Place:Purton, Wiltshire, England

source: Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names

source: Family History Library Catalog

the following text is based on an article in Wikipedia

Purton is a large village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, about 4 miles (6 km) northwest of the centre of Swindon. The parish includes the village of Purton Stoke and the hamlets of Bentham, Hayes Knoll, Purton Common, Restrop, Pavenhill and Widham. The River Key, a tributary of the Thames, crosses the parish near Purton Stoke.

The village is a linear settlement along the old road between the historic market towns of Cricklade 4 miles (6.4 km) to the north and Royal Wootton Bassett 3 miles (4.8 km) to the south. Purton is on a minor road 1 mile (1.6 km) from the B4553 road and 3 miles (4.8 km) from junction 16 of the M4 motorway. The village is on the brow of a hill, with views across to Cricklade and the Thames floodplain. Nearby, Braydon Forest stretches out to Minety in the west.

For more information, see the EN Wikipedia article Purton. The sections titled "Local Families" and "Local Studies" may be of special interest.

Research Tips

• Victoria County History - Wiltshire - Vol 18, pp244-285 - Parish: Purton. British History Online. University of London.
• From this Ancestry page you can browse the Wiltshire parishes which have parish register transcripts online, quite often from very early dates. However, reading the early ones requires skill and patience. Transcriptions should also be in FamilySearch.
• A further collection of online source references will be found on the county page for Wiltshire.