Harlaxton

Census

• The parish was in the Denton sub-district of the Grantham Registration District.
  
  
• In 1891, the parish was placed in the new "Grantham South" sub-district of the Grantham Registration District.
  
  
• Check our Census Resource page for county-wide resources.
  
  
• The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
  
  

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Church History

• The Anglican parish church is dedicated to St. Mary and St. Peter.
  
  
• The church is an ancient structure, parts of which date back to 1323 or earlier.
  
  
• The spire was restored in 1885. The inside of the church was renovated in 1890 - 1891.
  
  
• The church seats about 200.
  
  
• Here is a photo of St. Mary and St. Peter's Church, taken by Ron Cole (who retains the copyright):
  
  

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Church Records

• Parish registers exist from 1558 and include entries from Wyville with Hungerton (to the south) up until 1813. Bishop's Transcripts exist from 1812 to 1843.
  
  
• Parish registers are on file at the Society of Genealogists, covering 1559 - 1837.
  
  
• Parish marriages from 1651-1750 are covered in Boyd's Marriage Index, and from 1790-1837 in Pallot's Marriage Index.
  
  
• The LFHS has published several marriage and burial indexes for the Grantham Deanery to make your search easier. In the early 1900's, the parish was in the South Grantham Deanery.
  
  
• The Wesleyan Methodists had a small chapel here before 1871. Check our Non-Conformist Church Records page for additional resources.
  
  
• Check our Church Records page for county-wide resources.
  
  

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Civil Registration

• The parish was in the Denton sub-district of the Grantham Registration District.
  
  
• In 1891, the parish was placed in the new "Grantham South" sub-district of the Grantham Registration District.
  
  
• Check our Civil Registration page for sources and background on Civil Registration which began in July, 1837.
  
  

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Description and Travel

Harlaxton is both a village and a parish. The parish is about 108 miles north of London and lies about three miles southwest of Grantham on the old Melton Mowbray road (now the A607). The parish itself is bounded on the north by Barrowby and Grantham parishes, to the west by Denton, on the south by Stroxton. The parish covers about 2,700 acres.

The village of Harlaxton is about a half mile south of the Grantham and Nottingham Canal, once a vital part of village commerce. A bridge now crosses the canal to connect Harlaxton to Barrowby. If you are planning a visit:

• By automobile, it is probably easiest to take the A607 southwest off the A1 Motorway for about two miles.
  
  
• Visit the GENUKI site parish profile to see the buildings along Harlaxton Drift (8.36MB of photos), where it runs from the village down to the canal.
  
  
• Visit our touring page for more sources.
  
  

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History

• There are monuments and brasses of the DE LIGNE family in the Anglican church dating to 1682 and to the STROOD family in 1498. The GREGORY family, heirs to the DE LIGNE line, are also evident, with items dating to the 1800's.
  
  
• In 1740, an urn containing burnt bones and Roman coins was found in the parish.
  
  
• John of Gaunt had a hunting seat here. A local plowman unearthed a brass pot which contained a gold and jeweled helmet and it was immediately assumed to be John's. The helmet was presented to Catherine, dowager queen of Henry VIII, who deposited it in the royal cabinet at Madrid.
  
  
• A Flower Show is held annually, usually in August, at St. Mary and St. Peter's Church.
  
  

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Land and Property

• In 1871, nearly all of the parish was held by Mrs. Sherwin GREGORY of Harlaxton Manor.
  
  
• In 1913, the greater part of the parish was held by Thomas Sherwin PEARSON-GREGORY.
  
  

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Manors

• The original Harlaxton Manor was an ancient structure, built in the valley next to the village and was purchased by the DE LIGNE family around 1475. It was demolished in 1857 by Gregory GREGORY after it had sat, unoccupied, since about 1780.
  
  
• A new Harlaxton Manor was built in 1837-45 in the Jacobean style from local stone. The manor boasted 100 bedrooms. The Baron's Hall is 75 feet long and 30 feet high, with a lovely marble floor and ornamented with oak wainscotting. From the new Manor House one can see Belvoir Castle and the Vale off to the west.
  
  
• Harlaxton Manor was the seat of the PEARSON-GREGORY family in 1913.
  
  
• The Manor House was allowed to fall into disrepair and was virtually derelict when purchased in 1937 by Mrs. Violet VAN DER ELST, a self-made successful busineswoman who made her fortune by developing and selling Shavex, the first brushless shaving cream. She renamed the property "Grantham Castle". She put a great deal of her fortune into restoring the manor and into her fight against capital punishment. A year after capital punishment was banned in the Kingdom, she died penniless.
  
  
• Harlaxton Manor is now owned by the University of Evansville, Indiana, USA, and is used as their British campus as Harlaxton College.
  
  

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Maps

• The national grid reference is SK 8832.
  
  
• An Ordnance Survey "Explorer 247" map will show detail of 2.5 inches to 1 mile scale.
  
  
• See our Maps page for additional resources.
  
  

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Military History

• The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) opened an airfield here in World War One in November, 1916.
  
  
• During WWI the field was a busy training field and was eventually designated a Training Depot Station.
  
  
• The field was closed in May, 1919.
  
  
• The RAF reopened the field in late 1941 as a relief landing field for RAF Spitalgate.
  
  
• The field was closed again late in the 1950s.
  
  

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Names, Geographical

• The name derives from the Old English Herelaf+tun, meaning "estate or farm of Herelaf". It appears as Herlavestune in the 1086 Domesday Book.
  [A. D. Mills, "A Dictionary of English Place-Names," Oxford University Press, 1991].
  
  

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Names, Personal

• White's 1872 Directory lists the following surnames in the parish: BAILEY, BARKER, CABORN, CHALLANDS, DOLBY, FYFE, GARFIT, GREGORY, HALL, HARDWICK, HEMSLEY, HEWERDINE, JACKSON, NOON, PALETHORPE, PIKE, PULLEN, ROSE, SCOTT, SCHRIMSHIRE, SHELBORN, SUMMERFIELD, TOWERS, VINCENT, WESTON, WHITTLE, WOODRUFF and WYER.
  
  
• Kelley's 1913 Directory lists the following surnames in the parish: BRAMLEY, BURTON, CHALLANDS, CHIPPS, COLLIN, GEESON, GLASSOP, HARRIS, HARRISON, ISAAC, JEUDWINE, PEARSON-GREGORY, PICKWORTH, SAYWELL, SINGLETON, SUMMERFIELD, WADE, WELBY and WILSON.
  
  

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Politics and Governance

• The parish was in the ancient Loveden Wapentake in the South Kesteven district in the parts of Kesteven.
  
  
• The parish is also within the boundaries of the Grantham Soke.
  
  
• For today's local governance, contact the South Kesteven District Council.
  
  

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Poorhouses, Poor Law, etc.

• In 1632 John USHER of the Isle of Ely deposited £10 so that the interest could aid the poor of the parish. In 1701 Edward DE LIGNE did the same. In 1730, Cadwallader GLYNNE left an annuity of £5 to be distributed to the poor as money (normally the poor would receive coal or food from such charities). In 1742 Cassandra BEAUMONT gave £10, the yearly interest to be laid out in books.
  
  
• As a result of the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834, the parish became part of the Grantham Poor Law Union.
  
  

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Population

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Schools

• A timbered school was first built here in the 1600's.
  
  
• A Public Elementary School was rebuilt here in 1871 and was attended by 83 in 1913. The school is currently located on New Beacon Road, NG31 9LJ, telephone: 01476 564417. There is a Harlaxton school web site, but it contains little useful information for family historians.
  
  
• For more on researching school records, see our Schools Research page.
  
  

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