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A brief history of Barford (cont.)
Church....
The ancient religion of the Druids had been ruthlessly eradicated by the Romans. It was temporarily replaced by the more barbarous superstitions of the Saxons who practiced sacrifices and believed in spells.
In 618 AD, Pope Gregory I sent a Roman missionary called Paulinus to preach Christianity to the Anglo-Saxons of Mercia. Many were converted and Paulinus became the first Archbishop of York. The heathen temples that remained were reconsecrated and the pagan festivals transformed into Christian occasions. In nearby Wasperton there are over 200 Christian and pagan burial sites along the course of the River Avon indicating that the communities lived side by side.
It was probably at this time that the first Christian church, dedicated to St Peter, was built in Barford. Certainly by the time of Domesday survey in 1086 we know that there was a thriving church on the present site as evidenced by the mention of a resident priest. The Saxon church was rebuilt in the early 1200s and the list of incumbents stretches back to 1281.
The church building stood unchanged for over four hundred and fifty years and the tower is a good example of those built in this district with Warwick sandstone about 600 years ago. It has architectural features similar to those of the chancel of St. Mary’s Church Warwick and the same masons may have been employed. There are shot marks on the sides of the tower believed to have been made in 1642 by the Parliamentary soldiers marching towards Kineton before the battle at Edgehill. The four pinnacles on the tower were removed for safety reasons in 1840 and the church, except for the tower, was re-built and enlarged in 1845.
In 1958 the parish of Wasperton was joined to Barford and in 1978 Sherbourne was assimilated to form the united benefice of Barford with Wasperton and Sherbourne. In the churchyard, close to the line of yew trees, lies the grave of Joseph Arch (1826 - 1919), Barford’s most celebrated citizen. He was born and died in the cottage opposite the church.
…… and Chapel - the non-conformist movement
The Baptists were active in Warwick as early as the 1640s and several Barford villagers are known to have joined them. The Methodist movement in particular appealed greatly to the agricultural workers. The Wesleyan Methodists, run by ordained clerics, and the Primitive Methodists, which were lay-led, both had chapels in Barford. The Wesleyan Chapel was erected in 1840 at 48, Church Street. The Primitive Methodist chapel, which Joseph Arch probably attended, is to be found at 20, Church Street (pictured right, to right of green doors).
Arch’s skill as a lay-preacher was to stand him in good stead in his turbulent political life. By 1835, the plight of the agricultural labourers was dire. As Joseph Arch wrote in his autobiography: "With bowed head and bended knee, the poor learned to receive from the rich what was really their due". Arch was a remarkable pioneer for better conditions and he founded the Agricultural Labourers Union and became Liberal MP for North-West Norfolk between 1885 - 1900. His memorial is still the focus of an annual pilgrimage in June by trades unionists. Not bad for a Barfordian who left school at nine years of age!
Social Matters
The villagers of Barford in earlier days would have been used to quaffing ale at any time of the day. There were three malt barns where the locally grown barley would have been germinated and the sugar extracted by maltsters for fermenting. Many people kept bees as there was no sweetener available other than honey and this would be made into mead — a popular drink at festivities. About twelve drinking establishments with unlimited opening hours were listed around 1810.
The Granville Arms (now "The Granville") was named after Rev. Edward Granville, vicar of Wasperton from 1900. At that time the boundary of the two parishes lay at Wasperton Lane but Barford boundary was extended to take in the expanded village in the late 1940s when the Council estate was built.
The Joseph Arch was formerly called "The Red Lion" and changed its name in April 1960. It had two loose boxes and a stall so that the horses pulling the Leamington to Stratford coach could be changed. This horse drawn service (pictured right) continued until 1907.
The inscription "George Inn" can still be clearly seen on the upper storey brickwork of a house in Bridge Street and close by would have been the Bridge Inn. The Wheatsheaf Inn was in High Street opposite the old forge, New Inn in Wellesbourne Road, The Ram in Warwick Park, Lord Nelson, Butchers’ Arms, Royal Oak, Pig and Puppies and the Anchor showed how well-served thirsty Barfordians were in times past.
Before the Welfare State came into being, very many villagers subscribed to Friendly Societies. The Forresters had their HQ at the Granville Arms while the Oddfellows were based at the Red Lion. Club Days involved processions followed by much feasting and dancing. May Day was also celebrated by the children dancing round a maypole and around the village.
In the 1850s, directories of the village listed five maltsters, five shoemakers, five carpenters, three tailors, a saddler, a wheelwright, a coachbuilder, a cooper making barrels, a basket and sieve-maker, a cattle doctor etc There were two blacksmiths forges in the village, the last ceasing to function in 1978. Many villagers kept pigs and chickens and the Pig Club survived until the late 1950s.
The mill at Barford was mentioned in Domesday Book and by 1692 there were four. The last watermill at Avonside had equipment installed to generate electric power in a similar way to the mill at Warwick Castle. 210 volt power was delivered to some householders and it was also used to illuminate street lights as early as 1917. The mill became unsafe and by 1925 a new mill had been built making animal foodstuffs. This was an important source of local employment. The village was fortunate too in having its own gas works, established in 1872 on the present Oldhams site. This provided fuel for domestic use as well as street lighting. It closed in 1920 leaving behind a legacy of contaminated land which will have to be cleared if the site were ever to be used for building.
The transport firm was originally started by a member of the Oldham family who had farmed in Barford for over a century. He used the premises of the former wheelwright in Bridge Street to start a tractor business. He and his engineer later designed and constructed a cattle truck for transporting livestock which formerly had had to be herded along roads by a drover and his dog. In time the firm expanded, switched to domestic removals and HGV maintenance and came to the present site.
More recent times
Barford has been home to several notable people in the twentieth century. Billie Whitelaw was evacuated here from Coventry in the 1940s and Patrick Stewart has fond memories of his days in the village. Jeff Healey of sports car fame also lived in Barford.
Inevitably, the nature of the village has changed. Barford is populated now, not by agricultural workers, but by a good social mix of young families and retired persons, those who work from home and those who commute to neighbouring towns. Despite the pressures of modern living, Barford remains a thriving and caring community at the start of the 21st Century.
