Westwood, Wiltshire Genealogy

Westwood parish is a lovely place with a beautiful Church and Manor House. The Church still has an active congregation and the Manor House is now a part of the National Trust and can be visited.

"The earliest known references to Westwood are contained in two charters dated 983 and 987 A.D. first mention of this parish." At Domesday in 1086, about sixty to seventy people resided at Westwood. There are four hamlets in Westwood Parish, Upper Westwood, Lower Westwood, Avoncliffe and Staples Hill. The Church and Manor House are located next to each other in Lower Westwood.

Most people in the parish made their living from farming, the quarries, or domestic work. "Westwood remained predominantly an agricultural village. Weaving and other clothmaking processes came and went. During the 1770s at Avoncliffe a group of weavers' cottages [later known as the Old Court], was built...After 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act and the decline of the woollen weaving industry this building was converted into the Bradford Union Workhouse to house the paupers of Bradford and eight adjacent villages."

For general information about the parish you may visit the Westwood Parish Council website.

Cemeteries
The parish churchyard served as the burial ground for the parish until 1883 when a civil cemetery was opened because the churchyard was full. The burials in the churchyard were recorded in the Parish Registers. Most of the tombstones have disappeared or are unreadable. There are a few left in the church yard which are readable.

The list of burials in the civil cemetery is held by the current parish clerk, Westwood Parish Clerk to the Council. For current contact information for this individual you should visit the Westwood Parish Council website's Parish Councillor List.

Churches
The Parish Church St. Mary the Virgin

The Old Baptist Chapel locate on Orchard Close was completed in 1865.

Manor
Westwood Manor House is now under the National Trust. It is a lovely house and can be visited and toured. It is open to be toured from 23 March through 30 September on Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 2-5 pm.

Poor Law
After 1834, the Bradford Union Workhouse was located at Avoncliffe in this Parish. This increased the population of Westwood. "As churchwardens also served as Overseers of the Poor until late in the nineteenth century, Westwood churchwardens must have been deeply involved at the time. Bradford Union had a reputation for forcing the destitute to accept indoor relief."