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

The Parish

The parish of Rickmansworth forms the southwestern corner of Hertfordshire including borders with both Buckinghamshire and with Middlesex at a 3-counties meet. Rickmansworth is located roughly 4 miles southwest of the town of Watford and some 18 miles northwest of London. Rickmansworth stands at the junction of the A412 (Watford to Slough) road with the A404 (Harrow on the Hill to Amersham) road and sits at the confluence of 3 rivers, the Colne, Gade and Chess. Rickmansworth has a compact central area immediately to the north of the main bridging point with extensive suburbs climbing northwestwards onto the fringes of the Chiltern Hills. Rickmansworth began life as a holding of the Abbey of St Albans and was largely an arable farming area before passing to the crown during dissolution. The town began to grow following the granting of a market in 1542 by Henry VIII, despite the proximity of Watford & Amersham this prospered for a while such that Rickmansworth became a centre for trade & specialist skills, before lapsing. Rickmansworth's position on the rivers gave it access to water-power and numerous industries began utilising that power, brewing, milling and eventually paper making, in addition the local tradition of straw plait supported many. At this time the rivers were still clean and unspoiled and the growing of water cress and fishing for the local trout were popular. It was the arrival of modern developments that grew Rickmansworth into today's large town, first to arrive was the Grand Union Canal which uses the Colne valley to approach the capital, the railway line from Watford arrived in 1862 but is now closed, however, in 1887 the London Underground's Metropolitan line arrived giving connections to the heart of the capital. Rickmansworth consequently grew as a major commuting suburb of London, part of what became known as "Metroland", which sold a desirable "live in the country, work in the city" life-style. Yet more modern developments have arrived more recently, the modern M25 motorway passes to the northwest and the line for HS2 will carve it's way through the maze of flooded gravel-pits of the Colne valley. Rickmansworth is drained southwards by the Colne which heads to meet the Thames at Staines, the Thames passes eastwards through London to the North Sea. Rickmansworth is sited between 40 metres, at the river, to 100 metres above the sea at the M25, land rises westwards to local high spots just below 130 metres. Rickmansworth was an extensive parish covering almost 9,800 acres and supporting a population of close to 5,000 parishioners, closer to 27,000 today. Even by Domesday Rickmansworth was large enough to be amongst the top 20% of settlements by population, held by St Albans Abbey its assets of 23 ploughs, meadows & woodland and a mill made for a wealthy holding for the Abbey.

The Church

St Mary's church sits close to the bridge across the Colne in the lower part of the town and on the western side of Church Street. St Mary is largely a modern church having been rebuilt on two occasions during the 19th century. Only its western tower in the Perpendicular style and 16th century in origin remains from early times, as is common in that century it is battlemented and topped with a short spike. The main body was first rebuilt during the period of this transcript between 1825 & 1826 but was again rebuilt between 1889 & 1890 such that few traces of the medieval remain. 1898 saw vestries added as an extension and the late 20th century saw the Church Centre, linked to the southern aisle, added in 1982. Church Street has no parking so it is better to either seek parking in one of the side streets or to find a town car park and approach on foot. The photographer will find this a difficult church to adequate record, to the south the neighbouring care home restricts southerb viewpoints whilst almost every other angles is compromised by trees, a challenge for the photographer.