The layout of  Kings Clipstone has probably altered little in 1000 years. The 1630 map of the village shows it to be remarkably similar to the present day village with the houses strung out along the road between the Castle Field and the Great Pond. Most of the dwellings lay to the north of the road with plots running down to the river.

It would never have been easy to make a living from the poor sandy soil. The villagers of 1630 would have had important rights to use the forest but the middle years of the 17^th  century  saw most of the forest around the village destroyed to produce charcoal for the iron forges.  The second half of the 18^th century saw the enclosure of 2000 acres of open land.  The 1832 directory described the village as being in a sad state, one of the worst in Bassetlaw.

As part of his irrigation scheme, the Duke of Portland demolished most of the houses on the side of the village nearest the Maun and replaced them with a model village. The semi-detached houses had a large paddock each, so that the residents, who worked on the estate, could be more self sufficient. By 1842 the description of the village had changed to ‘ being in danger of becoming one of the neatest’.

The Great Pond and its mill were very ancient, the earliest reference to them being in 1220. The pond was over half a mile long, stretching back as far as Waterfield Farm. An engraving from  1774 shows the Great Pond.

The Dog and Duck was built at some stage between 1785 and 1819. It was probably towards the end of the period, when the road towards Ollerton was improved during the Napoleonic Wars by building an embankment across the remains of the Great Pond.

For much of the 19^th century until 1889 Maun Cottage was the Fox  and Hounds Inn, later it became a shop. The picture shows the building about 1915. At the rear of Maun cottage and Brammer Farm House is a very thick stone wall that is thought to have been part of the gatehouse to the palace.

Maun cottage is one of the contenders for the oldest cottage in the village, the other being Rauceby across the road. Rauceby may be a cottage shown on William Senior’s map of 1630 or have been built on the same foundations

The series of bends at the western end of the village is called the Rat-Hole. The name derives from the days before the motorcar when the road was only just wide enough for a single horse and cart. Should two meet there would be much arguing and cursing as one was forced to back down the slope.

Immediately adjacent to the palace site is the iron chapel, erected by the Duke of Portland in 1903 to provide a venue  for Church of England services.  Supposed to last 20 to 30 years the chapel is a remarkable survivor.  Such tin tabernacles, as they are called, are of increasing importance as more and more of them disappear.