Wiltshire County Council's Community History website includes a section featuring questions frequently asked by members of the public, which has brought some fascinating stories to light.
Serial killer Among the stories is one which tells of possibly Wiltshire's first serial killer. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, a small inn called The Shepherd and Dog stood on the Lydeway, near Urchfont. The inn had an evil reputation while Thomas Burry was the landlord, as it was said that solitary visitors such as peddlers were never seen again after entering. One story suggests that more than a dozen bodies were exhumed from shallow graves behind the inn, and that they had become victims of the landlord's greed. Records suggest that Burry, who died in 1842, was never tried and convicted, but local folklore claims the church bells refused to chime at his funeral. Lepers The website also reveals the unusual origin of the village name, Maiden Bradley. The 'Bradley' part of the name means an open woodland space, but 'Maiden' refers to a time when there was a leper hospital here for 'maidens' who had been affected by the disease. The hospital was founded in 1152 to look after wealthy or aristocratic women who were suffering from leprosy, and later there was also a priory on the site. By the end of the 13th century, there were no lepers in residence, but the priory continued to prosper until King Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries. The last prior before the dissolution was the notorious Richard Jennings (1506-1536). He claimed to have a papal licence to keep mistresses and chose the prettiest women as his lovers, but then married them off when they became pregnant. By the time the priory was dissolved, he had fathered six sons and several daughters. Holy detective A Pewsey cleric turned detective to solve the murder of a farmer in 1798. The rector of the village church, the Reverend Joseph Townsend, found an unusual way to unmask the murderer. Playing on the superstition that the body of a murdered man knows its killer, he hauled the corpse into his church on Sunday. Every member of the congregation was asked to place their hands on the dead man's face and declare their innocence. One man, whose surname is recorded as Amor, was afraid to take the test and he was later charged with the murder and hanged. Horn blower One other frequently asked historical question relates to the identity of a statue of a man blowing a horn which stands in the river at Wylye. The statue is thought to be 18th century and represents a post boy who had fallen from the mail coach into the river and drowned. Drummer boy The website also contains some chilling ghost stories, including the story of the 'Tidworth drummer'. Legend has it that the drummer was arrested while begging in Tidworth and put in prison in Salisbury. At the time, prisoners normally either had their food provided by family or friends or they had to pay for it. The drummer had no friends, family or money, so he starved to death. After his death, the sound of a drum was often heard beating in the house of the magistrate who jailed him. Other fascinating stories include the history of the 'Purton Spa' - water from which was sold commercially for its reputed medicinal value throughout the 19th century and into the 1920s. The website also tells the story of Isaac Pitman, the inventor of the shorthand system, who was born and brought up in Trowbridge. The Wiltshire Community History website will map out the history of every single town and village in the county over the next few years. Many communities are already featured on the site, which also features more than 2000 images, including maps, prints and photographs. Local studies librarian, Mike Marshman, said: "We have received inquiries from all over the world - from local people in Trowbridge to inquiries from as far away as Australia and New Zealand. "Many of the questions we are asked throw up some very interesting stories and show what a fascinating history the county has, beyond the better known aspects such as Stonehenge and Avebury." The Wiltshire Community History website can be visited at www.wiltshire.gov.uk.
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