King’s Lynn All Saints, Norfolk Genealogy



England   Norfolk   Norfolk Parishes

Parish History
King's Lynn All Saints is an Ancient parish in the Diocese of Norfolk.

It is possibly the earliest church in Lynn and serves South Lynn. The site was occupied and the church incorporates an anchorite chapel where a group of anchoresses lived in seclusion as a hermitage in the 14th century when a tower was also added. This fell down in 1763 and the present church has been heavily damged by vandalism in recent years.

Nevertheless the Church is still a centre for Anglo-catholic worship and has a 1,000 year tradition of worship on the site.

Here is an important 19th century jurisdictional and historical perspective for this ancient parish:

LYNN, or Lynn-Regis,a borough, sea-port, andmarket-town, having exclusive jurisdiction, and thehead of a union, locally inthe hundred of FreebridgeLynn, W. division of Norfolk, 44 miles (W. by N.)from Norwich, and 97 (N.by E.) from London; containing 16,039 inhabitants.This place is by Camdensupposed to have been aBritish town, and to have derived its name from theexpanse of water near which it is situated, the Britishword Llyn signifying a lake; but Spelman is of opinionthat the name is of Saxon origin, from the word Lean,implying a tenure in fee or farm. It was at one timecalled Len Episcopi, being under the jurisdiction, bothtemporal and spiritual, of the bishops of Norwich, whohad a palace where Gaywood Hall now stands; but thisepiscopal authority was, in the reign of Henry VIII.,surrendered to the crown, and from that time the townassumed the name of Lenne Regis, or King's Lynn. InDomesday book it is called Lun, and Lenn; and isdescribed as the property of Agelmare, Bishop of NorthElmham, and Stigand, Archbishop of Canterbury. Itappears to have been a place of considerable importance,and to have enjoyed valuable privileges, including certaincustoms on the arrival of all merchandise by sea andland, of which the bishops claimed a moiety. BishopHerbert, who removed the see to Norwich in 1094,founded a church and priory here, dedicated to St.Mary Magdalene, St. Margaret, and other saints; andin the reign of Richard I. the town was the residence ofnumerous Jews, who carried on an extensive trade withmost parts of Europe.

Arms.

In 1204, during the contest between John and thebarons, Lynn continued faithful to the king, who remained here for some time, and, on the petition of JohnGrey, Bishop of Norwich, made the town a free borough:he presented to the inhabitants a silver cup and cover,which are still preserved by the corporation; also hisown sword to be borne before the mayor on publicoccasions. John was frequently here during the war,and from this place he departed just before the disasterwhich befel him in crossing the Wash, and to which isascribed the illness that caused his death. Edward III.and Henry VI. also visited the town; and Edward IV.,in 1470, retreating before the celebrated Earl of Warwick,came hither in company with his brother the Duke ofGloucester, and embarked for Flanders. In 1498,Henry VII., with his queen and the Prince of Wales,attended by a numerous retinue, spent some time at theAugustine convent in the town. Queen Elizabeth, inher progress through Norfolk in 1578, visited theplace; and of late years, His Majesty William IV., whenDuke of Clarence, in 1807, and the Duke of Sussex, in1822, were entertained by the corporation, and presented with the freedom of the borough. Her presentMajesty, when Princess Victoria, with the Duchess ofKent, likewise visited the town, in 1835, on their routeto Holkham. In the civil war of the 17th century, theinhabitants embraced the royal cause, and the town wasbesieged by the parliamentarian forces under the command of the Earl of Manchester, to whom it surrenderedafter a vigorous resistance for three weeks. Numerousplagues and other diseases have raged here, at differentperiods, with destructive influence; in 1540, an intermittent fever prevailed to such an extent as to occasiona suspension of the mart for that year, and in 1636 and1665, the market and fairs were discontinued owingto the plague. In 1741, the spires of the church of St.Margaret and the chapel of St. Nicholas were blowndown, and several other buildings greatly injured, by aviolent hurricane.

The town is situated at a distance of ten miles fromthe North Sea, on the east bank of the Great Ouse, atits confluence with the river Nar, which is here of considerable width; it extends a mile and a quarter inlength, and half a mile in breadth, and is intersectedby four rivulets, called fleets, over which are numerousbridges. Many improvements have been effected underacts of parliament obtained in 1803 and 1806 speciallyfor the town. It was anciently defended on the eastside by a wall with nine bastions, and by a broad anddeep fosse, over which were three drawbridges leadingto the chief gates: a few fragments of the wall are stillremaining, and one of the gates, arched and embattled,at the south entrance; the other gates have been takendown. On the north side is St. Anne's fort, a platformbattery, constructed in 1627, and formerly mountingtwelve pieces of heavy ordnance. The town has threeprincipal streets, nearly parallel, from which severalsmaller streets diverge; and is well paved, lighted withgas, and amply supplied with water. The houses are ingeneral ancient and irregularly built, though interspersedwith several respectable mansions; and in the moremodern parts are ranges of handsome dwellings. Theenvirons are flat, and not very attractive in theirscenery; but the public promenades are pleasant. Atheatre was erected by a proprietary of shareholders in1814, and is open annually for about six weeks, commencing at the great mart in February. Assemblies areheld in a suite of commodious rooms in the town-hall,in which also concerts take place occasionally. A subscription library was established in 1797, and is supported by 200 members; there is likewise a reading andnews room in the market-place, and the inhabitantshave access to an excellent parochial library in St.Margaret's church.

In the reign even of Edward the Confessor, Lynn wasa place of considerable trade; and it had grown intosuch commercial importance at the beginning of thethirteenth century, that the revenue paid to the crownwas more than two-thirds of that arising from the tradeof the port of London. In 1370, the inhabitants furnished nineteen vessels towards a naval armament forthe invasion of France: a mint was anciently establishedhere; and there were thirty-one incorporated guilds, ortrading companies, some of which had separate halls.The harbour is deep, and sufficient to accommodate 300sail; but the entrance is somewhat dangerous, from thefrequent shifting of the channel, and the numerous sandbanks; and the anchorage is rendered difficult from thenature of the soil, and the rapidity of the tide, whichrises to the height of twenty feet. Originally the courseof the Ouse was by Wisbech: its present direction,which, according to Dugdale, may be referred to thereign of Henry III., has been ascribed to the decay ofthe outfall at Wisbech, and to some great flood whichrendered a fresh line necessary. This accession of waterinto the channel of a small river which previously flowedpast the town, destroyed a considerable part of old Lynn;and the church at North Lynn is stated to have beencompletely engulphed. After the sluices at Denver andSalter's Lode had been constructed, for the purpose ofdraining the fenny tract called Bedford Level, the navigation of the river was much impaired, and the harbourobstructed by the accumulation of silt; to remedy which,the Eau-brink cut was commenced in 1818, and completed in 1820, avoiding a considerable bend in the river.Near the north end of this cut, a handsome woodenbridge was built some years ago, over which a new roadleads into Marshland; and a bridge over the riverNar, and an embankment at Cross-Keys Wash, affordinga direct road from Norfolk and Suffolk, through Lynn,into Lincolnshire, were completed in 1831. The Purfleetand Common Staith quays are the principal places forlanding merchandise; on the former, where all winesare landed, is the custom-house, erected by Sir JohnTurner, and occupying the site of the hall of the ancientguild of the Holy Trinity. It is a handsome building offreestone, ornamented with two tiers of pilasters, thelower of the Doric, and the upper of the Ionic, order,and surmounted by a small cupola; in a niche in thefront is a statue of Charles II.

The port, being so near the sea, and enjoying the advantages of inland communication, carries on an extensive foreign and coasting trade. The principal importsare, wine and cork from Spain and Portugal; brandyfrom France; timber, deals, hemp, and tallow, from theBaltic; corn from the northern parts of Europe; oilcake from the various parts of the continent, and latelyfrom the Mediterranean; and timber from America.There are seven wood-yards for bonding timber, deals,&c.; also a tobacco warehouse, a warehouse for drygoods generally, and several vaults, all appropriated forthe reception of articles under bond. The coasting-tradeis very considerable: a fine species of white sand, muchused in the manufacture of glass, is sent in great quantities to Newcastle and Leith; shrimps, which are foundin abundance on the coast, are forwarded to London andother places. The quantity of coal landed at the portin a recent year, was 255,763 tons; and the duties paidat the custom-house amounted to £64,359. The numberof vessels that entered inwards was, from foreign ports,301, aggregate tonnage, 29,441; and of coasting-vessels2229, of 208,137 tons' aggregate burthen: the numberthat cleared outwards was 1159, of the aggregate burthenof 68,920 tons. The number of ships of above fifty tons'burthen registered at the port is 192, and the tonnage17,156. The jurisdiction of the port extends fromBurnham-Overy on the east, to the entrance to Wisbechharbour on the west. There are three yards for shipbuilding, two of which have patent-slips; several extensive breweries and large malting establishments, amanufactory for sailcloth and sacking, some rope-walksand manufactories for twine, a manufactory for tobacco,an establishment for cork-cutting, three iron-foundries,several large flour-mills, an oil-mill, and a saw-mill. Theintercourse with the interior of the country is greatlyfacilitated by the river Ouse and its several branches,with which various canals have communication. Actswere passed in 1846, for a railway to Dereham, by wayof Swaffham, 26½ miles long; and for a railway to Ely,by way of Downham-Market, also 26½ miles in length:both lines were completed in 1847.

The market-days are Tuesday and Saturday; themarket on the former, principally for corn, is held in apaved area of about three acres, surrounded by somewell-built houses. A handsome but dilapidated marketcross of freestone, erected in 1710, has been taken down,and a new market-house erected, with a range of six Doriccolumns on the basement story, forming an entrance,above which is a range of six Ionic columns, supporting a pediment; the upper part of the buildingcontains a spacious room for exhibitions or other publicpurposes, with entrances from staircases on the sides,and the area underneath extends to the quay, where thefish-market is held. The market on Saturday, formerlyheld in the High-street, was removed in 1782 to an areanear St. Margaret's church, where a good market-housewas built in 1802. In 1826, the weekly cattle-marketwas removed from its inconvenient site in the environsof the town, to a more central situation. The fairs areon February 14th, which is generally continued for afortnight; and October 17th, which is a great cheesefair.

Corporation Seal. Obverse. Reverse.

King's Lynn, a borough by prescription, received itsfirst charter from King John, in the 6th of his reign;the grant was confirmed and extended by several subsequent sovereigns. A new charter was bestowed byHenry VIII. in the 16th year of his reign, by which themunicipal constitution was fixed, and another in the29th year, establishing local courts; and by charter ofthe 2nd of James I., the corporation acquired the rightsof admiralty. The control is now vested in a mayor,six aldermen, and eighteen councillors, under an actof the 5th and 6th of William IV., cap. 76, whichalso divides the borough into three wards, and makesthe municipal boundaries co-extensive with the parliamentary. The corporation, until the passing of thesame act, which abolished admiralty jurisdictions, presided at an admiralty court of record for determiningall pleas arising within the limits of the port. They atpresent hold a court of quarter-session for the trial ofall offences not capital; a court of record once a monthfor the recovery of debts toany amount, and the determination of civil suits; anda court leet annually. Thepowers of the county debtcourt of Lynn, established in1847, extend over the registration-districts of Lynn andFreebridge-Lynn, and partof those of Wisbech, Docking, and Downham-Market.Petty-sessions are held thricea week. The number ofborough magistrates is eleven. The freedom is inheritedby the eldest son of a freeman, on the death of his father,or acquired by servitude. The town first exercised theelective franchise in the 23rd of Edward I., since whichtime it has regularly returned two members to parliament: the borough is co-extensive with the parishes ofSt. Margaret, and South Lynn or All Saints, and comprises 2633 acres: the mayor is returning officer. Theguildhall is an ancient structure of stone and flint, inthe later English style, containing a spacious hall,courts for the sessions, and a suite of assembly-rooms;and is ornamented with portraits of King John, HenryVI., Edward IV., William and Mary, George III., Admiral Lord Nelson, Sir Robert Walpole, Bart., whorepresented the borough in seventeen successive parliaments; Sir Thomas White, Sir Benjamin Keene, andLord George Bentinck. The prison for the borough isboth a common gaol and house of correction.

Mayor's Seal.

The parish of South Lynn contains 3522, and St.Margaret's 12,517, inhabitants. The living of South Lynnis a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £18. 6. 8.;patron and appropriator, the Bishop of Ely: the greattithes have been commuted for £190, and the small for£180. The church is an ancient cruciform edifice; thetower fell down in 1763, and demolished part of thebody of the building. The living of St. Margaret's is aperpetual curacy, with that of St. Nicholas' annexed;net income, £138; patrons and appropriators, the Deanand Chapter of Norwich. The church is a spaciouscruciform structure, combining the early, decorated, andlater English styles, with two western towers, and aneast front of singularly beautiful design, with two octagonal turrets rising from the flanking buttresses; thechancel is early English, with a circular window, andcontains some finely-sculptured sedilia of stone, severalancient brasses and monuments, and a brass eagle withexpanded wings forming the reading-desk. The chapelof St. Nicholas, built in the latter part of the fourteenthcentury, is a large structure, combining the decoratedwith the later English style, and having an embattledtower surmounted by a spire; the original roof of beautifully carved oak is carefully preserved, and the interiorcontains many details of great beauty. A district parishwas formed out of St. Margaret's parish, in March, 1846,under the act 6th and 7th Victoria, cap. 37; and achurch dedicated to St. John the Evangelist was consecrated in September following: it is situated at the endof Blackfriars' road, is in the early English style, andcost between £5000 and £6000; of 1000 sittings, 800are free. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the gift ofthe Bishop of Norwich; net income, £150. There areplaces of worship for Baptists, the Society of Friends,Independents, Wesleyans, Unitarians, and Roman Catholics. In the parish of St. Margaret is a cemetery, witha small chapel for the performance of the funeral service;and there is a burial-ground for Jews. The Free Grammar school was founded in the reign of Henry VII., byThomas Thoresby, alderman of Lynn, who endowed itwith lands producing about £60 per annum; a spaciousschoolroom, and a dwelling-house for the master, wereerected in 1825, by the corporation. It has two scholarships at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, of £5. 10. eachper annum, and one scholarship of £2 per annum, bothfounded by the corporation, and tenable for sevenyears; also one scholarship of £2, for seven years,founded by the owner of an estate near High-bridgeLynn; one of £3. 8. 6., at Trinity College, Cambridge,for five years; and one of £6, tenable for four years, atSt. John's College, Cambridge. Eugene Aram wasusher here when he was apprehended, in 1759, on acharge of murder committed fourteen years previously.

Gaywood hospital, about half a mile from Lynn, occupies the site of the ancient hospital of St. Mary Magdalene, founded in the reign of Stephen, for a master andtwelve brethren and sisters; the endowment, lapsing tothe crown, was granted by James I. to the mayor andaldermen, in trust for the maintenance of a master andeleven aged and infirm persons. The hospital was burntdown by the parliamentary troops in the reign of CharlesI., and rebuilt by the corporation in 1649. St. James'hospital was rebuilt in 1822, by Mr. Benjamin Smith,and is endowed for the maintenance of a reader andeleven aged women. Lynn hospital, a large and handsome edifice of white brick, was erected in 1835, at anexpense of £2000. Valenger's hospital, founded in 1605,and rebuilt in 1806, is endowed with £21 per annum,and inhabited by four aged women. Paradise or Framingham's hospital, begun in 1676, by John Heathcote, andcompleted after his decease by Henry Framingham, isendowed for the support of a reader and eleven agedmen. Among the other charities is one by Mr. Cook, ofLondon, who bequeathed £5000 three per cents.; thedividends on £2300 of the amount to be paid to theinmates of the Bede house, those on £2000 to the tenantsof Framingham's hospital, and those on the remaining£700 to the hospitallers of South Lynn. There arevarious benevolent institutions for the relief of the necessitous; and certain trustees are in possession of fundsfor apprenticing children, for loans to young tradesmen,and other purposes. The union of Lynn comprises St.Margaret's, and North, South, and West Lynn parishes;containing a population of 16,554.

The monastic institutions and ancient hospitals consisted of a priory of Benedictine monks, in Priory-lane;a convent of White friars, in South Lynn; one of Greyfriars, in St. James' street; one of Black friars, betweenClough-lane and Spinner-lane; one of Augustine friarsin St. Austin's street; a college near the town-hall;and St. Mary Magdalene's hospital, the site and endowment of which are appropriated to Gaywood hospital;also a nunnery, a monastery of friars de Pænitentiâ Jesu,St. John's hospital, and four lazar-houses, the sites ofwhich are unknown; besides various chapels, whichwere involved in the general Dissolution. Vestiges ofthe houses that belonged to the Grey, White, Black,and Augustine friars still exist. An ancient building, in a state of complete repair, in Queen-street, near thetown-hall, has been considered to be that which constituted the college. But the most interesting relic of antiquity is a curious edifice at the eastern extremity of the town, denominated the Lady's Chapel, or the chapelon the Red Mount, which has undergone a thoroughrepair by subscription (by 1849).

From: 'Lynn, King's - Lythe', A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 203-208. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51127 Date accessed: 08 May 2013.

Church Records
Images of the parish register for this parish are available on Record Search and are found under the waypoint South Lynn.

The name "Lynn" has an ancient derivation, perhaps from a Celtic term meaning "pool" or from an Anglo-Saxon word for "torrent" both references to the estuary lake which emptied into the Wash. By the 14th century, the town ranked as the third port of England and is considered as important to England in Medieval times as Liverpool was during the Industrial Revolution. It retains two buildings that were warehouses of the Hanseatic League that were in use between the 15th and 17th centuries. They are the only remaining building structures of the Hanseatic League in England.

The town now known as King's Lynn was, in medieval times, rather Bishop's Lynn. This is because it was taken under the wing of the Bishop of Norwich in the late eleventh century, one of the earliest of numerous deliberate seigneurial foundations of "new towns" that took place between that time and the mid-thirteenth century. When Henry VIII took over the lordship of the town it was renamed King's Lynn However it is still referred to as Lynn locally and records often refer to it as Lynn Bishop's Lynn, Lynn Regis and later as King's Lynn.

The parish is catalogued South Lynn by the Norfolk Record Office and the records are reference PD607/1-8, 14-21, 27-31

Census
a.