A Carey Walkabout

This page is for villagers and visitors to appreciate the links with William Carey.  It is suggested you begin your walk in Piddington to help with the chronological order of events.

1.  No 21 Church Road - in the far corner of the front garden is a stone wall, which was part of a shoe shop and cobblers.  This probably dates to the cottage and workshop of Clarke Nichols, who took in William Carey at the age of 14 years in 1775 as apprentice cordwainer.  (Cordwain is goat's skin and a cordwainer was a craftsman, a skilled shoemaker)

The House of Clarke Nichols

Carey was born on 17th. August 1761 in Paulersbury. the eldest son of a schoolmaster.  He began work at 12 years of age as a gardener, but his skin could not tolerate outdoor weather and so he came to Piddington.  Here William learned not just to mend shoes, but to make them, alongside a fellow apprentice, John Warr of Yardley Gobion, who influenced him greatly, both at work and with religious thought.  William would accompany John Warr to prayer meetings during the week in Hackleton.

2. Continue along Church  Road to the 12th. century church of St. John the Baptist, Piddington.

William used to attend this parish church 3 times on Sundays, in the tradition of his upbringing in Paulersbury.  At the age of 19, on Saturday 10th June 1781, he married a local girl, Dorothy Plackett, aged 24, in Piddington Church.  Neither Dorothy nor Lucy, her sister and bridesmaid, could write their name, as there was no school in Piddington for almost another 100 years, until 1872.

3. Walk towards the new cemetery and right down the lime tree lane, back into Piddington Lane.  Turn left, cross via road and walk down to Little End where there are two houses, one set back from the road

Carey's Piddington House

The cream washed cottage is on the former site of a row of cottages, built sideways on to the road.  It was here that William and Dorothy set up home together and were very happy for 2 years.  He made shoes, studied books, learned Latin and Greek, and worked his garden.  Their first child, Ann, was born here, but she died of a fever, leaving Carey so depressed and distraught that he went bald at the age of 22.  It was from here, on 5th October 1783, that Carey set off very early to walk the 6 miles to Northampton to his baptism at 6 a.m. in the River Nene at Castle Mound.  Carey would also walk from this cottage, frequently, to hear preachers and to preach himself at Roade, Ravenstone, Earls Barton, Moulton and Paulersbury.  To eke out his slender income from shoe making, William also held an evening school in his cottage, teaching local boys to read and write.

Although the family left here in 1785 to move to Moulton, it may also have been to this cottage in Piddington Lane in 1793 that Dorothy returned, 8 months pregnant, with her 3 young sons Felix, William and Peter.  Carey was fired with enthusiasm to go to Bengal to preach. However, Dorothy was both unwilling and unable to go, and so installed herself back here with her boys and her sister Kitty.  It was finally decided that Felix aged 8 should accompany his father to India, and they would return in 3 years to take Dorothy and family back with them. 

As it happened, William was delayed at Ryde, trying to find a ship to take him to India.  The new baby was born in Piddington and Dorothy named him Jabez.  William returned to try to persuade his wife to accompany him to India.  She, however, felt she could not leave at moments notice so William set off again.  Not far along the way, his companion Thomas suggested they had another try and so he came back, on behalf of William, to help Dorothy change her mind.  She finally agreed to go to India if her sister Kitty went too.  When Thomas signaled the good news to William, it is said he bounded up the hill as fast as he could to collect his family and off they went to India.

4. Now walk across Longland Meadow above this house, through the gate to a stile at the far side and turn left down the footpath to the brook and the bridge.  Following Carey's baptism in the River Nene, it was this brook that subsequent followers of William Carey were baptised over the years.

5.  A little farther up the lane, which is called The Jetty, is a row of four terraced cottages on the right hand side.

Thomas Old's Cottage Hackleton

In one of the upper cottages was a shoe shop and workshop owned by Thomas Old.  Old was a relative of Clarke Nichols of Piddington, and was also married to Dorothy Plackett's eldest sister.  When Clarke Nichols died in 1779, Carey transferred to the workshop of Thomas Old in Hackleton. again as a shoemaker or journeyman.  

Four years later, on the death of Thomas Old, on 31st December 1783, Carey took over the business and also appointed himself responsible for Old's wife and 4 children.  His workshop was called "Carey's College" as Carey studied hard here at Latin, Hebrew and Greek.  He was a keen student of scripture and of travel putting up on the wall of his workshop a map of the world.  He had new shoes on display in his shop, but when times were hard he even bought second-hand shoes to repair and resell.

6. Return a few yards down The Jetty to the 90 degree bend and proceed towards the Baptist Chapel, in front of the chapel, where the iron railings finish stood the Meeting House.

The Hackleton Meeting House

Hackleton Meeting House was a group of dissenters from the established church and Carey attended here with John Warr, from when they first lived in Piddington with Clarke Nichols.  Daniel Plackett, father of Dorothy Plackett, was also a member.  They met here in this cottage and as numbers grew they formed the Hackleton Church, on 19th May 1781.  It was here that William Carey preached his first sermon, standing in the "Carey Pulpit" that is now in the schoolroom of the chapel.

A new Meeting House, 24' x 36' was built and opened here on 8th November 1809 and here until 1953

7.  The Carey Baptist Chapel was later built in 1889 at a cost of £920.

Carey Memorial Baptist Chapel
Hackleton

It was built in William Carey's honour in recognition of the work and example he performed as preacher, missionary and translator of the Bible into 35 languages in India.

Carey Pulpit in the Chapel Schoolroom. Hackleton

From the Carey Pulpit William Carey preached on 31st May 1792 an extract hangs in the Chapel.

"Expect great things from God.
Attempt great things for God

a fine text and epitaph to a truly great man who once lived and worked "amongst us"

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