Contents Buckinghamshire  Nearby Places Hawridge "Hawridge is a small parish of 696 acres, of which 442 are arable land, on which crops of wheat, oats, and barley are grown, while 133 are laid down in permanent grass and 5 consist of woods and plantations. The soil is clay with a subsoil of clay and chalk, which has been worked in pits, now disused. The land lies high and has an average altitude of 588 ft. above the ordnance datum." [© copyright of the editors of The Victoria Histories of the Counties of England]

Bibliography

The following reference sources have been used in the construction of this page, and may be referred to for further detail. Most if not all of these volumes are available in the Reference section of the County Library in Aylesbury.

"Buckinghamshire Returns of the Census of Religious Worship 1851", Legg E. ed., 1991, ISBN 0 901198 27 7.
"Magna Britannia: Buckinghamshire", Lysons S. and Lysons D., 1806.
"The Place-Names of Buckinghamshire", Mawer A. and Stenton F.M., 1925.
"The Victoria History of the Counties of England: Buckinghamshire", Page W. ed., 1905-1928
"War Memorials and War Graves: Amersham, Chesham and area, Volume 10", Peter Quick.

Return to top of page

Cemeteries

The following Monumental Inscriptions are available as publications or as part of a Society library:

• Monumental Inscriptions for St Mary's church are in the library* of the Buckinghamshire Genealogical Society.
• War memorials in Hawridge have been transcribed by Peter Quick and published by the Buckinghamshire Genealogical Society.

* = material held in a Society library is generally available for loan to all members either via post, or by collection at a meeting

Return to top of page

Census

In 1798 the Posse Comitatus listed 30 men between the ages of 16 and 60 in Hawridge.

In the earliest government census of 1801, there were 121 inhabitants in 24 families living in 21 houses recorded in Hawridge.

* = No names were recorded in census documents from 1801 to 1831.
** = Census documents from 1911 to 2001 are only available in summary form. Names are witheld under the 100 year rule.

Microfilm copies of all census enumerators' notebooks for 1841 to 1891 are held at the Local Studies Libraries at Aylesbury and Milton Keynes, as well as centrally at the PRO. A table of 19th century census headcount by parish is printed in the VCH of Bucks, Vol.2, pp 96-101.

Availability of census transcripts and indexes.

• 1851 - Full transcripts and indexes for Buckinghamshire are available on CD-ROM, hard copy and microfiche from the Buckinghamshire Family History Society.
• 1861 - Available on CD-ROM with advanced search and mapping capabilities etc. from the Buckinghamshire Genealogical Society.
• 1881
  • Available on CD-ROM from the Church of the Latter Day Saints, as part of the National 1881 Census Index.
  • Available on CD-ROM for Buckinghamshire, with advanced search and mapping capabilities etc. from Drake Software.
• 1891 - Available on CD-ROM with advanced search and mapping capabilities etc. from the Buckinghamshire Genealogical Society.

Return to top of page

Church History

• Rectors of the Parish Church of St Mary

Details of the stained glass in the church can be found on the following web sites (the site includes many photos):

• Buckinghamshire Stained Glass

Return to top of page

Church Records

The original copies of the parish registers for St Mary, Hawridge have been deposited in the Buckinghamshire Record Office in Aylesbury, and they hold the following years:

Copies or indexes to the parish registers are available from societies as follows:

* = material held in a Society library is generally available for loan to all members either via post, or by collection at a meeting

An ecclesiastical census was carried out throughout England on 30 March 1851 to record the attendance at all places of worship. These returns are in the Buckinghamshire Record Office and have been published by the Buckinghamshire Record Society (vol 27). The returns for Hawridge showed the following numbers:

Return to top of page

History & Descriptions

Hawridge was described in 1806 in "Magna Britannia" as follows:

HAWRIDGE, in the hundred of Cotslow and deanery of Muresley, lies on the borders of Hertfordshire, about six miles nearly to the east of Wendover. The manor was anciently in the Mauduits and Beauchamps, who successively enjoyed the title of Earl of Warwick. Sir Thomas Peniston was lord of this manor, in the reign of Henry VIII. It was soon afterwards in the family of Tasburgh, who sold it to the Seares in 1630. It was purchased of that family in 1748, by Robert Darell esq. father of Edward Darell esq. the present proprietor. Hawridge Court, the site of the manor, is a farm-house, built on a large circular platform, surrounded with a deep trench and vallum.

In the church are some memorials of the family of Seare, and the monument of Dorothy Lady Pakington, [Footnote: She was relict of Sir Thomas Pakington knt. and afterwards married to Thomas Tasburgh esq, lord of the manor of Hawridge] who died in 1577. William Sandby esq. is patron of the rectory.

Return to top of page

Names, Geographical

The name Hawridge means 'Hawk-ridge', i.e. 'ridge frequented by hawks'.

Return to top of page

Photographs

• Buckinghamshire Church Photos by Kevin Quick.
• Buckinghamshire Records and Local Studies Service - large collection of old photos of Buckinghamshire

Return to top of page

[Last updated: 11th January 2003 - Kevin Quick]