Mirfield, Yorkshire Genealogy

England Yorkshire Yorkshire Parishes K-R West Riding  Mirfield

Parish History
MIRFIELD (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Dewsbury, Lower division of the wapentake of Agbrigg, W. riding of York, 2¾ miles (W. by S.) from Dewsbury; containing 6919 inhabitants. This place, at the time of the heptarchy, formed part of the parish of Dewsbury. It afterwards belonged to Sir John Heton, lord of the manor, whose lady, on her way to the parish church, before dawn, on Christmas-day, being attacked by robbers, and her attendant killed, the pope, on the intercession of her husband, who was then at Rome, granted permission to the family to build a chapel here, which subsequently became parochial. In 1261 the district was severed from Dewsbury, and erected into a distinct parish. Including the hamlets of Battyeford and Hopton, it comprises by ad measurement 3548 acres of fertile land. The surface is finely undulated, and the lower grounds are watered by the navigable river Calder, which divides the parish into two unequal portions, the larger of which is on the north side of the stream; the substratum abounds with coal and freestone of good quality. Within the parish is Blake Hall, a hand some modern mansion, erected on the site of the ancient seat of the Hoptons, beautifully situated, and commanding agreeable prospects. Here are also, Castle Hall, erected on the site of the old mansion of the Hetons, and nowan inn; Upper Hall, once the residence of the Shepley family; and Hopton Hall, an ancient edifice partly modernised.

The village is on the north bank of the river Calder,along which it extends for a considerable distance; the inhabitants are chiefly employed in the woollen manufacture, and the making of cards for machinery, and there are some large flour-mills and extensive malting establishments. A good trade is likewise carried on in mineral produce, for the conveyance of which the Calderand Hebble navigation affords great facilities; and the Manchester and Leeds railway passes through the parish. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £6. 1. 0½.; net income, £242; patron and impropriator, Sir George Armytage, Bart. The tithes were commuted for land in 1796. The church was, with the exception of the tower, rebuilt on a larger scale, in 1826, at an expense of nearly £2000, raised by subscription; it is a neat and well-arranged structure, containing 1000 sittings. Churches have been erected at Battyeford and Hopton, which see. There are places of worship for Wesleyan Methodists of the Old and New Connexions, Primitive Methodists, Baptists, Independents, Moravians,and Swedenborgians. A free school is endowed with certain houses and land bequeathed by Richard Thorpein 1667, and now producing £50 per annum. Near the church is a large circular mound called Castle Hill. Bishop Hopton, who lived in the reign of Mary, was born at Blake Hall.

From: Lewis, Samuel A, A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 325-329. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51154 Date accessed: 15 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.

Mirfield is an 'ancient' parish (created before 1813) in the diocese of Wakefield. Church of England records for Mirfield St. Mary's survive from 1559.

The original registers are deposited at the West Yorkshire Archives in Wakefield. Microfilm/fiche copies are available at archive branches such as Leeds at Sheepscar and Kirklees in Huddersfield.

The copies made by the minister (ordered by an Act of 1598) and sent each year to the Bishop of the diocese (known as parish register transcripts or Bishop's transcripts) survive from 1600 and are deposited at the West Yorkshire Archives branch in Sheepscar, Leeds.

The Family History Library in Salt Lake City has both parish registers and bishop's transcripts on microfilm for Mirfield and its chapelries, which are listed in the. Many of these records are indexed in the International Genealogical Index available online through the 'Advanced Search' at www.familysearch.org. 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.