GenUKI Contents

Cambridgeshire

MELDRETH

"MELDRETH, a parish in the hundred of Armingford, county Cambridge, 4 miles north-east of Royston, its post town, and 9½ south of Cambridge. It is a station on the Cambridge and Hitchin railway. The village, which is inconsiderable, is situated on the river Cam, and is entirely agricultural. The tithes were commuted for land and a money payment under an Act of Enclosure in 1813. The living is a vicarage* in the diocese of Ely, value £224, in the patronage of the dean and chapter. The church, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, has an embattled tower. The parochial charities produce about £9 per annum. Andrew Marvell, father of the poet and statesman, was born in this parish. There are places of worship for the Independents and Wesleyans."

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

Cemeteries

• The Monumental Inscriptions for Holy Trinity churchyard 1691-1917 are recorded in the Cambridge Records Office. The Monumental Inscriptions are available from the Cambridgeshire Family History Society Publications list (search)

Census

• The Census Records from 1841-1891 can be found in the Cambridgeshire Archives. In addition the 1851 Census for Meldreth is available in full transcript form, on microfiche, from the Cambridgeshire Family History Society Publications list (search)

Churches

• Holy Trinity Church, Meldreth.

Church History

• "The church of Holy Trinity is a building of stone and clunch in the Perpendicular style, consisting of chancel, nave, south aisle, south porch and an embattled western tower containing a clock and 5 bells: in the church is monument to George Pike esq. who died 1658, and the family vault of the Mortlock family: there is memorial window, erected by the Rev. E. W. Cory, former vicar, to the memory of his wife; another by friends of the Rev. E. W. Cory, previously mentioned and a third was presented by J. G. Mortlock esq. in 1885: the church was restored in 1898, at a cost of £1,200, and has 300 sittings. The register of baptism and burials dates from 1681; marriages, 1692."
• "There is a Congregational chapel, erected in 1852, having sittings for 100 persons, and a Wesleyan chapel."
  [Kelly's Directory - 1929]

Church Records

• Church of England
  • Meldreth, Holy Trinity: Records of baptisms 1682-1963 (including extracts 1668-90), marriages 1682-1992, burials 1678-1950 and banns 1754-1813, 1870-1946 reside in the Cambridgeshire Archives. The Bishop's Transcripts for the years 1599-1683, 1703-1862 can be found in the Cambridge University Library. Indexed transcripts exist in the Cambridgeshire Archives for Bishop's Transcript's 1599-1684, baptisms 1682-1851, marriages 1682-1851 and burials 1678-1851.
• Methodist Church
  • Meldreth Methodist Church: Records exist for baptisms 1948-68.

Gazetteers

• A transcript of the Meldreth parish entries from Samuel Lewis's 1835 Topographical Dictionary of England,
• A transcript of the Meldreth parish entries from 1929 Kellys Directory of Cambridgeshire

Military History

• "Opposite the entrance to the railway station is a cross, erected in 1920, in memory of the men of the parish who fell in the Great War, 1914-18." [Kelly's Directory - 1929]
• The War Memorial has been transcribed and the men researched.
• The War Memorial Plaque in the Church has been transcribed and the men researched.

Societies

• Meldreth Local History Group's website includes over 600 pages on Meldreth past and present. Pages of particular interest to genealogists include transcriptions of trades directories from 1847 to 1937, family histories, memories, obituaries and funeral reports and transcriptions of the 1820 inclosure award and the 1910 Land Values Duties return. The site also has a family history message board.

Taxation

• Land Tax: records were compiled afresh each year and contain the names of owners and occupiers in each parish, but usually there is no address or place name. These records reside in the Cambridgeshire Archives for the years 1699-1720, 1798 (on microfilm), 1815-1948.