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Huntingdonshire

Nearby places

LEIGHTON BROMSWOLD

"LEIGHTON BROMSWOLD, (or Leighton-Bromeswold or Leighton), a parish in the hundred of Leightonstone, county Huntingdon, 7 miles north of Kimbolton, its post town, and 10 west of Huntingdon. The village, which is small and irregularly built, is situated on a branch of the river Ouse. It is wholly agricultural. At Leighton Gorse is a meet for Earl Fitzwilliam's hounds. The land is nearly evenly divided between arable and pasture. There is a chalybeate spring, formerly in high repute. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Ely, value £90, in the patronage of the bishop. The church, dedicated to St. Mary, is a neat edifice, with a tower. There is a National school. Tho trustees of the late John Norris, Esq., are lords of the manor.

Cemeteries

• Monumental Inscriptions from the Parish Churchyard (approximately 183 entries) are available from the Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire FHS.

Census

• Census information for this parish (1841 - 1891) is held in the Huntingdon Records Office.
• The full 1841 Census of Leighton Bromswold Parish is available as fiche set C104.
• The full 1851 Census of Leighton Bromswold Parish is available as fiche set C54.
• A Surname Index of the 1881 Census of the Huntingdon Registration District, in which Leighton Bromswold was enumerated (RG11/1602, Folios 57a - 66a), and which took place on 3rd April 1881, is available as fiche set C3.
• A full transcription of the 1891 Census of the Spaldwick sub-District of the Huntingdon Registration District (RG12/1236) in which Leighton Bromswold was enumerated, and which took place on 5th April 1891, is available as fiche set C8.
• The above mentioned fiche are available from the Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire FHS.

Churches

• St. Mary's Church, Leighton Bromswold.

Church History

• The church of St. Mary consists of a chancel, nave, north transept, south transept, west tower, and north and south porches. The walls are of coursed rubble with stone dressings except for the tower which is faced with ashlar. The roofs are covered with tiles and lead.
• The church is not mentioned in the Domesday survey of 1086. A chancel and aisled nave were built around 1250, but this chancel was apparently rebuilt about 1310, and large transepts were added to the nave some 40 years later. Probably the aisles were partly rebuilt and new windows inserted in them, and perhaps a clearstory added to the nave towards the end of the 15th century.
• At the beginning of the 17th century, the church was in a ruinous condition and, apparently about 1606 a rebuilding was commenced. The south arcade and aisle were pulled down and the south wall of an aisle-less nave and south porch were built. The work, however, was soon stopped for lack of funds, and for 20 years, the church 'was so decayed, so little and so useless that the parishoners could not meet to perform their duty to God in public prayer and praises'. the nave was, of course, roof-less and it is said that a local barn belonging to the Duke of Lennox was used for divine services.
• Shortly after 1626, the Rev. George Herbert completed the work by pulling down the north arcade and aisle and building the north porch. He reroofed the whole church and put in a pulpit, reading desk, dwarf screen and seating. The west tower was built by the Duke of Lennox in 1634.
• The church was restored again in 1870.

Church Records

• The following are available in the Huntingdon Records Office.
  • Baptisms: 1604-1851 (indexed transcriptions), 1813-1876, 1876-1994.
  • Banns: 1755-1802 (indexed transcriptions), 1806-1811, 1963-1966.
  • Marriages: 1604-1851 (indexed transcriptions), 1806-1812, 1837-1960, 1961-1986.
  • Burials: 1604-1851 (indexed transcriptions), 1813-1915, 1915-1991.
  • Bishop's Transcripts: 1604-5, 1618-19, 1627/1813-23, 1827-59.
• The Huntingdonshire Marriage Indexes include marriages from this parish. These are, at present, issued in alphabetical listings in series: 1601-1700, and 1701-1754, and are available from the Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire FHS.

Civil Registration

• Leighton Bromswold was originally in the Huntingdon Registration District from 1st July 1837. Subsequently it became part of the Spaldwick sub-District, but it is now directly under the Huntingdon District again.

Gazetteers

• A transcript of the LeightonBromswold parish entries from Stepehen Whatley's 1750 Topographical Gazetteer of England,
• A transcript of the LeightonBromswold parish entries from 1932 Victoria County Series
• A transcript of the LeightonBromswold parish entries from Samuel Lewis's 1835 Topographical Dictionary of England,

Military History

• The war memorial with detailed information about those who fell is available on the Roll of Honour site for Huntingdonshire.

Names, Geographical

• Lecton (xi cent.),
• Leghton,
• Leghton-upon-Brouneswold (Brunneswold) (xiv cent.).
• The usual civil parish spelling is 'Leighton'; but known as Leighton Bromswold for ecclesiastical purposes.

Poor Houses, Poor Law, etc.

• The parish of Leighton Bromswold was in the Huntingdon Union for Poor Law administration.
• Births and Deaths registered in the Huntingdon Union Workhouse (1838 - 1949) are available, as fiche set D10, from the Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire FHS.

Population

• Population in 1801 - 312.
• Population in 1851 - 455.
• Population in 1901 - 287.
• Population in 1951 - 222.
• Population in 1971 - 159.
• Population in 1991 - 216.