Downham Market, Norfolk Genealogy

England   Norfolk

Parish History
Downham or Downham Market St Edmund is an Ancient parish in the Fincham deanery of the Diocese of Norwich which includes Tong's Drain in the parish. The town and market town of Downham became noteworithy during the Middle Ages. It was famed for its butter market and also hosted a notable horse fair. The suffix "market" therefore came to be associated with Downham and both names were used in record sources equally until the 19th century when a civil parish was created with the name Downham Market.

This town is one example of others in the Diocese of Norwich whose name changes over centuries may prove confusing to the researcher. Both names have equal validity ofr the parish over the centuries of records although since the nineteenth century teh parish is referred to as Downham Market. As with the Lynn parishes (King's Lynn) the change of name in modern times may have hidden the earlier record history of the town.

Notable buildings in the town include its mediaeval parish church, dedicated to St Edmund, and Victorian clock tower, constructed in 1878. The town is also known as the place where Charles I hid after the Battle of Naseby.

Historically part of the Diocese of Norwich the parish is now transferred to the Diocese of Ely.

Civil Registration
Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

Church records
Contributor: Include here information for parish registers, Bishop’s Transcripts, non conformist and other types of church records, such as parish chest records. Add the contact information for the office holding the original records. Add links to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection

Norfolk Nonconformist Chapel Survey undertaken by the Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norwich Record Office reference SO 197/14/1-10, 900X8 Date 1988-1992 Description 1 Narborough Wesleyan Methodist 2 Neatishead Baptist, including memoranda of memorial inscriptions. 3 Neatishead Primitive Methodist. Demolished. No photographs. 4 Necton Baptist 5 Necton Wesleyan Methodist 6 Newton St Faith Primitive Methodist 7 Nordelph Wesleyan Methodist 8 Northwold Wesleyan Methodist 9 Northwold Primitive Methodist

Census records
Contributor: Include an overview if there is any unique information, such as the census for X year was destroyed. Add a link to online sites for indexes and/or images. Also add a link to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection.

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Norfolk Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Maps and Gazetteers
Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.
 * England Jurisdictions 1851
 * Vision of Britain

Web sites
Contributor: Add any relevant sites that aren’t mentioned above.