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Blyth

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"This extensive parish, which is partly in Yorkshire, is nearly eight miles in length, stretching from Barnby Moor, northward to Finningley Park. It is intersected by the River Idle, the Great North Road, and the turnpikes leading from Tickhill to Worksop and Gainsborough. It contains the two chapelries of Bawtry and Austerfield, both of which are in Yorkshire, the former containing only 270 acres of land, and the latter 2,700 acres. It also comprises, besides the township of Blyth, those of Barnby-Moor-with-Bilby, Hodsock-with-Goldthorpe, Ranskill, part of Styrrup-with-Oldcoates, and Torworth. The entire parish contains 3,900 inhabitants, and 15,500 acres of land, mostly a fertile sandy soil."
[WHITE's "Directory of Nottinghamshire," 1853]

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Warning:  There is a Blyth in the Canterbury district of Kent and another just north of Newcastle also.  Make sure that you are researching in the correct area.

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Archives & Libraries

The Library at Worksop will prove useful in your research.

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Cemeteries

The Cemetery is located along the southern edge of the old village just off the A634.

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Census

  • The parish was in the Worksop Registration District.
     
  • The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
     
Census
Year
Piece No.
1841H.O. 107 / 849
1861R.G. 9 / 2413 & 2420
1871R.G. 10 / 3461
1891R.G. 12 / 2639 & 2645
1911R.G. 14 / 2024
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Church History

  • A benedictine Priory dedicated to Saint Mary was founded here in 1088.
     
  • The Anglican parish church is dedicated to St. Martin.
     
  • The church was built in Norman times.
     
  • Richard CROFT has a photograph of Blyth Church on Geo-graph, taken in September, 2005.
     
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Church Records

  • Anglican parish registers date from 1557.
     
  • The Wesleyan Methodists and the Primitive Methodists each had a chapel here.
     
  • The Wesleyan Methodists had a chapel in Torworth in 1912.
     
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Civil Registration

  • The parish was in the Worksop Registration District.
     
  • Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
     
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Description & Travel

The village, township and parish of Blyth lies approximately 145 miles north of London and 6 miles NNE of Worksop. Part of the ancient parish lies in Yorkshire.

The village lies on the River Ryton. The hamlet of Hodsock lies to the south-west and the hamlet and Township of "Torworth" is astride the Great North Road to the east. If you are planning a visit:

  • By automobile, the village is on the A1 motorway at the southern end of the Doncaster bypass. The A634 from Latby to Barnby Moor passes thru the village also.
     
  • How to know when you are there? There's a Sign!.
     
  • The village publishes the "Blyth Bulletin" with stories about local events and personalities 4 times per year.
     
You can see pictures of Blyth which are provided by:

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Directories

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Gazetteers

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History

  • There is an online History of Blyth with photographs of the church interior on the Nottinghamshire History website.
     
  • Roger GEACH has a photograph of the Blyth green on Geo-graph, taken in May, 2009.
     
  • Neal THEASBY has a photograph of the White Swan on Geo-graph, taken in December, 2015.
     
  • Andrew HILL has a photograph of the Huntsman Inn, Torworth on Geo-graph, taken in September, 2010.
     
  • Here are the names of the proprietors or victuallers that appear in various directories for the Huntsman Inn:
     
YearProprietor
1876Joseph SELBY, shopkeeper
1885John SELBY, vict.
1904Charles Edgar MORGAN
1912Mrs. Esther SPEAKMAN
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Manors

  • Blyth Hall was a Tudor style manor house, built of stone in 1684-85.
     
  • The Hall was demolished in 1972.
     
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Maps

  • See our Maps page for additional resources.
     

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SK624873 (Lat/Lon: 53.378876, -1.063436), Blyth which are provided by:

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Medical Records

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Military History

Francis WILLEY, 1st Baron Barnby, resided at Blyth Hall and was appointed High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire for 1908. He was an officer of the 2nd West Riding of Yorkshire Artillery Volunteers until his resignation in April 1891. His wife was Florence, born circa 1849 in London. Francis died in 1929 at age 97 in Nottinghamshire.

Jullian P. GUFFOGG has a photograph of a Stained-glass window dedicated to Lt. George S. MELLISH, d. 1882 aged 21, son of William MELLISH on Geo-graph, taken in December, 2019.

The War Memorial cross of Cornish granit was dedicated in December 1922 at Saint Mary and Saint Martin's churchyard.

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Military Records

In 1912, Captain Percival Naylor KENT of the Nottinghamshire Yeomanry was a resident here. He was a Captain in the Dragoon Guards in 1901 and served in the 1st Imperial Light Horse during the Boer War.

The Worksop Guardian has this column from 26 April 1918:

It is with great regret that we record the death in France of Lieut. Col. P. N. Kent. Col. Kent was long in resident at Blyth where he was very popular and respected buy all. A sidesman in the Parish Church and one always ready to give assistance in any kind of work, he will be sadly missed. His two sons are serving their King and Country. We would like to offer our deepest sympathy to Mrs. Kent, her daughter, and her sons in their great loss.

These are the names on the War Memorial Cross plaques:

  1. Willie Baker
  2. Richard Beighton
  3. Arthur Bell
  4. John Brackenbury
  5. Edgar William Calvert
  6. Albert Claypham Aka Clayton
  7. John Henry Colley
  8. Thomas Henry Cowling
  9. R. Emmerson
  10. George Alfred Espin
  11. John William Espin
  12. Harry Fenton
  13. C. Heath
  14. Richard Holmes
  15. Percival Naylor Kent
  16. Robert Maltby
  17. Thomas Henry Marrison
  18. George Henry Morley
  19. Harold Pawson
  20. Frederick Charles Rickett
  21. Sydney Rylatt
  22. D. Verdon Scott
  23. David Vincent Shillito
  24. Thomas Edward Swinn
  25. Alfred Chester Aka F Vincent
  26. Reginald Rudge Watson

Inside St. Mary and St. Martin's church is a marble tablet War Memorial with these names 9You'll notice lots of duplicates):

  1. Willie Baker
  2. Richard Beighton
  3. Arthur Bell
  4. John Brackenbury
  5. Edgar William Calvert
  6. Albert Claypham Aka Clayton
  7. John Henry Colley
  8. Thomas Henry Cowling
  9. R. Emmerson
  10. George Alfred Espin
  11. John William Espin
  12. Harry Fenton
  13. C. Heath
  14. Richard Holmes
  15. Percival Naylor Kent
  16. Robert Maltby
  17. Thomas Henry Marrison
  18. George Henry Morley
  19. Harold Pawson
  20. Frederick Charles Rickett
  21. Sydney Rylatt
  22. Verdon Scott
  23. David Vincent Shillito
  24. Thomas Edward Swinn
  25. Alfred Chester Aka F Vincent
  26. Reginald Rudge Watson
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Politics & Government

  • The portion of the parish in Nottinghamshire was in the Hatfield division of the ancient Bassetlaw Wapentake in the northern division of the county.
     
  • This entry appears in the Bawtry parish register:
31 Jul 1858: Bawtry was separated from Blyth and with Austerfield was made a distinct parish under the name of the parish of Bawtry with Austerfield by order in Council signed on 31 Jul 1858. R HINES curate of Bawtry
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Poor Houses, Poor Law

  • Bastardy cases would be heard at the Retford petty session hearings held in West Retford.
     
  • The parish had two almshouses as well as dwellings for six poor persons in 1881.
     
  • The Torworth township Common Lands were enclosed here in 1800 and 1807.
     
  • After the Poor Law Amendment Act reforms of 1834, the Torworth Township became part of the East Retford Poor Law Union.
     
  • After the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834, the rest of this parish became part of the Worksop Poor Law Union.
     
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Population

YearBarnby MoorBlythHodsockTorworth
1801141589157143
1851261765205258
1881 618220 
1901213540227213
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Schools

  • The Saint Mary and Saint Martin School was built in 1939.