Village History
St Bartholomew's Farm
The Wollaston Estate That Helped Support London's Oldest Hospital
For more than seven centuries, a farm in Wollaston helped support one of London's most famous hospitals. Today, visitors walking along Duck End may notice a heritage plaque on a former farmhouse. In reality, it reveals a remarkable connection between Wollaston and London that stretches back to the Middle Ages.
Did You Know?
For over 700 years, rent from a farm in Wollaston helped support patients in London's St Bartholomew's Hospital — one of England's oldest charitable institutions.
Seven centuries
A Timeline
c.1123
St Bartholomew's Hospital founded beside Smithfield Market, London.
c.1218
Members of the de Wollaston family grant land in Wollaston to St Bartholomew's Hospital during the reign of King Henry III. The estate becomes known as Bartholomew's Fee.
1752
Ambrose Dickins — Lord of the Manor of Wollaston and a Governor of St Bartholomew's Hospital — rebuilds the farmhouse and barns while acting as tenant of the estate.
Early 1900s
The estate consists of approximately 158 acres on the edge of the village, still owned by St Bartholomew's Hospital.
1914–18
First World War. London suffers Zeppelin and bomber raids causing damage near St Bartholomew's Hospital.
1919
The Wollaston farm is sold to fund repairs and improvements at the hospital, ending more than 700 years of ownership.
Present day
A heritage plaque on the former farmhouse on Duck End records the remarkable connection between Wollaston and London's oldest hospital.
A Gift from Medieval Wollaston
The story begins in the early thirteenth century. Historical records show that members of the de Wollaston family — local lords whose name the village still bears — granted land in Wollaston to St Bartholomew's Hospital in London around 1218, during the reign of King Henry III.
At that time St Bartholomew's Hospital was already nearly a century old. Founded in 1123 beside Smithfield Market in London, it cared for the sick and poor and relied upon income from lands and estates across England. The land gifted by the Wollaston family became part of the hospital's extensive property portfolio, and rent from tenants farming the land helped fund medical care many miles away in London. For centuries the estate was known as Bartholomew's Fee — a reminder of its ownership.
Supporting a Hospital from Afar
In medieval England it was common for religious houses, hospitals and colleges to own estates far from their principal location. These estates generated income through rents and agricultural production. In effect, the fields around Wollaston became part of a financial network supporting charitable work in the capital.
For generations local tenants farmed the land while ownership remained with St Bartholomew's Hospital. The arrangement survived political upheaval, civil wars, changes of monarch and even the dissolution of the monasteries in the sixteenth century. While many religious estates were confiscated, St Bartholomew's Hospital was eventually refounded and continued its charitable work — and the Wollaston estate remained linked to the institution.
Ambrose Dickins and the Rebuilding of 1752
One of the most important figures in the story was Ambrose Dickins. He was Lord of the Manor of Wollaston and a prominent local landowner during the eighteenth century. Historical records also show that he was a Governor of St Bartholomew's Hospital — a dual role that gave him a unique connection to both the village and the London hospital.
According to the heritage plaque, Dickins rebuilt the farmhouse and barns in 1752 while acting as tenant of the estate. The substantial stone buildings he created reflected the prosperity of the period and the importance of the farm. Although altered over time, parts of the surviving structure still retain their eighteenth-century character.
It is unusual to find a situation where a Lord of the Manor was simultaneously a tenant and governor of the institution that owned the land. The arrangement illustrates the close relationship between local landowners and charitable bodies during the Georgian period.
A Farm of 158 Acres
By the early twentieth century the estate consisted of approximately 158 acres. The land formed a significant agricultural holding on the edge of the village and remained one of the last visible reminders of the hospital's medieval ownership.
Generations of Wollaston residents would have worked the fields, tended livestock and managed the farm while ownership remained vested in a London institution. Few would have realised that the rent they paid ultimately helped support patients receiving treatment in Smithfield.
The First World War and the End of an Era
The connection finally came to an end after the First World War. London suffered a number of air raids during the conflict — Zeppelin and bomber attacks caused damage across the capital, including areas around St Bartholomew's Hospital.
Following the war, the hospital faced substantial repair and rebuilding costs. In 1919 the Wollaston farm was sold, bringing to an end more than seven centuries of ownership by St Bartholomew's Hospital. The proceeds helped fund repairs and improvements at the hospital. With that sale, one of the longest-running institutional links in Wollaston's history came to a close.
What Remains Today?
Although the hospital no longer owns land in Wollaston, traces of the connection survive. The farmhouse and associated buildings remain as a physical reminder of the estate. A heritage plaque on Duck End tells visitors of the remarkable relationship between a Northamptonshire village and a London hospital.
More importantly, the story reminds us that Wollaston has never been an isolated community. For centuries the village played a small but significant role in supporting one of England's most important charitable institutions. Every acre cultivated, every rent paid and every harvest gathered contributed to a story that stretched far beyond Northamptonshire.
Sources include the heritage plaque on Duck End, Wollaston; historical records of St Bartholomew's Hospital, London; and local history research. The hospital was founded in 1123 and is still in operation today as Barts Health NHS Trust.