The ruins of Codrington House, known locally as “Willy Bob” or Highland House, are situated on the highest part of the island, about three miles north of Codrington Village. The view from the house is the best way to see most of the coastline of Barbuda. The floors and lower walls and a large cistern are all that remain of the family settlement of the slave owners, the Codrington family from Gloucester in the UK. Although the village is named after them there are no Codringtons currently living in Barbuda.
Codrington was founded by the family of Christopher Codrington and John Codrington in 1685,[1] to be the main residential centre on the island. They built a castle which dominated the town, but it was badly damaged by an earthquake in 1843 and little trace of it now remains.

In 1741, the first slave rebellion happened in Codrington. Beach's Rebellion arose as a consequence of manager Thomas Beach's "cruel and tyrannical" behaviour. Several herds of cattle were slaughtered, damage was done to the Codrington's property and equipment, and "negroes runaway and absent themselves" from work.

The population of Codrington was recorded as 700 in the census of 1904, and 1,252 in the census of 1991. George mentioned maybe 3000 today.