The Feoffees

Their official status is that they are:

Trustees of the East Chinnock Poors Land Charity, Registered Number 235824 and they are the administrators and guardians of one of the oldest and most public-spirited institutions found in the English Parochial System.

 

Origins

It is possible to trace the history of The Charity from late Tudor times. The earliest document, or Indenture, held is dated 1663 and itself relates to a previous Indenture made in 1627 and also refers to an even earlier agreement. Mention is made of “Charity Lands in East Chinnock” in the records of Somerset Quarter Sessions in the reign of James 1st when complaint was made in 1608 that villagers had not been paid the monies belonging to the Poor for five years, which means that the Charity was already in existence and well known in 1603.