In addition, the church has several interesting memorial tablets referring to the Soame family, including one referring to a family member of Belle Garden in Tobago, a reflection of the far-flung business interests of the family. Others are memorials to previous incumbents of the living, but one tucked away in the tower offers a salutary warning to us all.

Indubitably, the major influence on the villages came in the 16th century, a development which was to dominate the village for the next three centuries. A man named Thomas Soame came to the village in 1582, having married Anne, daughter of Francis Knighton of Little Bradley. They were to found a dynasty that endured for the next three centuries, and influenced the fabric of the village to the extent that many of the historic buildings that make the village so attractive are testaments to their wealth and influence.

Extensive records do exist about this family, and their influence extends far beyond this estate. Their wealth was based not only on their farming interests, but also in later years on coal mining, property and foreign investments. They owned land in Norfolk, Suffolk, Warwickshire and Yorkshire. They had a house in Hatton Garden and owned land in London itself, and eventually had land and interests in Tobago. Thomas' son was to become Sir Stephen Soame, the Lord Mayor of London and Lord of the Staple, which means he sat on the Wool Sack. This curious term meant that he was in a position to oversee all the imports and exports in and out of London, a prime position from which to make profitable investments. The family were also very far sighted and the records show that they were heavily involved in drainage and fresh water projects in the centre of London and later in the fenlands of Cambridgeshire. It was they who commissioned Vermuyden to prepare plans to drain the fens.