There were echoes of the past at Linden Homes’ development in Hedge End when a new street name at Millstone Copse was unveiled.

The road has been named Shafford Meadows and is named after William Shafford, a Victorian farmer and land owner who was Parish Clerk for Hedge End from 1898 to 1901.

Mr Shafford’s great granddaughter Maureen Harding was a guest of honour at the ceremony and said William Shafford would have been very proud – and very surprised – to have known he would be remembered in this way:

“I am extremely honoured that the road has been named after my Great Grandfather and that our unusual family name will be remembered in the local area. I wasn’t aware that he was the parish clerk before now so it has been very interesting to find out more about my family history.”

Maureen was joined at the ceremony by several local Councillors, including Councillor Leader Keith House:

“The council has been delighted to work with Linden Homes on this fantastic scheme of family housing. We are proud to have a link to Hedge End’s 19th century history and look forward to its progressive future.”

Linden Homes Southerns’ managing director Brendon O’Neill welcomed the guests to Millstone Copse and thanked all those involved with the project. He said the day brought together a sense of old meeting new:

“The Linden Homes at Millstone Copse are brand new, high specification properties with all the latest innovations in terms of security, energy conservation, design and build – so it is rather a nice touch to add a little history into the mix and we are delighted to be able to remember a public figure from the Victorian era like William Shafford – and honour the work he did for the local area.”

To find out more about the homes now available at Millstone Copse in Hedge End, please call our sales and marketing suite on 0844 644 9642. Alternatively you can visit the Linden Homes’ website: www.lindenhomes.co.uk