Corby (Corby Glen)
Corby is both a village and parish. It lies on the east side of the River Glen, 11 miles southeast of Grantham and 14 miles north of Stamford, and 8 miles northwest of Bourne on an old Roman road that led to Ancaster. The ancient parish covers a little over 2,900 acres. In older times, it was a site of several stone quarries and a flour mill. The parish includes the small hamlet of Birkholme.
The heart of Corby village is an ancient place, 97 miles north of London. The A151 trunk road (the Roman road to Ancaster) runs through the village. The village has grown in post-WWII years to be a commuters' community. If you are planning a visit:
- The Woodhouse Inn at 2 Bourne Road, Lincs, NG33 4NS, welcomes travelers. Tele: 01476 550 316.
- Stop by the Village Hall and get a schedule of current events. You can also buy stamps for that postcard you are going to send me. Richard CROFT has a photograph of the Village Hall and Post Office on Geo-graph, taken in March, 2010.
- Our touring page for area resources.
- Roger GEACH has a photograph of the village sign on Geo-graph, taken in July, 2008.
- For more photographs of the village sign, taken in 2008 by Patricia McCRORY, please see the Genuki Corby parish profile.
- The parish was in the Corby sub-district of the Bourne Registration District.
- Check our Census Resource page for county-wide resources.
- The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
Census
Year |
Piece No. |
| 1841 |
H.O. 107 / 616 |
| 1851 |
H.O. 107 / 2095 |
| 1861 |
R.G. 9 / 2315 |
| 1871 |
R.G. 10 / 3311 |
| 1881 |
R.G. 11 / 3195 |
| 1891 |
R.G. 12 / 2555 |
- The Anglican church is dedicated to Saint John the Evangelist and is built in the "decorated" or Gothic style.
- The church dates from the 12th century.
- The church was restored in 1860-61.
- The church seats 206.
- There is a photograph of Saint John's Church on the Wendy PARKINSON web site under her "Still more Lincolnshire churches".
- Tim HEATON has a photograph of St. John's Church on Geo-graph, taken in January, 2006.
- Here is a photo of St. John's church, taken by Ron COLE (who retains the copyright):
- The Anglican parish registers exist from 1561.
- There are a few baptism entries in our Corby Register Extract page. It is not a complete transcription of the register.
- The LFHS has published several indexes (marriage and burial) for the Beltisloe Deanery to make your search easier.
- A small Weslyean Methodist chapel was also built about that time, replaced with a new chapel in 1902.
- Tim HEATON has a photograph of the Methodist Church on Geo-graph, taken in January, 2006.
- A Roman Catholic Church was built here in 1855/56 and dedicated to Our Lady of Mount Carmel.
- Tim HEATON has a photograph of Our Lady of Mount Carmel on Geo-graph, taken in January, 2006.
- The Strict Baptists also had a small chapel in the late 1800's. For information and assistance in researching these chapels, see our non-conformist religions page.
- Check our Church Records page for county-wide resources.
- The parish was in the Corby sub-district of the Bourne Registration District.
- Check our Civil Registration page for sources and background on Civil Registration which began in July, 1837.
- According to Pigot's 1841 directory, the village "is not otherwise noted for any event of historical importance, nor does it possess any attractive architectural feature. Its trade is so much decayed that the Market Day (Wednesday) is scarcely to be distinguised from ordinary days."
- However, near the village is Cumberland field where tradition holds that a battle was fought and weapons have been unearthed.
- Corby used to celebrate a weekly market and three annual farm animal fairs, one on August 26th, one on the Monday before October 11th and on the Wednesday before Easter. This last one was established in 1855. The October fair was one of the largest in the county having more than 12,000 sheep in pens.
- Corby held a hiring for servants in May and November.
- Corby was a station on the main line of the Great Northern Railway in 1853. The misdelivery of luggage due to other Corby's in the midlands led the railway to call this station "Corby Glen."
- William Harvey WOODHOUSE, Esq., was lord of the manor and held most of the parish property in 1853. The owner before him was Charles Thomas CLIFFORD.
- Other landowners in the 1870's included the Baroness WILLOUGHBY de ERESBY, the HARDY brothers, S. WILKINSON and W. H. BRANSTON.
- In 1913, Robert W. GORDON was lord of the manor.
- Near the church is a moated mound, the former site of a castellated mansion. No trace of the building remains.
- The national grid reference is TF 0025.
- An Ordnance Survey "Explorer 247" map will show detail of 2.5 inches to 1 mile scale.
- See our Maps page for additional resources.
- A replica of St. Martin's Cross of Iona in Cornish Grey granite was erected on the green as a memorial to the men of the parish who perished in World War I.
There is one Commonwealth War Grave from World War II in St. John's churchyard:
- Eric G. GRIFFITHS, able seaman, Royal Navy, age 20, died 23 Mar. 1942.
- It was for centuries simply known as Corby. But when the railways came there was confusion with other towns of the same name, so the railways decided to call the town "Corby Glen". The name means "wooded place".
[A. D. Mills, "A Dictionary of English Place-Names," Oxford University Press, 1991]
- "Corby Glen" was officially accepted as an alternative name in 1956.
- This place was an ancient parish in Lincolnshire and became a modern Civil Parish when those were established.
- The parish was in the ancient Beltisloe Wapentake in the South Kesteven district in the parts of Kesteven.
- You may contact the local Parish Council regarding civic or political matters, but they are NOT staffed to assist you with family history searches.
- For today's district governance, contact the South Kesteven District Council.
- Care of the poor dates back to 1209 when part of the parish was enclosed. The rest of the Common Lands enclosure came in 1767.
- Bastardy cases would be heard in the Bourne petty session hearings.
- After the Poor Law Amendment Act reforms of 1834, this parish became part of the Bourne Poor Law Union.
| Year |
Inhabitants |
| 1086 |
270 |
| 1801 |
436 |
| 1831 |
654 |
| 1851 |
958 |
| 1861 |
818 |
| 1871 |
786 |
| 1891 |
745 |
| 1901 |
718 |
| 1911 |
710 |
| 1921 |
664 |
| 1931 |
650 |
| 1991 |
607 |
- A Free School was founded here in 1669 by Charles READ, primarily for teaching boys reading, writing, arithmetic and Latin. He provided additional funds to bind out "said boys as apprentices, or otherwise promoting them." In 1880, the school was reconstituted, but it closed in the early 1900's.
- Bob HARVEY has a photograph of the Charles Read Grammar School on Geo-graph, taken in June, 2010.
- In 1723, Richard DAY founded a spinning school for the education of ten poor girls.
- In 1875, a School Board was formed.
- In 1877, the Public Elementary school was built to house 150 children, with average attendance about 110.
- In 1881, a Catholic school was built with a capacity for 120 children, but only about 40 ever attended.
- For more on researching school records, see our Schools Research page.
Last updated on 23-February-2015
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