Little Barford, Bedfordshire
Historical Description
Barford, Little, a parish in Bedfordshire, on the river Ouse, and on the G.N.R., at the verge of the county, 3½ miles (S.) of St Neot's station. Post town, St Neot's, which is the money order and telegraph office. Acreage, 1200; population, 166. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Ely; net yearly value, £260 with residence. The church is old but good.
Administration
The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.
| Ancient County | Bedfordshire | |
| Diocese | Ely | |
| Ecclesiastical parish | Little Barford St. Mary | |
| Hundred | Biggleswade |
Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.
Church Records
The parish register dates from the year 1661
The Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and Records Service (BLARS) hold the registers for Little Barford: Baptisms 1678-1972, Marriages 1661-1965, Burials 1678-1982, Banns 1891-1963. Transcripts in either book or microfiche form for registers prior to 1813 can be purchased from the BLARS (see website for details).
Churches
Church of England
St. Denys (parish church)
The parish church of St. Denys is a small structure in the Early English, Decorated, and Perpendicular styles, consisting of chancel, nave, north aisle and a western tower containing 4 bells, and was thoroughly restored in 1871: the roof is of open timber work, a portion of which is beautifully painted: a Perpendicular rood screen separates the vestry from the body of the church, and its lower stage is decorated with red and white roses: the south doorway whows some fine Norman work, with an inserted arch of Early English date: the north doorway, also Late Norman, has a well-carved arch on two shafts: the chancel had a south aisle, the arches of which were formerly built into the wall: there is a peculiar brass to Thomas Perys, 1535, and Agnes his wife: the stained east window is a memorial to the Alington family: the west window was inserted to commemorate Queen Victoria's Jubilee: the organ was presented in 1876 by A. H. Rotds, esq. and it has since been improved at a cost of £100: there are 110 sittings.
Civil Registration
For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.
Little Barford was in St. Neots Registration District from 1837 to 1935 and Bedford Registration District from 1935 to 1974
Directories & Gazetteers
We have transcribed the entry for Little Barford from the following:
- Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Barford, Little (St. Mary))
- Kelly's Directory of Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, and Northamptonshire, 1914
Genealogy
We have transcribed the pedigree of the family of Alington, of Little Barford, from Burke's Landed Gentry, 1879.
Land and Property
The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for Bedfordshire is available to browse.
Maps
Online maps of Little Barford are available from a number of sites:
- Bing (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
- Google Streetview.
- National Library of Scotland. (Old maps)
- OpenStreetMap.
- old-maps.co.uk (Old Ordnance Survey maps to buy).
- Streetmap.co.uk (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
- A Vision of Britain through Time. (Old maps)
Newspapers and Periodicals
The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following Bedfordshire papers online:
- Bedfordshire Times and Independent
- Biggleswade Chronicle
- Luton Times and Advertiser
- Luton News and Bedfordshire Chronicle
Poor Law
Little Barford was in St Neots Poor Law Union, Huntindonshire. For further detailed history of the St Neots Union see Peter Higginbotham's excellent resource: St Neots Poor Law Union and Workhouse.
Visitations Heraldic
A full transcript of the Visitations of Bedfordshire 1566, 1582, and 1634 is available online.