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Crowland

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Archives & Libraries

The Crowland Public Library is off of East Street. Adrian CABLE has a photograph of the Library Wall Plaque on Geo-graph, taken in July, 2016.

Adrian even provides a photograph of the Library itself on Geo-graph, taken in July, 2016.

The county maintains the Library and provides this informtion website. The Library has a Local/Family History section which will be a valuable resource for you.

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Census

  • The parish was head of the Crowland Sub-district of the Peterborough Registration District.
     
  • In 1831 the village was a small market town.
     
  • We have a handful of 1901 census surnames in a text file. Your additions are welcome.
     
  • Check our Census Resource page for county-wide resources.
     
  • The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
     
Census
Year
Piece No.Regis. District
1841H.O. 107 / 606Lincolnshire
1851H.O. 107 / 1747Northamptonshire
1861R.G. 9 / 968 & 969Northamptonshire
1871R.G. 10 / 1520 
1881R.G. 11 / 1597 
1891R.G. 12 / 1232 
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Church History

  • This section has been moved to another page due to size. Church History includes several photographs of Crowland Abbey.
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Church Records

  • Anglican parish registers exist from 1639, although bishop's transcripts go back to 1561.
     
  • We have the beginning of a Parish Register extract in a text file. Your additions are welcome.
     
  • The Peterborough Library has a copy of the Crowland Registers on microfiche.
     
  • Free Reg. has the following online: Baptisms 1796-1973; Marriages 1742-1871; Burials 1791-1812.
     
  • We have a list of the Pepper family and mourners from 1936-43 funerals.
     
  • Over 5,400 burials for the parish are recorded in the Nat'l Burial Index (NBI) for the period of 1813 to 1900.
     
  • Crowland is in the West Elloe Deanery for which several indexes have been published.
     
  • The hamlet of Nene Terrace had a small Wesleyan Methodist chapel, built here in 1868. For information and assistance in researching these chapels, see our non-conformist religions page.
     
  • Check our Church Records page for county-wide resources.
     
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Civil Registration

  • The parish was head of the Crowland sub-district of the Peterborough Registration District.
     
  • Check our Civil Registration page for sources and background on Civil Registration which began in July, 1837.
     
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Description & Travel

Crowland (also Croyland) is both a village and parish. About as far south in Lincolnshire as one can get, it is 10 miles south of Spalding, a few miles east of Market Deeping in the Fens area and 86 miles north of London, just east of the A15 trunk road and north of the A47. Deeping Fen parish lies to the northwest. The River Welland runs along the eastern boundary. The area is flat fenland and tends to swamp. Nene Terrace is a small hamlet in the parish, 2 miles south of the village of Crowland, on the border of Cambridgeshire. Engine is another hamlet 2 miles south of Crowland village. The parish is large, covering over 12,500 acres, and includes the hamlet of Postland.

If you are planning a visit:

  • The Crowland Ponds at TF 2210 are part of the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust.
     
  • Kate JEWELL has a photograph of the Village Sign on Geo-graph, depicting the Crowland Abbey, taken in May, 2007.
     
  • Michael TROLOVE has a photograph of a Mounting Block on Geo-graph, taken in June, 2009. Now, how many places have you seen a place to easily mount your charger?.
     
  • Use our touring page for area resources.
     
You can see pictures of Crowland which are provided by:

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Gazetteers

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History

In 827, Egbert, King of Wessex, defeated Wiglaf, King of Mercia, who fled to Croyland, where he was concealed for three months. By the mediation of its abbot, Siward, Wiglaf was restored to his kingdom on paying homage and becoming tributary to Egbert.

Early in the year 870 the Danes burned Crowland Abbey and made a general massacre of its inhabitants.

At the dissolution of the abbey in 1538, there were 37 monks at the abbey.

Crowland village had a market every Thursday.

In the 1800's an annual fair was held on September 4th.

From White's 1872 Lincolnshire:

"The Abbey at Crowland was founded by Ethelbald, King of Mercia in 716, for the reception of the black monks. It was dedicated to St Mary, St Bartholomew and St Guthlac. The Abbey was rebuilt many times and was of great splendour, until the dissolution of the monasteries. The parish church was formed from the north aisle of the old Abbey. The Wesleyans have two chapels, a large one rebuilt in 1831, and one on the Thorney road, built in 1868. The Primitive and Free Church Methodists have each a chapel, the former rebuilt in 1862, the other erected in 1854."

In 1911, the following appeared in a local newspaper:

MILL FIRE, Nov 1911, Crowland, Lincs
"GunpowderPlot - Old Mill set on fire. The juvenile portion of the town celebrated "Guy Fawkes" in a lively way on Saturday evening. Quite early, reports were heard and several fires were lighted in the streets. Adults joined later in the festivities and a raid was made on a newly appointed young constable, who earlier in the week had offended in the execution of his duty, by making an arrest. The climax was reached by setting fire to an old windmill on the Postland road, which though it had been standing idle for nearly twenty years, lovers of the past are sorry to see it demolished, and see an old landmark pass into oblivion. The mill was the property of the Rector of Crowland and although a reward has been offered, up to the present the culprit or culprits have not been traced."

In 1947, there was a great flood in the area and the Crowland Abbey Alarm bell was rung for the first time since 1880. Floodwaters were not too deep and finding a place even a few feet above the surrounding land prevented one from getting wet feet.

David HITCHBORNE has a photograph of the Trinity Bridge on Geo-graph, taken in May, 2004. Where else could you find the "fork in the road" at the crown of a bridge?

Doris MORRIS has a photograph of the Bridge Inn on Geo-graph, taken in January, 2011.

Alex MacGREGOR has a photograph of the George and Angel Inn on Geo-graph, taken in October, 2016.

Alvar J. GREEN remembers his roots in Crowland:

"I was born in Crowland in 1946 to Gladys Brown GREEN, who married William J. C. GREEN. My father was known locally as Nipper Green. Gladys was "in service" at The Angel Pub (near the Trinity Bridge) at the age of 16. She met my father, William GREEN, prior to the Second World War, and they had three children. One of their children still lives in the UK, one lives in Michigan, USA, and I live in San Francisco, California, USA. I was the CEO of Autodesk, Inc., the producer of Autocad, a worldwide producer of computer aided design products.
I attended the primary school on Postland Road, during the 1950s.
I am still in contact with friends in Crowland.
A friend of mine, from childhood, Roger BAILEY - an old name from Crowland (his Mother used to run the Post Office during my childhood, in the 1940s and 1950s) also emigrated to the United States in the 1970s. He was responsible for building the car engines for most of the Indianapolis 500 winners. He later set up the production facilities for the Shelby Cobra 350 and 500 series for Carrol SHELBY, near Los Angeles, California in the late 1970s."
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Maps

  • You'll want an Ordnance Survey Explorer 235 map, which has 2.5 inches to the mile scale.
     
  • See our Maps page for additional resources.  

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference TF240100 (Lat/Lon: 52.673528, -0.167509), Crowland which are provided by:

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Military History

  • Richard CROFT has a photograph of the War Memorial on Geo-graph, taken in March, 2007.
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Military Records

There is a photograph of the memorials and the names on them at the Roll of Honour site.

In the parish churchyard there is one Commonwealth War Grave from World War II:

  1. John Charles Wilfred SMITH, srgt., RAF Vol. Rsrv., age 19, died 18 Nov. 1944. Son of Walter and Hannah of Thorney, CAM.
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Names, Geographical

  • The name Crowland is Old English for "land at the river bend". In the 8th century the name is given as Cruwland and in the 1086 Domesday Book as Croiland.
    [A. D. MILLS, "A Dictionary of English Place-Names," Oxford University Press, 1991]
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Politics & Government

  • This place was an ancient parish in Lincolnshire and became a modern Civil Parish when those were established.
     
  • The parish was in the ancient Elloe Wapentake in the South Holland district in the parts of Holland.
     
  • You may contact the Crowland Parish Council regarding civic or political issues, but they are NOT staffed or funded to help you with family history searches.
     
  • For today's district governance, visit the South Holland District Council site.
     
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Poor Houses, Poor Law

  • Bastardy cases would be heard in the Elloe (Spalding) petty session hearings.
     
  • In 1612, Roger WALKER bequeathed a house and 4 acres of land for the relief of the parish poor.
     
  • In 1684, James BROWN left the rent charge on 11 acres of land for the poor.
     
  • As a result of the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act, this parish became part of the Peterborough Union Workhouse page for more information.
     
  • In 1904, The "Crowland Clothing Club" distributed up to £200 worth of clothing among the destitute poor.
     
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Population

 YearInhabitants
18011,425
18312,268
18412,978
18513,183
18613,148
18713,168
18812,929
18912,800
19012,747
19112,683
19712,856
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Schools

  • Postland Road School was built in 1857 to seat 200 girls. This was an infants school in the 1940s and 1950s.
     
  • South View Road School was erected in 1877 to seat 320 children.
     
  • St. Guthlac's Secondary School was constructed in the 1960s [Vanda Turner]. The school is for 11 to 16 year-old co-eds. Address: Postland Road, Crowland, Peterborough PE6 0JA, tele: 01733 210413.
     
  • To research school records, see our Schools Research page.