Riseley, Bedfordshire
Historical Description
Riseley, a village and a parish in Bedfordshire. The village stands 3½ miles NE of Sharnbrook station on the M.R., and 9 N of Bedford, and has a post, money order, and telegraph office under Bedford, and a police station. The parish comprises 3103 acres; population, 839. There is a parish council consisting of nine members. The manor belongs to Lord St John. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Ely; net value, £150 with residence. Patron, Lord St John. The church is a fine building of stone in the Early English, Decorated, and Perpendicular styles, consisting of chancel, nave with clerestory, S aisle (used as nave),. S porch, and side chapel the same size as the chancel. It has a very fine 14th-century tower in excellent preservation, with a peal of five bells. There are Baptist, Moravian, and Wesleyan chapels.
Administration
The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.
| Ancient County | Bedfordshire | |
| Ecclesiastical parish | Risley All Saints | |
| Hundred | Stodden |
Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.
Church Records
The parish register dates from the year 1569.
The Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and Records Service (BLARS) hold the registers for Riseley: Baptisms 1626-1985, Marriages 1626-1967, Burials 1632-1985, Banns 1754-1812, 1823-1947. 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
All Saints (parish church)
The church of All Saints is a noble edifice of stone, in the Early English Decorated and Perpendicular styles, consisting of chancel, nave with clerestory, a large south aisle of almost the same width as the nave, south porch and an embattled western tower of Perpendicular date, with pinnacles, containing 5 bells, rehung in May, 1891, and a striking clock: the church was restored and an organ chamber built in 1895, and it will now seat about 400 persons: there is a complete list of the vicars from 1224.
Civil Registration
For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.
Riseley was in Bedford Registration District from 1837 to 1974
Directories & Gazetteers
We have transcribed the entry for Riseley from the following:
- Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Risley (All Saints))
Land and Property
The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for Bedfordshire is available to browse.
Maps
Online maps of Riseley 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
Riseley was in Bedford Poor Law Union. For further detailed history of the Bedford Union see Peter Higginbotham's excellent resource: Bedford Poor Law Union and Workhouse.
Visitations Heraldic
A full transcript of the Visitations of Bedfordshire 1566, 1582, and 1634 is available online.