Hougham is both a village and a parish on the north bank of the River Witham,
six miles north-northwest of Grantham and 112 miles
north of London. Marston parish lies to the south,
just across the river, and Barkston parish to the
east. The parish covers about 2,600 acres in a roughly east-west rectangular
orientation.
The village of Hougham boasts of pre-Conquest origins. The River Witham runs
past the southern edge of the village, heading west to Long
Bennington. If you are planning a visit:
- Take the A1 motorway or the A607 trunk road north out of Grantham and turn
off at the signs for Marston.
- Horse riding is popular and there is an equine veterinary near the
village.
- The parish was in the Claypole sub-district of the Newark Registration
District.
- The Anglican church is dedicated to All Saints.
- The church is built in the Anglo-Norman style. It contains a monument to
the Knight Templar, Sir Hugh de BUSSEY. There is also a large tomb dedicated
to Arthur William THOROLD.
- The church underwent restorations in 1845 and 1895-6.
- The church seats about 150.
- Here is a photo of All Saints Church, taken by Ron Cole (who retains the
copyright):
- The parish register dates from 1562 and there are some entries from
Marston mixed in.
- The Lincolnshire FHS has a Loan Library service
which has the parish registers on microfiche for Baptisms from 1561 to 1812
and Marriages from 1561 to 1812.
- Boyd's Marriage Index holds parish marriages from 1560 to 1837.
- The Society of Genealogists have the parish
registers on file for 1756-1838.
- The LFHS has published several marriage indexes for the Loveden Deanery to make your search
easier.
- The parish was in the Claypole sub-district of the Newark Registration
District.
- The great Northern Railway had a station about a mile east of the
village.
- In 1871, Sir John Henry THOROLD, baronet, was the principle landowner.
He was still the principal landowner in 1913.
- There was a moated Manor House here for many centuries, property of the
BRUDENELL family. In 1871 it was occupied by a local farmer.
- The national grid reference is SK 8844.
- You'll want an Ordnance Survey Explorer map, which has a scale of 2.5
inches to the mile.
- The name Hougham is probably Old English hough+ham, for "river
meadow of Hough-on-the-Hill". In the 1086 Domesday Book is is rendered as
Hacham.
[A. D. Mills, "A Dictionary of English Place-Names,"
Oxford University Press, 1991]
- The name also apperas in old records as "Haugham".
- Here's a list of surnames found in White's 1871 Directory: ASHER,
BAXTER, BROWN, HICKSON, HILL, MORLEY, MOSS, PARKES, PARKINS, PICKERING,
RAWLING, SAXILBY, SCOTT, THOROLD and WORMSLEY.
- Kelley's 1913 Directory lists these surnames: CLARKE, COOLING, HICKSON,
HORNSBY, PARKE, PARKINS, PEET, PICK, RAWDING, SCHOFIELD, SCOTT, THOROLD,
WADDINGTON, WING, WINTER and WORMSLEY.
- The parish was in the ancient Loveden Wapentake in the South Kesteven division of the county,
in the parts of Kesteven.
- For today's local governance, contact the South Kesteven District
Council.
- The poor were left the interest on £20, of which £14 was donated by Mrs.
BERRY and £4 by Mary WILDMAN (no date provided).
- After the Poor Law Amendment Act reforms of 1834, the parish became part
of the Newark Poor Law Union in 1837.
- Bastardy cases would have been heard in the Spittlegate Petty Sessional
hearings.
| Year |
Inhabitants |
| 1801 |
280 |
| 1841 |
337 |
| 1871 |
298 |
| 1881 |
271 |
| 1891 |
287 |
| 1911 |
230 |
- The children of the parish attended school in Marston.
Many thanks to http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~englin/H/hougham.htm for
the above