Stagsden, Bedfordshire
Historical Description
Stagsden, a parish, with a village, in Bedfordshire, 4½ miles W of Bedford railway station, and 8 NE of Newport Pagnell. It was anciently known as Stachedene and Staggis-den, and has a post office under Bedford; money order and telegraph office, Turvey. Acreage, 3419; population, 470. Pillow lace is made. The manor, with most of the land, belongs to the Crown. There is a chalybeate spring. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Ely; gross value, £235 with residence. The church, which stands on an eminence near the centre of the village, is a very ancient building of stone consisting of chancel, nave, N transept, S aisle, porch, and an embattled tower. There is a Congregational chapel. Wick End, Bury End, Up End, North End, and West End are adjacent hamlets.
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 | Stagsden St. Leonard | |
| Hundred | Willey |
Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.
Church Records
The parish register dates from the year 1670.
The Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and Records Service (BLARS) hold the registers for Stagsden: Baptisms 1670-1983, Marriages 1670-2001, Burials 1680-2001, Banns 1823-1983. 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. Leonard (parish church)
The church of St. Leonard, situated on an eminence near the centre of the village, is an ancient edifice of stone, erected in the Transitional period between the Decorated and Perpendicular styles, and consists of chancel, nave of five bays, with clerestory, north transept or chapel, south aisle, porch and an embattled western tower containing a clock and 5 bells: on the north side of the church are the remains of a rood loft and an arched recess: in the south aisle are several niches: the chancel retains a piscina: there is a monumental brass to the Cocke family, dating from 1617.
Civil Registration
For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.
Stagsden was in Bedford Registration District from 1837 to 1974
Directories & Gazetteers
We have transcribed the entry for Stagsden from the following:
- Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Stagsden (St. Leonard))
Land and Property
The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for Bedfordshire is available to browse.
Maps
Online maps of Stagsden 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
Stagsden 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.
Villages, Hamlets, &c
Westend (Stagsden)Visitations Heraldic
A full transcript of the Visitations of Bedfordshire 1566, 1582, and 1634 is available online.