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Beckingham

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"Beckingham is a well-built village, pleasantly situated on the turnpike road, 9 miles east by south of Bawtry, 8½ miles north by east of Retford, and 3 miles west of Gainsborough. It contains about 456 inhabitants and several neat houses, and the commodious residence of Sir Joseph Rudsdale, Bart. The parish, which extends eastward to the Trent, comprises 2,529 acres of land, of the rateable value of £3,014 3s 9d.
The church is an ancient structure, dedicated to All Saints, and has a nave, side aisles and a tower. The prebendary of Beckingham is patron of the vicarage, which is valued in the King's books at £5 15s 3d, now at £111, and is discharged from the payment of first fruits. The Rev. James Stovin is the incumbent. The Wesleyans and Primitive Methodists each have a chapel in the village. The parish school is endowed with one eighth part of the rents of 33 acres of land in Beckingham, and 28½ acres in Saundby, which were bequeathed in 1731 by James Wharton Esq., who directed that the remaining seven-eighths of the rents should be paid to Gainsborough Grammar School. The land is now let for £98 18s per annum, so that the yearly sum received by this school is £12, for which the master teaches ten free scholars. Four others are educated for the interest of £100, left in 1823 by Miss Sarah Richardson, whose father was nearly fifty years vicar of this parish. Two others are also taught for £2 paid out of two acres of meadow land, which was given at the enclosure in exchange for the Poor's Land, and is now let for £4 per annum, of which the remaining £2 is given at Easter to the poor of the parish."
[WHITE's "Directory of Nottinghamshire," 1853]

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Archives & Libraries

The village had a Reading Room and Community Library in 1904.

The Library at East Retford is an excellent resource.

Alternatively, the Gainsborough Library also has a Local History section.

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Cemeteries

  • The cemetery currently in use within the village is located down Beecher Lane to the left just off Gringley Road coming into the village from the roundabout.
     
  • The cemetery sign tells us that it is "Beecher Lane Cemetery".
     
  • The cemetery dates from 1971.
     
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Census

  • The parish was in the Misterton sub-district in the Gainsborough Registration District.
     
  • The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
     
Census
Year
Piece No.
1841H.O. 107 / 849
1861R.G. 9 / 2407
1871R.G. 10 / 3443
1891R.G. 12 / 2633
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Church History

  • The local Anglican parish church is dedicated to All Saints.
     
  • The church dates from the late 11th or the 12th century.
     
  • The church reconstructed and enlarged in the 13th century.
     
  • The church was restored in 1857 and again in 1892.
     
  • The church seats 300.
     
  • The church is a Grade II listed structure with British Heritage.
     
  • Roger GEACH has a photograph of All Saints Church on Geo-graph, taken in June, 2009.
     
  • Richard CROSS has an excellent photograph of All Saints Church tower on Geo-graph, taken in January, 2008.
     
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Church Records

  • The Anglican parish register dates from 1607. The registers are in good condition except for the early years which are imprefect.
     
  • The church was in the rural deanery of Retford.
     
  • The Wesleyan Methodists had a chapel built here before 1853.
     
  • Jonathan THACKER has a photograph of the former Methodist Chapel on Geo-graph, taken in July, 2012.
     
  • The Primitive Methodists had a chapel here in 1836.
     
  • Alan MURRAY-RUST has a photograph of the former Primitive Methodist Chapel on Geo-graph, taken in November, 2014.
     
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Civil Registration

  • The parish was in the Misterton sub-district in the Gainsborough Registration District.
     
  • Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
     
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Description & Travel

This village and parish borders on the Trent River, 9 miles north-east of East Retford, 3 miles west of Gainsborough in Lincolnshire and 148 miles north of London. The parish covers 3,010 acres.

If you are planning a visit:

  • By automobile, take the A631 trunk road between Gainsborough and Maltby.
     
  • Ian S. has a photograph of the Village Sign on Geo-graph, taken in July, 2012.
     
  • A railway line runs thru the parish, where passenger service started in 1897. Alas, the web page author is unaware of the status of passenger service.
     
  • If you hae a chance, stop by the village green to see the carved owl, locally known as "Theo".
     
  • Honey Buzzards can also be found in Beckingham, delighting the local birdwatchers.
You can see pictures of Beckingham which are provided by:

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Directories

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Gazetteers

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History

  • In 1889 Mr. Joseph Spencer Compton WATSON opened a small shipyard in the parish to build barges for the Trent River trade. The yard is mentioned in a 1904 Directory.
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Maps

  • See our Maps page for additional resources.

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SK780903 (Lat/Lon: 53.403767, -0.828237), Beckingham which are provided by:

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Military History

  • The government instituted the Local Defense Volunteers in May, 1940. In August, 1940, Winston CHURCHILL changed the name to "The Home Guard." There is a photograph of the Beckingham Home Guard from that period at the NorthNotts site.
     
  • A memorial cross of Portland Stone in the churchyard of All Saints', Beckingham, was unveiled 29th May 1920 by Major BELL, dedicated by Rev. Charles R. ROUND.
     
  • There is a framed Roll of Honour inside All Saints Church.
     
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Military Records

The Great War Bulletin for January 1st, 1915; tells us which men volunteered to fight in the Great War (not all may have been accepted).

  1. 2nd Lt. S. W. Curtis, Royal Field Artillery
  2. A. Moyses, 8th Sherwood Foresters
  3. W. Mumford, 8th Sherwood Foresters
  4. H. Newstead, 8th Sherwood Foresters
  5. R. Phillips, 8th Sherwood Foresters
  6. W. Spawton, Army Service Corps
  7. W. Waite, 8th Sherwood Foresters
  8. C. Worthington, 11th Cavalry
  9. J. Worthington, 8th Sherwood Foresters

There are eight names on the Wam Memorial Cross, all are of men who died:

  1. Ballance, Percy
  2. Clark, Henry Thomas
  3. Clarke, Simms
  4. Greensides, Christopher
  5. Moss, John
  6. Thompson, Frank
  7. Thompson, William
  8. Wilkinson, Joseph T.

The parish maintains a list of all 78 who served from Beckingham in WWI.

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Politics & Government

  • This place was an ancient parish in Nottingham county and it became a modern Civil Parish when those were established.
     
  • The parish was in the parliamentary borough of East Retford.
     
  • The parish was in the North Clay division of the ancient Bassetlaw Wapentake (Hundred) in the northern division of the county.
     
  • You may contact the joint parish council of Beckingham and Saundby for civic or political issues, but they will NOT perform family history work for you.
     
  • District governance is provided by the Bassetlaw District Council.
     
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Poor Houses, Poor Law

  • Bastardy cases would be heard at the Retford petty session hearings held in West Retford.
     
  • In 1834, with the passage of the Poor Law Amendment Act, the parish became part of the Gainsborough Poor Law Union.
     
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Population

 YearPopulation
1801425
1851456
1861450
1871445
1901504
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Schools

  • A National School (mixed) was built here in 1856.
     
  • A new Public Elementary School (mixed) was built here in 1901 to accommodate up to 150 children.
     
  • Chris MORGAN has a photograph of Beckingham Primary School on Geo-graph, taken in November, 2014.
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Societies

The Beckingham & Saundby local History Group was formed in March 2005.