Longham, Norfolk Genealogy

Guide to Longham, Norfolk ancestry, family history, and genealogy: parish registers, transcripts, census records, birth records, marriage records, and death records.

Parish History
LONGHAM (St. Peter), a parish, in the union of Mitford and Launditch, hundred of Launditch, W. division of Norfolk, 5 miles (N. W. by W.) from East Dereham. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.

Longham St Andrew and St Peter is an Ancient parish in the Brisley deanery of the Dioces of Norwich.

The modern parish is in the Gressenhall benefice of the Dereham in Mitford deanery.

Robert Howlett
Isambard Kingdom Brunel photographed by Robert Howlett (1857)

The Victorian photographer Robert Howlett grew up in the parsonage at Longham from circa 1840 until 1852, the second of four sons of Reverend Robert Howlett and Harriet Harsant. He is renowned for his iconic photograph of Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Circa 1845, the parsonage in Longham had an electrical telegraph link to the local Manor House, this was only eight years after Samuel Morse filed his telegraphy patent in America.

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.


 * Mitford 1837-1938
 * East Dereham 1939-1974

Church records
Longham parish registers of christenings, marriages and burials are available online for the following years:

To find the names of the neighboring parishes, use England Jurisdictions 1851 Map. In this site, search for the name of the parish, click on the location "pin", click Options and click List contiguous parishes.

Records are also available at the Norfolk Record Office.

Poor Law Unions
Mitford &amp;Launditch     http://www.institutions.org.uk/workhouses/england/norf/mitford_and_launditch_workhouse.htm

Records of the Mitford and Launditch Poor Law Union1776-1948 Norfolk Record Office C/GP 14 Extent 137 pieces The following parishes comprised the 1836 union: Bawdeswell, Beeston, Beetley, Billingford, East Bilney, Bintry, Brisley, Bylaugh, Colkirk, Cranworth, East Dereham, Great Dunham, Little Dunham, North Elmham, Elsing, Foxley, Great Fransham, Little Fransham, Garvestone, Gately, Gressenhall, Guist, Hardingham, Hockering, Hoe, Horningtoft, Kempstone, Letton, East Lexham, West Lexham, Litcham, Longham, Lyng, Mattishall, Mattishall Burgh, Mileham, Oxwick with Pattesley, Reymerstone, Rougham, Scarning, Shipdham, Southburgh, Sparham, Stanfield, Swanton Morley, Thuxton, Tittleshall, East Tuddenham, North Tuddenham, Twyford, Weasenham All Saints, Weasenham St Peter, Wellingham, Wendling, Westfield, Whinburgh, Whissonsett, Wood Rising, Worthing, Yaxham. All fifty parishes of Mitford and Launditch Hundreds were incorporated in 1775 under the terms of An act for the better relief and employment of the poor within the hundreds of Mitford and Launditch, 15 Geo. III, cap. 59. In 1801 the parish of East Dereham separated from the Incorporation, but in 1836 all fifty original parishes plus ten from Eynesford Hundred joined together in a new union. The House of Industry belonging to the old incorporation, built at Gressenhall in 1776-1777, was repaired and altered in 1836 to become the new Union Workhouse. Mitford and Launditch Union Board of Guardians was replaced by Guardians Committee No. 10 in 1930. Norfolk Poor Law Unions

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

Websites

 * Norfolk: Longham on GenUKI
 * Dereham in Mitford deanery website
 * Longham community website
 * Church images
 * Church of St Andrew and St Peter Longham on British Listed Buildings
 * Longham on Norfolk Churches