Odell is an Ancient Parish in the county of Bedfordshire.
Alternative names: Woodhill
Parish church: All Saints
Parish registers begin:
- Parish registers: 1604
- Bishop’s Transcripts: 1602
Nonconformists include:
Table of Contents
Adjacent Parishes
Parish History
The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales 1870
ODELL, a village and a parish in the district and county of Bedford. The village stands on the river Ouse, 1¼ mile ENE of Harrold, and 2½ W by S of Sharnbrook r. station; was originally called Woodhill, now corrupted into Odell; was once a market-town; and has a post-office under Bedford.
The parish comprises 2,980 acres. Real property, £3,295. Pop. in 1851, 538; in 1861, 494. Houses, 100. The property is divided among a few. The manor belongs to Alston, Esq. Odell Castle is the residence of G. Repton, Esq., and Lady Jane Repton; stands on an eminence, commanding a fine view; has extensive and tasteful pleasure-grounds; and succeeded an old seat of the Brays.
The living is a rectory in the diocese of Ely. Value, £396. Patron,Alston, Esq. The church is later English, in good condition, overgrown with ivy; comprises nave, aisles, and chancel, with pinnacled tower; and contains a good old screen, and some monuments of the Alstons.
There are national schools.
Source: The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales [Wilson, John M]. A. Fullarton & Co. N. d. c. [1870-72].
A Topographical Dictionary of England 1848
ODELL (All Saints), a parish, in the hundred of Willey, union and county of Bedford, 1¼ mile (N. E. by N.) from Harrold; containing 501 inhabitants.
Odell, anciently called Wahul or Wodhull, was the seat of an ancient barony, belonging, at the time of the Norman survey, to Walter Flandrensis, whose posterity were called de Wahul. A female heir intermarrying with the Chetwodes, of Oakley, in Staffordshire, brought the property to that family, who sold it to the Alstons. Thomas Alston, of Odell, was created a baronet in 1642.
The parish is bounded on the south by the river Ouse, and contains 2600 acres, mostly arable land, with some pasture, and 500 acres of woodland; the surface is undulated, the soil various, and the scenery picturesque. Lace is manufactured by some of the females. The place formerly possessed a market, granted in 1222; and a fair is still held on the Thursday and Friday in Whitsun-week.
Odell Castle, the seat of the Alston family, a small part of which constitutes the remains of the ancient building of the same name, stands conspicuously on an eminence commanding a fine view of the Ouse. The river here abounds in pike, perch, and eels.
The living is a rectory, valued in the king’s books at £19; patron, Justinian Alston, Esq.: the glebe consists of 420 acres, of the annual value of £350, with a house. The church has an ancient square tower.
Source: A Topographical Dictionary of England by Samuel Lewis 1848
Parish Registers
Odell Parish Registers 1602-1812
Parish Records
FamilySearch
Directories
Kelly’s Directory of the Wine and Spirit Trades, with which are included Brewers and Maltsters 1884
Marked thus * are Small Brewers who brew the beer they sell.
ODELL, Bedford
Maltster
Ekins Samuel
Source: The Post office directory of the brewers and maltsters [afterw.] Kelly’s directory of the wine and spirit trades, with which are included brewers and maltsters By Kelly’s directories, ltd. 1884
Maps
OS Grid Reference: SP9635157545 (all-numeric format: 496352 257546)
| Service | Map | Topo |
|---|---|---|
| Bing Maps UK | Map | OS maps |
| StreetMap | Map | OS maps |
| Vision of Britain historical maps | Map | OS maps |
| Ordnance Survey | OS maps | |
| Defra’s MAGIC service | Map | |
| National Library of Scotland | OS maps | |
| Old OS maps | OS maps | |
| Old-maps.co.uk | OS plans | |
| Where’s the Path? | Map | |
| SABRE Maps | Map | OS maps |
Administration
- County: Bedfordshire
- Civil Registration District: Bedford
- Probate Court: Court of the Archdeaconry of Bedford
- Diocese: Pre-1837 – Lincoln, Post-1836 – Ely
- Rural Deanery: Clapham
- Poor Law Union: Bedford
- Hundred: Willey
- Province: Canterbury