Elstow Bedfordshire Family History Guide
Elstow is an Ancient Parish in the county of Bedfordshire.
Alternative names: Helenstow
Parish church: St. Mary and St. Helen
Parish registers begin:
- Parish registers: 1641 (Free Online)
- Bishop’s Transcripts: 1602
Nonconformists include: Independent/Congregational
Table of Contents
Adjacent Parishes
Parish History
The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales 1870
ELSTOW, a village and a parish in the district and county of Bedford. The village stands on a branch of the river Ouse, near the Bedford branch of the North-western railway, 1¾ mile S by W of Bedford; and has a post office under Bedford, and fairs on 15 May and 5 Nov. A Benedictine nunnery was founded here, in the time of William the Conqueror, by Judith, the Conqueror’s niece, the Countess of Huntingdon; is said to have been very beautiful; and was called Helenstow, ultimately Elstow. John Bunyan, the author of the Pilgrim’s Progress, was a native of this village; and his cottage, in a renovated condition is still standing.
The parish comprises 1, 522 acres. Real property, £3, 187. Pop., 618. Houses, 118. The property is all in one estate. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Ely. Value, £75. Patron, S. Whitbread, Esq. The church belonged to the nunnery; is Norman, with a steeple; has two brasses of 1427 and 1530; and includes a chapter-house. There are an Independent chapel, and charities £45.
Source: The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales [Wilson, John M]. A. Fullarton & Co. N. d. c. [1870-72].
Leonard’s Gazetteer of England and Wales 1850
Elstow, 2 m. S.W. Bedford. P. 562
Source: Leonard’s Gazetteer of England and Wales; Second Edition; C. W. Leonard, London; 1850
A Topographical Dictionary of England 1848
ELSTOW (St. Mary and St. Helen), a parish, in the hundred of Redborne-stoke, union and county of Bedford, 1¼ mile (S. by W.) from Bedford; containing 562 inhabitants. This place was distinguished for an abbey founded in the reign of William the Conqueror, by his niece Judith, Countess of Huntingdon, for nuns of the Benedictine order, and which flourished till the Dissolution, when the society consisted of an abbess and 21 nuns, and its revenue was £325. 2. 1.
The parish comprises by measurement 1600 acres; the soil is partly dry and gravelly, and partly clayey. Fairs for cattle are held on the 14th of May and 5th of November, each for two days. The living is a perpetual curacy, valued in the king’s books at £7. 9.; net income, £75; patron and impropriator, W. H. Whitbread, Esq. The church, originally the church of the abbey, and now the only remaining portion of that establishment, is a stately structure in the Norman style, with a detached tower on the north side. John Bunyan, author of the Pilgrim’s Progress, was born here.
Source: A Topographical Dictionary of England by Samuel Lewis 1848
Parish Registers
Elstow Parish Registers 1602 – 1812
Elstow Parish Registers 1602 – 1812 Bedfordshire parish registers by Bedfordshire (England); Emmison, F. G. (Frederick George), 1907-1995, editor.
Elstow Baptisms 1602 – 1812 – The original Registers of Baptisms are extant only from 1641; the baptisms before this date are therefore copied from the “Bishop*’ Transcripts”, which commence in 1602.
Elstow Marriages 1602 – 1812 – The original Registers of Marriages are extant only from 1641; the marriages before this date are therefore copied from the “Bishops’ Transcripts.”
Elstow Burials 1602 – 1812 – The original Registers of Burials are extant only from 1641; the burials before this date are therefore copied from the “Bishops’ Transcripts.”
London Marriage Licences and Allegations 1521 to 1869
The following have been extracted from London Marriage Licences 1521 to 1869.
Abbreviations. — B. Bishop of London’s Office; D. Dean and Chapter of Westminster; F. Faculty Office of Archbishop of Canterbury; V. Registry of the Vicar-General of Canterbury.
Crompton, Lovet, of Elstow, Beds, esq., bachelor, 30, and Mrs. Anne Wittewronge, of Rothamstead, Herts, spinster, 26, with consent of her father. Sir John Wittewronge, knight and bart. — at Harpenden, Redbourn, or Whethamstead, Herts. 10 Feb. 1684/5. F.
Hillersdon, Thomas, of Elston, Beds, esq., bachelor, 21 and upwards, and Mrs. Mary Foorth, of Hackney, Middlesex, spinster, about 19, consent of father, John Foorth, alderman, of London — at All Hallows-in-the-Wall or St. Dunstaii-in-the-East. 12 July, 1675. V.
Nedham, Edward, of Illston, co. Leicester, esq., bachelor, about 30, and Mrs. Mary Thorne, spinster, aged 25, consent of father, Giles Thorne, D.D., Archdeacon of Bucks, alleged by Richard Nedham, of St. Faith, London, mercer — at Ellstow, Beds. 25 Sep. 1663
Source: London Marriage Licences 1521 to 1869; Edited by Joseph Foster; London 1887
Parish Records
FamilySearch
Bedfordshire Historical Directories
Directory Transcriptions
Directors of Companies
The following people were listed in the Directory of Directors 1881 as directors of companies who were either living in Elstow or the company was based in Elstow or both.
Wigram – Mr Francis S Wigram, Elstow, Bedford, is a director of the London and Hanseatic Bank Limited
Kelly’s Directory of the Wine and Spirit Trades, with which are included Brewers and Maltsters 1884
Marked thus * are Small Brewers who brew the beer they sell.
ELSTOW, Bedford
Brewer
Tucker Henry *
Source: The Post office directory of the brewers and maltsters [afterw.] Kelly’s directory of the wine and spirit trades, with which are included brewers and maltsters By Kelly’s directories, ltd. 1884
The Post Office Directory of Bedfordshire 1869
ELSTOW (formerly called HELENSTOW) is a parish and pleasant village, one mile south from Bedford, in the hundred of Redbornestoke, union and county court district of Bedford, rural deanery and archdeaconry of Bedford, and diocese of Ely, situated on the main road from Bedford London.
The villagers are employed in pillow lace making.
Parish Clerk William Hall
National School Miss Sharp mistress
Ashton Samuel esq
Cole Mr William
Macan Turner Arthur esq JP
Manning Mrs
Chamberlain William blacksmith
Cranfield Emery farmer
Crouch William baker & farmer
Manning Robert farmer
Mayhew Elizabeth Mrs shopkeeper
Pestell John farmer
Pointer Thomas farmer
Prole Benjamin farmer
Risley William farmer
Robinson Henry cart owner
Slater John, Swan & bricklayer
Smith James Morris boot & shoe maker
Smith Samuel baker & farmer
Smith William shopkeeper & tailor
Southam William shopkeeper
Tatham Stephen market gardener
Tucker Hen Red Lion farmer & brewer
Source: The Post office directory of Northamptonshire, Huntingdonshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, and Oxfordshire By Kelly’s directories, ltd 1869
Administration
- County: Bedfordshire
- Civil Registration District: Bedford
- Probate Court: Court of the Archdeaconry of Bedford
- Diocese: Pre-1837 – Lincoln, Post-1836 – Ely
- Rural Deanery: Bedford
- Poor Law Union: Bedford
- Hundred: Redbornestoke
- Province: Canterbury