Whetstone
Description in 1871:
"WHETSTONE, a parish, with a village, in Blaby district, Leicestershire; 2½ miles NW of Countesthorpe r. station, and 5½ SSW of Leicester. It has a post-office under Leicester. Acres, 1,680. Real property, £5,143. Pop., 1,077. Houses, 242. The manor belongs to the Earl of Stamford. Framework knitting is carried on. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Peterborough. Value, £150.* Patron,Brook, Esq. The church is old but good, and has a fine spire. There are a handsome Independent chapel of 1863, a Baptist chapel, and a parochial school."
[John Marius Wilson's "Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales," 1870-72]
- In 1909, the parish formed a cemetery of one acre near the churchyard and placed it under the control of a burial board of the Parish Council.
- The Anglican parish church is dedicated to Saint Peter.
- The church was built around 1335.
- The church is in Church Lane (of course!).
- The church was thoroughly repaired around 1829.
- The church was seriously damaged by the great storm of 24 March, 1895, when a large part of the spire fell through the roof.
- The church seats 510.
- The Anglican parish register dates from 1560.
- The church is in the rural deanery of Guthlaxton (first portion).
- The General Baptists had a chapel here by 1849. This chapel was rebuilt in 1911.
- The Congregationalists had a chapel here built in 1858 (sources vary slightly) to replace an earlier place of worship.
- Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
- The parish was in the Enderby sub-district of the Blaby Registration District.
Whetstone is a large village, a township, a chapelry and a civil parish 100 miles north of London and about 5.5 miles south of Leicester city. The parish covers 2,031 acres and borders, in part, on the Soar River.
The village has largely become a commuter haven for Leicester city. If you are planning a visit:
- By automobile, take the A426 arterial road south out of Leicester and through Blaby about 5 miles. A road to the right leads to Whetstone. A short distance to the south, the A426 and the M1 motorway cross.
- There is frequent bus service between Whetstone and Leicester.
- The railway station here closed about 40 years ago.
- For relaxation, contact the Whetstone Golf CLub.
- There is a photograph of Whetstone showing the War Memorial with the church in the left background.
- The 1086 Domesday Survey records this place having 24 peasants, 11 villeins, 1 man at arms and a windmill.
- In the 1800s and early 1900s, many of the workers in the parish were framework knitters. Farming and shoemaking were other common occupations.
- Gasworks were erected in Whetstone in 1866.
- Whetstone boasts the site of Sir Frank WHITTLE's factory, where jet engines were developed.
- The national grid reference is SP 5597.
- You'll want an Ordnance Survey Explorer map, which has 2.5 inches to the mile scale.
- See our Maps page for additional resources.
- This place was an ancient Chapelry of Leicestershire and a modern Civil Parish as well.
- The parish is in the ancient Guthlaxton Hundred in the southern division of the county.
- You can contact the Parish Council, but they do not assist with family history research.
- As a result of the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act, this parish became part of the Blaby Poorlaw Union.
- Bastardy cases would be heard in the Leicester petty session hearings.
| Year |
Inhabitants |
| 1841 |
956 |
| 1871 |
1,080 |
| 1881 |
1,186 |
| 1891 |
1,117 |
| 1901 |
1,113 |
| 1911 |
1,386 |
| 1921 |
1,388 |
| 1931 |
1,403 |
| 1951 |
1,466 |
| 1961 |
1,460 |
| 2001 |
~6,000 |
- The parish had a school for 30 students by 1849.
- The school was replaced with a new Public Elementary School in 1910. It could serve over 200 students.
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[Created: 23-August-2009 - Louis R. Mills]
