Durban

The 18th century churchwarden accounts show Chewton Mendip Parish paid 18s to Thomas Durban to take John Hippisley  to ‘Gole’ [goal or prison] in 1738. This does not prove that Thomas Durban was the local policeman, other poor-law records show that the Durban family were in recipients of poor relief which often took the form of ‘workfare’. The recipients were paid to do a number of jobs which sometimes included guarding culprits. This record also shows that not all members of the Hippisley’s were gentry!

No record  has been foun of members of the Durban family paying poor rats but there are some records of them being alloctated to various estates as the 18th century.