In 1665 there were just 9 households in Bossington, and there were 58 households in Houghton and North Houghton.  Records for 1788 show there were then around 30 people living in Bossington and  330 in Houghton.   The fact that this was a time of strict public morals is indicate in an entry in the Houghton Parish records for 9^th February 1713: Deborah and Mary (Twins) the children of Robert Wake and Deborah his Wife (her maiden name Murphy) who were married no longer ago than the 16^th November last past so that though ye children were born in wedlock, yet ye parents were guilty of Ante-nuptial fornication.

The record for February 1713 is also, sadly, a testament to the high levels of child mortality.  In addition to recording the baptism of the Wake twins, the register records the baptism of “William the son of Robert and Sarah Russell”.