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This book is a remarkable work of parish history.  It was originally published in monthly parts over the period 1897-1910 and appeared in book form in 1913.  It has not been republished; copies are rarely available – and extremely expensive!

John Henry Mee (1853-1918) was the son of the Revd John Mee, rector of Westbourne, and was a gifted musician and academic, holdings posts at Merton and the Queens Colleges, Oxford and serving as Precentor at Chichester Cathedral (with responsibility for the music there).  He published a number of compositions, some produced for performance at Westbourne church.

He divided his time between Oxford and his Westbourne home, Chantry Farm – and married the daughter of the owner of the patronage of Westbourne church.  A talented and meticulous scholar, he researched a wide variety of records in the British Museum Library, the Public Record Office and the archives of the estates of Stansted House and of the Dukes of Norfolk – and backed them up with the extensive knowledge he gained from the memories of the villagers.  In the final stages of the book he was assisted by the eminent Sussex historian, L F Salzman.The result of his work is one the most wide-ranging and deeply researched parish histories in Sussex – and probably in England.

BOURNE IN THE PAST – CHAPTER HEADINGS

1. Bourne in the Past    (I.E. – A History )

2. Roads and Watercourses

 3. The Manors

 4. Two Old Maps    ( inc. – Westbourne in 1640 )

 5, Prinsted in 1640

 6. Commons and Common Fields

 7. Names of Places

 8. Ecclesiastical History

 9.  The Gift of Henry Smith, Esq., 1642

 10. Prehistoric Remains

 11. Law and Order

 12. Royal Visits

 13. Tokens

 14.Old Industries

 15. Family Names

 16. Notable People