Manor of Harrow alias Sudbury and Manor of Harrow Rectory Court Rolls. Each membrane has been flattened and inserted between the leaves of five large leather bound albums or "tomes". There is evidence that this was done in the early nineteenth century. The membranes, however, still bear the numbers which correspond with an index prepared in the early seventeenth century, when the rolls were still in their traditional form of rolled files. The rolls for the two manors are usually separate, although there are several cases where Rectory membranes are filed on Harrow (alias Sudbury) rolls, especially in the earlier period.
Most of the Harrow Court Rolls remain in the form of files or bundles of parchment membranes of varying lengths, fastened together at the head and rolled. One roll usually covers one reign, although occasionally two or more rolls have been made as with the reign of Henry VI, (Ref. ACC/0076/2416, 2417). The indexer of the rolls (see above) has noted that "For the tyme of Henrie the VI Their arre 2 Rolles or Bundells The one comprehendings of leaves of parchment longe and short greate and small besides the cover, 75 leaves" and the other 63 leaves. He also notes that "their is 2 folied 40", 41, 66, 97, 106, 116 etc. The second roll is endorsed "H. 6; 17, 18, 19, 20 ..." etc. The court rolls have membranes numbered, possibly, by the seventeenth century indexer, usually beginning at number 1 for each sovereign's reign (not by roll). Those Rectory rolls now in ACC/0974 Tom I, however, are numbered 1-128 running through from 1378-1602 and not by reign, although endorsements show that they were originally filed in smaller rolls. Some of the membranes on the medieval rolls of Acc. 76 are defective or rubbed near the bottom so that the numbers have been lost. Most of the rolls have parchment wrappers and are labelled in a seventeenth century or later hand, although the last membranes of many earlier rolls bear endorsements in an early hand. Some of the roll covers are parts of deeds of the early 17th century. The rolls also have a reference number written on the covers, 1-12, 15 and 16 being Harrow and 22, 23, 26 being Rectory rolls.
Not all numbers can be verified as some rolls have lost their covers. Tom V (ref. ACC/0643) is similar to ACC/0974, except that the leather binding has been used as a portfolio and there is no evidence that it was ever made up as an album. It contains flattened membranes for the manor of Harrow (alias Sudbury) from the years Oct. 1648 (part) to Oct. 1675. It also contains 4 pieces of parchment, being halves of deeds of 1618 and 1621, two of which were wrappers and bear endorsements for rolls `No. 15' 1 James I to 1 Charles I and "No. 16' 5-12 Charles I now ACC/0974 Tom III. Rolls exist for Harrow Manor 1315-1337 when there are none for the Rectory, while there are rolls for Rectory 1349-1369 but none for Harrow. The reason for this is not known. There are possibly one or two courts which are not clearly identified as one manor or the other. Rectory rolls of this period are sometimes headed "Rectoria de Harrowe" but often only "Harrowe" and are distinguishable only by the name of the Rector which is sometimes given. Harrow rolls bear the heading "Harrows" or "Hargh" and in only one case is the name of the Archbishop, Lord of the Manor, given. The Edward II and Edward III period rolls which were indexed have all been identified and there are apparently none now missing which were present when the index was made soon after 1600.
Manor of Harrow alias Sudbury Manor of Harrow Rectory alias Harrow-on-the-Hill