South Kilworth
Description in 1871:
"KILWORTH (SOUTH), a village and a parish in Lutterworth district, Leicester. The village stands within a mile of the river Avon, at the boundary with Northampton, 1¾ mile SW of Welford r. station, and 4½ ESE of Lutterworth; and has a post office under Rugby. Acres, 1,470. Real property, £2,836. Pop., 421. Houses, 110. The property is divided among a few. The manor belongs to the co-heiresses of Baroness Braye. An observatory was erected in 1834, by Dr. Pearson, who was then rector; but it has ceased to be used. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Peterborough. Value, £465. Patron, the Lord Chancellor. The church is comparatively modern; has a tower and spire of the 15th century; and contains a Norman old font. There are an Independent chapel, an endowed national schoo1, and charities £3."
John Marius Wilson's "Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales," 1870-72
- The parish was in the Lutterworth sub-district of the Lutterworth 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.
- The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
Census
Year |
Piece No. |
| 1861 |
R.G. 9 / 2246 |
- The Anglican parish church was dedicated to Saint Nicholas.
- The church was originally Early Norman and was built around 1350.
- The church was replaced by a newer structure in the late 14th century.
- Parts of the church were reconstructed in 1869.
- The church seats 300.
- The churchyard burial ground was expanded in 1898.
- The Anglican parish register dates from 1559.
- The church was in the rural Guthlaxton deanery (third portion).
- The Congregationalists built a chapel here circa 1880.
- The parish was in the Lutterworth sub-district of the Lutterworth Registration District.
- Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
South Kilworth is a small parish and a village 5 miles southeast of Lutterworth and 9 miles northeast from Rugby. The parish covers just over 1,360 acres.
The land around the village has been mostly pasture for centuries. If you are planning a visit:
- Stanford Reservoir stands about a half mile south of the village.
- By automobile, take the M1 to the south edge of Lutterworth and turn east onto the A427. Just after Walcote, take the road to the right and follow it out to South Kilworth.
- In the 1800s many parishioners were farmers.
- Doctor PEARSON built a small observatory here in 1834.
- The national grid reference is SP 6081.
- You'll want an Ordnance Survey Explorer map, which has 2.5 inches to the mile scale.
- You can view an online map at the Axcis site.
- See our Maps page for additional resources.
- This place was an ancient parish in Leicestershire and became a modern Civil Parish when those were established.
- The parish lies in the Guthlaxton Hundred in the southern division of the county.
- As a result of the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act, this parish became part of the Lutterworth Poorlaw Union.
- Bastardy cases would be heard in the Lutterworth Petty Session court hearings.
| Year |
Inhabitants |
| 1841 |
421 |
| 1871 |
402 |
| 1881 |
423 |
| 1891 |
365 |
| 1901 |
294 |
| 1911 |
275 |
| 1921 |
376 |
| 1931 |
386 |
| 1951 |
355 |
| 1961 |
369 |
- A National School was started in 1845, but the building weren't built here until 1851 and 1858.
- A new classroom was added to the National School in 1908.
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[Last updated: 12-November-2011 - Louis R. Mills]
