Cudham, Kent Genealogy

Guide to Cudham, Kent ancestry, family history, and genealogy: parish register transcripts, census records, birth records, marriage records, and death records.

Parish History
Cudham is a village in the London Borough of Bromley, Cudham Wikipedia contains links to the history of the parishes of Cudham and Downe, Kent and references to the birth of the music hall artist Harry Relph (July 21, 1867 – February 10, 1928) who was born at the Blacksmith's Arms in the village. See Little Tich Wikipedia

Cudham St Peter and St Paul is an Ancient Parish with a large parish boundary including the settlements at Aperfield, Leaves Green and the linear settlement of Cudham. The Pilgrims Way traversed the escarpment of the North Downs and the parish had a substantial traveller population in common with neighbouring Downe, Kent ,Farnborough, Kent and Keston, Kent.

The Domesday survey mentions the church and the Norman church replaced the Saxon church on the same site. Restoration and additions took place in subsequent centuries.

The church of St Peter and St Paul has been designated as a grade B listed building British listed building

The modern parish is part of a united benefice with Downe, Kent in the Diocese of Rochester.

The parish workhouse was situated at Leaves Green.

From this parish was formed the parish of Biggin Hill in the twentieth century development along the Westerham- Bromley Road. Biggin Hill was developed to the north of Aperfield in the twentieth century. See Biggin Hill, Kent

The Church of St Mark's Biggin Hill was built in 1904 as a temporary iron structure to meet the spiritual needs of the 200 residents of Biggin Hill and was originally sited on Polesteeple Hill. It was not until the 1950's when Biggin Hill had 4,000 residents that a more permanent building was attempted with the demolition of All Saints Church, Peckham, and the movement of timber and bricks to the site in Biggin Hill acquired for the building from a bequest, which is the site of the St Mark's church. The parish church at Biggin Hill was dedicated on 25 April 1959 by the Bishop of Rochester and was formed from part of the Ancient Cudham parish. (for additional information on this, seeHistory of St Mark's Church)

Ideal Homes: A History of the London Suburbs is a combined effort by South London Borough Archives to illustrate the history of places within the boroughs. Part of the Bromley Archive image collection relating to Cudham is available at Ideal Homes

A history of Biggin Hill

Civil Registration
See Bromley Registration district

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
Cudham 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.

Kent Online Parish Clerks has indexes available for select parishes. Records are also available at the Kent Archives.

Census records
Census returns for Cudham 1841-1891

Kent Online Parish Clerks have Census transcripts

1871 Census Enumeration District 16 http://www.kent-opc.org/Parishes/Census/1871CudhamED16.html

1871 Census Enumeration District 17 http://www.kent-opc.org/Parishes/Census/1871CudhamED17.html both include descriptions of the coverage of each Enumeration District

1891 Census http://www.kent-opc.org/Parishes/Census/1891Cudham.html

FamilySearch Records includes collections of census indexes which can be searched online for free. In addition FamilySearch Centres offer free access to images of the England and Wales Census through FHC Portal Computers here have access to the Family History Centre Portal page which gives free access to premium family history software and websites that generally charge for subscriptions. Category:England Family History Centres to locate local Family History Centres in UK Introduction to Family History Centers to locate outside UK. Many archives and local history collections in public libraries in England and Wales offer online census searches and also hold microfilm or fiche census returns.

Images of the census for 1841-1891 can be viewed in census collections at Ancestry (fee payable) or Find My Past (fee payable)

The 1851 census of England and Wales attempted to identify religious places of worship in addition to the household survey census returns.

Ancestry UK Census Collection

Find my Past census search 1841-1901

Poor Law Unions
See Bromley Poor Law Union The parish workhouse prior to the opening of the Union Workhouse at Locksbottom in 1844 was situated at Leaves Green.

The Cudham Parish Workhouse was built in 1731 at Leaves Green.

No documents relating to the foundation of the parish workhouse survive. There is a reference in a manorial rental of the manor of Cudham 05 29 October 1731 to the church warden and overseers of Cudham paying a quit rent of 1d for the workhouse. A 1788 survey of the parish includes the workhouse and garden. In 1803/4 11 people were in the workhouse according to an abstract of returns relating to the expense and maintenance of the poor.

The minutes of the Board of Guardians of the Bromley Union 1836 ( Bromley Archive reference 346 G/BY AM1 record a report to the full board that there were 15 inmates although the workhouse was capable of accommodating 60. The inmates were transferred to Bromley, Chislehurst and St Mary Cray workhouses. The same meeting resolved to build a central workhouse.

To the modern eye the workhouse appears disconnected from the parish but much of the modern area of the Ancient Parish was constructed in the 20th century. The former parish Workhouse is a grade II listed building; the three cottages were renamed Jasmine Cottage, Ramblers Rest Cottage and Green View in the early 20th century. British Listed Buildings contains architectural details and is based on Bromley Archives material held at reference L78.4.(0)

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Kent Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

See England, Kent, Wills and Probate - FamilySearch Historical Records

Maps and Gazetteers
For gazetteer references see www.kent-opc.org/Parishes/Cudham.html

Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.


 * England Jurisdictions 1851
 * Vision of Britain

Extract from A Topographical Dictionary of England

CUDHAM (St. Peter and St. Paul), a parish, in the union of Bromley, hundred of Ruxley, lathe of Sutton-at-Hone, W. division of Kent, 7 miles (S. E. by S.) from Bromley.

Local Family History Centre
Orpington Family History Centre, Kent is within the London Borough of Bromley, located adjacent to Orpington Station and on major bus routes through the borough.


 * FHC Portal This centre has access to the Family History Centre Portal page which gives free access in the centre to premium family history software and websites that generally charge for subscriptions.
 * Publication of the restricted access images England, Kent, Wills and Probate - FamilySearch Historical Records and England, Kent, Land Tax Assessments - FamilySearch Historical Records means that it is advisable to telephone the centre to reserve a computer if you wish to view these collections using the portal.

Websites
St Mark's Church Biggin Hill

For very early sound film of Little Tich see Little Tich Big Boots Dance retrieved from You Tube

Gordon Irving's account of Little Tich Biggin Hill History

The history of ownership of the Blacksmiths Arms, which includes a plaque commemorating the birth of Henry Relph there is found at Blacksmiths Arms website