Chesterton, Oxfordshire
Encyclopedia
Chesterton is a village and civil parish on Gagle Brook, a tributary of the River Bure
in Oxfordshire
. The village is about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) southwest of the market town
of Bicester
. The village has sometimes been called Great Chesterton to distinguish it from the hamlet of Little Chesterton, about 0.8 miles (1.3 km) to the south in the same parish.
and the former Oxford – Brackley main road (now the B430) is a prehistoric tumulus
.
Chesterton village is on the course of Akeman Street
, the Roman road
between Watling Street
and Cirencester
, about 1 miles (1.6 km) northwest of Alchester Roman Town. The road forms part of the southwest boundary of the parish. When the M40 motorway
was extended from Wheatley
to Birmingham in 1988–91, the motorway cut through Akeman Street about 0.8 miles (1.3 km) west of the village. The Roman layers of the road were exposed about 0.8 metres (2.6 ft) below Akeman Street's modern surface. The Romans had metalled the road with brashy
subsoil quarried from roadside ditches, had subsequently patched the surface, and finally resurfaced the road over a layer of 0.2 metre of soil and detritus.
the manor
of Chesterton belonged to Wigod
, a Saxon
thegn
who was a kinsman of King Edward the Confessor
. The Domesday Book
records that by 1086 it had come into the possession of Miles Crispin
, the son-in-law of Robert D'Oyly
. Crispin had connections with Wallingford Castle
, and Chesterton remained part of the feudal
Honour of Wallingford
until the 13th century. In 1272 it was sold to Edmund, 2nd Earl of Cornwall
who founded Ashridge Priory
in Hertfordshire
in 1283 and granted the manor of Chesterton to the priory in 1285. Ashridge Priory was suppressed in the Dissolution of the Monasteries
and in 1540 Sir Thomas Pope
bought the manor of Chesterton.
A few years later the manor passed to John Williams, 1st Baron Williams de Thame, who in turn left it to his daughter Margery and son-in-law Henry Norris, 1st Baron Norreys
. Their grandson Francis Norris, 1st Earl of Berkshire
left it to his daughter Elizabeth. She left it to her daughter Bridget Wray, through whose marriage in about 1653 Chesterton passed to Montagu Bertie, 2nd Earl of Lindsey
. Their son James Bertie, 5th Baron Norreys
was created Earl of Abingdon
, and it remained in their family until the death of Willoughby Bertie, 3rd Earl of Abingdon
in 1760. In 1764 his trustees sold Chesterton to George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough
who in turn sold it to George Child Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey in 1808. The manor remained with the Earls of Jersey
until 1920-21 when the Jersey estates in Chesterton were divided and sold.
of Saint Mary
is a 12th century arcade
of three arches between the nave
and the north aisle. The arcade is in the Transitional style between Norman
and Early English Gothic. The church was rebuilt in the 13th century and reconsecrated in 1238. The chancel
arch and arcade of the south aisle, both of which are Early English Gothic, date from this period. The Decorated Gothic bell tower
was added early in the 14th century. The present Perpendicular Gothic windows in the south aisle were added in the 14th or 15th century. In the 15th century a clerestory
was added to the nave and a five-light east window was inserted in the chancel.
In 1852 the east window was replaced with a Gothic Revival
Decorated Gothic four-light one, and in 1854 the chancel arch was restored. In 1866 the architect F.C. Penrose
restored much of the building, including the windows in the south aisle and some of those in the north aisle. He also added a turret staircase to the tower.
By 1552 St. Mary's three bells and Sanctus bell. William Watts of Bedford
cast the present tenor bell in about 1590. Henry Farmer of Evesham
in Worcestershire
and James Keene of Woodstock
jointly cast the present treble and second bells in 1623. Richard III Chandler of Drayton Parslow
in Buckinghamshire
cast the present Sanctus bell in 1715. The clock was added in 1884.
The priest and historian Gerald of Wales held the living of St. Mary's from about 1193 until his death in about 1223. St. Mary's parish is now a member of the Church of England Benefice of Akeman, which includes the parishes of Bletchingdon
, Hampton Gay
, Kirtlington
, Middleton Stoney
, Wendlebury
and Weston-on-the-Green
.
since before the Norman Conquest, and by the time of the Hundred Rolls
in 1279 a second had been built. Presumably the mills were on Gagle Brook. One mill survived until early in the 19th century, and for a time had been converted into a hemp
mill. Chesterton's vicar of that time complained that despite the Duke of Marlborough having spent much money trying to improve the mill it was not working well. The vicar may have been correct, for in 1822 it was closed down.
The village has a public house
, the Red Cow, that was built around the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries. It is now controlled by Greene King Brewery.
An open field system
prevailed in the parish until 1768, when an Act of Parliament
enabled the enclosure
of its common land
s. 1975 acres (799.3 ha) were enclosed, of which 1173 acres (474.7 ha) were awarded to George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough.
The main road between Bicester and Enstone passes through the north of the parish. In 1797 an Act of Parliament made this road into a turnpike
. It is now the B4030.
There was a mansion at the south-east end of Chesterton village by the early part of the 18th century. It was improved in the middle of the 18th century, and its grounds were extended for George Clarke, Sheriff
of Oxfordshire by diverting part of Akeman Street. By 1823 it was the principal house in Chesterton, and Clarke's son lived there for many years. By 1887 the house was unoccupied and in 1889-90 it was replaced by a new Italianate
house built for Henry Tubb, a banker of Bicester. By 1939 the Royal Exchange Assurance Corporation
owned the house, but by 1955 it was Audley House mixed preparatory school. It is now Bruern Abbey Preparatory School.
Bignell on Gagle Brook was formerly a separate hamlet
. Bignell House in Bignell Park was designed by the architect William Wilkinson
and built in 1866 but was demolished before the end of the same century.The present Bignell House may date from 1892, which is the date on a copper ogee
dome on a turret on one corner of the building.
In 1854 Lady Jersey
had a school built for the parish. In 1933 it was reorganised as a junior school, since which time secondary school pupils from Chesterton have attended school in Bicester. The school is now a Church of England
primary school.
River Bure
The River Bure is a river in the county of Norfolk, England, most of it in The Broads. The Bure rises near Melton Constable, upstream of Aylsham, which was the original head of navigation. Nowadays, the head of navigation is downstream at Coltishall Bridge...
in Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
. The village is about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) southwest of the market town
Market town
Market town or market right is a legal term, originating in the medieval period, for a European settlement that has the right to host markets, distinguishing it from a village and city...
of Bicester
Bicester
Bicester is a town and civil parish in the Cherwell district of northeastern Oxfordshire in England.This historic market centre is one of the fastest growing towns in Oxfordshire Development has been favoured by its proximity to junction 9 of the M40 motorway linking it to London, Birmingham and...
. The village has sometimes been called Great Chesterton to distinguish it from the hamlet of Little Chesterton, about 0.8 miles (1.3 km) to the south in the same parish.
Archaeology
About 1.75 miles (2.8 km) west of the village, by the crossroads of Akeman StreetAkeman Street
Akeman Street was a major Roman road in England that linked Watling Street with the Fosse Way. Its junction with Watling Steet was just north of Verulamium and that with the Fosse Way was at Corinium Dobunnorum...
and the former Oxford – Brackley main road (now the B430) is a prehistoric tumulus
Tumulus
A tumulus is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, Hügelgrab or kurgans, and can be found throughout much of the world. A tumulus composed largely or entirely of stones is usually referred to as a cairn...
.
Chesterton village is on the course of Akeman Street
Akeman Street
Akeman Street was a major Roman road in England that linked Watling Street with the Fosse Way. Its junction with Watling Steet was just north of Verulamium and that with the Fosse Way was at Corinium Dobunnorum...
, the Roman road
Roman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
between Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
and Cirencester
Corinium Dobunnorum
Corinium Dobunnorum was the second largest town in the Roman province of Britannia. Today it is known as Cirencester, located in the English county of Gloucestershire.-Fortress:...
, about 1 miles (1.6 km) northwest of Alchester Roman Town. The road forms part of the southwest boundary of the parish. When the M40 motorway
M40 motorway
The M40 motorway is a motorway in the British transport network that forms a major part of the connection between London and Birmingham. Part of this road forms a section of the unsigned European route E05...
was extended from Wheatley
Wheatley, Oxfordshire
Wheatley is a village and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about east of Oxford.-Archaeology:There was a Roman villa on Castle Hill, about southeast of the parish church. It was excavated in 1845, when Roman coins dating from AD 260 to 378 and fragments of Roman pottery and Roman tiles were...
to Birmingham in 1988–91, the motorway cut through Akeman Street about 0.8 miles (1.3 km) west of the village. The Roman layers of the road were exposed about 0.8 metres (2.6 ft) below Akeman Street's modern surface. The Romans had metalled the road with brashy
Cornbrash
In geology, Cornbrash was the name applied to the uppermost member of the Bathonian stage of the Jurassic formation in England. It is an old English agricultural name applied in Wiltshire to a variety of loose rubble or brash which, in that part of the country, forms a good soil for growing corn...
subsoil quarried from roadside ditches, had subsequently patched the surface, and finally resurfaced the road over a layer of 0.2 metre of soil and detritus.
Manor
Just before the Norman conquest of EnglandNorman conquest of England
The Norman conquest of England began on 28 September 1066 with the invasion of England by William, Duke of Normandy. William became known as William the Conqueror after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, defeating King Harold II of England...
the manor
Manorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
of Chesterton belonged to Wigod
Wigod
Wigod was the eleventh century Saxon thegn or lord of the English town of Wallingford, and a kinsman of Edward the Confessor....
, a Saxon
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
thegn
Thegn
The term thegn , from OE þegn, ðegn "servant, attendant, retainer", is commonly used to describe either an aristocratic retainer of a king or nobleman in Anglo-Saxon England, or as a class term, the majority of the aristocracy below the ranks of ealdormen and high-reeves...
who was a kinsman of King Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor also known as St. Edward the Confessor , son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England and is usually regarded as the last king of the House of Wessex, ruling from 1042 to 1066....
. The Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
records that by 1086 it had come into the possession of Miles Crispin
Miles Crispin
Miles Crispin , also known as Miles or Milo of Wallingford, was a wealthy Norman landowner, particularly associated with Wallingford Castle in Berkshire...
, the son-in-law of Robert D'Oyly
Robert D'Oyly
Robert D'Oyly was a Norman nobleman who accompanied William the Conqueror on the Norman Conquest, his invasion of England. He died in 1091.-Background:Robert was the son of Walter D'Oyly and elder brother to Nigel D'Oyly...
. Crispin had connections with Wallingford Castle
Wallingford Castle
Wallingford Castle was a major medieval castle situated in Wallingford in the English county of Oxfordshire , adjacent to the River Thames...
, and Chesterton remained part of the feudal
Feudalism
Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...
Honour of Wallingford
Honour of Wallingford
The Honour of Wallingford was a medieval English honour located circa 1066 to 1540 in present-day Oxfordshire.The Honour of Wallingford was established after the Norman conquest of England, which began in 1066. The Honour initially encompassed Wallingford and Harpsden and thereafter gained...
until the 13th century. In 1272 it was sold to Edmund, 2nd Earl of Cornwall
Edmund, 2nd Earl of Cornwall
Edmund of Cornwall of Almain was the 2nd Earl of Cornwall of the 7th creation.-Early life:Edmund was born at Berkhamsted Castle on 26 December 1249, the second and only surviving son of Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall and his wife Sanchia of Provence, daughter of Ramon Berenguer, Count of Provence,...
who founded Ashridge Priory
Ashridge Priory
Ashridge Priory was a medieval abbey of the Brothers of Penitence.The seventeenth century historian Polydore Vergil said that Edmund founded in 1283 a monastery at Ashridge, Hertfordshire, for a rector and twenty canons of "a new order not before seen in England, and called the Boni homines"...
in Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
in 1283 and granted the manor of Chesterton to the priory in 1285. Ashridge Priory was suppressed in the Dissolution of the Monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
and in 1540 Sir Thomas Pope
Thomas Pope
Sir Thomas Pope , founder of Trinity College, Oxford, was born at Deddington, near Banbury, Oxfordshire, probably in 1507, for he was about sixteen years old when his father, a yeoman farmer, died in 1523....
bought the manor of Chesterton.
A few years later the manor passed to John Williams, 1st Baron Williams de Thame, who in turn left it to his daughter Margery and son-in-law Henry Norris, 1st Baron Norreys
Henry Norris, 1st Baron Norreys
Henry Norris , Baron Norris belonged to an old Berkshire family, many members of which had held positions at the English court. He was the son of Sir Henry Norreys, who was beheaded for his supposed adultery with Queen Anne Boleyn, and Mary Fiennes Henry Norris (or Norreys), Baron Norris (15257...
. Their grandson Francis Norris, 1st Earl of Berkshire
Francis Norris, 1st Earl of Berkshire
Francis Norris, 1st Earl of Berkshire was an English nobleman with the title of Earl of Berkshire.He was the son of Captain William Norreys and Elizabeth, daughter of Richard Morrison of Cassiobury in Hertfordshire, and was born at Wytham in Berkshire . He married Bridget de Vere, although they...
left it to his daughter Elizabeth. She left it to her daughter Bridget Wray, through whose marriage in about 1653 Chesterton passed to Montagu Bertie, 2nd Earl of Lindsey
Montagu Bertie, 2nd Earl of Lindsey
Montagu Bertie, 2nd Earl of Lindsey, 15th Baron Willoughby de Eresby, KG, PC was the eldest son of Robert Bertie, 1st Earl of Lindsey and his wife Elizabeth Montagu, daughter of Edward Montagu, 1st Baron Montagu of Boughton.-Early life:...
. Their son James Bertie, 5th Baron Norreys
James Bertie, 1st Earl of Abingdon
James Bertie, 1st Earl of Abingdon was an English nobleman.Bertie was the eldest son of Montagu Bertie, 2nd Earl of Lindsey by his second wife Bridget Bertie , 4th Baroness Norreys, suo jure Lady Norreys. He succeeded his mother as 5th Baron Norreys on the latter's death, c. 1657...
was created Earl of Abingdon
Earl of Abingdon
Earl of Abingdon is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created on 30 November 1682 for James Bertie, 5th Baron Norreys of Rycote. He was the eldest son of Montagu Bertie, 2nd Earl of Lindsey by his second marriage to Bridget, 4th Baroness Norreys de Rycote, and the younger half-brother of...
, and it remained in their family until the death of Willoughby Bertie, 3rd Earl of Abingdon
Willoughby Bertie, 3rd Earl of Abingdon
Willoughby Bertie, 3rd Earl of Abingdon was an English peer.He was the son of James Bertie of Stanwell in Middlesex and Elizabeth Willoughby. He was elected to Parliament in 1715, but was unseated on petition. He married Anna Maria Collins in August 1727. They had ten children.- Children :# Lady...
in 1760. In 1764 his trustees sold Chesterton to George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough
George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough
George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough KG, PC, FRS , styled Marquess of Blandford until 1758, was a British courtier and politician...
who in turn sold it to George Child Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey in 1808. The manor remained with the Earls of Jersey
Earl of Jersey
Earl of the Island of Jersey, usually shortened to Earl of Jersey, is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1697 for the statesman Edward Villiers, 1st Viscount Villiers, Ambassador to France from 1698 to 1699 and Secretary of State for the Southern Department from 1699 to 1700...
until 1920-21 when the Jersey estates in Chesterton were divided and sold.
Parish church
The oldest part of the Church of England parish churchChurch of England parish church
A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative region, known as a parish.-Parishes in England:...
of Saint Mary
Mary (mother of Jesus)
Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee...
is a 12th century arcade
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
of three arches between the nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
and the north aisle. The arcade is in the Transitional style between Norman
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
and Early English Gothic. The church was rebuilt in the 13th century and reconsecrated in 1238. The chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
arch and arcade of the south aisle, both of which are Early English Gothic, date from this period. The Decorated Gothic bell tower
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
was added early in the 14th century. The present Perpendicular Gothic windows in the south aisle were added in the 14th or 15th century. In the 15th century a clerestory
Clerestory
Clerestory is an architectural term that historically denoted an upper level of a Roman basilica or of the nave of a Romanesque or Gothic church, the walls of which rise above the rooflines of the lower aisles and are pierced with windows. In modern usage, clerestory refers to any high windows...
was added to the nave and a five-light east window was inserted in the chancel.
In 1852 the east window was replaced with a Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
Decorated Gothic four-light one, and in 1854 the chancel arch was restored. In 1866 the architect F.C. Penrose
Francis Penrose
Francis Cranmer Penrose FRS was an English rower, architect, archaeologist and astronomer.-Early life:...
restored much of the building, including the windows in the south aisle and some of those in the north aisle. He also added a turret staircase to the tower.
By 1552 St. Mary's three bells and Sanctus bell. William Watts of Bedford
Bedford
Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire, in the East of England. It is a large town and the administrative centre for the wider Borough of Bedford. According to the former Bedfordshire County Council's estimates, the town had a population of 79,190 in mid 2005, with 19,720 in the adjacent town...
cast the present tenor bell in about 1590. Henry Farmer of Evesham
Evesham
Evesham is a market town and a civil parish in the Local Authority District of Wychavon in the county of Worcestershire, England with a population of 22,000. It is located roughly equidistant between Worcester, Cheltenham and Stratford-upon-Avon...
in Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
and James Keene of Woodstock
Woodstock, Oxfordshire
Woodstock is a small town northwest of Oxford in Oxfordshire, England. It is the location of Blenheim Palace, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.Winston Churchill was born in Blenheim Palace in 1874 and is buried in the nearby village of Bladon....
jointly cast the present treble and second bells in 1623. Richard III Chandler of Drayton Parslow
Drayton Parslow
Drayton Parslow is a village and civil parish in the Aylesbury Vale district of Buckinghamshire about south of Bletchley.-Manor:In the 11th century the toponym was Draintone or Draitone. This is derived from Old English and means "farm where sledges are used"...
in Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
cast the present Sanctus bell in 1715. The clock was added in 1884.
The priest and historian Gerald of Wales held the living of St. Mary's from about 1193 until his death in about 1223. St. Mary's parish is now a member of the Church of England Benefice of Akeman, which includes the parishes of Bletchingdon
Bletchingdon
Bletchingdon is a village and civil parish north of Kidlington and southwest of Bicester in Oxfordshire, England.-Manor and estates:...
, Hampton Gay
Hampton Gay
Hampton Gay is a village in the Cherwell valley about north of Kidlington, Oxfordshire.-Manor:After the Norman Conquest of England Robert D'Oyly gave an estate of three hides at Hampton Gay to his brother in arms Roger d'Ivry, while a second estate of two hides at Hampton Gay belonged to the...
, Kirtlington
Kirtlington
Kirtlington is a village and civil parish in Oxfordshire about west of Bicester.-Archaeology:The Portway is a pre-Roman road running parallel with the River Cherwell on high ground about east of the river. It bisects Kirtlington parish and passes through the village. A short stretch of it is now...
, Middleton Stoney
Middleton Stoney
Middleton Stoney is a village and civil parish about west of Bicester, Oxfordshire.-History:Aves ditch is pre-Saxon and may have been dug as a boundary ditch...
, Wendlebury
Wendlebury
Wendlebury is a village and civil parish about southwest of Bicester and about from Junction 9 of the M40. The village is on a steam that flows through the centre of the village parallel with the main street....
and Weston-on-the-Green
Weston-on-the-Green
Weston-on-the-Green is a village and civil parish about southwest of Bicester.-Manor:Wigod of Wallingford held the manor of Weston at the time of the Norman conquest of England. Wigod died shortly after the conquest, leaving his estates including Weston to his son-in-law, the Norman baron Robert...
.
Social and economic history
Chesterton had a watermillWatermill
A watermill is a structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process such as flour, lumber or textile production, or metal shaping .- History :...
since before the Norman Conquest, and by the time of the Hundred Rolls
Hundred Rolls
The Hundred Rolls are a census of England and parts of what is now Wales taken in the late thirteenth century. Often considered an attempt to produce a second Domesday Book, they are named for the hundreds by which most returns were recorded....
in 1279 a second had been built. Presumably the mills were on Gagle Brook. One mill survived until early in the 19th century, and for a time had been converted into a hemp
Hemp
Hemp is mostly used as a name for low tetrahydrocannabinol strains of the plant Cannabis sativa, of fiber and/or oilseed varieties. In modern times, hemp has been used for industrial purposes including paper, textiles, biodegradable plastics, construction, health food and fuel with modest...
mill. Chesterton's vicar of that time complained that despite the Duke of Marlborough having spent much money trying to improve the mill it was not working well. The vicar may have been correct, for in 1822 it was closed down.
The village has a public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
, the Red Cow, that was built around the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries. It is now controlled by Greene King Brewery.
An open field system
Open field system
The open field system was the prevalent agricultural system in much of Europe from the Middle Ages to as recently as the 20th century in some places, particularly Russia and Iran. Under this system, each manor or village had several very large fields, farmed in strips by individual families...
prevailed in the parish until 1768, when an Act of Parliament
Acts of Parliament in the United Kingdom
An Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom is a type of legislation called primary legislation. These Acts are passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom at Westminster, or by the Scottish Parliament at Edinburgh....
enabled the enclosure
Enclosure
Enclosure or inclosure is the process which ends traditional rights such as mowing meadows for hay, or grazing livestock on common land. Once enclosed, these uses of the land become restricted to the owner, and it ceases to be common land. In England and Wales the term is also used for the...
of its common land
Common land
Common land is land owned collectively or by one person, but over which other people have certain traditional rights, such as to allow their livestock to graze upon it, to collect firewood, or to cut turf for fuel...
s. 1975 acres (799.3 ha) were enclosed, of which 1173 acres (474.7 ha) were awarded to George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough.
The main road between Bicester and Enstone passes through the north of the parish. In 1797 an Act of Parliament made this road into a turnpike
Toll road
A toll road is a privately or publicly built road for which a driver pays a toll for use. Structures for which tolls are charged include toll bridges and toll tunnels. Non-toll roads are financed using other sources of revenue, most typically fuel tax or general tax funds...
. It is now the B4030.
There was a mansion at the south-east end of Chesterton village by the early part of the 18th century. It was improved in the middle of the 18th century, and its grounds were extended for George Clarke, Sheriff
High Sheriff
A high sheriff is, or was, a law enforcement officer in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.In England and Wales, the office is unpaid and partly ceremonial, appointed by the Crown through a warrant from the Privy Council. In Cornwall, the High Sheriff is appointed by the Duke of...
of Oxfordshire by diverting part of Akeman Street. By 1823 it was the principal house in Chesterton, and Clarke's son lived there for many years. By 1887 the house was unoccupied and in 1889-90 it was replaced by a new Italianate
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. In the Italianate style, the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian Renaissance architecture, which had served as inspiration for both Palladianism and...
house built for Henry Tubb, a banker of Bicester. By 1939 the Royal Exchange Assurance Corporation
Royal Exchange Assurance Corporation
The Royal Exchange Assurance Corporation, founded in 1720, was a British insurance company. It took its name from the location of its offices at the Royal Exchange, London.-Origins:...
owned the house, but by 1955 it was Audley House mixed preparatory school. It is now Bruern Abbey Preparatory School.
Bignell on Gagle Brook was formerly a separate hamlet
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
. Bignell House in Bignell Park was designed by the architect William Wilkinson
William Wilkinson (architect)
William Wilkinson was a British Gothic Revival architect who practised in Oxford, England.-Family:Wilkinson's father was a builder in Witney in Oxfordshire. William's elder brother George Wilkinson was also an architect, as were William's nephews C.C. Rolfe and H.W. Moore .-Career:Wilkinson...
and built in 1866 but was demolished before the end of the same century.The present Bignell House may date from 1892, which is the date on a copper ogee
Ogee
An ogee is a curve , shaped somewhat like an S, consisting of two arcs that curve in opposite senses, so that the ends are parallel....
dome on a turret on one corner of the building.
In 1854 Lady Jersey
Sarah Villiers, Countess of Jersey
Sarah Sophia Child Villiers, Countess of Jersey , was an English noblewoman, the daughter of John Fane, 10th Earl of Westmorland and Sarah Anne Child. Her mother was the only child of Robert Child, the principal shareholder in the banking firm Child & Co...
had a school built for the parish. In 1933 it was reorganised as a junior school, since which time secondary school pupils from Chesterton have attended school in Bicester. The school is now a Church of England
Voluntary controlled school
A voluntary controlled school is a state-funded school in England, Wales and Northern Ireland in which a foundation or trust has some formal influence in the running of the school...
primary school.