The story of what became known as Lawford Lodge Farm in Church Lawford is traceable from the late 17th Century.
The Elkington Family first arrived in the village in around 1690, and by the time of the tithe review in the 1720s were shown as farming the land in the area of where Lodge Farm was located. By the time of that survey (detailed here) Mary the widow of William Elkington was the head of the family. The composition of the farm was still taking shape at this stage, and some of the land was also farmed by Henry Pratt, as detailed here, and Robert Walmsley as detailed here.
The farm took shape with the Elkington family over several generations until William Elkington (1799-1848). He had married Sarah Crofts, also from the village, who was from a farming family with many interests around the district – her uncle was James Crofts who farmed at Mount Pleasant and set up the Crofts Charity, and her brother was William Sutton Crofts who farmed at Rookery Hall Farm.
Shortly after William Elkington had died it is possible to review the 1849/50 Tithe Records, by which time Lawford Lodge farm was in the hands of one of the Townsend family – William Townsend.
When William died in 1857 the farm changed hands again, with the stock being sold off by the executors as described in this article from the Rugby Advertiser of that year.
It was let to John Ewins Bennett, a farmer in Husbands Bosworth, who engaged a farm bailiff to run the farm – John Waddington, who was in place by the time of the 1861 census. At the time of the 1874 White’s Local Directory the farm was described thus – “The Lodge is an ancient farm house in a dilapidated condition”.
John Waddington was still in place for the 1881 census, during the 1880s the farm was remodelled with a new dairy fitted prior to being advertised for rental in 1888 as detailed in the article from the Rugby Advertiser. For a short period the farm tenant was Herbert Cresswell.
Thomas Chalmers from Castlecary in Scotland was in place at the farm by 1890 – and the farm remained in that family until after the Second World War. The Chalmers family took an active involvement in village life, with Thomas being church warden for 24 years until 1926. Thomas was also a founding member of the Rugby Scottish Society from 1908 and a manager of the Village School for over 20 years. The articles below are from the Midland Time and Falkirk Herald from 1890.
By 1901 his nephew William Chalmers Denholm was assisting with the farm. In 1918 the Lawford Lodge Farm was included in the auction of village properties as lot 25, detailed below, and Thomas Chalmers was able to buy the farm outright. When he died in 1936, aged 89, William Denholm took over the full responsibilities for the farm.
William Denholm continued managing the farm until he died in 1948.
A Clip from the Rugby Advertiser dated 28th May 1948
Various fairly short term occupants of Lodge Farm were then in place during the next twenty-five years or so, including the Towers, Lloyd and Symonds families before the Davenport family took over in the mid 1970s, farming there for over 40 years.