LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
The abbot of Walden,
after claiming view of frankpledge and the assizes of
bread and ale in Hadley, Mimms, Edmonton, and
Enfield in 1294, altered his plea to claim the rights in
Enfield alone. (fn. 42) Hadley was part, probably originally
a tithing, of Edmonton manor. (fn. 43) Officers for Hadley
were elected at the court leet for Edmonton, held in
Whitsun week. Two ale-tasters were recorded only
in 1661, the date of Edmonton's first extant court
book, (fn. 44) but a constable was elected regularly until
1740, after which date Hadley was not mentioned. (fn. 45)
A signer of beasts was appointed in 1682 (fn. 46) and
regularly from 1703, although the office was sometimes combined with that of constable. (fn. 47)
Vestry minute books survive from 1672 to 1914; (fn. 48)
there are also churchwardens' accounts from 1717 to
1821 and, with a few gaps, overseers' accounts from
1678 to 1835, and parish rate books from 1757 to
1852. (fn. 49) The vestry met about four times a year in the
late 17th century and from 1722 it normally met
monthly in the church. (fn. 50) Incumbents, although
present at more than half of the meetings, presided
irregularly in the 18th century and more frequently
in the 19th. From the mid 18th century leading
residents seem to have wielded considerable influence; at the end of the century members of the
Thackeray, Day, Quilter, Cottrell, and Smith
families were all frequent attenders. A vestry clerk
was first recorded in 1733. (fn. 51)
There were two churchwardens and two overseers
in 1580 (fn. 52) but by 1677 each office was held by one
man only. (fn. 53) In 1689 the vestry successfully claimed
that the incumbent, as a donee, could not appoint
the churchwarden. (fn. 54) The number of overseers was
restored to two c. 1775 and sometimes four were
appointed. (fn. 55) There were two constables in 1614 and
subsequent years (fn. 56) but by 1661 there was only one,
appointed by the vestry. A headborough was
appointed by the vestry from 1696 onwards. There
were two or more surveyors of the highways from
1677 and statute duty was still in force in 1828. In
1734 the surveyors were warned to be more careful
in collecting rates. A pauper was made a salaried
street-keeper in 1826 but his office was abolished in
1835. (fn. 57)
Large areas of common land, together with several
charities and two sets of alms-houses, reduced the
necessity for parish relief, although after 1799 use of
the common was restricted to those who paid land
tax. (fn. 58) A workhouse was opened in rented premises in
1738, when 3 paupers were moved there and it was
agreed that all persons receiving alms from the
parish should be badged. From 1799 male inmates
were enjoined to wear yellow stockings and the
women to wear uniform blue clothes. The poor were
farmed from 1740 until 1768, when the parish took
over direct management of both workhouse and
out-poor, moving the workhouse to a building which
had served as a foundling hospital. (fn. 59) The first
workhouse may have been Bonnyes Farm, which was
used as such before 1778; the second perhaps stood
on the edge of Hadley Common, near Latimer's Elm
between Hadley and Cockfosters. (fn. 60) The reorganization of 1768 adversely affected the paupers, whose
diet was increased by half in 1776 after complaints
that it had been severely cut. In 1780 the vestry
blamed conditions in the workhouse on the mistress,
who, however, was not dismissed and in 1787 was
given charge of the new Sunday school. A salaried
parish doctor was appointed in 1782. (fn. 61) In 1775-6
£185 was raised by poor-rates, of which £142 was
spent on the poor. (fn. 62)
From the late 18th century the wealthier householders made attempts, largely unsuccessful, to
reduce parish expenditure. Doles of bread were
introduced in 1796 and tickets for cheap rice,
potatoes, and cured herrings in 1801. A salaried
assistant overseer was appointed in 1820 (fn. 63) and a
windmill was built for the parish in 1821, to provide
both employment and cheap flour. (fn. 64) In 1823 the
out-poor were ordered to attend the vestry every
quarter and were relieved partly with doles of flour,
and the diet in the workhouse was restricted. From
1827 the workhouse was again farmed and in 1832
the system was said to be fully satisfactory. Monken
Hadley became part of Barnet poor law union in
1835, whereupon the parish workhouse was closed. (fn. 65)
A whipping-post and cucking-stool were supplied
in 1677 (fn. 66) and the constable in 1693 had to furnish
the names of persons who were deficient in watching
for thieves. Two paid watchmen were appointed in
1786 and parishioners subscribed to the newly
formed Barnet association for the prosecution of
burglary and robbery in 1792. (fn. 67) The employment of
night watchmen was revived in 1820, after a lapse,
and a third man carried out a day patrol in 1826.
New stocks were erected in 1787; they were placed
near the pound in 1788, rebuilt in 1827, and in 1866
stood on Hadley Green west of the Great North
Road. (fn. 68)
In 1863 Monken Hadley became part of Barnet
local board district (fn. 69) and in 1875 most of the parish
came under the jurisdiction of East Barnet Valley
urban sanitary district, (fn. 70) later East Barnet Valley
U.D. and subsequently East Barnet U.D.; that part
of the parish which adjoined Chipping Barnet,
however, became part of Barnet urban sanitary
district, later Barnet U.D. (fn. 71) The parish was transferred in 1889 to Hertfordshire administrative
county and from 1894 the part in East Barnet
Valley U.D. became Monken Hadley civil parish,
while that within Barnet U.D. became Hadley civil
parish. (fn. 72) Both civil parishes became part of Barnet
L.B. in 1965, when they were transferred from
Hertfordshire to Greater London. (fn. 73)