Contents Buckinghamshire  Nearby Places Hedgerley "Hedgerley (Slough Stat., 5 m.; Gerard's Cross Stat., 3 m.) is a small and secluded village in one of the characteristic Buckinghamshire bottoms, among a tangle of copses, small grass fields, and meadows. Though without any distinct feature it is extremely typical of an old village among the uplands of the county, having undergone few changes. It is dominated on the E. very picturesquely by the church, which is perched on a grassy headland." [Buckinghamshire, by E.S. Roscoe]

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", E.S. Roscoe, London Methuen & Co Ltd, 1935.
"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: Burnham and area, Volume 13", Peter Quick.

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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 Hedgerley 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

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Census

In 1798 the Posse Comitatus listed 34 men between the ages of 16 and 60 in Hedgerley.

In the earliest government census of 1801, there were 137 inhabitants in 23 families living in 23 houses recorded in Hedgerley.

* = 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.

• 1841 - Full transcription for Hedgerley is available free online - click here to see
• 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.

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Church History

• Rectors of the Parish Church of St Mary the Virgin

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

• Buckinghamshire Stained Glass

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Church Records

The original copies of the parish registers for St Mary the Virgin, Hedgerley 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 Hedgerley showed the following numbers:

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History & Descriptions

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

HEDGERLEY, in the hundred and deanery of Burnham, lies about two miles and a half south-east of Beaconsfield. The principal manor has passed with that of Denham, and is now the property of Benjamin Way esq. A manor, called Hedgerley-Bulstrode, passed from the Bulstrodes to the Brudenells, by the marriage of William Brudenell esq. with Agnes, daughter and heir of Robert Bulstrode esq. of Hedgerley-Bulstrode, in the fourteenth century.

In the parish church are some memorials of the Bulstrode family. Mr. Way is patron of the rectory.

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Names, Geographical

The name Hedgerley means 'Hycga's clearing'.

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Photographs

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

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[Last updated: 1st October 2005 - Kevin Quick]