Branston (Branston by Belvoir or Branstone)
Description in 1877:
"BRANSTON, a pleasant village, 8 miles N.N.E of Melton Mowbray, near the small river Devon, and a large reservoir for supplying the Grantham Canal, has in its parish, which is in Framland Hundred, Melton Mowbray Union and County Court District, 313 persons, living in 57 houses, on 960 acres of land, mostly arable. The Duke of Rutland owns most of the soil, and is lord of the manor."
[White's "History, Gazetteer and Directory of the Counties of Leicester and Rutland. 3rd Edition," 1877]
Note: There are 4 other Branstons in the UK.
- The parish was in the Clawson sub-district of the Melton Mowbray Registration District.
- In 1935, the parish was transfered to the new Melton and Belvoir Registration District.
- The 1851 Census for Leicestershire has been indexed by the Leicestershire & Rutland Family History Society. The whole index is available on microfiche. The society has also published it in print. Look for volume 25.
- The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
Census
Year |
Piece No. |
| 1861 |
R.G. 9 / 2303 |
| 1891 |
R.G. 12 / 2545 |
- The Anglican parish church was dedicated to Saint Guthlac. (Some sources show Saint Cuthbert.)
- The church construction date is unknown, but predates 1460.
- The church was partially restored in 1872.
- The church seats 150.
- The Anglican parish register dates from 1591 and is on parchment in good condition.
- The church was in the rural deanery of Framland (first portion).
- The Society of Genealogists holds copies of parish records including marriages from 1591 - 1839 and microfilm records of baptisms from 1813 - 1877 which can be studied at their library in London.
- Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
- The parish was in the Clawson sub-district of the Melton Mowbray Registration District.
- In 1935, the parish was transfered to the new Melton and Belvoir Registration District.
Branston is a parish and a village in the north of the county, sandwiched between Eaton and Knipton parishes. The parish is about 121 miles north of London, about 8 miles northeast of Melton Mobray and about the same distance southwest of Grantham in Lincolnshire. The parish covers 1,837 acres.
The small River Devon passes through the north end of the village and empties into the Knipton Reservoir. If you are planning a visit:
- By automobile, Take the A607 trunk road north from Melton Mowbray.
- For a street scene of the village, check out the Leicestershire villages site.
- There is a quiet scene of a maize field near Branston at the Geograph site.
- The village feast is held on the Sunday before Old Michaelmas day.
- Ironstone was found and mined in the parish.
- The national grid reference is SK 8230.
- You'll want an Ordnance Survey Explorer map, which has 2.5 inches to the mile scale.
- See our Maps page for additional resources.
There is a war memorial reported here, but the web page author has no details on it.
- The parish was in the Framland Hundred (Wapentake) in the northern division of the county.
- This parish was an "ancient parish" of Leicestershire and became a modern Civil Parish when those were established.
- On 1 April, 1936, this parish was abolished and the territory merged into the Croxton Kerrial Civil Parish. You can visit the council site, but they will do no family history lookups for you. There is, however, a nice picture of a road tending up toward the church.
- As a result of the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act, this parish became part of the Melton Mowbray Poorlaw Union.
- Bastardy cases would be heard in the Belvoir petty session hearings.
| Year |
Inhabitants |
| 1801 |
209 |
| 1821 |
282 |
| 1841 |
333 |
| 1881 |
247 |
| 1901 |
221 |
| 1911 |
222 |
| 1921 |
218 |
| 1931 |
249 |
- The Public Elementary School was built in 1843 for 46 children.
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[Last updated: 16-May-2012 - Louis R. Mills]
