St Catherine's Church, Draughton

Draughton is a village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England. It is situated approximately one mile east of Maidwell at grid reference SP762767. The villages name means 'dray farm/settlement'.

St Mary the Virgin's Church is an Anglican Church and the parish church of Maidwell, Northamptonshire. It is a Grade II* listed building and stands on the south side of Draughton Road. There is no reference to a church or priest in the entry for the parish in the Domesday Book, which was compiled in 1086. This may indicate the absence of a church building at that stage or, alternatively, only the absence of a resident priest. The church consists of a nave, chancel and west tower. The main structure of the present building was erected in the 12th and 13th centuries. The oldest parts are the north and south doorway dating from the 12th century. The tower dates from the 13th century. The chancel was constructed in 1891 to a design by James Piers St Aubyn. There are monuments to Catherine, Lady Gorges (1634) erected by her husband Edward Gorges, Lord Dundalk and also a tablet to the Haslewood family erected 1695 by Elizabeth, Viscountess Hatton. A detailed description of the building appears on the Historic England websiteA notable Rector was George Folbury (d. 1540) Master of Pembroke Hall, Cambridge from 1537. The parish registers survive from 1708 and, apart from those currently in use, are kept at Northamptonshire Record Office. Details of its location and opening times can be found on the Record Office website.Maidwell is part of a united Benefice along with Draughton, Faxton and Lamport. Except for Faxton, each parish retains its own church building.

Royal Air Force Harrington or more simply RAF Harrington is a former Royal Air Force station in England about 5.6 miles (9.0 km) west of Kettering in Northamptonshire south of the village of Harrington off the A14 road. During the early Cold War, it was a Thor missile site, designed to deliver atomic warheads to the Soviet Union. The nuclear missile site is now protected as a Grade II listed building as an example of Cold War architecture.

Lamport railway station on the Northampton and Market Harborough railway opened on 16 February 1859 serving the villages of Lamport, Maidwell, Hanging Houghton as well as Lamport Hall, Northamptonshire, England. It ran half a mile (ca.800 m) west of the village towards Maidwell just north of the road which was crossed by a level crossing. It was part of the London and North Western Railway. The next station north, Kelmarsh is located just north of Kelmarsh Tunnel. The station lost its passenger service on 4 January 1960. The line was re-opened for limited periods after that and not closed completely until 15 August 1981. The heritage Northampton & Lamport Railway hopes that it may eventually re-open the route. The Lamport station building and some railway workers cottages still exist.

Maidwell is a village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire in England. At the time of the 2001 census, the parish had 325 inhabitants, including Draughton, and this increased to 429 at the 2011 census.The villages name means 'Maidens' spring/stream'.

The Kelmarsh Tunnels are disused railway tunnels in Northamptonshire, England. The Northampton to Market Harborough line opened in 1859 and had tunnels at Kelmarsh and nearby Oxendon. The original tunnel was single-track, and when the line was doubled a second single-track tunnel was built. Due to the small bore, the tunnels were known as "the rat-holes" by train drivers. The former "up" line tunnel at Kelmarsh is open as part of the Brampton Valley Way, a linear park which runs from Boughton level crossing on the outskirts of Northampton to Little Bowden near Market Harborough, on the former railway trackbed. A species of moth Triphosa dubitata has been observed to overwinter inside Kelmarsh Tunnel. The tunnel is easily navigated on foot or by cyclists, and the open bore has been effectively restored but is unlit. The sign on site placed by the council indicates the tunnel length as 480 metres (1,570 ft).The other bore is sometimes accessible from one end but unsafe. the ventilation shafts approximately half of the way through lets in light water and air; also these do not have covers on so are considered unsafe.

Hanging Houghton is a small village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Lamport, in the West Northamptonshire district, in the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England. It is on the A508 road between Brixworth and Lamport. In 1931 the parish had a population of 84.

The Brampton Valley Way is a 14-mile (23 km) rail trail built on the way of the former Northampton to Market Harborough Railway in Northamptonshire, England. It forms what trail managers, Northamptonshire County Council, describe as a linear park. The railway line was closed in 1981 and the 13-mile (21 km) Northamptonshire section was purchased by Northamptonshire County Council with grant aid from the Countryside Commission in 1987, when work began on developing it as a linear park. The 1-mile (1.6 km) section north of the county boundary is owned by Leicestershire County Council. Management of the complete route is now undertaken by Leicestershire County Council, West Northamptonshire Council, and Sustrans. The Brampton Valley Way, from Boughton Crossing in Northampton to Little Bowden Crossing in Market Harborough, was opened in the spring of 1993 and provides recreational access for cyclists and walkers. Further developments to enhance access continue alongside everyday management of the site. The Way forms an offroad section of the Sustrans National Cycle Network Route 6. There are two former railway tunnels on the route, Kelmarsh (322 yards or 294 metres) and Oxendon (462 yards or 422 metres). The tunnels are unlit and so can be quite an experience to travel through, although alternative routes over the tunnels are provided. A section of the Brampton Valley Way runs adjacent to the Northampton & Lamport Railway. The railway is separated from the linear park by a stout safety fence. As the railway extends, so the fence will be erected first to protect members of the public from the works. The Midshires Way passes through the Brampton Valley Way.

Harrington is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England, administered by North Northamptonshire council. At the time of the 2001 census, the parish's population was 154 people, including Thorpe Underwood but reducing to 146 at the 2011 Census. The Church of England parish church of St Peter and St Paul is located north-east of the village itself.

Faxton is an abandoned village and chapelry in the county of Northamptonshire in England. Nearby are the villages of Old, Lamport and Mawsley and the Northampton & Lamport Railway. It is believed that the name Faxton comes from the Scandinavian Fakr and the Anglo-Saxon tun, meaning Fakr's Farm. This would indicate that Faxton grew from a Viking or Norse settler's farmstead and therefore would date from approximately the 9th century The Domesday Book, naming Faxton as the Manor of Fextone, notes that the population was of approximately 60 to 80 people. The village is documented as having consisted of a church, a rectory, a hall, an aviary, almshouses and a number of ponds. Lady Danvers founded the parish's almshouses for four persons and, six years later, Jane Kemsey bequeathed £100 to it.Archaeological evidence has been found of settlement at Faxton as early as around 1200.It has been said that in an attempt to escape the plague in London in 1665, a family relocated to Faxton with their servants, one of whom carried the fatal disease which spread and almost wiped out the village. However, this tale is disproved by comparing the number of householders recorded in the hearth tax lists for Faxton in years before and after that date. 30 householders were listed in 1662, but 34 were recorded for the year ending 25 March 1674.Former residents have recalled that Faxton could only be reached by horse-drawn vehicles, as none of the roads leading to it were made up to accommodate motor vehicles; they considered that to be a major factor in the decline of the village.The parish church of St Denis suffered extensive vandalism during the early 20th century. It ceased to be used for public worship in 1939 and was demolished in 1958.There is now just one house standing on this remote hilltop location, overlooking the rolling farmland. The Northamptonshire Record Office holds the christening, marriage and burial registers for the parish.

Scaldwell is a village and civil parish in the West, Northamptonshire, England. The village's name means 'spring/stream which is shallow'.Scaldwell is tiny and has neither shops nor pubs; at the time of the 2001 census the parish had a population of 271 living in 113 households, increasing to 302 in 2011 and 304 in 2020. It has an ageing population. The nearest place for school, shop or pub is Brixworth. Scaldwell has a church dedicated to Saints Peter and Paul. It has a Norman tower and some 13th century-features and was restored in 1863. The village has a traditional green and was mentioned in the Domesday Book.

St Peter & St Paul's Church is an Anglican Church and the parish church of Harrington. It is a Grade II* listed building and stands on the east side of Church Lane, to the north-east of the village of Harrington. There is no reference to a church or priest in the entry for the parish in the Domesday Book, which was compiled in 1086. This may indicate the absence of a church building at that stage or, alternatively, only the absence of a resident priest. The main structure of the present building was erected in the 14th and 15th centuries. Its tower was built in 1809. The church consists of a nave, north and south aisles, north transept, chancel, south porch and south tower. A detailed description appears on the Historic England websiteThe church displays a tuba stentoro-phonica, or a speaking trumpet, one of only eight in the country. Sir Samuel Morland claimed to have invented these horns, for speaking between ships. The device, also known as "The Harrington Vamping Horn", was demonstrated to Charles II in St James' Park. In 1817, the Earl of Dysart gave to the church a ring of six bells, which were cast in the Whitechapel Bell Foundry. The parish registers survive from 1673 and, apart from those currently in use, are kept at Northamptonshire Record Office. Details of its location and opening times can be found on the Record Office website.Harrington is part of a united Benefice along with Arthingworth, East Farndon, and Oxendon. Each parish retains its own church building.The ecologist Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock was curate here from 1886 to 1890.