Beeston
"Beeston, four miles west south west of Nottingham, is a populous village and parish, upon the road to Ashby-de-la-Zouch, and near the Trent Canal, having the Nottingham and Derby railway crossing the parish, and a station. It comprises 3,016 inhabitants, and 1,440 acres of land, of the rateable value of £4,570 5s. P.S. Broughton Esq., Tunstall Hall, is lord of the manor and impropriator, but Lord Middleton, Rev. John Wolley, T. Fellows Esq., and others, have also estates here. An extensive silk mill has been erected on the site of the old one burnt down in the Reform Riots of 1831, which employs 250 workmen. There are also in the village many stocking frames and lace machines. A village library was established in 1837 by shares and contributions of fourpence per month, and it now contains 800 volumes, and is conducted by a committee of 12 gentlemen. The feast is on the Sunday before St Peter, or on that day if it falls on a Sunday.
The ancient church, dedicated to St John the Baptist, and appropriated to Lenton Priory, was taken down in 1842, and a handsome structure, dedicated to St Peter, was erected on its site in 1844 at a cost of upwards of £3,500. It is in the early English style, with a beautiful tower 74 feet high, which is to contain six bells,and was consecrated on Thursday, September 5th 1844, by the Bishop of Lincoln. The interior is neatly fitted up with open seats, and will accommodate about 800 people. The Duke of Devonshire is the patron, and the Rev. John Wolley M.A. is the incumbent. The vicarage has 32a 3r 23p os ancient glebe, besides an allotment of 75 a 2r 23p apportioned to it at the enclosure in 1809. The Wesleyans, Kilhamites, Primitive Methodists and Baptists have eacha chapel in the village."
[White's "Directory of Nottinghamshire," 1853]
- Tony Burton tells us: "There was a graveyard around Beeston Parish Church which we used to walk through on our way to school - and also a Cemetery on the north side of Beeston off Wollaton Road."
- John Mellors advises: "By an order in council dated 1888 all burials in Beeston Parish Church churchyard except in such wholly walled graves now existing in the said churchyard every coffin buried therein must be separately enclosed by stonework or brickwork properly cemented. The entries following unless otherwise specified all relate to burials in the consecrated portion of Beeston Parish Cemetery conducted by the parochial clery. A portion of the cemetery was consecrated by the Lord Bishop of Southwell on 20 Mar 1888"
- The parish was in the Beeston sub-district of the Basford Registration District.
- The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
Census
Year |
Piece No. |
| 1841 |
H.O. 107 / 856 |
| 1851 |
H.O. 107 / 2127 |
| 1861 |
R.G. 9 / 2440 |
| 1871 |
R.G. 10 / 3488 |
| 1891 |
R.G. 12 / 2671 |
- The original church here was built in the 11th century.
- The old Anglican parish church of St. John the Baptist was partially pulled down in 1842 and rebuilt. The new church was consecrated on 5 Sept. 1844.
- Roger TEMPLEMAN has a photograph of the Beeston parish church on Geo-graph, taken in 2010. This shot accentuates the slight lean of the tower.
- Anglican parish registers exist from 1553.
- Check out David HALLAM's Beeston Village website for his files on family history and church records. To contact him vie e-mail, send your e-mail to David Hallam.
- The church has its own Beeston Church website with an excellent interior photograph.
- A Methodist church was built here in 1902.
- The parish was in the Beeston sub-district of the Basford Registration District.
- Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
The town lies 123 miles north of London and 4 miles west-south-west of Nottingham. The River Trent runs through the parish, just south of the town. The parish covers about 1,600 acres.
The village is normally regarded as a suburb of Nottingham. If you are planning a visit:
- Check out David Hallam's Beeston Village website.
- By automobile the A52 runs through the very nothern part of the village and the A6005 arterial off the M1 at juntion 25 runs through the heart of the village.
- By rail, the Midlands Counties Railway provides service to Beeston station.
- Nottingham city provides daily bus service as well.
- In the early 1800s Beeston was known as a silk weaving centre.
- In 1831 the only silk mill in town was burned to the ground during the Reform Riots. In the 1880s, the replacement mill employed over 500 workers.
- By 1881 the town had a railway station on the Midland Railway, situated on Pasture Lane. At that time, about 78 trains passed through the station daily.
- In 1901 the National Telephone Company built a factory here to manufacture telephone equipment.
- Beeston is noted for being the home of William Abednego THOMPSON (1811 to 1880), a famous bare-knuckle boxer. His nicname became "Bendigo" beause of his habit of bobbing and weaving as he moved around the ring. Although born in Sneinton, Bendigo retired to Beeston where he died after a falling down stairs in his house at age 69.
- The national grid reference is SK 5336.
- You'll want an Ordinance Survey "Explorer" map, which has 2.5 inches to the mile scale.
- See our Maps page for additional resources.
- David LALLY has a photograph of the Beeston World War Memorial on Geo-graph, taken in 2008.
- David LALLY also has a photograph of the Beeston Boer War Memorial on Geo-graph, taken in 2006.
- David LALLY also has a photograph of the Beeston Crimean War Memorial on Geo-graph, taken in 2010.
- Alan MURRAY-RUST has a photograph of the Chilwell Memorial Institute dedication on Geo-graph, taken in 2009.
- HMS Bulwark, a pre-Dreadnought battleship launched in 1899, was assigned to Channel patrol during World War One. She exploded on 26 November 1914 while moored in the Medway River killing 736 men, at least two of whom were from Beeston. There is a memorial at Southsea listing the names of all the men who died.
The Beeston Roll of Honour is recorded as part of the Southwell Church History Project.
- This parish was in the Broxtowe Hundred or Wapentake.
- In 1935 the Civil Parish of Beeston was abolished and the area was amalgamated with Stapleford Civil Parish to the west.
- The parish is currently governed as wards in the Broxtowe Burough Council.
- Beeston had its own workhouse for the poor by 1775. This was operated under the Poor Law statute of 1601. When the Gilbert Act was passed in 1782, this workhouse became a poor house for the elderly and infirm poor. Working or able-bodied poor were denied entrance. The web-page author does not know the history of this facility.
- The Common Land was enclosed here by an Act passed in 1809. Parts of Bramcote Moor were enclosed in 1847
- After the Poor Law Amendment Act reforms of 1834, this parish became a part of the Basford Poor Law Union.
| Year |
Inhabitants |
| 1851 |
3,016 |
| 1871 |
3,134 |
| 1881 |
4,479 |
- A 5-member School Board was formed in 1881.
- In 1881, there was a National School on Brown Lane.
- In 1881, there was a Mill School for girls. It provided half-time education for girls in the employ of the silk mill run by John WATSON and his son.
- In 1881, there was a Wesleyan School in the town.
- Just to the north-west is the University of Nottingham.
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[Last updated: 17-February-2013 - Louis R. Mills]
