Preston (Ledbury), Gloucestershire

Historical Description

Preston, a parish in Gloucestershire, adjacent to Herefordshire, 3 miles SW of Ledbury. Post town, Ledbury. Acreage, 897; population of the civil parish, 76; of the ecclesiastical, 219. The manor and all the land belong to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. Preston Court, a 17th century mansion, is now a farmhouse. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Gloucester and Bristol; net value, £210 with residence. Patron, the Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol. The church is a small Norman edifice, with a fine arch over the N door, and some old stained glass. It was restored in 1849 and again in 1885.

Transcribed from The Comprehensive Gazetteer of England & Wales, 1894-5

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Ancient County	Gloucestershire
Hundred	Dudstone and Kings Barton
Poor Law union	Newent

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.

Church Records

The register dates from the year 1665.

The Gloucestershire Parish Registers are available online at Ancestry, in association with Gloucestershire Archives.

Churches

Church of England

St. John the Baptist (parish church)

The church of St. John the Baptist is a small edifice of stone, in the Norman style, consisting of chancel, nave of three bays, south aisle, porch, and a low bell-cot on the western gable containing 2 bells: within the porch, which dates from the 14th century, is a Norman doorway, the tympanum of which has a carving in relief of the Agnus Dei: the church was restored in 1859, when a south aisle was added; the chancel was restored in 1885: the stained east window was erected in 1885 as a memorial to the Rev. Alfred Newton M.A. rector 1863-84: some old stained glass, illustrating the "Crucifixion," has been retained in one of the windows in the south aisle: there are 100 sittings.

Civil Registration

For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Preston (Ledbury) from the following:

Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Preston)

Land and Property

The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for Gloucestershire is available to browse.

Newspapers and Periodicals

The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following newspapers covering Gloucestershire online:

Visitations Heraldic

The Visitation of the county of Gloucester, 1623 is available on the Heraldry page.