Rothwell, Yorkshire Genealogy

England Yorkshire Yorkshire Parishes K-R  West Riding  Rothwell

Parish History
This ancient parish was created before 1813. Church of England records began in 1538.

ROTHWELL (Holy Trinity), a parish, in the Lower division of the wapentake of Agbrigg, W. riding of York; containing, with the townships of Lofthouse with Carlton, Middleton, Oulton with Woodlesford, and Thorpe, 7462 inhabitants, of whom 2988 are in Rothwell township, 4½ miles (S. E.) from Leeds. This place was originally part of the parish of Morley, from which it was separated before the Conquest. Soon after that period it was granted as a dependency of the castle of Pontefract to the Lacys, who had a baronial residence here, of which evident vestiges may still be traced, and by whom its church was appropriated to the priory of Nostal. The parish comprises by computation 8612 acres, of which 3186 are in the township of Rothwell with Rothwell-Haigh and Royd's Green; the surface is varied, and the district abounds with coal of excellent quality, of which several mines are in operation, large supplies being sent to Leeds and other places. Some quarries of good stone are likewise worked here. The manor of Rothwell-Haigh, including Thwaite, comprises about 1000 acres of land, the property of Lord Stourton. The Midland railway passes through the parish. The village is pleasantly situated in a fertile vale watered by a small rivulet, and is very ancient, and irregularly built: the inhabitants are employed chiefly in the collieries and in agriculture; there are establishments for the manufacture of rope and twine, and a woollen-mill. The debtors'prison, for the honour of Pontefract, is a spacious building. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £19.12. 11.; net income, £843; patron, the Rev. R. H. Brandling, who, with others, is impropriator. The great tithes of the township of Rothwell and Rothwell-Haigh have been commuted for £436, and the small for £351: there is a vicarial glebe of 5 acres. The church is a neat structure in the later English style, with a square embattled tower: it was repaired and enlarged in 1826, and has lately undergone extensive improvements; three modern galleries have been removed, and a beautiful oaken roof, of the 14th century, has been uncovered. At Oulton, Lofthouse, and Middleton, are other incumbencies. There are places of worship for Wesleyans and Primitive Methodists.

From:Lewis, Samuel A., A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 697-703. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51245 Date accessed: 10 October 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
To find the names of the neighbouring parishes, use England Jurisdictions 1851. In this site, search for the name of the parish, click on the location "pin", click Options and click List contiguous parishes.

Contributor: Include here information for parish registers, Bishop’s Transcripts, nonconformist 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.

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