England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Nercwys St Mary

The Parish

The chapelry of Nercwys, its mother parish being that of Mold, lies in the southern portion of the northern section of Flintshire roughly 2 miles south of the market town of Mold. Nercwys sits 2 miles south of the A494 road which links Connah's Quay through Mold to Ruthin in Denbighshire. Nercwys is a linear village largely built along a single lane running for a little over a mile from northwest to southeast, the wider area of the chapelry being dotted with farms and cottages. Nercwys stands within the small coal field of Flintshire and many of the inhabitants would have been employed in the collieries, the area is also mineral rich so extraction of notably lead also occurred. The surface would have been farmed with pastoral methods dominant. Modern developments came and went from Nercwys, a branch railway line passing through between Mold and Leeswood has now closed and largely disappeared. Nercwys is drained northwards by the Afon Terrig which soon meets the Afon Alun and water turns southwestwards to flow through the northern outskirts of Wrexham before meeting the River Dee and turning back northwards through Chester to meet the sea as the Dee Estuary. Nercwys is sited at around 180 metres above the sea on the eastern slopes of Moel Findeg which rises to its west reaching 357 metres. The acreage of Mold parish set aside for Nercwys chapelry was just under 2,300 acres which supported a population of close to 500 parishioners, in 1844 Nercwys became a full parish in its own right. Whilst much of Wales is absent from Domesday Book parts of Flintshire do carry entries, similarly Nercwys is not mentioned but the manor of Rhos Ithel fell within the area and was held by Ear Hugh of Chester who took over a manor described as "waste" but had potential for a single plough.

The Church

St Mary's church sits at the southeastern end of the village on the western side of Ffordd Y Pentre and facing the village green. Documentary evidence records a church here as early as the end of the 13th century but some fabric in the church pre-dates even that date. The tower arch is 12th century Norman Romanesque in style but the tower which stands above is much later with uncertainty over its date, it was rebuilt in the early 18th century but parts of the lowest sections may well be medieval. Most of the medieval masonry that remains is fragmentary due to later work but what remains indicates some was of the Perpendicular era of the late 14th or early 15th century. The present form of the church arises largely from 18th and 19th century work, there is speculation that the south and gallery doors are 17th century but this is disputed. The Victorian period saw the addition of both northern and southern transepts in 1848 and both northern aisle and the chancel are dated to between 1882 & 1884. The edges of the green have clearly long been used for church parking as grass has worn away opposite the gates. Some trees dot the southern areas of the churchyard impeding the favoured aspects but most other angles are readily available for the photographer.

Flintshire Record Office - Reference - P/44/1/5