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Silk Willoughby

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"SILK WILLOUGHBY, a parish in the wapentake of Aswardhurn, parts of Kesteven, county Lincoln, 2 miles S.W. of Sleaford, and 12 N.E. of Grantham. It was anciently termed North Willoughby, but received the adjunct Silk in the 16th century, upon occasion of the hamlet of Silkby being joined to it. The village is situated on the road from Sleaford to Falkingham. Bricks and tiles are made. The living is a rectory* in the diocese of Lincoln, value £625. The church, dedicated to St. Denis, contains an antique Norman font, three stalls, some screen work of wood, and fragments of stained glass in the E. window. The register commences in 1470. There is a parochial school. The Earl of Dysart is lord of the manor.

[Transcribed from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland 1868]
by Colin Hinson ©2020

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Census

  • The parish was in the Sleaford sub-district of the Sleaford Registration District.
  • Check our Census Resource page for county-wide resources.
  • The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
Census
Year
Piece No.
1841H.O. 107 / 624
1861R.G. 9 / 2343 & 2346
1871R.G. 10 / 3350
1891R.G. 12 / 2578
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Church History

  • The Anglican parish church is dedicated to Saint Denis and dates from Norman times.
  • The church was built between 1315 and 1360.
  • The church chancel was rebuilt in 1878.
  • The church was restored in 1907-8.
  • The church seats around 200.
  • There was a small chapel, probably Anglican, in the hamlet of Silkby, still in use in 1810. But it had disappeared by 1900.
  • There is a photograph of St. Denis Church on the Wendy PARKINSON English Church Photo web site.
  • Ian PATERSON has a photograph of the church on a snowy day, taken in December, 2009.
  • Here is a photo of St. Denis Church, taken by Ron COLE (who retains the copyright):

 

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Church Records

  • The Anglican parish register dates from 1559.
  • We have a small number of parish register entries in a text file. Your additions are welcome.
  • The Lincolnshire FHS has a Loan Library service which has the parish registers on microfiche for Baptisms from 1652 to 1812 and Marriages from 1652 to 1812.
  • The LFHS has published several indexes for the Lafford Deanery to make your search easier.
  • Check our Church Records page for county-wide resources.
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Civil Registration

  • The parish was in the Sleaford sub-district of the Sleaford 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

Silk Willoughby is both a village and parish about 2 miles south of Sleaford and about 12 miles north-east of Grantham. Aswarby parish lies to the south and Quarrington parish to the north. In 1841, the parish covered 2,450 acres.

If you are planning a visit:

  • By automobile, the village is just east of the A15 between Bourne and Sleaford.
  • See our touring page for more sources.
You can see pictures of Silk Willoughby which are provided by:

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Gazetteers

The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland - 1868

"SILK WILLOUGHBY, a parish in the wapentake of Aswardhurn, parts of Kesteven, county Lincoln, 2 miles S.W. of Sleaford, and 12 N.E. of Grantham. It was anciently termed North Willoughby, but received the adjunct Silk in the 16th century, upon occasion of the hamlet of Silkby being joined to it. The village is situated on the road from Sleaford to Falkingham. Bricks and tiles are made. The living is a rectory* in the diocese of Lincoln, value £625. The church, dedicated to St. Denis, contains an antique Norman font, three stalls, some screen work of wood, and fragments of stained glass in the E. window. The register commences in 1470. There is a parochial school. The Earl of Dysart is lord of the manor.

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Manors

  • Anciently, this parish contained two manors, named after their families, which gave the parish their names: Silkebi and Wilgebi.
  • A large ancient farmhouse in the parish was reputed to be the manor house of the ARMYN family.
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Maps

  • See our "Maps" page for additional resources.

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference TF056428 (Lat/Lon: 52.972164, -0.428924), Silk Willoughby which are provided by:

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Names, Geographical

  • "Silk Willougby" also appears as "Silkby-cum-Willoughby" in many records.
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Politics & Government

  • Silkby was a separate hamlet until 1337, but its exact boundaries are unknown.
  • The parish was in the ancient Aswardhurn Wapentake in the North Kesteven division of the county, in the parts of Kesteven.
  • For today's district governance, see the North Kesteven District Council.
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Poor Houses, Poor Law

  • Bastardy cases would be heard in the Sleaford petty session hearings every Monday.
  • In 1718, Dame Margaret THOROLD of Syston, near Grantham, left land providing £10, generally given to the poor as coal at Christmas.
  • After the Poor Law reforms of 1834, the parish became part of the Sleaford Poor Law Union.
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Population

YearInhabitants
1801225
1841227
1871258
1881280
1891275
1901226
1911231
1921222
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Schools

  • In 1841, the rector of the parish was paying for the education of 12 poor children.
  • The parish had a Public Elementary School by 1900, built to hold 40 children.
  • For more on researching school records, see our Schools Research page.