Arborfield, Berkshire
Historical Description
Arborfield, a village and a parish in Berkshire, on the river Loddon, 4 miles W of Wokingham stations on the L. & S.W.R. and S.E.R. Arborfield Cross, about 1 mile to the SE, has a post, money order, and telegraph office under Reading. Acres in the parish, 1469; population, 248. The manor formerly belonged to the Bullocks, one of whom was "Hugh of the Brazen Band," and the old manor-house, called in "Our Village " the "Old House at Aberleigh," was the death-place, in 1730, of Edward Standen, who is alluded to in the ballad of "Molly Mogg of the Rose." The living is a rectory in the diocese of Oxford; gross yearly value, £302. The old parish church was built in 1256, and its ruins are still to be seen in the grounds of Arborfield Hall. The present church was built in 1863, and is in the Middle Pointed style. Arborfield Hall and Arborfield Grange are chief residences.
Administration
The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.
| Ancient County | Berkshire | |
| Ecclesiastical parish | Arborfield St. Bartholomew | |
| Hundred | Sonning | |
| Poor Law union | Wokingham |
Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.
Church Records
The parish register dates from the year 1706.
Churches
Church of England
St. Bartholomew (parish church)
The church of St. Bartholomew is a building of flint and stone in the Early English style, erected in 1863 at a cost of upwards of £4,000, to which the late Sir William Brown bart. of Liverpool, was the principal contributor; it consists of chancel, nave and north porch, western tower and spire containing 6 bells, 5 of which are from the old church: the chancel windows are stained: there are two memorial windows to members of the Towgood family: the church affords 220 sittings. The old church of St. Bartholomew, built in 1256 of chalk and flint, stands in the grounds of Arborfield Hall; it is now in ruins, the roof, considered unsafe, having been taken down in 1863: the piscina, sedilia and credence table, as well as some mural paintings, brasses and monuments, remain; the aisles contain tombs and tablets to members of the Standen and Conroy families.
Congregational
Congregational Chapel
The Congregational chapel was erected in 1899, with seating for 200 persons.
Civil Registration
For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.
Arborfield was in Wokingham Registration District from 1837 to 1974
Directories & Gazetteers
We have transcribed the entry for Arborfield from the following:
- Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Arborfield (St. Bartholomew))
- Kelly's Directory of Berkshire, 1915
Land and Property
The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for Berkshire is available to browse.
Maps
Online maps of Arborfield 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 Berkshire papers online:
Visitations Heraldic
The Visitations of Berkshire 1532, 1566, and 1665-6 is available online.