Adjoining, Here lyeth the Body of Elizabeth, the wife of Francis Tilney, Clerk, Daughter of Thomas Read of North Cove, Esq. who died Apr. the 23. 1691.
John Lancaster, junior, Esq. was buried here, with several of that family, whose memorials are all lost.
- 1569, Henry Symonds, buried in the church, gave 20s. to the poor, and died possessed of a good estate here; he had purchased the site only, and two closes, of Philby's tenement or manor, from Boyland manor.
- 1623, William Houching paid the usual fee of 6s. 8d. to the church-wardens, for burying his father in the church.
- 1626, John Blomefield paid for his father's being buried in the church, and a grave-stone laid, 12s. to the church-wardens; the stone is now gone. [1736.]
Two Gilds
Were kept in this church, the one dedicated to St. John the Baptist, the other to St. Peter; a fair book of their accompts and lands is still in the church chest, out of which I learned the following particulars: that in 1531, St. John's Gild had a stock of 30 cow beasts belonging to them, which they let out at 1s. a year each; that the town-house, standing on the north side of the churchyard, was their Gild-hall, one room of which they reserved to hold their gild in, and the other they let; that there were above 20 bretheren and sistern on their bead roll, their hall, when the gild was dissolved in 1547, it was vested in feoffees for the use of the poor; they had a chaplain retained, to pray for them and for all their bretheren and sistern, living and dead, for which they paid him a salary of 30s. a quarter. In 1518, Sir Wylyam was their chaplain, who was continued to this time. In 1527, Thomas Clerke of Wisbech left them a legacy of 10s. and this year Sir Henry Tayleor, rector of Brisingham, was admitted a brother; they annually chose two Gild-holders, who were to receive all the money at the church-ales, the plough-lode, and the gilds, at some of which they received between 3 and 4l. besides the legacies that were left them. In 1541 they bought a pair of chalices: every year a great many brothers and sisters were added to them, and it is plain they were not a poor society; for, before 1517, they had purchased divers grants from the following societies, that all the bretheren and sistern of this gild should be partakers of the following pardons, which was the reason of the great increase of this above the other gilds, viz.
"The pardoun of the beyds, pardonond by the Priour of the Chartur-house of Mount-grace, for every of our Ladies-sawter said ower 26000 years of pardon.
"The pardun of the beads at the Chartur-house of Schene, for saying our Ladies-sawter is for every word in the Pater-noster, Ave Maria, and Crede, 24 daies of pardon, as
