Basildon, Berkshire
Historical Description
Basilden or Basildon, a parish in Berks, on the river Thames, and on the G.W.R., 2½ miles SSE of Goring station, and 7½ miles WNW of Reading. Post office at Lower Basildon under Reading. Acres, 3096 of land and 43 of water; population, 675. Basilden Park was the seat of the Viscounts Fane from 1718 till 1766, after which it passed into the possession of Sir F. Sykes' family till 1838, when it was purchased by the late James Morrison. It contains 400 acres, and is enclosed within a stone and brick wall. The house contains a fine collection of works of art. The railway crosses the Thames a short distance above the church. The parish had two churches at Domesday, and afterwards the right of a weekly market. The existing church is a building of flint and stone, and is supposed to have been built in the reign of Edward II. It was restored in 1875. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Oxford; gross value, £163 with residence. There is a Congregational chapel at Upper Basildon. Roman tessellated pavements have been discovered in the parish.
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 | Basildon St. Bartholomew | |
| Hundred | Moreton | |
| Poor Law union | Bradfield |
Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.
Church Records
The parish register dates from the year 1538.
Churches
Church of England
St. Bartholomew (parish church)
The church of St. Bartholomew, supposed to have been erected in the reign of Edward II. (1307-27), is a building of flint with stone dressings, consisting of chancel, nave, south porch and a western tower of brick, with pinnacles, and containing a clock and 4 bells; in the chancel is a monument to Sir Francis Sykes bart. of Basildon Park, M.P. in five Parliaments for Wallingford, d. 11th Jan, 1804, and another to his grandson, Sir Francis William Sykes M.A. d. 6th April, 1843; there are other memorials to Henry Hood, d. 22 May, 1680; Richard Cobb, gent. d. 16 Feb. 1689, and Joan, his wife; the Rev. Robert Bailey Fisher M.A. vicar 1814-59, d. 29 September, 1859, and Martha, his wife, d. 16 July, 1837; and the Rev. George Ogle M.A. of Purley Park, d. 25 June, 1828; on the nave floor is a brass with effigies to John Clerk and Lucy his wife, 1480; and behind the altar a large brass to Roger Young esq. ob. 1589, and William his son, ob. 1584; this inscription was formerly on the chancel floor, with effigies which have disappeared; there are memorial windows to Henry Morrison, d. 10 April, 1850, Emily Grant Morrison, d. 25 April, 1854; William Henry Stone esq. of Streatley House, d. 20 June, 1863; and to Sir Francis William Sykes, 4th bart. Lieut, 97th regiment, and of the 2nd Life Guards, d. 1 Jan. 1866, and Sir Frederick Henry Sykes, 5th bart. d. 1899, with an inscribed brass, commemorating both: in the nave is a brass to the Rev. Edward John Sykes M.A. vicar 1859-91: the church was thoroughly restored in 1875-6, at a cost of £2,061, when the timber roof, previously ceiled, was opened: the church affords 250 sittings: the churchyard was enlarged about 1882 and contains tombs of the Sykes family and a fine yew tree.
St. Stephen, Upper Basildon
St. Stephen's, at Upper Basildon, erected in 1895, is a structure of iron, and affords 220 sittings.
Congregational
Congregational Chapel
The Congregational chapel was founded in 1797, and has seating 140 persons.
Civil Registration
For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.
Basildon was in Bradfield Registration District from 1837 to 1937 and Wokingham Registration District from 1937 to 1974
Directories & Gazetteers
We have transcribed the entry for Basildon from the following:
- Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Basildon (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 Basildon 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.