Northwood, Isle of Wight

Historical Description

Northwood, a hamlet and a parish in the Isle of Wight. The hamlet lies half a mile W of the Medina river, 1 NE of Parkhurst Forest, and 2½ miles S of West Cowes station on the Isle of Wight Central railway. The parish contains also the town of West Cowes, contains likewise the hamlet of Gurnard, and part of Parkhurst Prison. It has a post and money order office under West Cowes; telegraph office, W½est Cowes. Acreage, 4865; population of the civil parish, 9468; of the ecclesiastical, 6900. Many handsome residences are-near the shore, between West Cowes and Gurnard Bay. Vantage grounds, a little inland, command charming views. Gurnard Bay, 1½ mile W of West Cowes, was the place where Charles II. landed in 1671, on occasion of his visit to Sir Robert Holmes at Yarmouth. A seaport is said by tradition, to have been anciently at Gurnard Bay, and to have been destroyed by the inroads of the sea. A monastic house was founded at Northwood in 1512, but had a brief existence,. and has left no remains. The living is a perpetual curacy, annexed to the vicarage of Carisbrooke, in the diocese of Winchester. The church is in the Transition Norman style-of architecture, of plain appearance; consists of nave, aisles,. and chancel, with small wooden belfry; and prior to 1545 was a chapel of ease to Carisbrooke. There is a small Wesleyan chapel.

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.

Civil Registration

For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Northwood from the following:

• Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Northwood (St. John the Baptist))

Maps

Online maps of Northwood 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)

Visitations Heraldic

The Visitations of Hampshire, 1530, 1575, & 1622-34 is available to view on the Heraldry page.