My Leverton

The earliest reference to the Derby family, at this time, is circa 1200 AD, when a Nicholas Tamworth, of Tamworth, married Jane, the daughter of the Derby family of Leverton. The Derby's are mentioned as possessing property and or land in Benington, Leverton and Leake (before the 'Old' prefixed 'Leake').

In 1346 we have Ralph de Derby of Benington, and a Robert in 1357. A Roger Derby of Leverton married Elizabeth, daughter and heiress of Sir Richard Winceby, knight, of Benington, around 1400 AD. They had a son, named Ralph who married the daughter of James Bolle. They in their turn had a son, William. He went on to marry the daughter of James Fyllill (possibly Fydell, a name well known in the area).

Thomas Derby, their eldest son, died about 1530 and their youngest son, William, was successor. He married Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Strange who owned land in the Leverton. Their son, Ralph, married Alice, the daughter of John Read of Leake; this Ralph is mentioned as living in Leake in 1517. Their son, Thomas Derby is in Benington in the 1530s. He took a wife, another Alice, daughter of John Langton who is mentioned in 1547. A William, son of Thomas and Alice was alive in 1571. His son, William lived about 1620. Derby Hall was possibly constructed around this time.

For the next part of the story of Derby Hall, we skip around one hundred and eighty years and arrive in the year of our LORD; 1805. Very interesting, too, for people who live, and have lived in the area, and who have passed by the site of the old hall and probably wondered about how the hall came to be, and the families who have lived there over the 400 years or so of its existence in the marshes of Lincolnshire.

In a copy of a will dated 1805, Edmund Oldfield (hence the name of Oldfield Lane in the village) of Boston names his wife, Ann, as beneficiary. She receives upon his death all real estate called Derby Hall situated in Leake and Leverton, now in occupation of Charles Hansord for his life and then to his son, Edmund.

Sometime pre - 1820, Derby Hall was occupied by one, Miles Dickinson. In a sworn affidavit on the 6th December 1820 a Mr James Williams of Benington said he knew Susannah Dickinson of Leake, widow of Miles Dickinson, in the parishes of Leake and Leverton, farmer, deceased. She married Robert Kemp of Leverton, farmer now deceased (this affidavit was possibly because Susannah required to sell or transfer some of the property). She had issue by Miles Dickinson namely William, David and James. William died a bachelor and David went on to marry One, Ann Crowder by whom he had issue (the Crowder name was very well know in the village in the mid 1900s - descendants?).

David and Ann had one child, a daughter named Ann, who married Edmund Oldfield who we see above as being the beneficiary of the will of her husband, Edmund Oldfield in 1805.

In 1821 we see a deed of covenant ( a formal agreement or contract) between Ann Oldfield, only daughter of David Dickinson and Ann Crowder of the 1st part, Edmund Oldfield of Friskney, grocer (eldest son and heir of Ann Oldfield) and Frances his wife, of the 2nd part, Pell Brough of Boston, gent, of the 3rd part, and John Hardwick Hollway of Boston, gent, of the 4th part:

(1) Property  messuage called or know as Derby Hall (then divided into five tenements) with adjoining out house, yard and homestead adjoining, situate in Leake and Leverton.

(2) Close of pasture ground containing 3 acres, lying in Leverton, adjoining the Holt* at or before that time, the tenures (rented property) or occupations of Ann Oldfield, Ann Torgoose and John Pickering. Consideration £200.

(* Holt is Old English and means; A wood or wooded hill or copse. Could the rise in the ground at the site of the old hall just east of the 'old' Ostrich Inn have been the Holt written of in the covenant?)          (The name of Oldfield Lane would, no doubt, evolve from the Oldfield name as this lane was previously written on old maps  'Field Lane').

Derby Hall is mentioned both under Leake and Leverton in many records but it will be seen that it has been referred to as 'Leake and Leverton' in legal documents of this period.

It is recorded in 'Kelly's' as being in Leake in 1856, but is referred to as being in Leverton thereafter. According to the many old, and present, maps it is seen to be in Leverton - just.

A Mr George Wilson is farming Derby Hall in 1856, 1868 and 1872. Thereafter there is no mention of Derby Hall. It was by this time very old and no doubt in some need of attention, if indeed there was a hall still in existence there. The area could well have bee referred to as Derby Hall, just as many of the ancient field names have survived to this day.

A Windmill and a Lighthouse in Leverton

There is said to be documentary evidence of a windmill and a lighthouse on the south side of the boundary that divides the two parishes of Old Leake and Leverton. This boundary more or less follows the Hurns End Road (as we know it today) from its junction with Highgate to the Hurns End. Also, we are told, a writer in 1841 stated that there were the remains of a lighthouse on the 'floors' that is, the Saltings or marshy areas which would have been the area to the south of the Hurns End Road towards the marshes. Although we can't gain sight of those particular documents, we can quote from a will dated 10th May 1689 that clearly states there was a windmill, and again, quite possibly in the area adjoining Derby Hall.

The will is that of one, John Mottram gent, of Cawthorpe, Martin, Lincs. The will goes as follows:

".......I give to my Granchild Dymoke Derby, tenn pounds to buy a Gelding if he lives to the age of sixteen years also I give him my windmilne with the Onsett (messuage, or building/s) in Leverton. I give John Derby and his heirs males my cottages. late purchased of his Grandmother in Leake and Leverton".

There was no doubt a marriage joining the two families of Dymoke (Edward Dymoke, knight, performed the duties of Kings Champion at the coronation of Charles the 2nd) and Derby and the will could have well involved the areas around our Derby Hall.

It is quite feasible a lighthouse could have existed at some time on the banks of the ancient haven, but since the haven hasn't been used as a means of transportation for well over a thousand years (H E Hallam in his book; Settlement and Society, (1965), states; "This means the Haven was open in 1086 (at the time of the Domesday Book) and that the three banks across its mouth are all post Conquest") what would be the point of one? We certainly cannot find any evidence of such a structure.

Alan.