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Temple

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The parish of Temple, (Cornish: Tempel), (Temple-Grafton, alias St Catharine's), is situated in the Deanery of Trigg Minor, and the Hundred of Trigg. It is bounded on the north and west by Blisland, on the east by St Neot, and on the south by Warleggan and Cardinham. The village of Temple is on moorland just off the A30 between Bodmin and Launceston. The Knights Templars, who were dedicated to helping pilgims travel to Jerusalem, possessed land here in the 12th century, and left a lasting reminder in the present name.

In the 18th century the church achieved some notoriety as a place where couples could marry without a license or banns. By the middle of the 19th century Temple was practically a deserted village with an ash tree growing in the floor of the church. In the 1870s, china clay mining attracted population into Temple, and the adjoining parishes of Blisland and Cardinham. About 1883, because of this increasing population in the area, the small church was virtually rebuilt. However, the separate parish did not prove viable, and in 1934, the parish was incorporated into the neighbouring Blisland parish.

Most parish and church description(s) on these pages are from Lake's Parochial History of the County of Cornwall by J Polsue (Truro, 1867 - 1873)

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Cemeteries

  • Memorial inscriptions from the Temple cemetery, and recorded by the CORNWALL INSCRIPTIONS PROJECT, found 34 headstones plus other memorials with 133 names.
  • The Cornwall Family History Society have published Monumental Inscriptions for the Parish Church - 56 entries.
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Census

Census information for this parish (1841 - 1901) is held in the Cornwall Record Office. The Cornwall Family History Society offers a census search service for its members.
Specific census information for this parish is available as follows:

  • 1841. The 1841 Census of Temple (HO107/152), Enumeration District 4, is available on-line from the Cornwall Online Census project.
  • 1851. The 1851 Census of Warleggan & Temple (HO107/1904), Enumeration District 2, is available on-line from the Cornwall Online Census project.
  • 1861. The 1861 Census of Warleggan & Temple (RG9/1535), Enumeration District 10, is available on-line from the Cornwall Online Census project.
  • 1871. The 1871 Census of Temple (RG10/2248), Enumeration District 10, is available on-line from the Cornwall Online Census project.
  • 1881. The 1881 Census of Warleggan & Temple (RG11/2290), Enumeration District 10, is available on-line from the Cornwall Online Census project.
  • 1891. The 1891 Census of Temple (RG12/1815), Enumeration District 10, is available on-line from the Cornwall Online Census project.
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Church History

  • Anglican. The Knights Templars possessed land here in the 12th century. On 26th August 1335, Bishop Grandisson certified to King Edward III that the prior and brethren of St John of Jerusalem then held the parish; these Knights Templar left a lasting reminder of their order in the present name. In 1314 the order was suppressed and the Knights Hospitallers took over their land and property. In 1340 the community at Temple consisted of the Preceptor, one brother and two male servants. Temple was confiscated by Henry VIII in the Reformation, and in the 18th century the church became a notorious place where marriages could be preformed without Banns or License. In 1744 it was given the glebe from Queen Anne's bounty and became an ecclesiastical parish.
    In the middle of the 19th century Temple was practically a deserted village with an ash tree growing in the floor of the church.
    The parish church is located in OS Grid Square SX1473 and was dedicated to St Catherine. It comprised a chancel, nave and north transept. By the mid 19th century, only the first stage of the tower remained. About 1883, when the population was increasing in the area, the small church was virtually rebuilt.
  • Non-Conformists. Bible Christians in the parish used a chapel in the neighbouring parish of Helland.
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Church Records

  • The Cornwall Record Office holdings: Baptisms 1884 - 1960, Marriages 1884 - 1960.
  • Banns. Banns 1884 to 1911 for this parish are available on-line through the OPC search Facility - (C-PROP).
  • Marriages. Marriages 1884 to 1911 for this parish are available on-line through the OPC search Facility - (C-PROP).
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Civil Registration

The parish of Temple was in the Bodmin Registration District, and has been since 1st July 1837; there were sub-districts are Bodmin, Egloshayle, Lanlivery and St Mabyn but these have now been abolished. Parishes within the district were: Blisland, Bodmin, Bodmin Borough, Cardinham, Egloshayle, Endellion, Helland, Lanhydrock, Lanviet, Lanlivery, Lostwithiel, Luxulion, St. Kew, St. Mabyn, St. Minver Highlands, St. Minver Lowlands, St. Tudy, St. Winnow, Temple, Wadebridge, Warleggon, Withiel.

The Superintendant Registrar can be contacted at: Lyndhurst, 66 Nicholas Street, Bodmin, Cornwall, PL31 2AG. Tel: 01208 73677.

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Description & Travel

You can see pictures of Temple which are provided by:

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Gazetteers

The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland - 1868

"TEMPLE, a parish in the hundred of Trigg, county Cornwall, 6 miles N.E. of Bodmin, its post town. The extensive moors between Bodmin and Launceston take their name from this parish. It formerly belonged to the Knights Templars' preceptory at St. Ive's. There is no village, only a few farmhouses. The living is a perpetual curacy in the diocese of Exeter, value £21. The church has long since been dilapidated."

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Genealogy

  • OPC Assistance.
    • The On-line Parish Clerk (OPC) scheme operates a service to help family historians; the OPC page for this parish is available on-line, from where the OPC can be contacted by email.
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Maps

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SX145732 (Lat/Lon: 50.528739, -4.619199), Temple which are provided by:

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Poor Houses, Poor Law

Temple parish was part of the Bodmin Union for Poor Law administration and parish relief.

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Population

Temple was incorporated into the parish of Blisland in 1934.

  • Population in 1801 - 15 persons
  • Population in 1811 - 18 persons
  • Population in 1821 - 27 persons
  • Population in 1831 - 29 persons
  • Population in 1841 - 37 persons
  • Population in 1851 - 24 persons
  • Population in 1861 - 12 persons
  • Population in 1871 - 34 persons
  • Population in 1881 - 38 persons
  • Population in 1891 - 51 persons
  • Population in 1901 - 45 persons
  • Population in 1911 - 31 persons
  • Population in 1921 - 34 persons
  • Population in 1931 - 29 persons
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Statistics

The parish comprises 822 acres of land.