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WEARE GIFFARD

Select map to view parish boundaries in detail.

"WEAR GIFFORD, a pleasant village and parish, on the eastern side of the river Torridge, 3 mies N.W. of Great Torrington, contains 576 inhabitants, and 1587 acres of land, including the hamlet of Clifft, and a number of scattered farms. The river is navigable to this village for small craft, and by means of a canal, barges, &c., go up as high as Torrington. A large earthenware manufactory has recently been established here; and in the parish is a small woolen factory. The manor of Weare was held by the Giffords at an early period, and afterwards passed to the Fortescues, who were seated here for several generations, . . . Earl Fortescue is now lord of the manor, but part of the parish belongs to the trustees of the late Lord Rolle, and a few smaller owners. The Church (Holy Trinity,) is a plain structure, containing monuments to the Fortescue, Rolle, and other families. The rectory, valued in K.B. at £13. 5s., and in 1831 at £180, is in the patronage of Earl Fortescue, and incumbency of the Rev. Wm. Fortescue, of George Nympton, The parsonage is a small building, and the glebe is 17 acres. The Wesleyans have a small chapel here. . . " [From White's History, Gazetteer and Directory of Devon (1850)]

• Weare Giffard community website.

Cemeteries

Messenger, A.W.B. Heraldry at Weare Giffard Hall. Devon and Cornwall Notes and Queries 20 (1938-39) pp.273-276.

Census

Snetzler, M.F. North Devon Surname Index to the Census. Microfiche: M.F. Snetzler, Barcott, Buckland Brewer, Bideford, Devon EX39 5LN. [Covers 1841, 1861, 1871 and 1881 census records for this parish]

Church History

Hingeston-Randolph, F.C. The Rectors of Weare Giffard. (1894) [Westcountry Studies Library]

Dredge, J.I. The Rectors of Wear Gifford, Devon. Notes and Gleanings - Devon and Cornwall 3 (1890) pp.152-154.

A Guide to Holy Trinity, Weare Giffard. [Weare Gifford]: [The Church] [1970?] 12pp. [Index]

The church of the Holy Trinity, Weare Giffard: notes on points of interest to visitors. [Weare Gifford]: [The Church] [1980?] 4pp. [Westcountry Studies Library - p726.5/WEA/CHU]

Church Records

Transcripts of the Parish Registers going back to 1583 are held in a special collection in the Westcountry Studies Library - for details see Parish Registers in the Devon & Cornwall Record Society's Collection.

The Devon FHS publishes indexes covering (as of June 2004): Baptisms 1813-1840, Marriages 1754-1837, Burials 1813-1837 - for details see their book list.

Christenings (1583-1812) and marriages (1584-7, 1615-1812) have been entered into the IGI.

An index of baptisms, marriages and burials in the parishes of Abbotsham, Alverdiscott, Alwington, Bideford, Buckland Brewer, Bulkworthy, Clovelly, East Putford, Frithelstock, Hartland, Landcross, Littleham, Monkleigh, Northam, Parkham, Wear Gifford, Welcombe and West Woolfardisworthy. With photographs of the churches and extracts from White's Devonshire Directory 1850 and Lewis' Topographical Dictionary of England 1844, CD-ROM, Exeter, Devon FHS (2009). [Abbotsham Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1836, Bur: 1813-1837; Alverdiscott Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1775-1837; Alwington Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Bideford Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Buckland Brewer Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Bulkworthy Bapt: 1813-1841, Mar: 1814-1836, Bur: 1813-1837; Clovelly Bapt: 1813-1838, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; East Putford Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1797-1837, Bur: 1813-1839; Frithelstock Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Hartland Bapt: 1838-1839, Mar: 1558-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Landcross Bapt: 1814-1839, Mar: 1761-1836, Bur: 1813-1837; Littleham Bapt: 1813-1841, Mar: 1755-1837, Bur: 1813-1851; Monkleigh Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Northam Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Parkham Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1537-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Wear Gifford Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1755-1836, Bur: 1813-1837; Welcombe Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1757-1836, Bur: 1813-1837; West Woolfardisworthy Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837.]

Description and Travel

Extract from Murray's "Handbook for Travellers in Devonshire" (1879), covering Bideford, and also Weare Giffard and Horwood.

Weare Giffard Community website - includes page on the history, and a listing, with photographs of churchyard MIs.

Directories

Transcript of complete entry in White's Devonshire Directory of 1850.

Gazetteers

The transcription of the section for this parish from the National Gazetteer (1868), provided by Colin Hinson.

Genealogy

Peskett, H.M. The inheritance of Giffard of Weare. Devon and Cornwall Notes and Queries 32 (9), 1973, pp. 266-71. [Medieval.]

Manors

Ashworth, Edward. The ancient manor house of Wear Gifford; (a paper read at College Hall, Jan. 14th 1858). [s.l.]: [s.n.] (1858) 7p. [Westcountry Studies - sx728.83/WEA/ASH]

Names, Personal

Weare Giffard contributors to a 1678 brief for the rebuilding of St Paul's Cathedral.

Schools

Coad, Peter. Wear Gifford: A history of education, Bideford, Lazarus Press (Edward Gaskell Publishers) (1998) 224 pp. [ISBN: 1-898546-22-3]

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Last updated: 12 Dec 2011 - Brian Randell

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