England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Parwich St Peter

The Parish

The parish of Parwich lies in western Derbyahire not too far from the border with neighbouring Staffordshire. Parwich sits within the Peak District roughly 7 miles north of the market town of Ashbourne and stands about 2 miles east of the A515 road which links Ashbourne with Buxton. Parwich has a roughly oval design of lanes,. its long edge being parallel to the small brook which runs down its valley, the village is confined to the north by the steep slopes on the southern edges of Parwich Hill. Parwich sits upon limestone and being an upland parish is largely dominated by pastoral farming initially dominated by sheep it gradually transitioned into cattle based pastures which fed the creamery established within the village. Much of the parish acreage was held and controlled by Parwich Hall's estate, the hall being constructed in the 16th century was then replaced by an 17th century successor. Today outdoor tourism has become established as an element in the economy as the area's picturesque landscape attracts hikers, mountain bikers and fishermen. Modern developments have come and gone from the parish, a railway line was constructed across the north of the parish to link the western Peak Forest Canal with the eastern Derby Canal but has closed and like many old railway track-beds in the area now provides a trail for cycles and hikers. Parwich is drained southeastwards by its small brook which then turns south to meet the Dove close to Ashbourne, the Dove continues south to reach the Trent and join that river for its long journey to the North Sea arriving through the Humber Estuary. Parwich is sited at around 180 metres above the sea at the parish church with its northern edge rising to 210 metres, to the northwest Hawks Low is the highest local ground at 382 metres in hilly limestone terrain. Parwich parish, like most upland parishes, was fairly extensive covering almost 3,100 acres and supported a population of close to 550 parishioners. In Domesday times Parwich was a much smaller place, held directly by King William it offered merely 3 ploughs and a small meadow.

The Church

St Peter's church stands almost on the banks of the small brook in the southern part of the village accessed from Church View. St Peter was originally a Norman 12th century church but was rebuilt in 1873 in a manner which Pevsner describes as "unfeelingly hard-edged and rock-faced", clearly the work did not please him. Traces of the Norman structure were incorporated into the new build, fragments of the old chancel arch being reused in the tower arch and the original northern doorway also reused in the tower. The Victorian church is thus not that in which these marriages would have been celebrated. Today's church has nave, complete with aisles, arcades & clerestory, chancel, with a southern chancel chapel, and western tower topped with a splay-footed spire. The start of Church View is broad and sufficient for parking, wooden gates grant entry to the churchyard which has a couple of clumps of trees which area easily avoided by the photographer giving acceptable views.