Nottinghamshire

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Nearby Places

Walesby

"Walesby Parish includes the hamlets of Walesby and Willoughby, extending northward from Kirton to Bevercotes, under the abrupt declivity which divides the Hatfield and South Clay divisions, and westward to the River Idle. It contains 362 inhabitants, and 1,429a 1r 24p of land, all of which is a fertile sand, except the eastern side about Willoughby, which is a strong clay, and several hop-yards are in this district. The open fields were enclosed in 1821, when 152a 3r 27p were awarded to the rector in lieu of the tithes of the whole parish.
Walesby is a scattered village, halfway betwixt Tuxford and Ollerton, 3½ miles west of the former, and the same distance north-east of the latter. After the Conquest, the parish was of several fees, and Reginald Ursell gave to the monks of Rufford, "in pure alms, the service which Robert de Lexington was wont to do him for one bovate that he held of him in Walesy, viz. a pair of spurs of iron, or 2d yearly, with all reliefs, wards, excheats &c." Several other parcels of land were subsequently given to the same monastery, and after the dissolution passed to the Earl of Shrewsbury. The Duke of Newcastle and the Earl of Shrewsbury are now the principal owners, and the latter is lord of the manor and patron of the vicarage, which is valued in the King's books at £6 1s 2d, now £154, and is enjoyed by the Rev. Roger Pocklington M.A."
[White's "Directory of Nottinghamshire," 1853]

Census

• The parish was in the Kneesall sub-district of the Southwell Registration District.
  
  
• The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
  
  

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Church History

• The Anglican parish church is dedicated to Saint Edmund.
  
  

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Church Records

• The Anglican parish register dates from 1579.
  
  
• The church was in the rural deanery of Tuxford (No. 2 deanery of Retford).
  
  
• The Wesleyan Methodists had a small chapel built here before 1869.
  
  

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Civil Registration

• The parish was in the Kneesall sub-district of the Southwell Registration District.
  
  
• Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
  
  

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Description and Travel

Walesby is both a village and a parish sitting 141 miles north of London, about 3.5 miles north-east of Ollerton and 3.5 miles west of Tuxford. The parish covers 1,260 acres.

The hamlet of Willoughby is in this parish, a half mile north-east of Walesby village. Haughton is a former village and parish that are now part of Walesby parish. If you are planning a visit:

• By automobile, take the B6387 arterial road north out of Ollerton. The B6387 passes through the west edge of the village Walesby.
  

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Directories

• An extract from White's 1853 Directory relating to this parish.
  
  

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Maps

• The national grid reference is SK 6870.
  
  
• You'll want an Ordinance Survey Explorer map, which has 2.5 inches to the mile scale.
  
  
• See our Maps page for additional resources.
  
  

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Politics and Government

• This place was an ancient parish in Nottingham county and became a modern Civil Parish when those were established.
  
  
• The parish was in the Hatfield division of the ancient Bassetlaw Wapentake (Hundred) in the northern division of the county.
  
  

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Poorhouses, Poor Law, etc.

• The Common Lands were enclosed here in 1831.
  
  
• As a result of the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act reforms, this parish became part of the Southwell Poor Law Union.
  
  

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Population

Year	Population
1801	250
1851	362
1861	327
1871	286
1881	282
1891	274
1901	261
1911	233
1921	257
1931	336

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Schools

• A school was endowed here in 1760 by Rev. Richard JACKSON.
  
  
• A National School was built here before 1869.
  
  

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