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Watford
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The town is under the management of a local board of health, by whose authority extensive sewage and drainage works have recently been effected, a constant supply of water obtained on the high-pressure principle, and the streets and roads much improved. The town is well lighted with gas, and partially paved. An extramural cemetery has recently been laid out with two chapels. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Rochester, value £670. The church is dedicated to St. Mary. There are also the district churches of St. Andrew's, Leavesden, and Oxhey, the livings of which are perpetual curacies The Wesleyans, Independents, and Baptists have chapels. There are National, British, and infant schools, two old-established free schools, the one founded in 1641, by Francis Coombe, for 11 boys, and the other in 1704, by Elizabeth Fuller, for 40 boys and 20 girls; also almshouses for 12 widows and a literary institution. The Poor-law Union of Watford comprises 6 parishes. In the vicinity are Cashiobury Park, the seat of the Earl of Essex, and Grove Park, of the Earl of Clarendon. Market day is Tuesday. Fairs are held on Whit Tuesday and 9th September."
"CASHIO, (or Cashiobury), a hamlet in the parish of Watford, hundred of Cashio, in the county of Hertford, 1 mile from Watford, which is a station on the London and North-Western railway. This place is said to have been an important town of the ancient British tribe called the Cassii, and afterwards a seat of the Mercian kings. The manor of Cashio was given by Offa as an endowment to the abbey of St. Alban's, which held it till the Dissolution. It was then conferred by Henry VIII. on the Morysons, by whom the mansion was erected, and from whom the estate came to the Earl of Essex. Cashiobury Park is a spacious and well-wooded demesne, through which passes the river Gade and the Grand Junction canal. The hall, a castellated building in the Elizabethan style of architecture, is the seat of the Earl of Essex. It was repaired by Wyatt, and contains a large collection of paintings, including among others, works by Vandke, Kneller, Sir Joshua Reynolds, and Gainsborough. It hag also some specimens of carving by Gibbons.
"LEAVESDEN, a hamlet in the parish of Watford, hundred of Cashio, or liberty of St. Alban's, county Herts, 2 miles N. of Watford, its post town, and 19 from London. It is situated near the river Colne and Grand Junction canal. The North-Western railway here passes through a tunnel, 1 mile 170 yards in length, and has a station at Watford. The soil is fertile, on subsoil clay and chalk. Some of the inhabitants are engaged in the working of straw plait, and in the silk mills. The living is a perpetual curacy in the diocese of Rochester, value £116, in the patronage of the Vicar of Watford. The church is modern. Grove Park, the principal residence, is a seat of the Earl of Clarendon. It contains a choice collection of pictures."
"LEVESDON, a hamlet in the parish of Watford, in the hundreds of Cashio and Dacorum, county Herts, 3 miles N. of Watford."
"OXHEY, a hamlet in the parish of Watford, hundred of Cashio, or liberty of St. Alban's, county Herts, 2 miles S. of Watford. It is situated on the river Colne, near the line of the North-Western railway. The living is a donative curacy in the diocese of Rochester. An earthen vessel containing several Roman seals was found here."
[Transcribed from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland 1868]
by Colin Hinson ©2020
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"In 1831 the parish of Watford contained 5,293 inhabitants, of which number the 'town hamlets' reckoned 2,960."
[From Royal National and Commercial Directory and Topography of Herts, Pigot & Co., London, 1839]
| North Watford Methodist Church, Watford, Methodist |
| St Albans Road, Watford, Primitive Methodist |
| Whippendell Road, Watford, Methodist |
| St Helen, Watford, Roman Catholic |
"The parish church stands nearly in the centre of the town; it is a large stone edifice, having two chapels annexed, and a lofty square tower at its western end, surmounted by an hexagonal spire; the church is dedicated to St. Mary.
"The burial-place of the Essex family is situated upon the left side of the chancel. Amongst the monuments there are two that, from the excellence of their workmanship, attract particular attention: the first of these is to the memory of Sir Charles Morison, Knt.; the other to that of his son, Sir Charles Morison, Bart., and his lady; the latter is placed against the north wall, and both are beautiful specimens of the sculptural skills of Nicholas Stone. Other monuments, to the Clarendon and Bucknall families, embellish this church, and merit the inspection of those who are gratified by 'contemplation among the tombs.'
"The living is a vicarage, enjoyed by the Hon. and Rev. William Capel. There are places of worship for baptists, Wesleyan methodists, and for a congregation of Lady Huntington's connexion."
[From Royal National and Commercial Directory and Topography of Herts, Pigot & Co., London, 1839]
There is a picture (32 kbytes) of the parish church of St. Mary, Watford; supplied by Paul R. Joiner.
The Parish Registers for the Parish church of St. Mary for the periods:-
- Baptisms - 1539-1984
- Marriages - 1539-1994
- Burials - 1539-1892
- Bishop's Transcripts - 1570-1855
are deposited at Hertfordshire Record Office, County Hall, Hertford, SG13 8DE. [D/P117]
Entries from the Marriage Registers for the period 1539-1837 are included in The Allen Index at Hertfordshire Record Office.
The period 1539-1812 is covered by the IGI.
Transcripts of the parish registers for the period 1539-1880 are deposited at the Society of Genealogists, 14 Charterhouse Buildings, Goswell Road, LONDON, EC1M 7BA.
The following records for churches in the ancient parish of Watford are also available at Hertfordshire Record Office, County Hall, Hertford, SG13 8DE.:-
- St. Andrew [D/P117A]
- Baptisms - 1857-1962
- Marriages - 1858-1967
- St. Michael [D/P117C]
- Baptisms - 1905-1982
- Marriages - 1913-1991
- Burials - 1916-1917
- Christ Church [D/P117D]
- Baptisms - 1896-1961
- Marriages 1909-1975
- St. Mark [D/P117D]
- Baptisms - 1931-1952
- St. George [D/P117D]
- Baptisms 1904-1931
- St. James [D/P117E]
- Baptisms - 1909-1972
- Marriages - 1913-1971
- St. John [D/P117K]
- Burials - 1904-1962
- St. Peter [D/P117H]
- Baptisms - 1936-1988
- Marriages - 1944-1978
- Leavesden [D/P117G]
- Baptisms - 1853-1975
- Marriages - 1854-1987
- Burials - 1853-1921
- Bishop's Transcripts - 1854-1887
- Oxhey, St. Matthew [D/P117F]
- Baptisms - 1880-1963
- Marriages - 1881-1977
- Oxhey, All Saints [D/P117J]
- Baptisms - 1950-1982
- Marriages - 1954-1986
"pleasantly situated on a gently rising eminence upon the river Colne, over which there is a viaduct for the London and Birmingham railway, which important line passes the town; and about a mile from it is a station, where a large hotel has lately been erected for the accommodation of passengers waiting for the trains.
"The Grand Junction canal passes about a mile to the west of the town, by the latter the transmission of its products and the introduction of those of other places is effected, and a water communications maintained with the metropolis and the northern counties.
"Watford consists of one main street, nearly a mile and a half in length, well lighted with gas from works established in 1834. The manufactures comprise silk, straw plat and paper; the malting business is extensive, and there are some corn-mills of great power and one for the manufacture of oil cake.
"In 1760 the lordship of this manor was vested in the family of Baron Ellesmere, who sold it to the Earl of Essex, whose family still possess it; the present earl is also patron of the living and lay impropriator of the great tithes. A court of request, for the recovery of small debts, is held in the court-house every alternate Tuesday, and the magistrates sit on the same days.
"The charities comprise two endowed schools (founded by Mrs. Fuller in 1701), in which forty boys and twenty girls are educated and partly clothed; two sets of alms-houses - one for four poor women, the other for eight; and an apprenticeship fund. A large union poor house, capable of accommodating two hundred and fifty inmates, has recently been erected under the present poor law act.
"There are many handsome seats and mansions in the vicinity - Cashiobury, the seat of the Countess of Essex; the Grove, Lord Clarendon; Nascot House, Geo. Ricketts, Esq.; and Watford Place, Jonathan King, Esq., are generally admired.
"The chartered market, which is well attended, is held on Tuesday; and there is another on Saturday, for butcher's meat, &c. The fairs are on the Tuesday after Trinity-Sunday, for pleasure; 29th August, and following day, for cattle. and 9th September for pleasure and hiring servants."
[From Royal National and Commercial Directory and Topography of Herts, Pigot & Co., London, 1839]
- Ask for a calculation of the distance from Watford to another place.
The North Watford History Group has created a new website.
"It is at an early stage of development, but already contains articles on different aspects of the history of North Watford, with more in the pipeline"
You can see maps centred on OS grid reference TQ110963 (Lat/Lon: 51.65454, -0.396834), Watford 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.