The name of Bulcote means “cattle shed” which reflects the development of the village mainly as a farming community. Bulcote is recorded in the 1086 Domesday Book, when it was already an established village over-lorded by Walter D’aincourt, a Norman knight. The De Busli family rented the land from about 1080 to 1099. From the list of householders the population in 1086 has been estimated to have been about 132. At that time the neighbouring village of Burton Joyce had only 50 inhabitants, but it had a church and a priest whilst Bulcote did not. A church was later built in the early part of the 13th century. The population level of the village remained more or less constant for over 900 years until increased by housing developments in the 1960s.

 

​Holy Trinity Church stands high above the village on the north side of the main A612 road and was completed and dedicated in 1862 to replace the original church that collapsed following a violent thunderstorm. It is said to have been founded by the Sancta Maria family who held the lordships of both Bulcote and Burton Joyce from early in the 13th Century. They resided in Bulcote, living in a house named St Mary’s Hall, the exact site of which is not now known.



Bulcote has no amenities within the village although it once had shops and a pub “The Unicorn”, in what is now Ivy House.  It is understood that this closed as a result of the Temperance movement objecting to a parishioner going to the pub after morning service.

 

Although Bulcote is in close proximity to Burton Joyce and relies on its amenities, the village still remains proud of its independence.