West Kington, Wiltshire
Historical Description
Kington, West, a parish, with a village, in Wilts, near Akeman Street and the boundary with Gloucestershire, 9 miles from Chippenham, 11 from Bath station on the G.W.R., and 10 from Yate station on the M.R. Post town, Chippen- ham. Acreage, 2445; population, 280. The Codrington family are lords of the manor. There are vestiges of a Roman camp. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Gloucester and Bristol; value, £380 with residence. Patron, the Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol. The church is 800 years old, has a tower, and had many distinguished rectors, including Bishop Latimer. There is a Baptist chapel, and the Plymouth Brethren have a meeting-room.
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 | West Kington St. Mary | |
| Hundred | Chippenham | |
| Poor Law union | Chippenham |
Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.
Church Records
The register dates from the year 1754.
Findmypast, in association with the Wiltshire Record Office, have the following parish records online for West Kington:
| Baptisms | Banns | Marriages | Burials |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1605-1859 | 1605-1859 | 1607-1859 |
Churches
Church of England
St. Mary (parish church)
The church of St. Mary is an ancient cruciform building of stone, in the Norman and Early English styles, consisting of chancel, nave, transepts, south porch and an embattled western tower with pinnacles, containing 4 bells: the carved oak pulpit at present used in the church is believed to be the one from which Bishop Latimer, who was rector from A.D. 1530 to 1535. himself preached: the most ancient part of the church is about 800 years old: there is a subterranean passage from it extending a long way in the direction of Marshfield: there are about 240 sittings.
Baptist
Baptist Chapel
Directories & Gazetteers
We have transcribed the entry for West Kington from the following:
- Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Kington, West (St. Mary))
Maps
Online maps of West Kington 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 Wiltshire papers online: