Police Houses & Policemen

Left 30 Newman St-Centre-Burton Latimers former Police Station in Finedon Road,Right-police house in Higham Rd

The Parish Constables and Beadles of earlier times were residents of the town in their own right, living in their family homes. It was not until the latter part of the 19th Century, after County Constabularies had been established, that the system arose of having particular accommodation for police constables and sergeants, who would come and go according to their periods of duty in the town. Thus it is at this period that police houses become identifiable, as the adresses of men designated as police constables form part of the census data from 1881 onwards.

The 1861 Census for Burton Latimer lists a George L Barratt as a police constable and lodger at an unidentified address. In 1871 a John Woods is head of family somewhere in the town. By 1881, the first identifiable police house can be found at 5 Higham Road (see image at top of page, and note the plaque bearing the Constabulary crest above the door designating it as such). In the censuses of 1891 and 1901, a George Wilford Currin is the police constable there. By 1910, William Beale is “Constable in Charge” at Burton Latimer.

With the growth of the town’s population, following the arrival and development of the shoe and clothing industries in the late 19th century, the number of required police constables also increased and two more designated police house appeared.  In 1934, a Willam Edward Allen was at 30 Newman Street, and a Sergeant Arthur Hooper was at 110 Station Road. A P.C. Clifton is mentioned in a parish Magazine of 1932.

Two years later, in September1936, the County architects advertised a tender for the erection of “police houses of standard type and specification” and a few months later a brand new purpose-built police station was put up at 17-19 Finedon Road (see image at top of page) incorporating accommodation for (usually) a police sergeant and a police constable on either side of a central police office.

PSergt. Sydney Richardson and PC Stanley C. Underwood were listed as living in the houses at the time of the 1939 National Register.

By the mid-1960s, a pair of semi-detached police houses had also been built at 4 and 6 Park Road, and it seems to be at this time that 30 Newman Street was no longer used for police purposes. However, above the keystone over the front porch there is still a circulsr mark left by the Constabulary plaque which once hung there. Like the police station in Finedon Road, the Park Road houses were “privatised” and sold off in the mid 1970s, and for the past 35 years there has been no designated police building in Burton, though all the former police properties still survive.

If you can fill in any gaps or give us any further details, please get in touch.