England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Bushey St James

The Parish

The parish of Bushey lies in the extreme south of Hertfordshire forming a stretch of the border with neighbouring Middlesex. Bushey is located roughly 2 miles southeast of the large market town of Watford and sits on the A411 road which connects Watford with Barnet. Whilst Watford is the dominant market town of the area today, Bushey, in the reign of Edward I, did for a short time have market status but that has long since receded. Like much of this area in close proximity to the capital modern times have quite significantly altered the locality. At the time of this transcript Bushey would have been a large village surrounding the church and lined along the A411, growth to the southeast in late Victorian times saw the rise of further settlement at Bushey Heath whilst Oxhey to the northwest became almost a part of greater Watford. Bushey's wider economy would have largely been pastoral, supplying dairy to the nearby capital a lucrative and major part of local life. Modern developments have largely surrounded Bushey, railway links established to Watford and beyond largely skirt the parish whilst the modern M1 lies, again, on the edges of the parish leaving Bushey as a semi-rural part of this increasingly urban landscape. Bushey is drained westwards and then south by a small tributary of the River Colne which meets the Thames at Staines before passing through the capital to the North Sea. Bushey is sited at around 90 metres above the sea and sits on the northern slopes of a distinct and isolated little hill, Merry Hill, which summits at 131 metres and is very much the highest ground for some distance. By lowland English standards Bushey parish was quite large, covering almost 3,200 acres its population was steadily growing, rising to around 1,200 parishioners during the transcript period and reaching many thousands today. In Domesday times Bushey was a holding of Geoffrey de Mandeville offering just 6 ploughs but with extensive woodland holding 1,000 pigs and also possessed 2 mills.

The Church

St James' church sits just south of the A411 road as it passes through Bushey at the head of a broad strip of undeveloped green-space which connects the High Street through to the slopes of Merry Hill. The church is largely medieval in origin but, like most, was substantially restored during the Victorian era. The oldest portion is the chancel which shows the thin-lancet windows characteristic of the Early English Gothic period and is 13th century in origin. The remainder of the church, both nave and western tower, come from the classic church-building era of the 15th century and are Perpendicular in style. The western tower is distinctive in having its taller northeastern corner stair turret giving it a different feel. The major restoration of the church cam in 1870-71 when not only a general restoration took place but also northern & southern aisles and a northern porch were added, a further restoration in 1897 added vestries. St James' distinctive feature, however, is not external but the rare tympanum which separates chancel and nave, a plastered partition bearing the arms of Queen Anne and well worth a visit. Like many urban churches parking can be difficult but a substantial car park in Kemp Place permits an extended visit. The church is approached from the High Street by Rectory Lane, a short dead-end spur. Unusually the church has a southwest to northeast orientation rather then the usual west to east. Sadly closely lying trees remove the favoured viewing angles for a sunny day and thus limit those available to the photographer.