Bayford is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

in the East Hertfordshire district of

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For gov ...

, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 435, increasing to 466 at the 2011 Census. The village is about three miles south of

Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a ford on the River Lea, n ...

, and is served by

Bayford railway station Bayford railway station serves the villages of Bayford and Brickendon in Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the nort ...

. Bayford has won 'best kept village' awards in previous years. Bayford has a

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

: Bayford (C of E) VC Primary School. The Parish Church of

St Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

stands about a quarter of a mile north of the village; the present building dates from 1870. It was rebuilt close to the site of the old church, which was first mentioned in 1222. A 15th-century

font In metal typesetting, a font is a particular size, weight and style of a typeface. Each font is a matched set of type, with a piece (a " sort") for each glyph. A typeface consists of a range of such fonts that shared an overall design. In mo ...

and some 16th- and 17th-century monuments to the Knighton family have been preserved. The ornithologist

William Yarrell William Yarrell (3 June 1784 – 1 September 1856) was an English zoologist, prolific writer, bookseller and naturalist admired by his contemporaries for his precise scientific work. Yarrell is best known as the author of ''The History of Br ...

, admired by his contemporaries for his precise scientific work, is buried in the churchyard. Every two years the village holds a ''Gardens Open Day'' in which many of the houses open up their gardens to the public. The manor of Bayford was purchased in 1757 by Mam Molly Crone (1705–1770), who built the mansion of Bayfordbury in 1758. She died at

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

, whilst taking

the cure The Cure are an English rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith has remained the only constant member. The band's ...

, and is commemorated in the Abbey. The mansion was extended by infilling between the service blocks, to house the

Kit-Cat Club The Kit-Cat Club (sometimes Kit Kat Club) was an early 18th-century English club in London with strong political and literary associations. Members of the club were committed Whigs. They met at the Trumpet tavern in London and at Water Oakley ...

portraits, which Baker inherited from

Jacob Tonson Jacob Tonson, sometimes referred to as Jacob Tonson the Elder (1655–1736), was an eighteenth-century English bookseller and publisher. Tonson published editions of John Dryden and John Milton, and is best known for having obtained a copyrigh ...

. In 1941 Bayfordbury was leased to Dr Barnardo's Homes for young boys aged 9 to 14 years of age. In 1945 the

John Innes Institute The John Innes Centre (JIC), located in Norwich, Norfolk, England, is an independent centre for research and training in plant and microbial science founded in 1910. It is a registered charity (No 223852) grant-aided by the Biotechnology and B ...

moved to Bayfordbury and built glass houses, the research block and the houses at Broad Green Wood for their staff. The estate was later acquired by

Hertfordshire County Council Hertfordshire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Hertfordshire, in England, the United Kingdom. After the 2021 election, it consists of 78 councillors, and is controlled by the Conservative Party, ...

and occupied by Hatfield Polytechnic (later the

University of Hertfordshire The University of Hertfordshire (UH) is a public university in Hertfordshire, United Kingdom. The university is based largely in Hatfield, Hertfordshire. Its antecedent institution, Hatfield Technical College, was founded in 1948 and was ident ...

). They built Bayfordbury Observatory which is regarded as one of the finest teaching observatories in the country and used the research block for chemical and biological research. The mansion and stables have now been converted into residences. The research block is still used by the University and the grounds as a Regional Science Learning Centre and Environmental Science field study centre.

See also

References

External links