People have lived in this area for over 2000 years but the present site of Milton Ernest village was established before the Saxon period had come to an end. A record of the parish exists in the Domesday Book of 1086 when the various manors were listed. The spelling of the name has varied from time to time, being Mildentone or Middleton in the 11^th century, Middleton Ernys in the 13^th century and Mylton Harneys or Homes in the 15^th and 16^th centuries. Whatever the spelling, the first half of the name has meant only one thing, ‘Middle Farm’. The second half of the name is derived from the name of the main manor of the village and added in the 13^th century to distinguish it from Bedfordshire’s other Milton (Bryant).

The Ernys family manor was occupied in the 17^th century by the Turner family and it was Sir Edward Turner who endowed the parish almshouses which flanked the green. These were replaced some years ago by bungalows but the original plaque can still be seen. The most notable architecture in the parish is the church building and Milton Ernest Hall which was designed as a magnificent residence for a Victorian gentleman. Milton’s other claim to fame is that in 1719 it was the home of the Underhill Robinson’s printing press one of the first in the country.

In 1793 the Hon. John Byng wrote: ‘From Clapham mounting a hill in a very ugly county I came to Milton Ernest; a poor dirty village. My Aunt Sally had an estate here. It may be the place for an estate; but not for a residence”. Things do however change.

Welcome to a lovely part of the country, one which is now a highly desirable place in which to live.