Place:Thame, Oxfordshire, England

source: Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names

source: Family History Library Catalog

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

Thame (pronounced "Tame") is a market town and civil parish in the South Oxfordshire District of Oxfordshire, England, about 9 miles (14 km) east of the city of Oxford and 7 miles (11 km) southwest of the Buckinghamshire town of Aylesbury. It derives its toponym from the River Thame which flows along the north side of the town. The parish includes the hamlet of Moreton south of the town. The 2011 UK census recorded the parish's population as 11,561.

Thame was founded in the Anglo-Saxon era and was in the kingdom of Wessex.

Thame Abbey was founded in 1138 for the Cistercian Order: the abbey church was consecrated in 1145. In the 16th century Dissolution of the Monasteries the abbey was suppressed and the church demolished. Thame Park (the house) was built on the site, incorporating parts of the abbey including the early-16th-century abbot's house. Its interior is one of the earliest examples of the talian Renaissance in England. A Georgian west wing was added in the 18th century. In about 1840 parts of the foundations of the abbey church were excavated: it was 77 yards (70 m) long and 23 yards (21 m) wide, with a Lady Chapel extending a further 15 yards (14 m) at the east end.

For more information, see the EN Wikipedia article Thame. A description of the parish church and a review of the social and economic history of the town including mention of some of its former residents.

Research Tips

• Victoria County History of Oxfordshire, volume 7, the first of four chapters on Thame.
• This part of Oxfordshire is not covered by the Victoria County History of Oxfordshire.
• A map illustrating the parishes of southeast Oxfordshire as of 1900 will be found under Thame Hundred
• Oxfordshire History Centre, St Luke's Church, Temple Road, Oxford, OX4 2HT
• Oxfordshire FHS covers the whole county. The Family History Society provides an interactive map to assist in locating individual parishes and also relates the society's progress in transcribing parish registers and gravestone information for that particular parish. Browse the website to see what else the society can provide.
• Further information from GENUKI
• Ordnance Survey map of Oxfordshire 1900 provided by A Vision of Britain through Time
• Ordnance Survey map of Oxfordshire 1944 provided by A Vision of Britain through Time
• English Jurisdictions 1851, a parish finding aid provided by FamilySearch, particularly helpful in large towns and cities.