Durnford, Wiltshire
Historical Description
Durnford, a village and a parish in Wiltshire. The village stands on the river Avon, 2½ miles SSW of Amesbury, 4 from Porton station on the L. & S.W.R., and 6 from Salisbury. It occupies the site of a Roman settlement, and has a post office under Salisbury; money order and telegraph office, Amesbury. The parish comprises 3102 acres; population of the civil parish, 380; of the ecclesiastical, 419. The ecclesiastical parish contains the hamlets of Normanton, Great Durnford, Netton, Salterton, Newtown, and Little Durnford. Durnford House is a seat in the neighbourhood. Ogbury Camp, on the brow of a hill near Great Durnford House, is an extensive earthwork resembling more a seat of the ancient Britons than a military station, without any fosse, and intersected by numerous small banks. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Salisbury; value, £264. Patron, the Bishop of Salisbury. The church is rich Norman with curious doorways, has an Early English square tower, and contains a figured Saxon font and monuments of the Yonges; it was restored in 1883. The font has interesting Norman arches.
Administration
The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.
| Ancient County | Wiltshire | |
| Ecclesiastical parish | Durnford St. Andrew | |
| Hundred | Amesbury | |
| Poor Law union | Amesbury |
Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.
Church Records
The register dates from the year 1574.
Findmypast, in association with the Wiltshire Record Office, have the following parish records online for Durnford:
| Baptisms | Banns | Marriages | Burials |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1580-1880 | 1754-1802 | 1580-1837 | 1580-1908 |
Churches
Church of England
St. Andrew (parish church)
The church of St. Andrew is an ancient edifice of flint and stone in the Norman and Early English styles, consisting of chancel, nave, north and south porches, and an embattled western tower containing 5 bells, rehung in 1904: the chancel arch, porch, doorways and font are Norman: at the east end are two aumbries and in the chancel attached by a chain to an ancient reading desk is a copy of "A defense of the Apologie of the Churche of Englande, by John Jewel, Bishop of Sarisburie, printed in Fleete streate, 16 Sept. 1571;" the pulpit, of carved oak, is dated 1619: there are some remains of ancient stained glass in the nave, and a memorial window erected to the late Walter Flower esq. for 16 years master of the Netton harriers: in the chancel is a brass to Edward and Mary Young, ob. 1607 and their six sons and eight daughters: in 1883 the church was renovated and the open seats and pulpit restored at the sole expense of the late Mr. Thomas Staples, of Alderbury, and in 1903 was completely restored at a cost of about £1,200: there are sittings for 150 persons.
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 Durnford from the following:
- Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Durnford (St. Andrew))
Newspapers and Periodicals
The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following Wiltshire papers online: