History & Heritage
We are very fortunate that we are still in touch with our Broughton Heritage simply by looking at the many interesting buildings and surrounding countryside that we still have however there is much about Broughton’s history to discover. The Parish Council is currently establishing a long term project to capture Broughton History and welcomes any input from residents that they are able to bring to the project.
Below is a simple timeline of important events in the village through the centuries :
The earliest record for Broughton is of an Anglo Saxon village in Gate Lane (below Manor Farm Close) with a wooden Saxon Church
1066c : Owned by Waltheof an Anglo-Saxon Earl and was part of the Honour of Huntingdon.
1086 : Recorded in the Domesday Book as Burtone - a manor belonging to Countess Judith a relative of William the Conqueror who had married Waltheof. It was inhabited by 3 freeman, 4 villains and 5 smallholders - a population of less than 50. On Judith’s death the manor passed to David I, King of Scotland through his marriage to Judith’s daughter.
1100’s : Present Church built (with many additions taken place since)
1400’s : Manor held by the St Germain family and village known as Broughton St Jermyn
1580c : The Gables built for Sir Augustine Nicholls
1613 : Manor sold to John and Henry Cotton
1620c : Yeoman’s House built, now half its original size
1676 : Old Bakehouse built which supplied bread until the 1970s
1680c : Holly House built
1701 : A terrible fire engulfed a large part of Broughton
1704 : Manor acquired by John, Duke of Montague, which subsequently passed by marriage to the Duke of Buccleuch, although part held by Edward, Earl of Beaulieu again by marriage
1787 : Broughton enclosed under the Enclosure Act
1802 : Whole manor owned by Duke of Buccleuch
1840 : George James opened his Blacksmith business which continues today with David and Tim James
1868 : Baptist Chapel built
1907 : Sewer pipes laid but not water. Water tower erected in 1935 with Mains Water pipes laid in 1955. Broughton had previously been served by many natural springs
1914 : First bus through Broughton operated by the Wellingborough Bus Company
1920’s : High Street widened because of advent of buses
1928 : Old Village Hall opened in the High Street
1935 : Present Primary School opened replacing two Victorian schools, one in Church Street (on site of Telephone Exchange) and one in the Chapel-like building on Cransley Hill
1954 : Village Hall lost and Green Dragon Pub closed and the Wines and Spirits Licence transferred to the Sun Inn which until then held only a Beer Licence
1960’s : Dwellings in Oak and Lime Close built
1964 : Old Rectory demolished and replaced by one on same site
1960’s : Grange Estate built
1970’s : Broughton had a petrol station, 2 bakers, 2 butchers, a clothes shop, a Post Office, 3 pubs and an antiques shop
1980 : Present Village Hall built and extended in 1985
1980’s : Baker Avenue/Donaldson Avenue Estate built
1984 : Broughton by-pass opened
1989 : Little Cransley joined with Broughton
1996 : Loake Bros Shoe Factory closed down after 50 years (now part of Darlow Close)
2000’s : Rathmine Court off Northampton Road built, Darlow Close
Additional Information
There is evidence of previous settlements from the Neolithic and Bronze Ages (Funerary Site) and of Medieval Times (shrunken Medieval village and ridge and furrow)
For reference purposes, the Northamptonshire Victoria County History Trust has entries for Broughton and can be researched using this link: https://www.victoriacountyhistory.ac.uk/counties/northamptonshire
Social Media also captures Broughton - there is currently a page on Facebook called Broughton History Online where there is a growing catalogue of photos and comments. This Facebook page is open so that everyone is able to upload photos and info for others to enjoy and download if they wish.
A Conservation Area Appraisal was produced by Kettering Borough Council in 2012 which highlights many aspects of our social heritage and built form - see separate page Click here