Holcombe, Lancashire Genealogy

England Lancashire  Lancashire Parishes

Chapelry History
HOLCOMBE, a chapelry, in the township of Tottington Lower-End, parish and union of Bury, hundred of Salford, S. division of the county of Lancaster, 4 miles (N. N. W.) from Bury; containing 3000 inhabitants. The chapelry comprises a considerable area, of which the surface is mountainous, the scenery most extensive, and the soil various. The village is pleasantly situated on the road from Bury to Blackburn, and on the declivity of a hill from the summit of which are good views of Manchester and the adjacent country. At the foot of the hill, the cotton-trade is carried on to a very great extent; there are numerous mills, factories, and printing establishments on a large scale, with every requisite for the prosecution of the works, the oldest of which were begun and carried on for many years by the late Sir Robert Peel, Bart. Coal is produced in abundance from the neighbouring mines, and is also wrought on Holcombe Hill, where are quarries supplying good stone for building, and flagstones. The river Irwell flows along the eastern side of the village; and there is railway communication with Bury and Manchester. On Castle Hill is the ancient court-house wherein the courts of the royal manor of Tottington were formerly held, and where courts leet and baron are still held twice in the year; manorial courts, also, are held by the Duke of Buccleuch as lord of the manor, in April and October. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Rector of Bury, with a net income of £150, and a house. The chapel, situated on Castle Hill, is remarkable for the thickness of its walls, and is supposed to be a remaining portion of the ancient castle from which the hill derived its name. The Primitive and Wesleyan Methodists, Presbyterians, and Swedenborgians have places of worship. In 1827, Miss Bently bequeathed to the minister and wardens £200 for the instruction of children, and for distribution among the poor.—See Tottington.

From: A Topographical Dictionary of England by Samuel Lewis (1848), pp. 527-530. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51037 Date accessed: 01 July 2010.

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
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Census records
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http://www.1881pubs.com/ for details of public houses in the 1881 census

Poor Law Unions
Bury_Poor_Law_Union,_Lancashire

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Lancashire 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
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 * England Jurisdictions 1851
 * Vision of Britain

Web sites
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