Little Hautbois

Little Hautbois is a small hamlet in Broadland, England, part of the parish of Lamas. The name is pronounced 'Hobbis', and can be seen thus spelled on a memorial on the outside of nearby Lamas Church. In the Middle Ages, the settlement of Great Hautbois was the head of the navigation on the river Bure, and it is thought Little Hautbois developed from that. The name is taken from that of the de Alto Bosco, or de Haut Bois family, who acquired these lands at the Norman Conquest.

As of 2007, Little Hautbois consisted of eight dwelling-houses, one being a holiday cottage rented out by the owner. The church of Little Hautbois, once owned by the monks of St Benet's Abbey, fell into ruin in the 15th century when the parish was amalgamated with that of Lamas. Although ruins were still visible in the eighteenth century, no sign of the building now remains above ground. The only trace of its existence is a depression in the grounds of Little Hautbois Hall. Little Hautbois has the feel of an isolated rural community now, but two former main transport routes pass through it. The river Bure, canalized in the 18th century to allow navigation up to Aylsham, and the Bure Valley Railway, now a light steam railway but formerly a full-sized railway.