“The Baulk” is the name given to the bridlepath that goes from Brook End to New England. Just a name? Invented by some schoolkid in the eighties? Not a chance!
A baulk is an idea literally as old as the hills. It means a strip of land left unploughed, either by accident, or, in our village’s case, very much by design. It forms a boundary between fields. Ploughing up a baulk was regarded as an offence, punishable by a fine. According to the OED (which you can access online with your Bedfordshire library card) the word has been around for a thousand years. So the baulk is likely to be very old and undisturbed.
“The Baulk” in eversholt wasn’t the only one. “The baulk” was actually, according to the 1764 map, called “New England Baulk”. The northern end of Tyrells End was called “Rush Hill Baulk”. The road that is now Rads End, branching off from Witts End past Ivy Cottages, was called “Forge Baulk”. I’d hoped to find more baulks, but they’re the only ones I can see right now.