England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Calverton All Saints

The Parish

The parish of Calverton lies in northern Buckinghamshire forming a short stretch of the county's border with neighbouring Northamptonshire. Calverton is located roughly a mile south of the town of Stony Stratford, and just outside the jurisdiction of Milton Keymes New Town, it sits about 2 miles west of the A5 (London to the Midlands) road. Calverton is a rather linear small village with most properties lining a lane which trends from north to south through the village, a few side lanes usually dead-end. The whole village follows the course of small tributary of the nearby Great Ouse river. Like most Buckinghamshire villages Calverton was a farming village, early gazetteers estimate that it was 2:1 in favour of arable methods over pastoral but both were present even if today there is much more arable. The Great Ouse lies little more than a half mile to the north of the village and this river drains the parish eastwards on its long journey to eventually reach the North Sea through the Norfolk port of King's Lynn and The Wash. Calverton is sited at around 70 metres above the sea, away from the Great Ouse land sises southwestwards to local high points of 100 metres in very gentle terrain. Covering close to 2,000 acres Calverton was fairly typically sized for its area, that acreage would have supported a population of close to 500 parishioners. In Domesday times Calverton's entry is one sufficient to place it amongst the largest 20% of settlements by population, the assets recorded, however, are more typical of today's village; held by Hugh de Bolbec its assets of 16 ploughs backed by a meadow and a mill made for a moderately wealthy holding for those times.

The Church

All Saints' church sits east of the main village lane at the end of the short side lane which leads through picturesque stone-built houses to the church gates. Sadly this church is not entirely medieval having been largely rebuilt during the latter phase of these marriages in 1818. Internally that rebuild left the tower & chancel arches intact even if their exact medieval date is in doubt. Also remaining from the medieval is the 3-bay arcade. The work of 1818, again the date is disputed by some, saw a Neo-Norman church arise with its western tower a key feature including a stair-turret. Despite the early modern origins of the church there has still been for substantial change. The work of the 1850s is said to have "subsequently improved" the church.  The lane approaching ends at a broad space making parking no issue, metal gates grant entry through the rough-hewn stone boundary into a churchyard with no issues for the photographer.