1801 is the first time official figures are available for the number of inhabitants in the parish when there were 338 people living here. By 1851, this had increased to 506 but by the turn of the century it had diminished to fewer than 400 again. However, according to returns sent to the Bishop of Winchester in 1725 North Waltham had "Upon the strictest calculation at present (it) hath in it 180 soules". In 1788, the population was quoted as 370. No doubt throughout its history there have been other fluctuations but before there were official censuses, it is only possible to look at general trends rather than exact figures. As recently as 1961, there were only 359 people in the parish. The 1998 figure published by the Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council is of 842 living here. This increase is due entirely to the new developments in the parish, as generally, the size of family living in each house has diminished.

The ebb and flow of population throughout the country due to good and bad times must have affected North Waltham. In nearby Winchester, for example, the population at the beginning of the eleventh century is estimated at being between 5,000 and 8,000 people. This increased until about 1250 when there was a slow decline due to food shortages. The problem was not confined to this country as most of Europe was suffering a similar plight at the same time. On the Bishop of Winchester's estates, including North Waltham, the yields of grain were reduced to the level of those in Anglo Saxon times. Not only was the population increasing, but in trying to maintain an adequate food supply the fertility of the soil became exhausted causing an even greater reduction in yield. Added to this, several poor summers failed to ripen what crops there were and weather conditions generally did not favour the germination of seed or harvesting. Outbreaks of murrain, a disease affecting cattle, occurred and many people were dying because of lack of food.

The final blow came with the Black Death which struck in Winchester in late 1348. Because of it, the population of the city was soon reduced by over a half. So badly was Winchester affected, that part of the High Street was consecrated for use as a burial ground for the victims. By 1377, the city's population had fallen below 3,000. It can be guessed that from the rapid turnover of rectors in North Waltham during this period, some of them almost certainly succumbed to this dreadful disease and many parishioners must surely have suffered a similar fate. However, although the Black Death effectively culled a generation, the population slowly expanded again throughout successive centuries.

Between this appalling time and the beginning of the nineteenth century when the results of the first census were produced, as in any other town or village, numbers fluctuated because of changes in the political and economic climate, natural disasters and local influences. Some historians use a method of estimating population by doing complicated sums with figures from the registers of births marriages and deaths, but unless there is a specific reason for carrying out such a precise study, it is probably sufficient to say that whatever befell the village, sufficient people remained to keep and maintain a viable community.

With few exceptions all the records for the parish contain someone's name within or at the end of the text, and by referring to several accounts, a general picture can be built up about people's lifestyles and relationships. There is no one of great note who's origins are rooted in North Waltham, and with no stately home or "big house" to attract the aristocracy, a couple of gentlemen farmers would have been the biggest employers. Until recently, most people came to North Waltham because work brought them here, whether that was as the rector, yeoman farmer or labourer. Jane Austen was probably the nearest "most famous" person to live close to North Waltham and although a current Hollywood star has close connections with the village, she does not live here.

Godwin was the Reeve for this parish and Walter Rastell farmed the Bishop's land at some time in the Middle Ages according to one of the Pipe Rolls during the first part of the thirteenth century. These individuals must have been men of some influence in their day and are still known of, at least by name, eight hundred years later. From the Tudor period onwards, Thomas Cromwell a Minister and Adviser to Henry VIII introduced the compulsory keeping of parish registers, and this combined with more formalised administration at all levels, means that many more names begin to appear.

During the Commonwealth period, when the Bishop of Winchester's lands had to be sold, they were bought by two gentlemen from London, namely George Wither the younger and John Yate the younger. John Yates's family were goldsmiths in London and he bought the Manor in North Waltham. Land in the village was already being farmed by a James Yate and a Gilbert Wither was rector here. A James Yate was a farmer of some influence as far back as 1600 and was frequently appointed to serve as a Churchwarden. It is possible that members of the Wither and Yate families bought the land when it was offered for sale because they were already familiar with the area. John Yate handed back the land to the Bishop at the Restoration, but he and his heirs continued to lease it until 1764. The Wither association did not last so long; when Gilbert died and a new rector was appointed, the family moved away.

1635 The Churchwardens and sidemen with the consent of the minister have made and appointed a collection by rate of sixpence the yardland through the parish to be raised for the necessary expenses of the Church
- Received by this collection £l.8.0 whereof James Yate and Robert Dier payd 14/3d.

1651 Repair of Church........................James Yate £2.5.11d.
1653 Repair of Porch.......................James Yate gent. 00.18.08d

Baptisms
1656	Yate	Georges.	s of George and Mary	baptised April 4th
1657	Yate	Mary	d of George and Mary	baptised 24th June
1660	Yate	Charles	s of George and Mary	baptised May 18
1678	Y(e)ate	Mary	d of Mr George and Francis

Burials
1655	Elizabeth, Wife of James (Gent) Nov 9th - buried
1656	James - buried - May 8th
1681	Y(e)ate - Mr George Yate senior - buried
1682	Y(e)ate - Mary d. of George (gent) and Francis dyed 6th buried 7th July (she was 4 years old - see baptism)

This family's entries show how complicated tracing a family can be when so many generations share the same christian names. The confusion is even greater when the spelling of surnames is not consistent. No attempt has been made to sort out relationships for the Yates, as they had so many outside connections that North Waltham' s records alone are not sufficient to unravel them.

The Yates family was involved with the allocation of seating in the church pews in 1622 which had to be resolved by Sir Thomas Ridley of Winchester:

"Whearas the Right Worth; Sir Thomas Ridley knight and Chanchelor of Winchester doe direct his letter to Mr John Moulton, Rector of Northwaltham dated the xvith of Aprill 1622 by who letter he did authorise the Churchwardens and Parishioners to reduce the Pew belonging to the Parsonage house unto the place where it formerly stood in the Church and to place James Yate and his wife in a conveinient place, Wee the Parson Churchwardens and Parishioners of the said North Waltham Aprill 22 1622 doe order that the said authoritie be put in execution in manner following namely that the Parsonage Pew be placed where it was formerly, that the Ales be laied open, that the Farmers pew be placed where goodwife Pinkes pew standeth and that goodwife Yate and goodwife Pinke shall sit in the said Farmers pew and that James Yate shall sit with William Pink and the said pew shall always belong to the Farmer and William Pinks house.

Agreement as to pews signed by John Moulton Rector"

(Other signatures and " marks" in place of signatures include James Yate, William Pink, John Cobb and John Biggs)

James Yate appears to have been a man of conscience as the following entry in the Church records for February 2nd 1622 indicates:

February 2 1622
The day and yeere above written, wee the parson churchwardens, collectors and the rest of the pishioners of North Waltham, have wth mutual consent ordered that Willyam Woodach, a poore old man borne in the same pish, shallbe kept in manner following; Namely, that if the sayd Willyam Woodach shall behave himself religiously, and honestly, I James Yate farmer of North Waltham, doe promise to provide necessary meate, drinke, lodging and washing for the sayd Willyam Woodach during his natural hfe, condiconally that the rest of the parishioners shall at their pper costs and charges provide necessary apparell for the sayd Willyam Woodach' and that it shall be lawfil for mee the sayd James Yate, to imploy the sayd Willyam Woodach, in such lawfull and necessary imploymnts as he shalbe able to pforme. And we the sayd parishioners doe promise to provide necessary apparell for the sayd Willyam Woodach during his naturall life. for the confirmation of this order wee have subscribed our hands and marks the day and yere above written.

This was signed by the Rector, John Molton and the marks have been entered beside the names of the others concerned.

The Wither family is rather more straightforward. In 1654, Gilbert Wither "rector of this parish", married Eliza Hall of Basingstoke. Their first born child was a son who they called Gilbert after his father, but he only lived for three months. Their second child, a daughter, was born two years later in 1658 and she was called Elizabeth after her mother. In 1660 they had another son, who they again called Gilbert. It was very common when infant mortality was so high, to call a child by the same name as one who had died, a practice we would find strange today. In 1661, they had another son and the entry in the baptismal register reads:

1661 Wither, William, - son of Gilbert and Eliz. born and baptised Aug 26. Borne half an houre after 1 o'clock in the morning; in 1663, Charles was born "between 3 and 4 o'clock in the afternoon" and in 1665, Andrew made his appearance "between 3 and 4 of the clock in the morning".

Gilbert Wither died in 1676 but the circumstances of his death are not known as there is no burial entry in the records. His wife, Elizabeth, or Eliza as she was sometimes called, was left with relatively young children, and she died six years after her husband in 1682. Presumably the children moved away after their mother's death as there are no further entries for the Wither family after this date.

In 1662, Thomas Kew from Basingstoke, married Ann Cobb who was the daughter of Gilbert and Bennet Cobb of North Waltham. Cobbs go back to the earliest Church records at the end of the sixteenth century and the name Gilbert seems to feature among them through the generations. Gilbert was quite a popular name during this period as there were "Gilberts" in other families living in North Waltham. The family were landowners in a small way, probably yeoman farmers, as they were sufficiently affluent to have to pay rates. When Ann and Thomas had been married for eighteen months, they had a son who they called Richard. There is no evidence of there being any more children in North Waltham's records, so unless they had offspring who were baptised elsewhere, Richard was an only child. Ann's father, Gilbert, died in 1676, Ann herself died in 1681 and her mother, Bennet lived until 1683. Thomas Kew, the spelling of who's name appears in the Churchwardens' Accounts in a variety of ways (one of which was simply "Q"), was responsible for the extermmation of many of the sparrows in the parish. His own fmancial status is uncertain; perhaps he worked for his father-in-law but he did not achieve the status of ratepayer in his own right. Maybe Ann Cobb married "beneath" her but this is pure speculation. Thomas and Richard moved away after Ann's death, presumably with the loss of his wife and her family there was nothing to keep them here.

A century later, the Poor Rates, which span the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries tell a lot about the relationships amongst the village labourers. Across this same period the increase in population and the growing dependency of the poor on parish support is also apparent. On average, 25 people a year were given help until the late 1790s, but allowing for variations, perhaps due to some poor harvests and the effects of the war with France, by the early 1800s the figures had risen to over 70 a year. This placed an enormous burden on the ratepayers and in the 1830s, the dreaded Workhouses or "Unions" were introduced; the one at Basing was used by this parish. The administrators of the Poor Rates (Overseers), must have had to combine the skills of today's National Health Service managers, DSS officers and the Child Support Agency to offer the best help to their neighbours. When they fell on hard times, through sickness, unemployment or, in many cases, the arrival of children, legitimate or otherwise, the needy applied to the Overseers for help, and what was deemed to be appropriate assistance for the circumstances was offered. This sometime took the form of a straight money payment, at other times bills were settled for items such as rent, care or food, and fuel and clothing were frequently given out.

It has to be said that this village, as did so many others, had its share of what may be termed "problem families". The Appleby family was one of these and their time in the village spanned most of the eighteenth century. The first to be heard of the Applebys in North Waltham, is in 1700, when William and Sarah Appleby had their baby daughter baptised. (Again the baby, Sarah, was given the same name as her mother). There are no indications as to where the Applebys came from, but William and Sarah, were, for whatever reason, living in North Waltham. Between 1702 and 1708, they had a further four children, one of whom, also a William, died in infancy. In 1712, Sarah died, leaving her husband with a young family to care for, but a year later, William married again. This time his wife was called Mary and they produced four children between 1717 and 1726.

Their second child, Robert, who was born in 1719 married Ann Saunders when he was 26. She was expecting a baby at the time and a few months later, Ann gave birth to a daughter who they also called Ann. Robert and his wife had five children over the next ten years but In 1759, Robert was widowed. In 1762 he remarried, another Ann, Ann Martin however, it seem that no children were born of this union.

The youngest but one child of Robert and his first wife was called Joan and her name crops up in a number of parish records. In March, 1773, Joan was paid 4/= for picking 12 loads of stone at 4d per load. On May 1st, 1774, when she was a couple of months pregnant, the banns were called for her marriage to William Waite who was described as a "Blacksmith, resident in North Waltham". The marriage, however, did not take place. Maybe she was jilted or perhaps some tragedy befell William, but on January 1st, 1775 the baptismal record states:

"Appleby, Elizabeth, base born daughter of Joan Appleby and William Waite."

Little Elizabeth Appleby was kept "by the parish" for the next fifteen years, during which time Joan was given 4/= a month for her daughter's keep as well as being provided with shoes, clothes, material and coal at various times.

In November 1777, the Banns were called between Joan Appleby and Thomas Horsell. Interestingly, Thomas was not without a little education as he was able to sign his own name in the marriage register. It would be nice to think that Joan settled down to a life of domestic bliss with the three children they had together. However, Thomas had a brush with the law in some way as in 1780, the Overseers of the Poor had to make a payment for a justices order. No more entries appear in North Waltham's records for the Horsells so presumably they moved away.

Other payments for the Appleby family were also made from parish funds. Ann Appleby, Robert's second wife (Robert died in 1773), must have spent her widowhood in failing health and been very poor. Shortly after her husband's death, Ann received a "shift" (possibly a night-dress) and money and between 1775 and her death at the end of 1776. Widow Phillips and Dame Lock were paid to look after her. Members of the Appleby family continued to live in North Waitham, but through the female line which are less easy to trace because of changes to their surnames. However, of Joan's brothers and sisters, her brother, (another Robert), died as an infant, her eldest sister, Anne, died at the age of fourteen, Amy married a man from Dummer and Elizabeth married a prosperous North Waltham blacksmith. As for the fate of William Waite, Joan's first love, nothing further is known of him from the records of this parish.

Underlying each entry in all parish records is a story and a particularly tragic one belongs to poor Dolly Marshal Johnston. Dolly was Scottish and, whilst pregnant, was travelling to Southampton to be with her husband, William, described as "A Highlander" who was stationed there with the army. Dolly died, together with her baby daughter, Nelly, at the Sun Public House in August 1794. Their care was undertaken by Dame Phillips and this was paid for, together with the cost of their funeral from the Poor Rates. Although poor Dolly was away from her husband and family at least she was shown compassion and what comfort could be offered here. So many women at this time in a similar plight would have perished under a hedge or in a ditch or barn.

The problems of illegitimacy were great and every effort was made to persuade unmarried mothers to name the fathers of their offspring so that pressure could be brought for the couple to marry, or at least for the father to provide financial support for his child. Superficially, it may appear that "respectability" could have been the foundation for such persuasion, but in reality it was as much a case of money as morals.

Other, and similar tales could be told of people for the nineteenth century, but perhaps it is best to leave those for someone else to tell in another hundred years when distance can lend a detachment to their stories.

Return to Contents Page

First Posted March 2000 Copyright © Ann Lloyd 1998.

Acknowledgements