Place:Marston Bigot, Somerset, England

the text in this section is based on an article in Wikipedia.

Marston Bigot {#16 on map) is a small village near Nunney and 3 miles (5 km) south of Frome in the Mendip District of Somerset, England. From 1933 until 1951 it was in the parish of Nunney, but in 1951 parish boundaries were redrawn and since then it has been considered to be in the parish of Trudoxhill which had a population of 423 in the UK census of 2011. Trudoxhill had been a village in Marston Bigot until 1933.

The parish was part of the hundred of Frome and the Frome Rural District (1894-1974).

[edit] Historic Descriptions [edit] 1822 - Somersetshire delineated by Christopher & John Greenwood A parish in the hundred of Frome, 2½ miles S. S. W. from Frome, containing 86 inhabited houses, and as many families, 55 of whom are employed in agriculture : on the south-east of the turnpike-road is the elegant seat of the Earl of Cork and Orrery. Dr. Collinson relates the following anecdote respecting an ancestor of the present noble lord :— "Upon the death of King Charles the First, Roger Earl of Orrery quitted the service of the parliament in Ireland, and retired to his seat at Marston, which his father had purchased of Sir John Hippisley; the parish church was very near the mansion, and Lord Orrery never failed to go thither on Sundays ; but having one day sat there some time, and being disappointed of the then qualified minister, his lordship was preparing to go home, when his steward told him a person in the church offered to preach : his lordship (though he looked on the proposal only as a piece of enthusiasm) gave permission, and was never more surprized or delighted than with the sermon, which was filled with learning, sense, and piety. His lordship would not suffer the preacher to escape unknown, but invited him to dinner, and inquiring of him his name, life, and fortune, received this answer—' My lord, my name is Asberry; I am a clergyman of the church of England, and a loyal subject to the King; I have lived three years in a poor cottage under your garden-wall, within a few paces of your lordship's house; my son lives with me, and we dig and read by turns; I have a little money, and some few books, and I submit cheerfully to the will of Providence.' This worthy and learned man (for such Lord Orrery always called him) lived some years longer at Marston, under an allowance of .£30 per annum, which his lordship obtained for him, without an obligation of taking the covenant, and died there deservedly lamented." A neat cottage, consisting of one room only, was fitted up in the pleasure-grounds belonging to this seat, by the late Earl, in commemoration of the above circumstance. The church of Marston-Bigott is a small modern structure, dedicated to St. Leonard, and is a rectory, in the deanery of Frome; Rev. R. J. Meade, incumbent; instituted 1821 ; patron the Earl of Cork and Orrery. Population, 1801, 366 — 1811,301 — 1821, 471.

1929 - Somerset by George Woosung Wade & Joseph Henry Wade

Marston Biggott, a small village 3 m. S.W. from Frome. The church, which stands in a park, has been rebuilt. Marston House (until lately the seat of the Earls of Cork) is a large modern "Italian" mansion, imposingly situated on a wooded hillside. The site of the original house, of which nothing remains, is locally known as Marston Moat. Close by is a field traditionally called Conqueror's Meads, and is popularly reputed to have been the scene of some ancient battle.

Research Tips

• The Somerset Heritage Centre (incorporating what was formerly the Somerset Record Office and the Somerset Local Studies Library) can be found at its new location at Langford Mead in Taunton. It has an online search facility leading to pages of interest, including maps from the First and Second Ordnance Survey (select "Maps and Postcards" from the list at the left, then enter the parish in the search box).
  The Heritage Centre has an email address: archives@somerset.gov.uk.
• Three maps on the A Vision of Britain through Time website illustrate the changes in political boundaries over the period 1830-1945. All have expanding scales and on the second and third this facility is sufficient that individual parishes can be inspected.

• Somerset Hundreds as drawn in 1832. This map was prepared before The Great Reform Act of that year. Note the polling places and representation of the various parts of the county.
• Somerset in 1900, an Ordnance Survey map showing rural districts, the boundaries of the larger towns, the smaller civil parishes of the time, and some hamlets and villages in each parish
• Somerset in 1943, an Ordnance Survey map showing the rural districts after the changes to their structure in the 1930s

• Maps provided by the National Library of Scotland are also very useful. This map is currently set to an area now in the Sedgmoor District as it existed in the late 19th century, but can be moved to anywhere in the county using a variety of background maps. There is a very good search facility.
• A Vision of Britain through Time has a group of pages of statistical facts for almost every parish in the county
• GENUKI gives pointers to other archive sources as well as providing some details on each parish. The emphasis here is on ecclesiastical parishes (useful before 1837)
• A listing of all the Registration Districts in England and Wales since their introduction in 1837 and tables of the parishes that were part of each district and the time period covered with detailed notes on changes of parish name, mergers, etc. The compiler has gone to a lot of work to provide this material. Respect his copyright.
• The FamilySearch Wiki for Somerset provides a similar but not identical series of webpages to that provided by GENUKI
• English Jurisdictions, a supplementary website to FamilySearch outlining local parish boundaries in the middle on the 19th century. The information provided is especially useful for establishing the relationship of the ecclesiastical parishes in large towns and cathedral cities.
• The Victoria History of the Counties of England – History of the County of Somerset, produced by The Institute of Historical Research at the University of London is a scholarly website with articles tracing the history of individual parishes which are sorted into their hundreds, the early subdivisions of the county. It traces the ownership of estates and manors, describes the local church in detail, and usually provides a map of each parish. The volumes for Somerset are much more recent than those for other counties. It appears to be a work in progress, only covering about half the county so far. A map of the places covered in the series is given in Volume 6, but 3 more volumes have been published since then. If a parish is included there will be a note in its Research Tips.
• The Somerset and Dorset Family History Society
• The Weston super Mare Family History Society
• The Bristol and Avon Family History Society
• A list of all Somerset parishes with online transcripts of parish registers The size of Somerset makes this a huge project. If it does not yield what you are looking for, try getting in touch with the organizer with patience and politeness.
• Somerset Online Parish Clerk project home page
• A collection of West Somerset Parish Register Transcriptions are online courtesy of Martin Southwood

Online Transcriptions

• Marston Bigot Marriages 1837-1902
• Marston Bigot Burials 1813-1905

Other Resources

• Family and Local History in Frome
• Frome Yahoo Group
• Somerset Record Office
• Somerset Archives holdings for Parish of 'Marston Bigot'
• Frome Registration District Research Guide

source: Family History Library Catalog

Picture Gallery

St Leonard's, Marston Bigot