Alvaston

The Alvaston Library is located on the London Road, with parking located behind the building.

Alternatively, consider using the Derby City Library.

• The parish was in the Shardlow sub-district of the Shardlow Registration District.
   
• The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
   

• There was a small chapel here in Saxon times.
   
• The Anglican parish church is dedicated to Saint Michael and All Angels.
   
• The church was rebuilt in 1855.
   
• Visit the church website for more information.
   
• The church seats 374.
   
• Ian CALDERWOOD has a photograph of St. Michael and All Angels' Church on Geo-graph, taken in May, 2012.

• The Anglican parish register dates from 1614.
   
• Marriages at Alvaston, 1614-1812 are available in Nigel BATTY-SMITH's database of scanned images of Phillimore's Parish Registers.
   
• Mike SPENCER has provided a partial extract of burials found in the parish register. Your additions and corrections are welcomed.
   
• The church was in the rural deanery of Melbourne.
   
• Derek WOSIK has a photograph of the Methodist Church on Geo-graph, taken in March, 2007.
   
• Derek WOSIK also has a photograph of the Baptist Church on Geo-graph, taken in March, 2007.

• Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
   
• The parish was in the Shardlow sub-district of the Shardlow Registration District.

"ALVASTON, a chapelry in the parish of Derby St. Michael, in the hundred of Morleston and Litchurch in the county of Derby, 3 miles to the S.E. of Derby. It is situated on the river Derwent, near the Midland railway, and the Derby canal goes through the parish. The living is a perpetual curacy in the diocese of Lichfield, value £116, in the gift of the parishioners. The Wesleyan Methodists have a chapel here: The principal residence is Alvaston House."

[Description(s) from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868)
Transcribed by Colin HINSON ©2003]

Today, Alvaston functions as a suburb of Derby city, on the A6 trunk road only 3 miles from Derby city centre. The village has grown considerably in the last 150 years. Allenton is considered a portion of Alvaston.

Keith EVANS has a photograph of the Milepost on Geo-graph, taken in November, 2012. This is to remind you how far you are from London.

• Geograph
• Flickr

• Ann ANDREWS provides a transcription of the Alvaston entry from Kelly's Directory of the Counties of Derby, Notts, Leicester and Rutland (1891).

• Ask for a calculation of the distance from Alvaston to another place.

• The skeleton of a 120,000-year-old hippopotamus was found in Allenton, along with the skeletons of an elephant, brown bear, hyena and bison. These are on display at the Derby Museum.
   
• The "Allenton" hamlet, formerly "Allentown", started in 1878 when Isaac ALLEN built the first houses here.
   
• Transcription of section of Lysons' Topographical and Historical Account of Derbyshire, 1817, for Alvaston by Barbarann AYARS.
   

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SK385335 (Lat/Lon: 52.897572, -1.429131), Alvaston which are provided by:

• OpenStreetMap
• Google Maps
• StreetMap (Current Ordnance Survey maps)
• Bing (was Multimap)
• Old Maps Online
• National Library of Scotland (Old Ordnance Survey maps)
• Vision of Britain (Click "Historical units & statistics" for administrative areas.)
• English Jurisdictions in 1851 (Unfortunately the LDS have removed the facility to enable us to specify a starting location, you will need to search yourself on their map.)
• Magic (Geographic information) (Click + on map if it doesn't show)
• GeoHack (Links to on-line maps and location specific services.)

• All places within the same township/parish shown on an Openstreetmap map.
• Nearby townships/parishes shown on an Openstreetmap map.
• Nearby places shown on an Openstreetmap map.

• Major Lincoln SANDWITH of the 8th Hussars Calvary Reserve resided in Alvaston in 1911 and 1912. He can be found here in the 1911 census. He would die at age 60 in London in 1927.
   
• Chris J. DIXON has a photograph of the War Memorial Village sign on Geo-graph, taken in April, 2005.
   
• The War Memorial plaque is located in the north aisle of St Michael and All Angels Church.
   
• Chris J. DIXON also has a photograph of the War Memorial on Geo-graph, taken in April, 2005.

These are the Casualties buried at St. Michael's churchyard:

1. Flt. Srgt. Robert DUCKWORTH. RAF Vol. Rsrv., died 16 Oct. 1943, son of William and Lillie DUCKWORTH.
2. Pte. Lawrence RYDE. 1/5 Btln. Sherwood Foresters, age 33, died 9 Aug. 1947, husband of Victoria Gertrude RYDE.
3. Fying Ofc. Frank Melville SMITH, RAF Vol. Rsrv., age 34, died 7 July 1943, husband of Dorothy May SMITH. of Borrowash.
4. Corp. Abram HARTSHORNE. Army Pay Corps, died age 27, 3 Nov 1918, Son of Abram Hardy and Ann HARTSHORNE.
5. Pte. Harry COLE. 1/5 Btln. Derbyshire Yeomanry, age 29, died 15 Dec. 1915, son of Mary Jane COLE.
6. Driver Harry Lewis HUDSON. Royal Field Artillery, age 26, died 15 Nov. 1918, son of George Frederick and Jemima HUDSON.

Jane TAYLOR in Redcar contributes this snippet from the Derby Mercury of 1st July, 1802, "MARRIED: On Thursday last, at Alvaston, in this county, Mr. John LEE, of Horton, Staffordshire, to Miss Elizabeth COCKAYNE, of the former place."

Jane TAYLOR in Redcar contributes this from the Derby Mercury of 20 December, 1804 "MARRIED: On Thursday last at Alvaston, near this town, Mr. Wm. CHAPMAN, to Miss STAFFORD, both of that place."

Jane TAYLOR in Redcar provides this announcement from the Derby Mercury of 23 December, 1802: "DIED: On Saturday last, at Alvaston, in this county, Mr. HOLMES, aged 54."

Jane TAYLOR in Redcar provides this notice from the Derby Mercury of 22 August 1804: "MISC: A few days since John STAFFORD, a boy aged 14 years, servant to Mr. BRIGGS of Alvaston, near this place, as he was crossing the River at the ford there with a load of coals accidentally fell from the fore horse and was unfortunately drowned.- The accident was occasioned by a flood upon the river. Another servant as well as all horses were in the greatest danger, but fortunately they were all saved."

• This place was an ancient chapelry in Derby St. Michael and became a modern Civil Parish in 1884.
   
• This parish was in the ancient Morleston and Litchurch Hundred (or Wapentake)..
   
• Alvaston was amalgamated back into Derby city in 1894 and 1901 (shortly after creation as a Civil Parish).
   
• You may contact the Derby City Council, regarding civic or political issues, but they are NOT staffed to assist with family history searches.
   

• Bastardy cases would be heard in the Derby petty session hearings every Friday.
   
• There is a short list of Alvaston Bastardy Papers held at the DRO on the Yesterdays Journey website. Select "Bastardy Papers" on the left side, then "Alvaston" from the list displayed.
   
• As a result of the 1834 Poorlaw Amendment Act reforms, the parish became a member of the Shardlow Poorlaw Union.

A Public Elementary School was built here in 1859 for 140 students, then enlarged around 1899 for 200 boys, girls and infants.

A Public Elementary School was purchased from Mr. Allen in Allenton and later, in 1899, enlarged for 245 children.