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Standing as it does on the south-eastern edge of the old Wychwood Forest, the
village of Hailey has always had strong connections with Witney, even sharing in
medieval times the spoils of the annual Whitsuntide hunt. Like Caesars Gaul,
the village is divided into three parts: Delly End, Middletown and Poffley End.
Delly End was once a wooded area with thickets. Poffley End, more quaintly,
takes its name from poffle, a word in use in the 14th century to denote a
small parcel of land, probably tapering to a point. Middletown links the two
hamlets and all three lie in a clearing in the forest where hay was grown a
hay-lea in fact.
Although of no historical importance, Hailey has lived on the edge of history:
the reverberations of the Civil War must have shaken the village when several
hundred Roundheads were imprisoned a mile away in Witney church. Later John
Wesley made frequent visits to the district and it is believed that Priest Hill
Lane was named in his honour.
Some of the old Hailey houses have been restored. The manor house in Poffley End
was built in the 15th century and has connections with the ancestors of the
famous naturalist, Gilbert White of Selborne. Swanhall Farm dates in part from
the 14th century and the old School House in Middletown had the date 1649 on one
of its chimneys.
However, until comparatively recently life in an Qxfordshire village was neither
easy nor affluent. People depended on local charities for winter blankets and
extra rations. In despair, the vicar at the turn of the 20th century opened a
reading room for men which he confidently expected they would prefer to the
tap-room. To judge by statistics in Kellys Directory for 1907 he may well have
been disappointed: the number of Hailey businesses then included three public
houses and three beer retailers all for a population of less than 1,000!
In those days villagers made their own entertainment. An annual fair was held
and Club Day was a very special date with two brass bands, morning service and a
splendid dinner in the loft of the Lamb and Flag.
Ascension Day was a red letter one and a school holiday. The children had sticks
specially prepared, to which were tied bunches of flowers. In their best clothes
and hats they gathered at Hailey manor to play games, run races and dance. After
a picnic tea and armed with flowers and banners, the young people processed to
church for the service. The next day all the flowers were taken to Oxford to the
patients in the Radcliffe Infirmary.
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