Much Cowarne, Herefordshire Family History Guide

Much Cowarne is an Ancient Parish in the county of Herefordshire.

Parish church:

Parish registers begin: 1559

Nonconformists include:

Parishes adjacent to Much Cowarne

Historical Descriptions

The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales 1870

COWARNE (Much), a parish in Bromyard district, Hereford; 5¾ miles SSW of Bromyard, and 8 E of Moreton r. station. Post town, Stoke-Lacey, under Worcester. Acres, 3,706. Real property, £4,978. Pop., 563. Houses, 110. Cowarne Court is the seat of the Thomases. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Hereford. Value, £300. Patron, the Bishop of Worcester. The church spire and part of the church were destroyed by lightning in 1840.

Source: The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales [Wilson, John M]. A. Fullarton & Co. N. d. c. [1870-72].

Leonard’s Gazetteer of England and Wales 1850

Cowarne (Much), 4 miles S. Bromyard. P. 557

Source: Leonard’s Gazetteer of England and Wales; Second Edition; C. W. Leonard, London; 1850.

Bankrupts

Below is a list of people that were declared bankrupt between 1820 and 1843 extracted from The Bankrupt Directory; George Elwick; London; Simpkin, Marshall and Co.; 1843.

Williams Wm., Cowarne Court, Herefordsh., corn & cattle dealer, Jan. 4, 1842.

Directories

Cowarne Magna Cassey Directory of Herefordshire 1858

Cowarne Magna, or Much Cowarne, is an extensive parish, 6 miles south from Bromyard, 9 north from Hereford, 10 north-east from Ledbury, 10 west from Malvern, and 16 west-by-north-west from Worcester; it is in Broxash Hundred, Bromyard Union, Frome deanery, Hereford archdeaconry, and Hereford bishopric; it is skirted on the north by the turnpike road leading from Bromyard to Hereford, and commands some picturesque views. The church of St. Mary, is an ancient stone structure, in the Saxon style of architecture; was partly destroyed by lightening in the year 1840, the spire having been completely destroyed, and a tower since erected in its place, in which are placed three bells; the interior consists of a nave, aisle, porch, chancel, and three ancient monuments, one of a warrior of the time of the Crusades. The living is a vicarage, worth £270 yearly, with residence and three acres of glebe land, in the gift of the Bishop of Worcester. There is a Dame’s school for boys and girls, and also a Sunday school. The parish consists of some extensive farms, with some excellent houses attached. The population, in 1851, was 542, and the acreage is 3,535. The soil is clayey, and the subsoil is red marl. Colonel Wyndham is lord of the manor; and Colonel Wyndham, and Lord Bateman, of Shobdon Court, are chief landowners. The land is productive, and yields wheat, beans, hops, apples, pears, &c.

Post Office. – John Palmer, postmaster. Letters arrive from Bromyard at 11 a.m., and are despatched thereto at 20 minutes past 9 p.m. The nearest money order office is at Bromyard.

Carrier to Hereford – Chas. Derry, Burley gate, Wednesday and Saturday.

Miscellaneous

Burgoyne Geo., beer retailer, Collomarch

Derry Charles, carrier, Burley gate

Hemmings Richard, carpenter

Hill George, shopkeeper, Hope’s rough

Lewis Richard, blacksmith

Monk Rev. E. G., Vicarage

Wagstaff James, Five Bridges Inn

Farmers

Baker James, Much Cowarne court

Ballard Philip, Leighton court