The village is mentioned in the
Domesday Book of 1086 as
Crofst. It makes no mention of any lord of the manor prior to the
Norman Conquest, but names
Enisant Musard as lord after 1086, granted to him by Count Alan of Brittany. The lands were subject to many years of dispute until the 13th century. In 1205,
King John settled the issue by granting the lands to Roald the Constable of Richmond. His heirs inherited the title until 1299 when they were succeeded by
Henry le Scrope of Bolton. Thereafter the lands were held under the Scropes by the Clervaux family. They held the manor until 1590 when the direct male line ceased, but Clervaux inheritance continued via marriage to the Chaytor family into the 20th century. Numerous historic houses survive, including
Croft Hall,
Jolby Manor, and
Monk End Hall. The etymology of the village name comes from the
Old English word
Croft meaning a small enclosed field. Croft was once significant for its
spa, first noticed in 1668, and as early as 1713 the sulphurous
spring water had acquired such fame that it was sold in
London as a cure for ailments and diseases, as described in
Robert Willan's study of the sulphur water at Croft, published in London in 1782. A.B. Granville's description of the "Old Well" and the "New Well" described the Croft Spa for which the railway station was both opened and named. It was published in 1841. The village was once served by its
railway station on the
East Coast Main Line. The railway still passes near Croft but the station, which was opened in 1841, closed in 1968 and has been demolished. The 1861
Epsom Derby winner
Kettledrum was bred at Croft in 1858. ==Geography and governance==