New Wortley, Yorkshire Genealogy

England Yorkshire Yorkshire Parishes K-R  West Riding  New Wortley

Parish History
NEW WORTLEY or

WORTLEY, a chapelry, in the parish of St. Peter, liberty of the borough of Leeds, W. riding of York, 2 miles (W. S. W.) from Leeds; containing 7090 inhabitants. This place, in the Domesday survey styled Wyrteley, formerly belonged to the Farrars, of Halifax, from whom the manor was purchased in 1766 by the family of the present owner. The chapelry comprises an area of1036a. 2r. 34p., which, with the exception of a few fields of arable land, and about 4 acres of plantation, is divided in nearly equal portions into meadow and pasture; the soil is fertile, and the commons have been recently inclosed. A stratum of fine clay is found, of which the best fire-bricks are made. The population has greatly increased, and the village of New Wortley, which has arisen within the last twenty or thirty years, now extends to Holbeck; it is neatly built, and contains many handsome houses. The old villages of Upper and Lower Wortley, with some scattered hamlets, form a semicircular range of buildings at the base and on the acclivities of an eminence commanding a view of Leeds and the adjacent country. The inhabitants are chiefly employed inthe manufacture of woollen-cloths, which is carried onto a great extent. The Leeds and Bradford canalbounds the chapelry on the north. The chapel, originally built in 1787, at the expense of the late John Smith,Esq., lord of the manor, and other contributors, is a neat structure containing 650 sittings: the living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £147; patrons, the Trustees of the founder; impropriators, the Dean and Chapter of Christ-Church, Oxford. There are places of worship for Independents, Primitive Methodists, and Wesleyans. A free school derives an income of £40 perannum from various donations and endowments; andadjacent to the chapel yard is a national Sunday school, built by subscription in 1822, and enlarged in 1836 so as to accommodate 200 children. Zion School, atNew Wortley, was built at an expense of £1040, towardswhich £400 were obtained out of the grant by parliament; it is conducted on the plan of the British andForeign Society. In 1825, a spring of remarkably finewater was discovered on the premises of James Bateman, Esq., by boring to a depth of about sixty yards; it is slightly impregnated with sulphur, and affords relief in cases of ophthalmic inflammation, especially if used inthe early stages of the complaint.

From: Lewis, Samuel A.,  A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 687-692. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51431 Date accessed: 20 September 2011.

Civil Registration
Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

Church records
To find the names of the neighbouring parishes, use England Jurisdictions 1851. In this site, search for the name of the parish, click on the location "pin", click Options and click List contiguous parishes. This ancient parish (AP) was created before 1813. Church of England records began in 1603. Contributor: Include here information for parish registers, Bishop’s Transcripts, nonconformist and other types of church records, such as parish chest records. Add the contact information for the office holding the original records. Add links to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection.

Census records
Contributor: Include an overview if there is any unique information, such as the census for X year was destroyed. Add a link to online sites for indexes and/or images. Also add a link to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection.

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Yorkshire Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Maps and Gazetteers
Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.


 * England Jurisdictions 1851
 * Vision of Britain

Web sites
Contributor: Add any relevant sites that aren’t mentioned above.