Patrick Comerford
Three of us spent an afternoon last weekend in Olney, a small pretty market town in Buckinghamshire that has been part of the Milton Keynes district since 1974, with a population of 6,000 to 7,000.
Olney – which has been pronounced with the ‘L’ for centuries – is known both for the annual Pancake Race along the High Street on Shrove Tuesday each year and for two famous residents, the poet William Cowper and the hymnwriter John Newton, author of ‘Amazing Grace’.
After we visited a friend’s grave, I visited Saint Peter and Saint Paul Church, we had lunch in the Swan Inn, which dates back 400 years, and had an afternoon stroll through the town, which has one Grade I listed building, the Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, four Grade II* buildings, and a further 114 listed at Grade II.
Olney is on the banks of the River Great Ouse, about 13 km (8 miles) from Central Milton Keynes and 16 km (10 miles) from Bedford, Northampton and Wellingborough. It is the northern-most town within Milton Keynes, two miles from the point where Buckinghamshire meets Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire.
Olney is thought to have been an important Romano-British township that stood north-east of the town. In 2023, archaeologists uncovered a villa mosaic considered ‘remains of high significance’.
Later developments in the area were at what is now the northern end of Olney near Christian Wells. The original church was probably located beside Hopper’s Hill, and some local historians believe there was a monastery or castle nearby.
Two of the earliest references to Olney are in Saxon times, when it was referred to as Ollanege in 932 CE and in 979 CE. The ending -ege or -ey means Island, so Ollanege probably means ‘Olla’s Island’.
Before the conquest, Olney belonged to Borgret or Burgered, a descendant of the King of Mercia. Later, the Vikings came down from the north of England as far as the River Ouse, and Olney became part of Danelaw.
After the Conquest, Olney or Olnei is mentioned in the Domesday Book and was held in 1086 by Geoffrey de Montbray, Bishop of Coutances, a supporter of William the Conqueror, who was granted lands including Olney. When William died, Geoffrey supported William’s son Robert and lost his lands when William’s other son, William Rufus, was crowned. These lands were later given to the Earl of Chester.
By the 13th century, Olney had grown from a large village to a planned borough, first mentioned in 1237. The borough is distinctive, delineated by the High Street, with long burgage plots laid out at right angles and enveloped by the parallel back streets of East and West Street. By then, the town had a weekly market and an annual fair.
The 14th century Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul dates from 1325, with later additions, and is preparing to celebrate its 700th anniversary this year.
Since 1445, a pancake race has been run in the town on Shrove Tuesday each year before Lent begins. Local tradition says that on Shrove Tuesday 1445, the ‘Shriving Bell’ rang out to signal the start of the church service. On hearing the bell a local housewife, who was busy cooking pancakes before Lent began, ran to the church, her frying pan still in hand, tossing the pancake to prevent it from burning, and still in her kitchen apron and headscarf.
The race was revived in 1948 and the women of Olney recreate this race every Shrove Tuesday, running from the Market Place to the Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, a distance of 415 yards. The rules say competitors must wear headscarves and aprons, and must assemble on the Market Place before 11:55 am, complete with frying pan and pancake.
The original route started at the old Town Pump on the Market Place and finished close to the main door of the church. The current route begins outside the Bull Hotel and finishes near to the small side gate of the church in Church Street.
During the English Civil War in the mid-17th century, Olney was the scene of the Battle of Olney Bridge in 1643. The Parliamentarians held Newport Pagnell, and Olney was one of their outposts. Prince Rupert held Northampton for the King and marched on Olney intending to continue on to Newport. Prince Rupert and his troops took the forces in Olney by surprise and the Parliamentarians retreated to the bridge where they made a defiant stand.
The Royalists could have won decisively, but a rumour spread that Cromwellian reinforcements were seen coming from Newport. The Royalists retreated and the battle was over.
Later in the 17th century, John Bunyan, the author of Pilgrim’s Progress, was jailed for many years partly because of his preaching at Olney.
Olney was on an early drove road, and as travel increased across England in the 18th century, Olney became a busy coaching town and by 1754 there were said to be 27 inns in the town.
In the late 18th century, Olney had two famous residents, the poet William Cowper who lived in Olney from 1767 to 1786, and the abolitionist John Newton, the town’s curate from 1764 to 1780. Newton wrote ‘Amazing Grace’, arguably the most popular hymn ever, and Newton and Cooper collaborated to write the Olney Hymns.
The Cowper and Newton Museum is housed Cowper’s former residence, and the 250th anniversary of ‘Amazing Grace’ was celebrated in 2022.
A prominent Baptist John Sutcliff settled in Olney in 1775, and was the pastor of Olney Baptist Church for 39 years. He set up an academy or seminary in two adjacent houses near the church, and his students included William Carey, who was instrumental in the formation of the Baptist Missionary Society in 1792 and its first missionary, and William Robinson, who became a missionary in Serampore in 1806.
Into the 19th century, Olney was known as a centre of the lace-making industry in Buckinghamshire and for the cottage shoe industry in many houses in the town. But Olney was a relatively poor community in the 19th century, without prosperous enterprises, and outbreaks of cholera and smallpox did nothing to improve the image.
The industrialisation of the shoe industry in the second half of the 19th century brought factories to the town that brought about the decline of the cottage shoe industry. The opening of the Northampton to Bedford railway line in 1872 and arrival of improved bus services provided transport for residents seeking employment in neighbouring towns.
The shoe factories in Olney declined during the first half of the 20th century, particularly after World War I, but some smaller concerns survived into the 1960s.
Olney once had its own railway station on the Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway and the Bedford-Northampton line. But passenger services were withdrawn in 1962, and the nearest rail services are at Wolverton (13 km away), and Milton Keynes Central and Bedford (each about 18 km away).
Olney expanded in the second half of the 20th century as a dormitory development for Milton Keynes.
The Market Place has a general market on Thursdays and a farmers’ market on the first Sunday each month. The vast majority of Olney shops are independent, with galleries, antique, rug and furniture sellers, and boutique shops for interior design, food, fashion, clothes and perfumes, as well as restaurants, pubs and cafés.
Olney, with its wide High Street, courts and alleys, still has the character and atmosphere and the active local life of a small English country town, and the High Street and Market Place remain a focus for residents and visitors alike.
As for Olney’s parish church, Saint Peter and Saint Paul, which is celebrating its 700th anniversary this year, I hope to have more to say about it another day.
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