Eastbourne St Mary, Sussex Genealogy

England   Sussex

Parish History
Eastbourne St Mary is an Ancient Parish and a market town in the county of Sussex. Other places in the parish include: Sea Houses and Meads. EASTBOURNE (St. Mary), a post-town and parish,and the head of a union, in the hundred of Eastbourne,rape of Pevensey, E. division of Sussex, 7 miles (S.)ing 3015 inhabitants. The parish comprises 4393a.1r. 38p., whereof 2186 acres are waste or common. It is situated on the coast of the English Channel, which at this place was formerly remarkable for the loss of vessels; and is bounded on the south-west by the bold promontory of Beachy Head, the sides of which are worn into numerous hollows and caverns by the incessant violence of the sea. It is divided into four parts,called Eastbourne, Southbourne, Meads, and Sea-Houses.Eastbourne is pleasantly situated beneath the brow of alofty hill, and consists chiefly of four streets; the bathing is excellent, the water clear and pellucid, the sands dry, and the cliffs lofty and picturesque. Assemblies are held occasionally in a suite of rooms at the Lamb inn.A strong circular fortification called the Redoubt, comprising barracks, storehouses, and a magazine surrounded by a deep intrenchment, has been erected on the beach,in connexion with a line of martello towers on the coast;and there are several coast-guard stations. In 1846 anact was passed for a branch, nearly 4½ miles long, from the Brighton and Hastings railway, to this place: the line was opened early in 1848. The market, on Saturday, is discontinued; but fairs are held on March 12thfor pedlery, and October 11th for sheep. Very fine shell-fish are caught in great abundance.

The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £26. 1. 8.; patron, the Treasurer in the Cathedral of Chichester. The great tithes have been commuted for£879 to the impropriate rector, £33. 10. to other impropriators, and £36. 17. to the rector of Folkington: the vicarial tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of£550; the glebe contains 3 acres. The church is a handsome edifice, chiefly in the early English style, with a fine tower at the west end.

From: A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 124-127. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=50934 Date accessed: 01 May 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
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Census records
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Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Sussex 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
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 * England Jurisdictions 1851
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Web sites
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