England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Bodfari St Stephen

The Parish

The parish of Bodfari lies in western Flintshire and is an anomaly in lying across the county boundary with almost an equal proportion of the parish in eastern Denbighshire. Bodfari is located roughly 4 miles northeast of the Denbighshire county town of Denbigh and sits alongside the A541 which connects Mold through towards Denbigh. Bodfari has a small presence on that A road but is mostly set to its north with inn and church surrounded by a few cottages marking the main site. Bodfari sits at a strategic location, the exit point of the valley of the Afon Chwiler which cuts through the Clwydian range of hills producing a route that has been followed for centuries, Bodfari had thus a strong defensive role in early times being variously the site of the Roman Varis fort and on the hill above lies the English defensive fort of Moel-y-gaer, Bodfari had a rather varied farming regime with access to rich pastures in the valley bottoms and poorer sheep-bedecked upland pastures, a little arable varied the mix. Modern developments have come and gone from Bodfari, the rail line that sought the valley route from Denbigh to Mold having closed and been dismantled. Today Bodfari sees many hikers passing through and overnight stays too from the nearby Offa's Dyke National Trail which ascends Moel-y-Gaer en route to Prestatyn. Afon Chwiler meets the Afon Clywyd about a mile west of Bodfari, here water turns northwest to reach the Irish Sea at Rhyl. At almost 4,800 acres Bodfari parish was extensive and supported a dense population of around 950 parishioners almost equally divided between the two counties. Unlike most of Wales Bodfari was recorded in Domesday Book as a holding of Robert of Rhuddlan and had assets of a single plough, a small patch of woodland and a mill.

The Church

St Stephen's church sits cheek by jowl with the village inn, the Dinorben Arms. Sadly most of the medieval original church which came complete with southern aisle, a timbered arcade and had nave and chancel undivided was swept away to construct the main body of today's church in 1865 to create a church which would be largely unrecognisable to the participants in these marriages. What would be familiar is the sole remaining medieval fabric namely the western tower which Pevsner records as being Perpendicular in style and probably of either the late 14th or early 15th centuries accordingly. The replacement main body also has that style applied albeit in an amateurish way if Pevsner is to believed. Parking in the village is tight and the triangular space outside the elegant black and white lychgate is shared with the inn and consequently rarely free. The churchyard beyond the lychgate is relatively free of obstacles although a few surround the eastern end, or rather northeastern end as the church lies on a tilted access to the normal east to west layout.