Henlow
Timeline
Places > Henlow
1086: The three manors of Henlow known as Henlow Warden, Henlow Llanthony and Henlow de Grey are mentioned in the Domesday Book.
13th Century: Church of St May the Virgin dates to this period.
1620: Two Henlow families, John Tilley, his wife Joan and daughter Elizabeth and Edward Tilley, his wife Agnes and nephew and niece Henry Samson and Humility Cooper set sail from Plymouth on 6th September aboard the Mayflower. They reached America 66 days later.
1680: The earliest parts of Henlow Grange date to this time.
1721: Miles Smith gave 10 shillings 'for ever' in his will so that the people of Henlow could be taught to sings the psalms of David in the area between Henlow, Clifton and Ampthill once every three years.
1777: General Stores at 48 High Street opens. The shop was still in business some 200 years later!
1819: Smock windmill built by Thomas Hare.
1868: Henry Addington succeeded to the Henlow Grange Estates.
1869-1871: The 24 houses known as the Addington Houses were built by Henry Addington for 'working class people'.
1883: Henry Addington died at the age of 63. His son, Thomas Alexander Addington inherited the Grange and its estates.
1885: Almost half of Henlow sold at auction following the bankruptcy of Thomas Alexander Addington.
1893: The 'Vicars Clubroom' opened on December 14th for the use of the young men of the village and for parochial meetings. It was given by Mrs Holesgrove, wife of the Rev. W. Holesgrove. It is more commonly referred to nowadays as The Parish Hall.
1897: Henlow pump built.
1917: Site purchased south of the village to function as an Aircraft Repair Depot. This site was to developed to become RAF Henlow.
1918: Henlow War Memorial erected, inscribed with the names of 27 village men who lost their lives in the Great War.
1920: Henlow Aircraft Repair Depot expanded from 220 acres to 380 acres as land purchased for a landing ground.
1930: The airmen of Henlow pull the R101 out of its hangar before its disastrous maiden voyage. A week later 800 of them lined the streets of Bedford for the funeral.
1936: Alan Tindall Lennox Boyd and his family come to live at Henlow Grange. Lennox Boyd represented Mid Bedfordshire in Parliament from the 1930's to the 1950's.
1940: RAF Henlow was bombed by the Luftwafe. Eight bombs fell on the airfield damaging two hangars.
1945: Seven more names added to the War Memorial following the Second World War.
1950: Lord Boyd of Merton gave the Boyd Memorial field to the Parish when the family left the village.
1961: Henlow Grange purchased and refurbished as a Health Farm by Mr. and Mrs. F. Costigan.
1968: RAF Henlow given the freedom of Bedford. The parade was formed by the Queen's Colour Squadron of the RAF, with three squadrons and a band from Henlow. Four Canberras from RAF Bassingbourne flew over in formation. The Mayor of Bedford, Alderman Ron Sharman, presented the scroll to Captain N.F. Curtis, Officer Commanding RAF Henlow.
1976: Henlow Middle School opened.
1977: The hexagonal well house restored to mark the Queen’s Jubilee. The well had originally been opened on the 29th September 1897 by Mrs Gribble of Henlow Grange whose husband was High Sheriff at the time. The total cost of the well, pump and pump house (built by Redhouse and Son of Stotfold) was 91.17s.6d.
1980:Officer cadet training ceases on the 24th April at RAF Henlow. The station is passed to the Radio Engineering Unit.
1990: Planning permission granted for a new residential estate of 78 homes off Henlow High Street.
1990: Shefford-Clifton-Henlow bypass opened on the 4th July.
1994: RAF Henlow launched as a Defence Agency with the role of designing and installing ground and airborne electronic systems, such as communications and navigation aids. At this time the base supported 753 civilian posts and 818 servicemen with an annual budget of 41 million.
1995: New village sign erected thanks to a legacy of 500 left by Mr. Robert Purdew.
1997: Henlow Greyhound Stadium closes just weeks before celebrating its 70th anniversary.
2002: Henlow Grange shut for three months after a fire breaks out causing up to 3 million of damage.
2003: Henlow pump granted Grade Two Listed Building status.
Page last updated: 28th January 2014