Gresford, Denbighshire, Wales Genealogy

WalesCounty Borough of WrexhamGresford

Gresford (Welsh: Gresffordd) is a village, community and ecclesiastical parish in the County Borough of Wrexham, Wales to the north of the town of Wrexham.

History
The area was settled by Anglo-Saxons of Mercia in the 7th and 8th centuries and the settlement is referred to as "Gretford" in the Domesday Book. It was previously assumed that the name was derived from "Groesffordd" (Welsh for Crossroad) but is now believe that that Welsh name is simply a corruption of the English word.

The large parish church of All Saints' Church and is believed to date back to 1492 and is famous for its bells. It was built of Millstone Grit, a sandy brown coloured stone, known locally as "Cefn Stone".

Until the early 19th century, the parish of Gresford covered a large area, and included the chapelries of Holt and Isycoed, and the detached township of Erddig to the south of Wrexham. It also included the township of Marford &amp; Hoseley, an exclave of Flintshire.

As the population in the area increased, the parish was subdivided:


 * In June 1840, the townships of Allington, Burton, Marford &amp; Hoseley became the newly formed parish of Rossett.
 * In November 1851, the township of Gwersyllt became the new parish of Gwersyllt.

Before the Industrial Revolution the parish of Gresford had been agricultural in nature.

Civil Records
Births, marriages and deaths in Gresford are recorded in the GRO indexes as:

Church Records
The following Gresford Parish Registers have been deposited at the Denbighshire Record Office in Ruthin:


 * The Clwyd Family History Society have published several volumes of the Gresford parish registers.
 * There are no official records available on the IGI for Gresford parish.

Nonconformist Church Records
The following chapel records from Gresford are available on the IGI:

Census Records
The parish of Gresford formed part of the Hope and, later, the Holt sub-district of the Wrexham Registrar's District.

Poor Law Union Records
The parish of Gresford was part of the Wrexham Union, which was created on 30 March 1837.

A workhouse was built at Croesnewydd in Bersham.

The records of the Wrexham Union are now held at Denbighshire Record Office in Ruthin.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Vision of Britain - Gresford
 * Ordnance Survey map of Gresford

Web Sites

 * Gresford War Memorial at Clwyd FDHS
 * Gresford Parish Church at Clwyd FHS
 * The Gresford Disaster at Clwyd FHS