Lesingham House

In his will Thomas Wode asked his late uncle Jeremy Lesingham to bury him in St Mary’s parish church.

The Lesingham family is first found in Yorkshire where they were anciently seated as Lords of the Manor; migrants settled along the eastern seaboard of America from Newfoundland, to Maine, Virginia, the Carolinas, and to the islands.

Also living in the house at the time of the United Kingdom Census 1841 were Robert Roper, agricultural pupil, and two servants Mary Hannant and Ann Fish.

By 1894 Lesingham House and Estate were in the hands of Sir Charles Rich of Devizes Castle, who died in 1913, after which they were occupied by a staunch Methodist couple, Mr and Mrs Richard Wright.

Mr Wright made a donation of £50 which may have provided the purchase money required by the previous Wesleyan Trust.

Near Lesingham House, down Covey Lane, lie extensive marshes and the Ted Ellis nature reserve.

[citation needed] The Padmaloka community is run by 13 men who are full time teachers and retreat leaders.