GenUKI Contents

Bedfordshire

YELDEN

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"YELDEN, a parish in the hundred of Stodden, county Beds, 5 miles east of Higham-Ferrers, and 12 north of Bedford. It is situated in a valley, and is mentioned in Domesday survey as Ewelden. The women and children are employed in lace making. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Ely, value £300. The church, dedicated to St. Mary, contains some old stone stalls and two brasses from 1433. The Wesleyans have a chapel. The charities produce about £4 per annum. There is a National school. In the parish is the moated site of an old baronial castle. J. Sambrook Crawley, Esq., is lord of the manor."

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

Census

• The 1851 Census Index for Yelden can be found in the 1851 Index to Census of Bedfordshire, Volume 1, Book 1 available from the Bedfordshire Family History Society.

Churches

• St. Mary's Church, Yeldon.

Church History

• Church of England
  • The church of St. Mary, an almost perfect example of a Decorated church, is a building of stone, consisting of chancel, clerestoried nave of four bays, south aisle, south porch and a western tower with enriched cornice and low octagonal spire, containing a clock and 4 bells, restored in 1886 by Messrs. Taylor, of Loughborough: the chancel retains piscina and sedilia, and on the north side is a late Perpendicular vestry, between which and the chancel is a curious small recess in the wall: in the aisle is a large canopied recess with crocketed pinnacles and rich finials, and near a piscina and a bracket; on the north side of the church is a flat arched recess, with hood moulding and finial, inclosing an altar tomb with a recumbent figure supposed to represent the founder: the front of the tomb displays five quatrefoils inclosing shields; there are also three brasses, one of which has the effigy of a man in trunk hose, cloak and ruff, and is inscribed to Christopher Stickland, gent. 1628, a benefactor to the parish; mother, of a priest richly vested, has an inscription in Latin to John Heyne, rector, 1433; the third is a kneeling effigy, with ruff, representing Thomas Barker, rector, 1617: on the south side of the chancel is a stained window to John Fernie M.A. rector, ob. 1870: there are 220 sittings, 60 of which are free. The register dates from the year 1653. [Kelly's Directory - Bedfordshire - 1898]
• Non-conformist
  • The Wesleyan chapel here was rebuilt in 1884 on the site of the former chapel. [Kelly's Directory - Bedfordshire - 1898]

Church Records

• Church of England
  • The parish record transcripts for St Mary are available on microfiche for the period 1653-1812 from the Bedfordshire Family History Society.

Gazetteers

• A transcript of the Yelden parish entries from Samuel Lewis's 1835 Topographical Dictionary of England,
• A transcript of the Yelden parish entries from Kelly's 1898 Directory of Bedfordshire

Military History

• The BFHS Project in conjunction with Roll of Honour contains the Yelden War Memorial transcription for WW1 and WW2 with details of the men found on it