The Reverend Henry Gepp was the vicar
of Adderbury from 1874 to 1913. He was very keen that
Adderbury had a building to be used for various important village
functions - a parish Institute. At the time the small
schoolrooms around the village were used for this purpose.
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With this in mind Gepp organised a
number of fund raising events over several years, some of which
were held in the grounds and stables of Adderbury House, thanks to
its then owners Mr James and and Lady Isabella Larnach. In March 1897 Mr Larnach
announced in the Deanery Magazine that he had organised the
donation of land by the scholars of New College for the
construction of a Parish Institute. |
Rev. Henry Gepp |
In May 1898 Larnach's horse
Jeddah won the Derby at odds of 100 to 1. Larnach
did so well from this win he was able to completely upgrade the
Adderbury House kitchens, and pay for the Adderbury Institute to
be built.
The monies raised through the
fundraising that had already taken place were used to furnish the
interior, with a sum left over to endow a maintenance fund.
Plaque above Institute front door
Adderbury Institute has been the setting
for countless village events since then, ranging
from early instruction and sewing meetings to the present-day
activities of the likes of Scouts, Over 60s, parties, Adderbury
Theatre Workshop, election voting, and more.
 The building has been updated a
couple of times over the years, with the side kitchen and front
toilets the result of extensive fund raising efforts in the 1970s. |
