England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Wilne St Chad

The Parish

The parish of Wilne lies in the extreme southeast of Derbyshire not too far from the county's border with neighbouring Leicestershire. Wilne is a large parish which also included the chapelry of Risley which was licensed for marriages and will have its own page within this project. The largest settlement within Wilne, excluding Risley, is actually the village of Draycott which sits roughly 8 miles southeast of the county town of Derby and stands on the A6006 road which links Derby with Long Eaton. The parish church actually sits within the tiny hamlet of Church Wilne most of which consists of a small industrial estate on the banks of the River Derwent and almost 2 miles south of Draycott. Most of the parish population inhabited Draycott which stretches for well over a half mile from west to east and is almost contiguous with Breaston in Sawley parish. As much of the parish acreage lies on the broad flood-plain of the Derwent most farming is for cattle on the rich riverside pastures, the parish, however, also contains a substantial cotton mill which employed some 200 workers. Modern developments abound within the parish, the Derby to Loughborough railway line passing through northern Draycott whilst to the east runs the modern M1 motorway between London and Leeds, to the north the A52 road connecting Derby with Nottingham has also been upgraded to a fast dual carriageway highway. Whilst both Draycott and Church Wilne sit on the banks of the River Derwent it is only less than a half mile from Church Wilne until that river meets the Trent, from here the Trent passes through Nottingham, Newark and Gainsborough before reaching the Humber Estuary and the North Sea. Church Wilne is sited at around 30 metres above the sea with Draycott only fractionally higher, land does rises northwards culminating in a spot height of 133 metres to the southeast of Dale Abbey. Wilne parish, not including Risley, covered around 1,400 acres and supported a population of close to 2,050 parishioners. In Domesday times only Draycott was recorded from the parish, it was held by the Bishop of Chester and was a wealthy holding offering 16 ploughs backed by meadows and woodland, it also held a mill and a fishery.

The Church

St Chad's church sits towards the southern end of the lane that connects Draycott with the Derwent and its small industrial estate, opposite the church a flooded gravel pit serves as a centrepiece for a small nature reserve. Sadly St Chad suffered a major fire in 1917 so whilst much of the original medieval survived it is all restored during the campaign of 1917 - 1923 which brought the church back to life. The earliest portion is that of the basal stages of the western tower which date from the 13th century Early English Gothic period, the tower's topmost stages and embattlements are 15th century and Perpendicular. Also late 13th century but perhaps best described as Transitional are the lancet styled windows of the southern aisle which Pevsner dates to c1300. The main body is a mixture of the twin styles of the 14th century Decorated & Perpendicular. The nave has Decorated styled windows on its northern face whilst those of the chancel are Perpendicular. The clerestory is a typical 15th century feature whilst the embattlements of the main body are of similar date. The final piece of original material is the Willoughby Chapel which was added to the end of the southern aisle in 1621. If there were a Victorian restoration its effects are lost in the major work following the fire. The church and nature reserve share a small car park allowing a leisurely visit. The photographeer will find the favoured aspects beset by trees but other angles allow the church to be well presented.