Balcombe, Sussex Genealogy

England   Sussex

Parish History
Balcombe St Mary is an Ancient Parish in West Sussex.

BALCOMB (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Cuckfield, partly in the hundred of Street, but chiefly in the hundred of Buttinghill, rape of Lewes, E.division of Sussex, 4 miles (N.) from Cuckfield; containing 1542 inhabitants. It comprises about 4170 acres;and is intersected by the London and Brighton railway,which here passes through its principal tunnel, the construction of which was attended with much difficulty on account of the extraordinary swelling of the earth when exposed to the air. Midway between Balcomb and Cuckfield, the line is carried over the river Ouse by a viaduct 462 yards in length and 60 yards high, which rests on 37 arches. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £15. 18. 6½., and in the gift of the family of Bethune: the tithes have been commuted for £450, and the glebe comprises 70 acres. About a quarter of a mile from the church is a spring, the water of which is similar in its properties to the Tonbridge waters.

From: A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 132-136. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=50775 Date accessed: 09 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
Contributor: Include here information for parish registers, Bishop’s Transcripts, non conformist 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.

Poor Law Unions
Cuckfield Poor Law Union, Sussex

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
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.