The Census of Religious Worship 1851

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1854 report of 1851 census of religious worship

Public Domain

The only Census of Places of Worship ever undertaken in England and Wales was in 1851. 1800-1851 was a period of significant change in Milford.

The relocation of Hordle church in 1830-31 using the stone from the old church for the new would have meant the congregation at All Saints, Milford would have swollen for a while. In 1839 St Mark’s at Pennington was consecrated relieving some of the pressure. In 1832 Milton church was rebuilt except for the tower, although this information was not included in the returns. The north aisle in Milford church was rebuilt and widened in 1845. Baptist churches were opened in Milford and Ashley in 1816 and 1817 respectively and a third is recorded as having been founded in Pennington in 1850.

Two churches in the wider Lymington District are identified as members of the Countess of Huntingdon’s Connection, an independent Methodist church. The Countess Huntingdon was also known as the Lady Selina Hastings. Her daughter married John Rawdon and their son became the 1st Marquis of Hastings. In 1851 the 4th Marquis of Hastings and his sister Lady Victoria were living at Efford House, Milford.

Links

Download the 1851 schedules at this link:

http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C1359559

References

C.J.SANDERS: “Personal Research Paper: The 1851 Census of Religious Worship for the Lymington District with special attention to Milford” MOSHRS Archive February 2015

E.HIGGS: “The Annual Report of the Registrar General, 1839–1920: a textual history”, Amsterdam and Atlanta, 2002

J. JAMES: “The Story of Hordle Parish and its Churches”, Hordle Parochial Church Council 1998.

D. M. THOMPSON: “The 1851 Religious Census: Problems and possibilities”, Victorian Studies, XI (1997-8)

W.T.WHITLY: “Early Baptists in Hampshire” Baptist Quarterly, 1980.

Records

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