Navenby
- The parish was in the South West sub-district of the Lincoln Registration District.
- Wendy Parkinson has the Navenby 1861 census transcribed and online.
- The North Lincolnshire Library holds copies of the census returns for 1881.
- Check our Census Resource page for county-wide resources.
- The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
Census
Year |
Piece No. |
| 1871 |
R.G. 10 / 3364 |
- The Anglican church is dedicated to Saint Peter.
- The church is built in a variety of styles. Restorations were done in 1859/60 and again in 1875/6.
- The church seats 300.
- Here is a photo of Saint Peter's church, taken by (and copyright of) Wendy Parkinson.
- Here is a photo of the Church of St. Peter taken by Ron Cole (who retains the copyright):
- Parish registers exist from 1681, but Bishop's transcripts go back to 1562.
- There are a few marriage entries in our Navenby Register Extract page. It is not a complete transcription of the register, so always check the original.
- For burials, check Sheila Richards web page.
- Parish registers are on file at the Society of Genealogists, covering 1562 - 1837.
- Parish marriages are in Boyd's Marriage Index, covering 1562 - 1837 and Pallot's Marriage Index, covering 1790 - 1837.
- The LFHS has published several indexes (marriage and burial) for the Graffoe Deanery to make your search easier.
- A small Weslyean Methodist chapel was established about 1830 and completely rebuilt in 1840. The Wesleyan Reformers also met in Navenby in the Temperance Hall, built in 1852. For information and assistance in researching these chapels, see our non-conformist religions page.
- Check our Church Records page for county-wide resources.
- The parish was in the South West sub-district of the Lincoln Registration District.
- Check our Civil Registration page for sources and background on Civil Registration which began in July, 1837.
Navenby is both an ancient village and parish. The parish stradles the old Roman Ermine Street between Boothby Graffoe parish and Wellingore parish, and lies about 8 miles south of the city of Lincoln and 10 miles NW of Sleaford. The parish is elongated in an east-west direction, extending east to the Lincoln Heath and west to the River Brant. The size of the parish has varied over the last two centuries. In 1821 it covered 2,110 acres; in 1951 it was 3,345 acres.
Navenby village lies in the eastern end of the parish. If you are planning a visit:
- By atuomobile, the A607 trunk road passes through the village as it rambles north out of Leadenham on its way to Lincoln. Navenby can also be reached off the A15 motorway north out of Sleaford.
- Click here for a Lincolnshire Heritage Trust and enter Navenby in the Search box.
- Visit our touring page for more sources.
- A Bronze Age cemetery has been found at Navenby as well as an Iron Age settlement. The Romans are reported to have had a small base or garrison at Navenby.
- The ancient Market Town of Navenby had grants from Edward the Confessor, William Rufus and Richard II.
- At one time the town square held a market cross in honour of Queen Eleanor, now long since removed.
- A Sick Society was founded in 1811. A Temperance Hall was erected in 1852.
- The Volunteer Fire Brigade was established in 1844, consisting of five men and a manual engine.
- The Provincial Gas Light & Coke Co. supplied gas lighting to the village in 1857. This firm later became the Navenby & Wellingore Gas Light & Coke Co. Limited.
- Navenby used to celebrate two annual fairs, one held on October 17th for farm animals and the other a feast on the Thursday before Easter.
- The village held a Hiring Fair for servants on May Day.
- The parish had a station three-quarters of a mile west of the village on the Lincoln to Grantham branch of the Great Northern Railway.
- In 1871, the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln was the principal landowner and lord of the manor. Most tenants leased their land for 21 years, renewable every seven years.
- The national grid reference is SK 9857.
- You'll want an Ordnance Survey "Explorer" map, which has 2.5 inches to the mile scale.
- See our Maps page for additional resources.
- The Saxon name for Navenby has not survived, but the current name derives from the Old Scandinavian Nafni+by, which means "farmstead or village of a man called Nafni". In the 1086 Domesday Book, the name is similar to today's name and appears as Navenebi.
["A Dictionary of English Place-Names," A. D. Mills, Oxford University Press, 1991]
- Care of the poor dates back to at least 1772 when part of the parish was enclosed. There appears to have been prior donations by DARWIN and DAUBNEY, but these are undated.
- Some time after 1772 a workhouse was erected, but later given over to other uses.
- As a result of the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act, the parish became part of the Lincoln Poor Law Union.
| Year |
Inhabitants |
| 1801 |
479 |
| 1811 |
542 |
| 1821 |
625 |
| 1831 |
778 |
| 1841 |
942 |
| 1851 |
1,057 |
| 1871 |
1,000 |
| 1891 |
803 |
| 1901 |
779 |
| 1911 |
796 |
| 1921 |
824 |
| 1951 |
851 |
| 1971 |
938 |
- The Parish School was built here by subscription in 1816 with one room for boys and a second room for girls. Although built for 220 students, average attendance was about 100. The current Primary School is on East Road in Navenby, with about 156 students aged 4 to 11.
- For more on researching school records, see our Schools Research page.
- Here are two undated photographs of two classes from the school. The date is presumed to be from the late 1800s. These were contributed by Denis Fluck, born in Hales House.
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[Last updated: 30-April-2009 - Louis R. Mills]
