Penistone, Yorkshire Genealogy

England Yorkshire Yorkshire Parishes K-R  West Riding  Penistone

Parish History
PENISTONE (St. John the Baptist), a market town and parish, in the union of Wortley, wapentake of Staincross, W. riding of York; containing, with the chapelry of Denby, and the townships of Gunthwaite, Hunshelf, Ingbirchworth, Langsett, Oxspring, and Thurlestone, 5907 inhabitants, of whom 738 are in the township of Penistone, 8 miles (W. S. W.) from Barnsley, and 177 (N. N. W.) from London. The town is situated on the south bank of the river Don, and consists of four streets diverging at right angles; the houses are in general well built. A few families are employed in the weaving of linen by hand-looms. Here is a station of the Manchester and Sheffield railway, 28 miles from Manchester; and 13 from Sheffield. The market is on Thursday, and principally for cattle and sheep; fairs take place on the Thursday before Feb. 28th, the last Thursday in March, May 12th, and the Thursday before October 10th. The parish comprises by measurement 21,338 acres; about 2000 acres are moorland, 100 wood and plantations, and of the remainder about one third is arable, and two-thirds are pasture. The substratum contains coal, which is wrought to a limited extent; and there are quarries of good stone, of which large quantities are sent to London, chiefly consisting of flags for pavements. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £16. 14. 2.; net income, £147, with a glebe-house; patron, Alexander W.R. Bosville, Esq. The church is a neat structure, with a tower, and from its elevated situation forms a conspicuous feature in the landscape. At Denby is a separate incumbency. There are places of worship for the Society of Friends, Independents, and Wesleyans. The free grammar school was founded in 1604, and has been endowed by several benefactors with houses, lands, and rent-charges, now producing £100 per annum.

From: Lewis, Samuel A., A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 545-549. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51208 Date accessed: 22 September 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.

This ancient parish was created before 1813. Church of England records began in 1644.

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.