Monument record 3738 - Earls Barton

Earls Barton was probably part of a late Saxon manorial centre. The church has late 10th century origins and the defensive perimeter of an encircling burh of a similar date was found at the Primary School in 2024. Prior to 1066 it was held by Bondi and in 1086 there 28 households, meadow and three mills. It was a polyfocal settlement with a number of separate ends. The village expanded into a small town during the late 19th century as the boot and shoe industry flourished.

{5} Polyfocal settlement with several ends: Dowthorpe End; London End; High Street. Small green at centre of settlement.

{6} At the start of the C19th Earls Barton was an agricultural village of c.700. A century later it had developed into a small town with a population of c.2,900. This was partly due to the growth of the boot and shoe industry in the C19th. By 1901 there were 16 boot and shoe factories in the town. These included John White’s factories in Station Road and Doddington Road, and Barker’s Station Road factory. There was also a leather works in Park Street and numerous garden workshops, for example in Broad Street and Sunnyside.
Much of this development was to the north of the historic core in an area known as New Barton. Development along Station Road appears to have commenced at a relatively late date. OS First Edition maps (1887) show the land alongside Station Road as undeveloped agricultural land.

{7} Photograph of unidentified building at Dowthorpe End. Probably demolished.

<1> Hall, D, 1978, Earls Barton Parish Survey Map, (unchecked) (Map). SNN58003.

<2> Medieval Settlements at Earls Barton and The Surrounding Area, (unchecked) (Map). SNN58004.

<3> Royal Commission on The Historical Monuments of England, 1979, An Inventory of The Historical Monuments in The County of Northampton, p.51 (unchecked) (Series). SNN77380.

<4> Wilson D.M. (Editor), 1976, The Archaeology of Anglo-Saxon England, (unchecked) (Book). SNN107011.

<6> Zeepvat B., 2005, Historic Building Recording: Former White & Co Shoe Factory, Station Road, Earls Barton, Northamptonshire, p.8 (checked) (Report). SNN105326.

<7> Miss June Swann, 1960s- 70s, Miss June Swann Photographic Archive, Taken 1965 (Photographs). SNN116665.

<8> Photographs of buildings in Earls Barton (Photographs). SNN111649.

Record last edited

Jul 21 2026 1:53PM