Charities
      • John Loder
      • Christopher Elderfield
      • Poor’s Orchard
      • William Wells
      • J. King
      • Frances Geering
      • Matthew Eaton
      • Robert Loder
      • Bag(g)’s Tree
      • An Old Harwell Recipe
      • Close
    • 19th C – Harwell in the Nineteenth Century
      • Enclosures
      • The Great Fire of Harwell
      • Fire at Didcot Station
      • Harwell and the Early Posts
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    • People – Some Nineteenth Century Families, Houses and Personalities
      • The Manor of Bishop’s Harwell, or Lower Manor, after the Middle Ages.
      • Bob Lay, Bob Lay, Bob Lay
      • The Bosley Family
      • John Lay of Prince’s Manor 1815 – 1888
      • From a book sold for the Blewbury Village Organ Fund in 1874.
      • Thomas James Pryor
      • The Day Family
      • The Hitchman Family
      • Other Old Harwell Families
      • Pillar House, Harwell
      • A Country Doctor (Dr Richard Rice)
      • Kelly’s Directory reports on the Harwell of 1891
      • The School
      • A Pictorial Miscellany
      • Close
    • 20th C – The Early Twentieth Century
      • Stanley Day
        • The Turn of the Century
        • A Visit to Harwell
      • Tape Recordings
        • A Houseboy at Harwell
        • Eliza Hutchings
        • Harwell Bakeries
        • The Eggs
        • Old Neighbours
        • Fire at King’s Farm (c.1908)
        • Will It Light?
        • Miss Irene Clarke’s memories.
      • Poem by H.S. Baker
      • Close
    • WWII – The Second World War
      • Guinea Pig Club
      • Eric Greenwood
      • Harwell in Wartime
      • School Life in Wartime
      • The Harwell Players
      • Close
    • 1945 -1985 – The Post War Years
      • The Atomic Energy Research Establishment.
      • Harwell Parish Council
      • Water and Sewage
      • Nursing Service
      • School Life after the War
      • The Winterbrook Youth Club
      • The Public Houses
      • The Whit Monday Feast
      • Wild Flowers of Harwell
      • The Bee Orchid
      • Village Footpaths
      • St Matthew’s Church Today
      • Harwell Women’s Institute
      • Harwell Bowls Club
      • Harwell Football Club
      • Close
    • Cherries – Harwell Cherries
      • Robert Loder
      • Cherries (1965)
      • Gordon Bosley
      • John Masefield: The Cherries
      • Close
    • Appendices
      • Appendix I the Harwell Charters
        • Introduction to The Harwell Charters
        • Charter No 1
        • Charter No 2
        • Charter No 3
        • Appendix I Charter References
      • Appendix II Buildings
      • Appendix III Glossary
      • Appendix IV Contributors
      • Appendix V References
      • Close
    • Close
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You are here: Home / Charities / Christopher Elderfield

Christopher Elderfield

In 1652 Christopher Elderfield bequeathed to Harwell parish a sum for the purchase of lands in Harwell and Hagbourne; their rents were to be used for the relief of the poor, help in schooling, clothing the aged, repairs and upkeep of the church, and

“To buy in every spring two milch cows for two of the poorest persons, man or widow, that had children; with fields on common lands to keep the cows.”

Over the years this charity bought or was awarded various other lands.

In 1837 the records show that the outgoings remained in accordance with the original wishes of Christopher Elderfield. Two cows were bought (£27). Cloth (£20) was bought and made up (£7) into thirty-two coats for distribution to the poor at Christmas, and small amounts of money to the needy; some money also for church ornaments and furniture, including fire buckets.

In 1904 part of this charity was renamed the Christopher Elderfield Education Foundation, a separate trust which, with other funds, eventually established the Technical Institute, and later the Village Hall quota.

Other payments were also made, including personal sickness benefits and donations to hospitals, the Nursing Association and the like. Since the advent of the welfare state, the commitments are limited to the “Cow” Charity, the Village Hall quota and almshouses.

The conditions and directions of the Cow Charity, to purchase every spring two milch cows to be given to two of the poorest men in the parish burdened with children, were followed for many years. At one time, however, it became the custom to kill two cows and distribute the meat to the poor at Christmas. How long this practice continued is not stated, but it stopped on publication of the facts.

The clause “with fields on common lands to keep the cows” also became void, presumably after the enclosures: poor men had no shelter or pasture for a cow, so they sold the animal they were awarded. The report of 1837 records that this was the general practice, and one can imagine a local cattle dealer hovering on the doorstep of potential recipients, awaiting the results of the trustees’ deliberations. The value of a cow in those days was about £9 – £10, no mean sum.

The “Cow” Charity lives on, both in name and in the continuance of two annual grants.

Comments

  • David (Webmaster) –
    12 Jan 2009

    This charity is now part of THE FRANCES GEERING ALMSHOUSE CHARITY – Charity Number 204399 -. See the Charity Commission’s web site for more information. http://www.charity-commission.gov.uk/

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« John Loder
Poor’s Orchard »

Harwell is a village in south Oxfordshire, England, although until 1974 it was a Berkshire village. Harwell was first mentioned in 985, before the Doomsday Book.
This website presents the full text of the book (ISBN 0 9510668 0 3 ) published in 1985 to celebrate the village millennium.
"Harwell ~ Village for a thousand years"

Additional information about Harwell Village (History Notes, photos and more) can be found at harwellvillage.uk

Website © 2005–2023 maintained and managed by David Marsh on behalf of Harwell Parish Council
Copyright © 1985–2023 in the text of the book is vested in Harwell Parish Council