Whaplode
- The Whaplode Cemetery, set up in Oct. 1893, has its own mortuary chapel and covers about 2 acres.
- Whaplode was part of the Holbeach sub-district of the Holbeach Registration District.
- Check our Census Resource page for county-wide resources.
- The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
Census
Year |
Piece No. |
| 1841 |
H.O. 107 / 612 |
| 1851 |
H.O. 107 / 2097 |
| 1861 |
R.G. 9 / 2326 |
- The Anglican parish church is dedicated to St. Mary.
- The original church was reportedly built in 1120.
- Whaplode Drove (dedicated to St. John the Baptist) became its own ecclesiastical parish on 15 August 1902. It is about 8 miles south of Holbeach.
- The gravestones in St. Mary's churchyard have been moved. Some are lain flat in the grass.
- There is a photograph of St. Mary's Church on the Wendy Parkinson Church Photos web site.
- Here is a photo of St. Mary's Church, taken by Ron Cole (who retains the copyright):
- Here is a photo of St. John's Church in Whaplode Drove, taken by Ron Cole (who retains the copyright):
- St. Mary's parish register dates from 1559.
- Whaplode Drove chapelry parish registers exist from 1713.
- Check our partial Parish Register Extract. Your additions are welcome.
- Check the LFHS marriage indexes for the East Elloe Deanery.
- There was a Wesleyan Methodist Chapel located at Saracens Head/Whaplode Washway on the east side of the present main road. It was built in 1825 and closed in 1971. Associated with it was the Whaplode Washway Sabbath School. The Wesleyans also built a chapel at Dowsdale in 1898. The United Methodists also had a chapel in the parish and the Primitive Methodists had one near Shephaystow, built in 1867. For information and assistance in researching these chapels, see our non-conformist religions page.
- Check our Church Records page for county-wide resources.
- Whaplode was part of the Holbeach sub-district of the Holbeach Registration District.
- Check our Civil Registration page for sources and background on Civil Registration which started in July, 1837.
Whaplode is both a village and parish about 100 miles north of London between the towns of Spalding and Holbeach. The parish is a long, narrow affair, running north to south, and incorporates the hamlets of Whaplode Drove, Dowsdale, Sheppeau Stow, Postland and most of Saracens Head. Moulton parish is neighbor to the west and Holbeach parish to the east. The area of 10,200 acres is flat fenland, drained by many small canals.
The Whaplode River runs through the village on its way to join the River Welland. If you are planning a visit:
- By automobile, take the A151 road, which runs through the village itself.
- If travelling by rail, it is recommended that one heads to Peterborough as the service is more frequent. Then take a slow train to Spalding. From there, it is only a short walk across the supermarket's car park to catch a bus (No. 505 - a green bus) which goes to Kings Lynn (they run about every half hour). This goes through the village of Whaplode en route. It takes about 15 minutes on the bus from Spalding. [Miranda Apps, 2007]
- You can take a short, self-guided walk around the village following a unique, modern public sculpture trail. Pick up the leaflet with map available in the village from St. Mary's Church. In St. Mary's, guides are available some weekend afternoons to explain the unusual architecture of this fine church, including fragments of Saxon work and an effigy of 17th century knight in full armour.
- See our touring page for area resources.
- Irby Hall, reduced to only a farm house in 1871, was in ancient times the seat of the knightly family of IRBY.
- The national grid reference is TF 3224.
- You'll want an Ordnance Survey Explorer #249 map, which has a scale of 2.5 inches to the mile.
- See our Maps page for additional resources.
- The name Whaplode is from the Old English Cwappa+lad, or "Watercourse where eelpouts are found". In 810 the name appeared as Cappelad and in the 1086 Domesday Book the village is given as Copelade.
[A. D. Mills, "A Dictionary of English Place-Names," Oxford University Press, 1991]
- The parish was in the ancient Elloe Wapentake in the South Holland district in the parts of Holland.
- For today's local governance, visit the South Holland District Council site. (JB)
- Whaplode Drove was both a hamlet and an ecclesiastical chapelry in the parish.
- An ancestor of Lord Boston built almshouses for six poor widows. These were still in use in 1900.
- After the Poor Law Amendment Act reforms in 1834, the parish became part of the Holbeach Poor Law Union.
| Year |
Inhabitants |
| 1831 |
1,998 |
| 1871 |
2,602 |
| 1881 |
2,375 |
| 1891 |
2,216 |
| 1901 |
2,270 |
- Elisha WILSON left a bequest in his will of 1704 for the education of children of the parish. A National School was erected in the village in 1856, built to house up to 194 students.
- In Whaplode Drove the first school was built in 1842 and Shephaystow School was built in 1876.
- A School Board of 5 members was formed on 12 May 1874.
- In 1887, The Saracen's Head School, a board school, was opened for 120 children. In 1900, average attendance was 75.
- In 1881, St. Catharine's School, a board school, was opened for 100 children. In 1900, average attendance was 55.
- For more on researching school records, see our Schools Research page.
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[Last updated: 19-May-2008 - Louis R. Mills]
