Bleasby
"Bleasby is a pleasant but straggling village and parish, on the north bank of the Trent, 4 miles south of Southwell. Its parish, which is all in the liberty of Southwell and Scrooby, comprises the neighbouring hamlets of Goverton, Gibsmere and Notown, and contains 361 inhabitants and 1,468 acres of land, which was enclosed in 1777, when the tithes were exonerated by an allotment of 57a 2r 24p to the vicar, and 20a 1r 10p to the Chapter of Southwell.
The principal landowners are the Archbishop of York, Sir Richard Sutton, bart., the vicar of Strelley, R. K. Kelham Esq., the Trustees of Retford School, Mr. W. Alderidge, Mr. S. Potter, Mr. T. Hind, Mr. Francis Brown and Mr. J. Marriott, the former is lord of the manor. The church is a small structure, dedicated to St Mary, and its vicarage is valued in the King's books at £4, now £107. The Chapter of Southwell are the patrons, and the Rev. John William Marsh is the incumbent, and resides at the vicarage house; a neat mansion near the church, erected in 1843. The curacy of Morton was consolidated with the vicarage of Bleasby in 1841. Bleasby Hall is a neat mansion, the property and residence of Robert Kelham Kelham Esq."
[White's "Directory of Nottinghamshire," 1853]
- The parish was in the Southwell sub-district of the Southwell Registration District.
- The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
Census
Year |
Piece No. |
| 1861 |
R.G. 9 / 2472 |
- The Anglican parish church is dedicated to Saint Mary.
- The church transept was added in 1845.
- The church was enlarged and repainted in 1845 and 1852.
- The church was restored in 1869.
- You can view a portion of the church tower at Geograph.
- You can view the whole church at Geograph.
- The Anglican parish register dates from 1513.
- The church was in the deanery of Southwell.
- You can scan the 1633 Parish Register transcripts online.
- The parish was in the Southwell sub-district of the Southwell Registration District.
- Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
Bleasby is both a parish and a village on the north bank of the River Trent. The parish lies 141 miles north of London, 8 miles south-west of Newark, 1 mile north-east of Thurgarton and 4 miles south of Southwell. The parish covers 1,550 acres.
The River Trent used to be divided in two near the village and the island crated was called "The Knabs". The river has since been re-aligned and the low-lying lands used for reservoirs. If you are planning a visit:
- By automobile, take the A612 trunk road south out of Southwell for about 3 miles. At Thurgarton, turn left (esst) in the village and follow the county road that leads to Bleasby.
- Bleasby has an active railway station, and passenger service is provided by National Rail.
- Bleasby Hall was built in the 16th century.
- Bleasby Hall was, in 1853, the residence and property of Robert Kelham KELHAM Esq.
- By 1881, the Hall was occupied Mr. Robert KELHAM, Esq. J.P.
- The national grid reference is SK 7149.
- You'll want an Ordinance Survey Explorer map, which has 2.5 inches to the mile scale.
- See our Maps page for additional resources.
- The Saxon charter of 956AD records the name as Blisetune, named after a Scandanavian warrior named "Blesi".
- This place was an ancient parish in Nottinghamshire and became a modern Civil Parish when those were established.
- The parish was in the southern division of the county.
- The parish was in the Southwell and Scrooby Liberty between 1836 and 1837.
- The modern Civil Parish was in the ancient Southwell division of the Thurgarton Wapentake or Hundred.
- The Common Land was enclosed here in 1777.
- As a result of the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act reforms, this parish became part of the Southwell Poor Law Union.
| Year |
Inhabitants |
| 1801 |
215 |
| 1811 |
269 |
| 1821 |
290 |
| 1831 |
324 |
| 1841 |
353 |
| 1851 |
358 |
| 1861 |
332 |
| 1871 |
279 |
| 1881 |
296 |
| 1891 |
282 |
| 1901 |
287 |
| 1911 |
278 |
| 1921 |
288 |
| 1931 |
301 |
| 1951 |
348 |
| 1961 |
434 |
- A school for both sexes was built here in 1855.
- You can visit the Bleasby School website, but there is no history of the school yet posted there (Feb. 2013).
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[Last updated: 11-February-2013 - Louis R. Mills]
