Ponteland, Northumberland Genealogy

England Northumberland  Northumberland Parishes



Parish History
PONTELAND (St. Mary), a parish, in the union and W. division of Castle ward, S. division of Northumberland; comprising the townships of BerwickHill, Little Callerton, Coldcoats, Darras-Hall, HighamDykes, Kirkley, Milburn, Milburn-Grange, Ponteland, part of High Callerton, and part of Prestwick;There is a place of worship for Scottish Presbyterians; also a free school.

Ponteland St Mary the Virgin is an ancient parish and includes: Milburn Grange, Prestwick, Benridge, Berwick Hill, Cartermoor, Coldcoates, Coldcoats, Darras Hall, High Callerton, Higham Dykes, Kirkley, Kirkley with Benridge and Cartermoor, Little Callerton, Low Callerton, Milbourne, Milbourne Grange, and Milburn.

The Church of St Mary was mainly built between the 12th and 15th century, though it was heavily restored in the early 19th century. It is a Grade I Listed Building protected by law.

PONTELAND, a village, a township, a parish, and a sub-district, in Castle Ward district, Northumberland. The village stands on the river Pont, 7 miles W of Dudley r. station, and 7½ N W of Newcastle; was formerly called Pont Island; had anciently a castle of the D' Alphels; was the place where Alexander of Scotland madepeace, in 1244, with the English; and has a post-office under Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and an ancient manor-house of the Erringtons, now an inn, and including some remains of the ancient castle. The township comprises 1, 733 acres. Pop., 488. Houses, 98. The workhouse of Castle Ward district is here; and, at the census of1861, had 42 inmates. The parish contains also the townships of Kirkley, Higham-Dykos, Milburn, Milburn-Grange, High Callerton, Little Callerton, Darras-Hall, Coaldcoats, and Berwick-Hill. Acres, 10,073. Real property, £18, 534; of which £110 are in mines. Pop., 1,089. Houses, 213. The manor belonged formerly to the Bertrams, the Erringtons, the Silvertops, and others; and belongs now to Admiral Mitford. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Durham. Value, £520.* Patron, Merton College, Oxford. The church is ancient; has a fine Norman W door, and a singularly large chancel; the latter was restored in 1861; and contains abeautiful piscina, and monuments of the Ogles, the Goftons, and others. There are a Wesleyan chapel, and an endowed school with £170 a year.—The sub-district contains also 5 other parishes, and part of another. Acres, 47, 568. Pop., 7, 190. Houses, 1, 470.

(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))

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.

Parish Records
Durham University Library Archives and Special Collections Reference number: DDR/EA/PBT/2/207 Date: 1762-1844 Parish Register transcripts are available to search free online at FamilySearch Historical Records

The dates of the post-1760 transcripts have been noted in detail and sometimes only cover years. For most parishes in the collection there are gaps in the sequence of transcripts. It is advisable to consult the original parish registers for these years and events.

Ponteland, St Mary the Virgin: Records of baptisms 1602-1954, marriages 1602-1987 and burials 1602-1989 are available at Northumberland Collections Service. The International Genealogical Index (I.G.I.) includes baptisms 1602-1806 and marriages 1602-1812 for this parish and Boyd's Marriage Index includes marriages 1602-1812 and banns 1751-1812. Transcripts of baptisms, burials and marriages (1602-1812 incomplete) for Ponteland are available at Newcastle Central Library, Local Studies Dept. A transcript of monumental inscriptions at Ponteland (microfiche TN82 and TN88) is published by Northumberland and Durham Family History Society and these records are also available in book form at Newcastle Central Library, Local Studies Department.

Nonconformist Records

 * Northumberland Collections Service also has records of baptisms 1870-1923 and deaths 1899-1990 for Ponteland, St. Matthew (Roman Catholic).
 * Early Wesleyan Methodist chapels in this area belonged to Newcastle West W.M. Circuit. Records for 1788-1837 can be seen at Northumberland Collections Service, Tyne and Wear Archives Service and are included on the IGI (listed as Brunswick Place or Orphan House).

FamilySearch Historical Records includes England, Durham Diocese, Marriage Bonds and Allegations (FamilySearch Historical Records)

Poor Law Unions
Castle Ward Poor Law Union, Northumberland

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Northumberland 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