Place:Whitfield, Northumberland, England

source: Family History Library Catalog

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

Whitfield is a village in the county of Northumberland, England about 10 miles (16 km) southwest of Hexham. It has a farming community and is set against beautiful scenic background; sometimes it has been called "Little Switzerland".

The village lies on the River West Allen which joins with the River East Allen less than a mile away to form the River Allen.

Whitfield Hall is the home of the Blackett-Ord family. The Manor of Whitfield was granted, in the 12th century, by William, King of Scotland, to the Whitfield family, who retained it until 1750 when it was sold to William Ord of Fenham. When a later William Ord died in 1855, the estate fell to his son's widow and then to her heir, her niece, who married Rev John Blackett, a son of Christopher Blackett of Wylam. As a condition of the marriage and inheritance he changed his name to Blackett-Ord.

For more information, see the EN Wikipedia article Whitfield, Northumberland.

A Vision of Britain through Time provides the following description of Whitfield from John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales of 1870-72:

"WHITFIELD, a parish, with a hamlet, in Haltwhistle [registration] district, Northumberland; on the river Allen, 8½ miles SW of Haydon-Bridge [railway] station. It has a post-office under Carlisle and a good inn. Acres: 12,125. Real property: £4,720; of which £173 are in mines. Population: 381. Houses: 63. The manor belonged anciently to the Whitfields; and, with [Whitfield] Hall, belongs now to Mrs. Blackett Ord. The tract along the river is good and picturesque; but the rest of the surface is high, moorish, and waste. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Durham. Value: £320. Patron: Mrs. Blackett Ord. The church was rebuilt in 1860; is in the early English style and cruciform; and has a central tower and spire 150 feet high.

Whitfield was an ancient parish and a civil parish until 1955 when it was abolished to form the new civil parish of Plenmellor with Whitfield. From 1894 until 1955 the parish was part of Haltwhistle Rural District. In 1955 the civil parish was abolished and the area was absorbed into the civil parish of Plenmellor with Whitfield. Whitfield had no subsidiary townships.

Research Tips

• Northumberland Archives previously known as Northumberland Collections Service and Northumberland County Record Office. Now based within Woodhorn Museum in Ashington and providing free access to numerous records for local and family historians alike.

Full postal address: Museum and Northumberland Archives, Queen Elizabeth II Country Park, Ashington, Northumberland, NE63 9YF; Phone: 01670 624455

There is a branch office in Berwick upon Tweed.

• Northumberland and Durham FHS covers both Northumberland and County Durham. The Family History Society have a research centre in Percy House in central Newcastle upon Tyne (full address on website), open Monday to Friday from 10 am to 4 pm. Browse the website to see what else the society can provide.
• Further information from GENUKI
• Ordnance Survey map of Northumberland 1832 provided by A Vision of Britain through Time. This map includes the boundaries of the various Wards (or "hundreds") in existence at that time.
• Ordnance Survey map of Northumberland 1900 provided by A Vision of Britain through Time
• Ordnance Survey map of Northumberland 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.
• Unfortunately, there is no Victoria County History for Northumberland.