Hewelsfield, Gloucestershire
Historical Description
Hewelsfield, a parish in West Gloucestershire, 3 miles from the Woolaston station on the G.W.R., 5 from Lydney, 6 from Chepstow, 7 from Coleford, and 9 from Monmouth. Post town, Coleford; money order and telegraph office, St Briavels. Acreage, 1592; population, 409. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Gloucester and Bristol; net value, £78 with residence. Patrons, the Dean and Chapter of Hereford. The church, dedicated to St Mary Magdalene is of the 12th century, consists of nave, N transept, and chancel, with central dove-cot tower, five bells, and has been admirably restored.
Administration
The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.
| Ancient County | Gloucestershire | |
| Ecclesiastical parish | Hewelsfield St. Mary Magdalene | |
| Hundred | St. Briavells | |
| Poor Law union | Chepstow | |
| Registration district | Chepstow | 1837 - 1937 |
Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.
Church Records
The register dates from the year 1663.
The Gloucestershire Parish Registers are available online at Ancestry, in association with Gloucestershire Archives.
Churches
Church of England
St. Mary Magdalene (parish church)
The church of St. Mary Magdalene, standing at an elevation of about 660 feet above the river, is an ancient building of stone of the Norman period, consisting of chancel, north transept or Gough chapel erected in 1558, nave of five bays, north aisle, south porch and a central tower containing 5 bells: there are sittings for 164 persons: the churchyard, entered by a lych gate, contains a venerable yew tree.
Civil Registration
For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.
For births, marriages, and deaths in Hewelsfield from 1837 to 1937 you should search for the Chepstow Registration District.
Directories & Gazetteers
We have transcribed the entry for Hewelsfield from the following:
- Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Hewelsfield (St. Mary Magdalene))
Land and Property
The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for Gloucestershire is available to browse.
Maps
Online maps of Hewelsfield 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 newspapers covering Gloucestershire online:
- Gloucester Citizen
- Gloucester Journal
- Gloucestershire Chronicle
- Gloucestershire Echo
- Cheltenham Chronicle
- Cheltenham Looker-On
Visitations Heraldic
The Visitation of the county of Gloucester, 1623 is available on the Heraldry page.