Roman origins The name Stretton-en-le-Field is explained as a settlement
ton/tun, lying in open country
field/feld, by a Roman road
stret/straet; with the influence of French on English history following the Norman Conquest having a clear impact on the village's current name. Of the
seventeen Strettons in England, all but two are situated on
Roman Roads. However, the Roman road from which the village gains its name has not yet been positively identified. The Leicestershire manor is listed as worth £0.1, with a taxable value of 3 geld units. The Lord is recorded as Roger of Livet (having previously been Aelfric of Bradbourne, Kari, and Leofnoth Sterre in 1066). The manor was valued at £0.8, with a taxable value of 1 geld unit; the Lord was also Roger of Livet (it had been Aelfric of Bradbourne in 1066).
19th century The village used to be much larger than at present; a decline in population was recognized as early as the 1830s. In 1801 the village had a population of 212. By 1831 this had fallen to 109. By 1891 Stretton Hall had passed to Sir Myles Cave-Browne-Cave, 11th
Baronet Cave-Browne-Cave (1822–1907), described as the principal parish landowner. Stretton Hall was seen as "an ancient mansion near the church and surrounded by a shrubbery". After Sir Myles's death, the title passed to his second son Genille (his eldest having died).
Sir Genille Cave-Browne-Cave, 12th Baronet (1869–1929), before inheriting his father's title and fortune, had worked in America as a bartender and cowboy (using the assumed name "Mr. Harrison".
The New York Times stated Sir Genille's inheritance was 6,000 acres; the article, however, seems inaccurate, calling Stretton Hall "a Norman Castle with accommodation for sixty guests, and a stable that quarters forty horses". In 1897, Stretton en le Field was transferred from Derbyshire to Leicestershire; where it remains. ==References==