GenUKI Contents

Bedfordshire

GREAT BARFORD

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"GREAT BARFORD, a parish in the hundred of Barford, in the county of Bedford, 6 miles to the east of Bedford. St. Neot's is its post town. It lies on the north-west bank of the river Ouse, which is navigable, and is crossed by an ancient bridge. The living is a vicarage united with that of Roxton, in the diocese of Ely. The church is dedicated to All Saints. The Wesleyans have a chapel here.

[The above was transcribed (and edited) from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland 1868]
by Colin Hinson ©2023

The following information was transcribed by Craig Pickup from Kelly's Bedfordshire Directory, 1940

• "GREEN END, a hamlet in the parish of Great Barford, county of Bedfordshire, ¼ mile west of Great Barford."
• "THE CREAKERS, a single house in the parish of Great Barford, county of Bedfordshire, 1½ miles north west of Great Barford. This house is on the site of an old manor house."

Cemeteries

• Photographs of the over 770 gravestones in Great Barford graveyard.

Census

• The 1851 Census Index for Great Barford can be found in the 1851 Index to Census of Bedfordshire, Volume 2, Book 3 available from the Bedfordshire Family History Society.
• Steven Gibbs has placed census information on-line for the following census:
  • 1841, 1851, 1861, 1871, 1891 and 1901.

Churches

• Here are photographs of Churches etc. in the parish:
  • All Saints Church, Great Barford.
    • Internal view looking down the nave (during renovations)
    • The 13th Century Font
  • The Massive tree next to the Church, Great Barford. Would you have a tree this size next to your house?
  • An old photograph of All Saints Church, Great Barford.
• There are photographs and a description of All Saints on the Bedfordshire Parish Churches website.

Church History

• Church of England
  • The church of All Saints is a handsome structure chiefly in the Perpendicular style (the tower only being ancient), and consists of chancel, nave, aisles and an embattled western tower with pinnacles and a small lead-covered spire, containing 5 bells: in the chancel is a mural monument to Thomas Anscell, his wife, and family, 1591, with figures in high relief: there is a brass with two effigies, and one loose to John Fitzgeffrey, 1535: attached to the chancel is a vault of the Francklin family, and on a marble slab are recorded the names of those deposited therein: the stained east window, erected in 1864, is a memorial to Mr. Arnold, of Great Barford House: the font, of Early English date, is octagonal and supported on four low shafts: the church was repaired and enlarged in 1849 and again enlarged in 1860, and will seat 430 persons. The register dates from the year 1564. [Kelly's Directory - Bedfordshire - 1898]
• Non-conformist
  • Here is a Wesleyan chapel, built in 1824. [Kelly's Directory - Bedfordshire - 1898]

Church Records

• Church of England
  • The parish record transcripts for All Saints are available on microfiche for the period 1564-1812 from the Bedfordshire Family History Society.
  • Steven Gibbs has been indexing some of the parish records for Great Barford. The registers and approximate dates covered are Baptisms 1813-1892, Burials 1841-1900, Marriages 1813-1904. Please note that these are not formal transcriptions. He has modified some spellings and corrected obvious mistakes (and omitted some fields, such as officiating clergyman).

Gazetteers

• A transcript of the GreatBarford parish entries from Samuel Lewis's 1831 Topographical Dictionary of England,
• A transcript of the GreatBarford parish entries from Samuel Lewis's 1835 Topographical Dictionary of England,
• A transcript of the GreatBarford parish entries from The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales, 1866-9

Military History

• The BFHS Project in conjunction with Roll of Honour contains the Great Barford Village Hall and Church War Memorials transcription for WW1 and WW2 with details of the men found on it.

Voting Registers

• The registers: 1847/8 Electoral Register, 1867/8 Electoral Register and 1874 Electoral Register are on-line from Steven Gibbs site.