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OLDSWINFORD

OLDSWINFORD is a parish in the diocese of Worcester. It was historically a large parish in the north of Worcestershire, but also included Amblecote in Staffordshire. It included the township of Stourbridge, now a large town and its own parish. It also included Lye and Wollescote.

[Description(s) provided by Dave Huddart/Peter Abbott ©2004]

Archives and Libraries

• The most significant collections are at:
  
  • Worcester County Record Office
  • Dudley Archives
  • Stourbridge Public Library

Cemeteries

• Oldswinford St Mary's Monumental Inscriptions have been transcribed and are available from BMSGH Bookshop.

Census Records

• Oldswinford Census Records for 1841-1901 and any indexes and inscriptions can found in the usual places described on GENUKI Worcestershire.

Church History

• St Mary's Church:

  St Mary's Church, Oldswinford.

  The sandstone church has a C14th west tower, but is mostly Victorian - nave of 1843 by Griffiths and chancel, vestry and south chancel of 1898 by Chatwin. There was also a spire but this was removed in 1982. The earliest known rector was John in 1199, but other famous rectors include Simon Ford 1676-1699, who had been chaplain to the King and the Lord Mayor of London. Thomas Philip Foley, rector 1797-1835 was a supporter of the prophetess Joanna Southcott (who lived briefly in the rectory, and her sealed box of predictions was kept there). The church history is described in The story of St Mary's church and the parish of Oldswinford, by N Perry, 1989. 950643971.

Church Records

• Parish registers date back to 1602 and are held by Worcester County Record Office.

• Printed transcripts 1693-1813 have been produced by BMSGH and are available from BMSGH Bookshop and GENFair, also Poor Law records.

Civil Registration

• Certificates of birth, death and marriage can be obtained from the Superintendent Registrars at Stourbridge District Register Office.

Court Records

• Quarter Session records which mention Oldswinford are included on the Access to Archives Catalogue [search for oldswinford AND quarter sessions].

Description and Travel

• The parish stretched from Norton and Wollaston through Amblecote, Upperswinford and Stourbridge (Bedcote) in the middle to Lye, Wollescote, Foxcote and Oldnall in the east. It was surrounded by Kinver, Pedmore, Halesowen and Kingswinford.

  The parish later lost Amblecote, Stourbridge, Wollaston, Stambermill, Wollescote and Norton.

  The name is derived from the place where swine forded the river (Stour).

Gazetteers

• The transcription of the section for Old Swinford from the National Gazetteer (1868) provided by Colin Hinson.

Genealogy

• Genealogy webpages can be found on:
  
  • Stourbridge
  • Black Country Genealogy Site

History

• Wychbury Hill is an Iron Age hillfort, and there is the line of a Roman road which can still be followed.

• The first documentary evidence is in a charter of 954 referring to a small estate of 6 hides called Swine Ford. Referred to as Suineforde in the Domesday Book 1086. It later became known as Oldswinford to distingish it from the adjacent Swinford Regis or Kingswinford over the river.

• Parish history is briefly described on Oldswinford.com.

• Much of the more significant history of the parish is tied up with that of the township Stourbridge, now a major town and parish in its own right. The definitive history is given in:
  • Perry, N - History of Stourbridge. Phillimore, 2001. ISBN 1-86077-183-1.

• Specifically there is a History of Wollaston website.

Manors

• The historical parish comprised the manor of Amblecote in Staffordshire, and the manor of Oldswinford itself. There was later a submanor of Bedcote (for the township of Stourbridge). The manor was variously owned by the Beauchamps, the Crown, the Lyttletons, the Foleys, and the Earls of Dudley.

Maps

• Facsimile maps for Stourbridge North (1901) and Stourbridge South (1914) have been published by Alan Godfrey Maps available from BMSGH Bookshop.

Occupations

• The most well-known occupation was glassmaking, and old glassmaking families are given in URL no longer valid
  

Poorhouses, Poor Law etc

• Poor Law records have been indexed and can be bought from BMSGH Bookshop.

Probate Records

• Being in the diocese of Worcester, most wills proved prior to 1858 will be at Worcester Record Office.

Schools

• King Edward Grammar School was founded in 1552.

• Oldswinford Hospital School:
  

  Oldswinford Hospital School was founded in 1667. Its school records are included in the Access to Archives Catalogue [search for oldswinford AND hospital]

Societies

• BMSGH Stourbridge Branch has many members researching in the Oldswinford area.

[(c) Genuki 2004 Compiled : Dave Huddart. Last modified by him 7th September 2004]
Amended 10th April 2006 - Peter Abbott.

© Copyright Peter Abbott, GENUKI and contributors, 1999-2009, &c.
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