Westhumble - History

History

The earliest archaeological evidence for human activity in the village is a large axe, typical of a "rough-out" axe produced during the Neolithic period, which was discovered in 1952 during building work in Burney Road. The discovery of a Flint Mine at East Horsley and flakes of flint found at Fetcham and Headley Heath of the same period, suggest that this part of the North Downs had been settled by the late Stone Age (10 000-3000 BC).

The earliest mention of the village is in the Assizes Rolls of 1248, in which it appears as Wystumble. The name is thought to derive from the Old English wice meaning wych elm and the Middle English stumbel meaning tree stump. The village is not explicitly mentioned in Domesday Book, however there are two separate entries for the Parish of Mickleham, in which much of the village is located, and it is probable that the second of these refers to Westhumble. The medieval village was centred on the present-day midpoint of Adlers Lane with gently sloping fields to the north and south. The identity of the manor house is unclear, however there are repeated references to Hadlers Hall and later Audlers Hole in the Court Roll records. It has been suggested that the hall was the original manor house. There is no trace of the house today.

The oldest building is the ruined chapel at the extreme west end of the village, of which only the west gable and parts of the east end remain. The chapel was probably not part of the medieval manor of Westhumble, but was located in the manor of Polesden (centred on Chapel Farm, which is of medieval origin). Reference is made in the Surrey Feet of Fines during the reign of King John 1199-1216 to "Adam the canon in Fecham and Polesdene" a subordinate of the Prior of Merton and it is probable that the chapel was the responsibility of this Canon. The chapel is thought to have been built during the late twelfth or early thirteenth century for the use of villagers, particularly when floods prevented them from reaching the Parish Church in Mickleham. Six skeletons were found during an archaeological survey in 1937 and the manner in which they were interred suggests that they were ordinary local burials. Clay cooking pots and jugs dating from around 1300 and a silver penny dating from 1544–1547 during the reign of Henry VIII were also found on the site. The chapel was probably abandoned as a place of worship during the mid-sixteenth century, although part of it was probably used as a farm outbuilding for some time. Repairs to the remaining walls were carried out during 1938 and the site is now owned by the National Trust.

Much of the early history of the village is uncertain, because the manorial records were deliberately destroyed by fire in 1776. During the late Middle Ages and Early Modern periods, it would appear that the focal point of the village shifted half a mile eastwards from Adlers Lane to Westhumble Street. The shift in position may have reflected the growing importance of the north-south road through the Mole Gap and the relative decrease in importance of the east-west route along the North Downs. Although the turnpike through the valley was not completed until 1755, the route was regularly being used to transport goods including charcoal and poultry to Kingston and London by the 14th century. For much of the winter the ford across the River Mole would have been impassable and so a secondary route on higher ground along the western side of the valley was used, of which Westhumble Street formed the southernmost part. The name Westhumble Street is first recorded in 1736 (some 19 years before the construction of the turnpike) and the use of the word street in the context of a village of this period, suggests that the road surface was improved with metalling. It seems likely that the villagers sought to take advantage of the passing trade and the movement of the village centre was confirmed with the construction of the new manor house, Camilla Lacey, north of Chapel Lane in 1816.

Much of the modern village dates from the two decades following the breakup and sale of the Camilla Lacey estate in 1932 following the death of the owner Victor Freeman. By the outbreak of World War II, most of the houses in Pilgrims Way had been built although those in Burney Road, Adlers Lane and Pilgrims Close were not constructed until the late 1940s.