Glebe Land

The history of the Church Close

Shown as plot 67 on the 1839 Tithe Map of Illmire (Ilmer), Church Close was 1 acre, 3 roods and 34 perches in size. A rood is ¼ of an acre and there are 40 perches to a rood, so Church Close is 1.96 acres.

The close was described as owned by the Trustees of Churchland viz The Vicar and Churchwardens of Illmire, being therefore glebe land. It was tenanted by John Tapping, the farmer of Upper Farm, now Ilmer House.

In 1657, a survey of the glebe lands of Ilmer itemised a parcel of size 1·3·5¾. It is described as a meadow and named “Hurst” or similar. A Hurst is a wooded mound. Perhaps this is the Church Close?

In the Survey of the Buckinghamshire Estates of the Earl of Chesterfield, 1779/1780, a parcel of land owned by “The Parish” of size 1·3·16 - plot 33 (see left) - is assumed to be Church Close.

In an August 1812 letter from Thomas Jones, vicar of Ilmer between 1791 and 1833, to Mr Strong, agent for Lord Chesterfield, regarding the loss of part of Ilmer glebe by earlier incumbents, Rev Jones stated that William Stanhope took 2 acres of land known as Parsons Close from his predecessor Rev Henricus Stanbridge (vicar from 1722-1746) and gave the land to the poor of Ilmer. He described how the land rates were low and had not increased for 40 years. Rev Jones stated that he was looking to Lord Chesterfield to recover the land for the patron as he was not intending to litigate.

In the 1853 Printed Parliamentary Reports of the Former Commissioners for Inquiring Concerning Charities said:

Parish of Ilmer
Church Close
There is a piece of arable land, containing 1a. 1r. 20p. in this parish, so called, let to John Topping[sic] as yearly tenant, at a rent of £3 p.a., which is carried to the Church-wardens general account. At one time the rent of this close, or at least a portion of it, was distributed by the Vicar to the poor; but it having been ascertained that the close had been given by Earl Stanhope for the repair of the church, it has for the last five years been carried by the churchwardens to their account

The Lloyd George Domesday survey, conducted 1912, recorded an area of 1·3·27 (1.92 acres) and described as a “Small field of allotments worth £25 per acre”. The survey records the occupier as Thomas Goodchild, but doesn’t record an owner, other than suggesting these are parish allotments. Thomas being the elder brother of Albert, the owner of Ilmer House. Between 1907-1915, Thomas was described in Kelly’s directory as a Poultry Farmer.

The vestry minutes of 29th March 1921 describe the sums attributable to the Ilmer Close Fund, for church repairs. The fund was again mentioned in the minutes of 12th July 1923 and 2nd July 1929.

In a reply to Rev W M Tuke dated 13 April 1926, the Charity Commission confirmed that the income received from the Church Close is applicable for the repair of the Church, and that this included heating apparatus as proposed.

The Victoria History of the Counties of England (VCH) Volume IV, dated 1927 mentioned the Church Close, presumably taking the parcel area from the 1853 Printed Parliamentary Reports:

The Church Close, containing 1 a. 1 r. 20 p., was given, on a date not stated, by Earl Stanhope for the repair of the church. The land is let in allotments, producing £3 12s. 6d. yearly, which is applied towards the general church expenses.

In a letter of October 1945, the Tithe Redemption Commission wrote to R H Attenborough, then owner of Ilmer House. It describes tithe area 67 (shown right), referred to as Ilmer Close Fund, with an annuity of 1s·10d, to be paid by R H Attenborough.

A 1970 letter from solicitors Lightfoot and Lowndes to solicitors Trollope & Winkworth in connection with the sale of the Ilmer Church hall, mentioned 1.92 acres of allotment land and identified it as OS parcel 54. This is likely taken from the Lloyd George Domesday survey annotated map of 1912, based on the OS 1897 25 inch map, which records Parcel 54 being 1.92 acres.

On 8 January 1980, a declaration by the Diocesan Trustees described the glebe land as being 1.9 acres, plot 4571 on OS map and managed by the vicars and churchwardens of Ilmer. It further described the ecclesiastical charitable purpose as being “For the repairs of the church at Ilmer”.

The present tenant of Church Close, Mr John Shurrock recalls how his mother, Mollie, used the land for allotments and prior to that, it was used by the whole village as allotments. He also recalls Charles Belgrove digging a well for his mother within the space. The remains of the well still exist today.

In contemporary annual reports for the Princes Risborough with Ilmer PCC, Church Close is called “Field at Ilmer” and is capitalised at £1,800. An aerial survey measures it at 1.82 acres.

2024 - Google

2003 - Google

1948 - Aerofilms