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

The Parish

The parish of Bexley lies in northwestern Kent not too far from its border with neighbouring Surrey. Bexley sits about 3 miles west of the market town of Dartford. Whilst Bexley was once just a small to medium sized village sitting at a crossing of the River Cray and just south of the A2 road from London to Canterbury, today Bexley is just part of the wider metropolis of Greater London. So much has been added in terms of 19th & 20th century developments to Bexley that the map sees fit to designate "Old Bexley" to indicate the original position of the village. Modern Bexley is now a sea of property contiguous with the wider metropolis. At the time of this transcript Bexley would have been an arable farming community, augmented with some pastures along the banks of the Cray. The Cray drains Bexley northwards to reach the outer Thames Estuary to the north of Dartford, thence to the North Sea. Old Bexley is sited, in its valley setting, at around 20 metres above the sea in gentle countryside, more modern Bexley is some 20 metres higher and to its west whilst local heights top out at close to 90 metres within two to three miles. Bexley parish was extensive, at over 5,000 acres one of the larger in this area, the population at the start of this transcript would have been close to 1,000 but rose steadily, especially after the closing date to almost 4,000, today it is much higher still. In Domesday times Bexley was a property of the Archbishop of Canterbury, a wealthy place it could offer 12 ploughs, extensive meadows and (swine-render infested) woodland and also had three valuable mills.

The Church

St Mary's church sits on the eastern banks of the Cray opposite the main centre of "Old Bexley" standing at the junction of Bexley High Street with Manor Road. The church shows extensive features from the early English Gothic period indicative of its 13th century origins. The church almost represents a complete build of that period were it not for the extensive restoration of the early 1880s, a restoration called "heavily restored" by Pevsner somewhat castigatingly. That restoration added the southern porch which is probably the only significant addition since the medieval period. The attractive western tower with its shingled spire makes for a very attractive church given its extremely urban setting. Manor Road has small parking areas allowing a few cars to visit, the church sits behind a low brick wall with the main entrance at the junction through an attractive lychgate. A few large evergreens limit a little the angles available for photography.