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Holton is a small parish, little more than a hamlet, situated five miles east of
Oxford. It was mentioned as far back as 1086 in the Domesday records, when it
was known as Eltone. The area was inhabited by the Romans, but it was the
Anglo-Saxons who gave the village its name. The population has fluctuated over
the years and in 1987 there were 425 resident in the parish, as well as 300
students living at the Oxford Polytechnic.
There has been a castle or manor house in Holton Park since medieval times. The
original was surrounded by a moat which was hand-dug, involving the removal of
24,000 cubic yards of rock. The present house was built in 1808 probably using
stone from the original, but situated in the grounds and not on the moated
island. The Biscoe family built the present house and it remained in the family
until 1910 when it was sold and the estate broken up. The manorial rights had by
now lapsed and in 1948 the house became a girls grammar school.
During the Second World War an American field hospital was built in the park. It
was later taken over by the RAMC as a hospital for head injuries. It closed in
1961 and some of the wards were converted into classrooms for what is now
Wheatley Park school and the rest were demolished. The 18th century stables have
also been converted into classrooms.
To the right of the school entrance is the headquarters of the Oxford-shire
Library and near to this is the John Watson school for mentally handicapped
children. This school is very progressive, having integrated some of its
children with the primary school in nearby Wheatley and also at the Wheatley
Park Comprehensive School.
In 1985 a sports hall was built on the school campus by South Oxfordshire
District Council which is for school use during school hours and is open to the
public at all other times. The Park also accommodates the campus of the Lady
Spencer Churchill College. The teacher training college which opened in 1966 is
now part of the Oxford Polytechnic.
Holton church is dedicated to St Bartholomew and dates from the 12th century.
The chancel was rebuilt in the 13th and 14th centuries. The whole church was
extensively restored in the 19th century, the western gallery being enlarged and
the stairs moved from the inside to the outside of the tower. The first organ
was built in 1860, until then the music was provided by an orchestra consisting
of a fiddle, a cello and a clarinet. There are three bells including one
medieval example and one made in 1662.
Holton has its fair share of ghost stories. The ghost of a lady is said to walk
through the park and down to the village hall. She was apparently a nanny who
worked at the manor house and who dropped the baby she was looking after down
the stairs, killing it. She appears in the early morning and late at night and
has been seen by many people.
A few years ago two headstones from the graves of dogs were discovered on the
island in the park by workmen. Pets’ graves were quite common in Victorian
times. This discovery probably led to the stories of headless dogs roaming the
island.
The other story is of a young boy dressed in dark blue velvet with a wide lace
collar who owned the manor house. He was looked after by an uncle. The boy’s
governess fell in love with the guardian and killed the boy, hoping to marry the
guardian and get the estate. They buried him in the garden south of the moat.
Years later a new house was built over the grave. When the Biscoe family lived
in the house a guest was standing at the foot of the stairs one evening at about
10 pm and saw a boy run towards him, but as he went to grasp him he disappeared.
The boy was also seen on the stairs and in the billiard room. It is believed he
still haunts the house.
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