The Baskerville family arrived with William the Conqueror, and were Lords of the Manor of Eardisley for 500 years
They lived in the castle behind the church, and there are still some reminders of the family in the church today. The gravestone of Sir Humphrey Baskerville, died 1647, is in the floor of the Vestry, and the heads carved at the bottom of the Vestry arch may well be representations of members of the family. The Baskervilles died out in 1666, and the Barnsley family took over as Lords of the Manor. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle spent much time in Herefordshire, and it is thought possible that although the story of the Hound of the Baskervilles is set in the West Country he drew inspiration from Eardisley and the surrounding area. Certainly he used many local place names in the tale, as well as well known Herefordshire surnames.