Newport, Essex Genealogy

England   Essex   Essex Parishes



Parish History
Newport St Mary the Virgin is an Ancient Parish in Essex

The earliest mention of Newport is in the Domesday Book. The name is thought to be of Anglo-Saxon origin and is thought to mean new town or market, rather than a modern day seaport. “Port” was often a name for a market in Saxon times, and Newport did have a flourishing market in this period.

The village prospered until around 1300 AD, after which it declined and its market ceased; it was overtaken in importance by the town and neighbour, Saffron Walden.

Until the 20th century Newport was mostly dependent upon agriculture in addition to local trade of leather, woolcombing and in later years, malting.

The diocese of Chelmsford was created in 1914, prior to this Essex parishes were in the jurisdiction of the Bishops of London until 1845 when they transferred to the diocese of Rochester. The diocese of Chelmsford has 474 parishes and 600 churches and is the second largest region in the church of England outside London.

NEWPORT (St. Mary), a parish, and formerly a market-town, in the union of Saffron-Walden, hundred of Uttlesford, N. division of Essex, 3½ miles (S. S. W.) from Saffron-Walden; containing 813 inhabitants. This manor, in the time of Edward the Confessor, belonged to Earl Harold, and afterwards, forming part of the demesnes of William the Conqueror, continued in the possession of the crown till the reign of Edward VI., when it was granted, as parcel of the duchy of Cornwall, to Richard Fermor; it shortly after passed to the family of Warren, connected by marriage with the Protector, and has since been held by other families. The parish is about three miles in length and a mile and a half in breadth, and comprises 1654 acres, of which 30 are common or waste. The village was once a town of importance, and from an early period had the privilege of a market and fairs; it contained a castle and an ancient market-cross, and at the northern extremity of the village is a spacious prison and bridewell. Here is a station of the railway from London to Cambridge. In the hamlet of Birchanger is a handsome residence, erected on the site, and incorporated with a considerable portion, of the ancient hospital of St. Leonard. Fairs are held on the Thursday in Easter-week, and the 17th of November. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £9. 10., and in the patronage of the Crown: the impropriation belongs to Mrs. Cranmer, whose tithes have been commuted for £399. 10.; the vicarial tithes produce £115, and there are 25 acres of glebe. The church, a fine structure in the later English style, has a lofty tower crowned with embattled turrets. There are places of worship for Independents and Wesleyans. A free grammar school was founded in 1586, by Joyce Frankland and William Saxie, who endowed it with property now producing an income of about £230.

From: Samuel A. Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 398-403. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51174&amp;amp;strquery=newport Date accessed: 15 February 2011.

Newport is a village and civil parish in Essex near Saffron Walden, for administrative purposes part of the Uttlesford district of Essex County Council.

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

Online images are available Seax - Essex Archives Online From the Essex Record Office

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.

Index for the Census may be searched at FamilySearch Historical Records

http://www.1881pubs.com/ for details of public houses in the 1881 census

Poor Law Unions
Saffron Walden Poor Law Union, Essex

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