Nailsworth, Gloucestershire
Historical Description
Nailsworth, a large village and a parish in the SE of Gloucestershire. The village stands in the vale of Nailsworth, at the terminus of the Stonehouse and Nailsworth branch of the M.R., amid pleasant environs, 2 miles SW of Minchinhampton, 4 S of Stroud, and 6 SE of Stonehouse. It has a post, money order, and telegraph office under Stroud, a railway station, a public drinking-fountain, a subscription-room for lectures and concerts, a golf club, and a bank. The church was built in 1794, and consists of apsidal chancel, nave, porch, and tower. There are Baptist and Congregational chapels, and places of worship for Plymouth Brethren and the Society of Friends. A market is held on Saturdays, and a market for sheep and cattle monthly. Woollen cloth, flock, and shoddy are manufactured. There are also a brass foundry and a leather board manufactory. The parish was formerly a chapelry, including portions of the parishes of Avening, Horsley, and Minchinhampton, but in 1892 was made a distinct civil parish, and in 1895 it was formed into a separate ecclesiastical parish. Acreage, 1597; population, 2993. There is an urban district council consisting of nine members and three guardians. Extensive beech woods are in the neighbourhood, and supply materials for some of the local manufactures. Several harrows also are in the vicinity, and have been opened. The living is in the diocese of Gloucester and Bristol; net value, £170.
Administration
The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.
| Ancient County | Gloucestershire | |
| Civil parish | Horsley | |
| Hundred | Longtree | |
| Poor Law union | Stroud |
Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.
Church Records
The register of baptisms dates from the year 1794, but is imperfect; the register of marriages dates from 1895, but earlier entries of marriages and burials relating to Nailsworth, will be found in the registers of the parishes of Avening, Horsley, and Minchinhampton.
The Gloucestershire Parish Registers are available online at Ancestry, in association with Gloucestershire Archives.
Churches
Church of England
St. George (parish church)
The church of St. George, erected in 1794, but unconsecrated, consists of apsidal chancel, with vestry and organ chamber, nave, west porch, and a western tower, with domical roof, containing a clock and 2 bells: it was re-floored and re-pewed in 1879, at a cost of nearly £200, the money being chiefly raised by subscriptions: a new organ was erected in 1881 at a cost of £190: there are 320 sittings.
Brethren
Brethren meeting house
Congregational
Congregational Chapel
The Congregational chapel was founded in 1687 and has 650 sittings.
Congregational Chapel, Upper Forest Green
Methodist
Wesleyan Chapel, Bristol Road
Society of Friends
Friends meeting house
Directories & Gazetteers
We have transcribed the entry for Nailsworth from the following:
- Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Nailsworth)
Land and Property
The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for Gloucestershire is available to browse.
Maps
Online maps of Nailsworth 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.