West Lydford Somerset Family History Guide

West Lydford is an Ancient Parish in the county of Somerset.

Other places in the parish include:

Alternative names:

Parish church: St. Mary

Parish registers begin:

  • Parish registers: 1733
  • Bishop’s Transcripts: 1611

Nonconformists include: Wesleyan Methodist

Adjacent Parishes

Parish History

The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales 1870

LYDFORD (WEST), a village and a parish in Shepton-Mallet district, Somerset. The village stands on the river Brue, 4¾ miles W of Castle-Cary r. station; and has a five-arched bridge across the river, a post office under Taunton, and fairs on Holy Thursday and 12 Aug. The parish comprises 1,900 acres. Real property, £2,633. Pop., 320. Houses, 69. The property is divided among a few. The manor belongs to Mrs. Colston. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Bath and Wells. Value, £350. Patron, Mrs. Colston. The church was rebuilt in 1846, at the expense of the Colstons; is in the pointed style; consists of nave, transept, and chancel, with porch and tower; and has a fine memorial window. There are a Wesleyan chapel, a national school, and charities £1 4.

Source: The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales [Wilson, John M]. A. Fullarton & Co. N. d. c. [1870-72].

A Topographical Dictionary of England 1848

LYDFORD, WEST (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Shepton-Mallet, hundred of Catsash, E. division of Somerset, 5½ miles (W.) from Castle-Cary; containing 368 inhabitants. The parish is watered by the river Brue, and comprises 1802 acres by admeasurement. The manor and estates, with the exception of a few acres, are the property of E. F. Colston, Esq., in whose family they have been for several generations. Fairs are held in May and August. The living is a rectory, valued in the king’s books at £17. 13. 4.; net income, £125; patron, Mr. Colston: the tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1827, and a glebe-house has been erected by the Rev. Dr. Colston. The church, rebuilt at the cost of Mr. Colston, was consecrated in August, 1846. The Wesleyans have a place of worship. There is a fine chalybeate spring called Hunt’s Well. The Old Roman Fosse-way passes through the parish.

Source: A Topographical Dictionary of England by Samuel Lewis 1848

Parish Records

FamilySearch

England, Somerset, West Lydford – Census ( 1 )
Census returns for West Lydford, 1841-1891
Author: Great Britain. Census Office

England, Somerset, West Lydford – Church records ( 5 )
Bishop’s transcripts for West Lydford, 1611-1867
Author: Church of England. Parish Church of West Lydford (Somersetshire)

Bishop’s transcripts for West Lydford, 1623
Author: Church of England. Parish Church of West Lydford (Somersetshire)

England, Somerset, West Lydford, parish registers, 1733-1993
Author: Somerset Record Office

Parish chest material, 1754-1884
Author: Church of England. Parish Church of West Lydford (Somersetshire)

Parish registers for West Lydford, 1733-1900
Author: Church of England. Parish Church of West Lydford (Somersetshire)

England, Somerset, West Lydford – Land and property ( 1 )
Land tax assessments for West Lydford, 1766-1827
Author: Great Britain. Court of Quarter Sessions of the Peace (Somersetshire)

England, Somerset, West Lydford – Schools ( 1 )
Admission registers of West Lydford Church of England school, 1895-1978
Author: West Lydford Church of England School (Somerset)

England, Somerset, West Lydford – Taxation ( 1 )
Land tax assessments for West Lydford, 1766-1827
Author: Great Britain. Court of Quarter Sessions of the Peace (Somersetshire)

Maps

Old maps of Britain and Europe from A Vision of Britain Through Time

Administration

  • County: Somerset
  • Civil Registration District: Shepton Mallet
  • Probate Court: Court of the Peculiar of the Prebend of West Lydford
  • Diocese: Bath and Wells
  • Rural Deanery: Pre-1845 – None, Post-1844 – Cary
  • Poor Law Union: Shepton Mallet
  • Hundred: Catsash
  • Province: Canterbury