The Accounts of Chipping Campden Grammar School

Chipping Campden Grammar School was founded in the early 15th century by John Fereby (or Verby), and his wife, Margery.

By the early 17th century, Chipping Campden Grammar School had fallen into a state of some decay, both as a building and as an institution, before it was revived by Sir Baptist Hicksand a new schoolhouse constructed in the High Street in the 1620s.

In 1965, the Grammar School merged with Moreton Secondary School to form Chipping Campden School.

As well as being an educational establishment, the Grammar School was also a charitable foundation, and the "feoffees" or governors who managed its accounts were responsible not only for paying the schoolmasters and buying food and drink for the pupils, but also for giving relief to the poor and needy of the town. The feoffees met twice a year to agree the accounts and signed their names in a weighty account book, now kept at Gloucester County Record Office (catalogue reference D253/16).

The relevance of this to our story becomes clear when we examine the names of the feoffees, which, for some 15 years during the period in which we are interested, included both William Harrison and Sir Thomas Overbury. This much was recognised by Sir George Clarkand a number of William Harrison’s signatures from the account book are reproduced by Clark in his analysis of the story.

It seems clear from the entries in the Account Book that there must have been at least two and more likely at least three William Harrisons living in Chipping Campden in the 17^th century. The William Harrison apprenticed in 1637 is highly unlikely to be the steward, supposedly aged 70 in 1660. It also seems inconceivable that the “old William Harrison” who is receiving alms in the 1660s could be the same man as the feoffee who signs the accounts. This information is helpful in trying to understand the various entries in the parish registers relating to men named William Harrison.

Sir George Clark reproduces several of Harrison's signatures and publishes a list of the dates (listed below) on which Harrison and Overbury signed the accounts. I have personally examined the account book and can confirm that these dates are correct. Harrison and Overbury both signed the accounts in April 1657/8. Harrison, but not Overbury also signed them in April 1659/60, some 4 months before his disappearance. Overbury but not Harrison signed them in October 1660, when Harrison was supposedly in Turkey, and Harrison does not sign them again until October 1663, after his return. So the dates of Harrison's signature in the accounts are not at odds with the story as told.

William Harrison's signatures in the Grammar School accounts

Dates of Harrison's and Overbury's signatures in the Grammar School accounts

Date	Signed by
09Apr1657	Harrison	-
16Oct1657	Harrison	-
15Apr1658	Harrison	Overbury
12Oct1658	-	-
12Apr1659	-	-
06Oct1659	-
05Apr1660	Harrison	-
11Oct1660	-	Overbury
28Mar1661	-	-
15Oct1661	-	-
03Apr1662	-	-
14Oct1662	-	-
10Apr1663	-	Overbury
15Oct1663	Harrison	Overbury
28Apr1664	Harrison	Overbury
18Oct1664	Harrison	Overbury
31Mar1665	-	Overbury
24Oct1665	Harrison	-
13Apr1666	Harrison	Overbury
18Oct1666	Harrison	-
02Apr1667	Harrison	Overbury
17Oct1667	Harrison	-
26Mar1668	-	-
20Oct1668	-	Overbury
22Apr1669	-	-
28Sep1669	Harrison	-
21Apr1670	Harrison	-
11Oct1670	-	Overbury
28Mar1671	Harrison	-
03Oct1671	Harrison	-
16Apr1672	Harrison	-

It could be my imagination, but Harrison's signature in October 1663, and on the following occasions, is less steady and assured than that prior to 1660. Maybe this was just the effect of the passing years, but it is tempting to conclude that whatever had happened to him during the previous two years had taken its toll.

Harrison last signs the accounts in April 1671/2, which lends credence to the surmise that it is his burial which is noted in the parish registers for 28th November 1672 .

This much was known to Sir George Clark. As far as I am aware no one has previously mentioned a further intriguing fact that emerges from close inspection of the accounts. Not only was one William Harrison a signatory of the accounts, but one William Harrison is also mentioned as a beneficiary in the accounts.

For example, on 5th April 1660, William Harrison signs a set of accounts which include the item: "Given to old William Harrison £0-2s-6d".

It seems inconceivable that this can be the same William Harrison who signs the accounts: the phrase sounds disrespectful, to modern ears at least, not the kind of thing you would write if the person concerned was very likely to read it. It seems much more likely that there were two William Harrisons living in Chipping Campden at the time (in fact, there were probably at least three). My surmise is that the epithet "old" was applied to one of the two to differentiate between them, and that the elder of the two was of a lower social status. He may well have been the William Harrison, weaver, mentioned in Men and Armour and who was buried in 1670. He must also have been of a considerable age if termed "old" in contrast to the 70-year-old William Harrison , steward of Lady Julian!

However, what Clark does not point out is that the account book contains a substantial amount of other information which sheds light on the Harrison family (or rather families) the Perrys and events in and around Chipping Campden in the relevant period.

The entries which are of potential interest are tabulated below. Those marked with a question mark are dubious readings.

Date	Entry in the Account Book
1631	“to Christofer Harrison for nayles and leather and his labor to lyne the Chest with matt £0 0s 6d
1637	“given to Lewis Harrison to bind him apprentice £2 0s 0d”
1637	“given to William Harrison to bind him apprentice £2 0s 0d”
1639	“given to Richard Perrie his whole household sicke at times”
1641	“given to William Harrison for keeping Seales (?) children for halfe one yeare”
	“pd Robert Fowler for keeping Whites child 27 weekes twelve pence a weeke £1 7s 0d”
	“pd for one halfe yeares keeping of Seales children £2 3s 6d”
1642	‘pd for one yeares lodging and washing of Whites children at six pence the weeke £1 6s 0d”
1643	“for Seales children to William Harrison”
	“gave Richard Perry and younge James wife and good wife Hurlston sicke £0 2s 6d”
	“pd William Harrison for one halfe yeares pay for Seales children till the present Michaelmas allowed by the feoffees £2 0s 0d”
	“gave Goodwife Harrison being moneyes laid out for Seales children upon a note produced £0 6s 2d”
26 Mar 1644	“given to good man Hurlston’s wife pillaged by the soldiers of all her goods £0 5s 0d”
30 Sep 1644	“Crowder having lost the use of her land at several time given £0 9s 6d”
26 Mar 1645	Tenants are lobbying for a reduction in the rent bill “for contribution provision & other payments to the armies”
30 Sep 1645	“Pen Harrison for Seales childe pd acquittance shewed £1 0s 0d”
1646	A rent abatement is agreed due to “payments to soldiers”.
1646	“Goodman Harrison for keeping Seales child pd & for cloathes £1 3s 0d”
1647	“payd Avery Harrissonne bound Apprentice by content of feoffees £1 0s 0d”
1649	“Richard Perry £0 0s 4d”
1652	“Gave John Error! Bookmark not defined. Harrison £3 2s 6d”
1656	“To Wid Cowper 6d to Wid Harrison 4d to Wid Knight 1s 2d”
1656	“Payd to Joan Harrisons wife in child bed 1s”
1657	“Wid Harrison besides her weekly pay 2s in all”
1657	William Harrison signs the accounts for the first time.
16 Oct 1657	“Given to Richard Perry in the time of his sicknesse which continued almost halfe a yeare £0 7s 8d”
	Mention of “small pocks” in the town,.
	William Harrison signs the accounts.
15 Apr 1658	William Harrison signs the accounts.
15 Apr 1658	A note of the appointment of Richard Fletcher as treasurer is signed by both Thomas Overbury and William Harrison.
12 Oct 1658	“Given to John Harrison £0 1s 0d”
	“Given to John Smyth the Garter weaver at the desire of Mr Harrison his children being sicke £0 4s 0d”
	Neither Thomas Overbury nor William Harrison signs the accounts.
12 Apr 1659	“Payd to Mr Harrison to buy Clothes for Getley’s boy £0 10s 0d”
	“Given to John Harrison £0 1s 0d”
	Neither Thomas Overbury nor William Harrison signs the accounts.
6 Oct 1659	“Given to John Harrison £0 2s 0d”
	“Given to old William Harrison being lame £0 2s 6d”
	“order that John Harrissons son be apprenticed”
	Neither Thomas Overbury nor William Harrison signs the accounts.
5 Apr 1660	“Given to old William Harrison £0 2s 6d”
5 Apr 1660	“Given to John Harrison £0 2s 6d”
11 Oct 1660	William Harrison does not sign the accounts. Thomas Overburysigns,
11 Oct 1660	A note at this point in the account book concerning apprentices dated 11th October 1660 is followed by another note signed by Thomas Overburyand William Harrison, but this latter note is dated 15th October 1663.
28 Mar 1661	“Recd of Mr Overbury in pte of one halfe yeares rent due at Michaelmas 1660 and abated for taxes 16s 1d which makes up the full halfe yeares rent £5 3s 10s”
	“Given to old Willi Harrisson 2s 6d”
	Henry Hicks elected feoffees
15 Oct 1661	“Overburie tenant £5 1s 2d”
	“Given to old William Harrison”
	“Paid the second payment towards the placing of John Harrissons boy £1 0s 0d”
	“Given Jo. Smyth the Garterweaver’s wife by appointment of some of the feoffees to bear the charges on a Journey into Norfolk £1 0s 0d”
3 Apr 1662	“Paid a messenger for going to Mr Overburyfor rent”
	“Old Willi Harrisson 2s 6d”
	“John Harrisson 1s 4d in all”
14 Oct 1662	Overburypays £1 10s 0d
	“Paid Willi Walker for serving Witnesses & others to appeare at the Commission for Charitable uses £0 3s 4d”
	“Given to old William Harrisson at severall times £0 4s 0d”
10 Apr 1663	Overburypays £0 14s 6d
	“Given old Will Harrison 2s”
	“Given…Wid Perry 2s in all”
	Thomas Overbury signs the accounts.
15 Oct 1663	Overburypays £0 16s 4d
15 Oct 1663	Thomas Overbury and William Harrison both sign the accounts.
8 Apr 1664	Thomas Overbury and William Harrison both sign the accounts.
31 Mar 1664	Thomas Overbury signs the accounts. William Harrison does not sign the accounts.
24 Oct 1665	William Harrison signs the accounts. Thomas Overbury does not sign the accounts.
13 Apr 1666	Thomas Overbury and William Harrison both sign the accounts.
18 Oct 1666	William Harrison signs the accounts. Thomas Overbury does not sign the accounts.
18 Oct 1666	Note concerning the election of William Baldwyn Longden Esq., John Goodwyn of Coombe gent & William Yeate of Campden mercer as feoffees.
2 Apr 1667	Thomas Overbury and William Harrison both sign the accounts.
17 Oct 1667	Henry Hicks is now treasurer.
17 Oct 1667	William Harrison signs the accounts. Thomas Overbury does not sign the accounts.
26 Mar 1668	John Goodwyn signs the accounts. Neither Thomas Overburynor William Harrison signs the accounts.
20 Oct 1668	Thomas Overbury signs the accounts.
22 Apr 1669	Wrangling over appointment of new feoffee after John Goodwin Senior’s death.
28 Sep 1669	“Paid Mrs Goodwyn for 8 ordinaries at the last meeting of the feoffees”.
28 Sep 1669	William Harrison signs the accounts.
21 Apr 1670	“paid Mrs Goodwyn for 5 ordinaries at the last meeting”
	“Given at severall times to Widdow Perry 1s 8d”
	William Harrison signs the accounts.
11 Oct 1670	“Mrs Goodwyn 3 ordinaries”
	John Dover of Barton gent surrenders lease of lands in Barton.
	“Jo. Goodwyn” appointed feoffee.
	Thomas Overbury signs the accounts.
28 Mar 1671	William Harrison signs the accounts.
3 Oct 1671	William Harrison signs the accounts. John Goodwin signs the accounts. I have the impression that this signature is different from that in 1668 and that this later signature matches that on the documents at GRO signed by John Goodwin/Gooding relating to the collection of rents from Noel tenants. This suggests to me that the feoffee appointed in 1666 was John Goodwin senior and that the John Goodwin appointed in 1670 was his son, John Goodwin junior.
3 Oct 1671	William Harrison signs the accounts.
16 Apr 1672	William Harrison signs the accounts. The signature is smudged.
30 Apr 1674	“Paid Mrs Goodwyn for meate, beere and fire at a meeting the 2nd October last”.
4 Oct 1675	John Harrison 1s 6d
4 Oct 1675	Thomas Overbury and John Goodwinsign the accounts.
12 Oct 1676	Thomas Overbury and John Goodwinsign the accounts.
Apr 1677	Thomas Overbury and John Goodwinsign the accounts.
22 Oct 1677	“Anne Harrisson 2s 4d”
8 Apr 1678	Thomas Overbury signs the accounts.
	“Paid 2 men for watching the school to prevent the attempts of the Boys to Barr out their Masters 2s 6d for hinges 1s 1d”
	Anne Harrison 1s
	Thomas Overbury signs the accounts.
26 Sep 1678	John Goodwinsigns the accounts.
Apr 1679	Thomas Overbury and John Goodwinsign the accounts.
26 Sep 1679	Thomas Overbury and John Goodwinsign the accounts.
2 Apr 1680	John Goodwinsigns the accounts.
4 Oct 1681	John Goodwinsigns the accounts.
4 Apr 1682	John Goodwinsigns the accounts.
12 Oct 1682	Thomas Overbury signs the accounts.
	John Goodwin continues to sign at various times until 1690.


	The Campden Wonder
"Time, the great Discoverer of Truth, shall bring to Light this dark and mysterious Business"