Place:Stretton en le Field, Leicestershire, England

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source: Family History Library Catalog

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Stretton en le Field is a small village and civil parish in the North West Leicestershire District of Leicestershire, England. It is about seven miles (11 km) south-west of Ashby de la Zouch.

Stretton Bridge carries the A444 road across the River Mease, which today forms this small parish's northern boundary. In 1897, boundary changes transferred Stretton en le Field from Derbyshire into Leicestershire where it remains today.

The village used to be considerably larger than it is currently; the decline in population was recognized as early as the 1830s. In 1801 the village had a population of 212. By 1831 this had fallen to 109. In the 1891 census, the population had fallen further to 70. The parish (which includes outlying farms and houses) is estimated to have a current population of 36.

In 1835 the parish extended to 1000 acres of what was described as "very rich land, mostly arable", and the village was described as "neat and pleasant".[8] The Lord of the manor was Sir John Robert Cave-Browne-Cave, 10th Baronet Cave-Browne-Cave (1798–1855), who lived in Stretton Hall, which as described as "a handsome mansion, occupies a picturesque an romantic situation, with fine views of the country around".(Source: Samuel Lewis (ed), (1848). A Topographical Dictionary of England, pp. 246–250.) By 1891 Stretton Hall had passed to Sir Myles Cave-Browne-Cave, 11th Baronet Cave-Browne-Cave (1822–1907) who is described as the principal landowner in the parish. Stretton Hall is described as "an ancient mansion near the church and surrounded by a shrubbery". After Sir Myles death, the title passed to his second son Genille (his eldest having previously died); Sir Genille Cave-Browne-Cave, 12th Baronet (1869–1929), before inheriting his father's title and fortune, had worked in America as a bartender and cowboy (using the assumed name "Mr. Harrison". The New York Times stated Sir Genille's inheritance was 6,000 acres; the article, however, seems inaccurate, describing the Stretton Hall as "A Norman Castle with accommodation for sixty guests, and a stable that quarters forty horses". After having been used during World War II to billet soldiers and then to house Italian prisoners of war, Stretton Hall was demolished around 1945.

Research Tips

• The Ashby-de-la-Zouch Rural District page includes a map illustrating the civil parishes of the district. Stretton en le Field is #15 on the map.
• To inspect the smaller settlements in relation to their civil parishes, see the Ordnance Survey Map of 1944 provided by A History of Britain through Time.