England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Thorneyburn St Aidan

The Parish

The parish of Thorneyburn, created in 1818 to serve one of the remotest areas of Northumberland, lies in western Northumberland not too far from the border with Scotland. Thorneyburn is located some 7 miles further northwest from the large village of Bellingham and is 24 miles northwest of Hexham. Thorneyburn is not a large place, there is no Thorneyburn village even marked upon modern Ordnance Survey maps rather it is the extensive hills of Thorneyburn Common which indicate its position in the of the Tarset Burn. This is a remote and relatively under-populated mountain region forming the border with Scotland, an area kept so in early times by the depredations of the Border Reivers. The area is characterised by isolated and markedly defensible farmsteads surrounded by miles of empty countryside used mainly for sheep rearing. In more modern times the remoteness of the area has attracted the development of vast swathes of forestry operations. The Tarset Burn drains the parish southwards the short distance into the River North Tyne which unites with the South Tyne and flows eastwards through the Newcastle Metropolitan area into the North Sea. Thorneyburn is sited, at the church, at around 160 metres but land rises in billowing hills topping out at well over 300 metres to the northwest. As a relatively sparsely populated area it is not surprising that Thorneyburn parish was remarkably extensive, covering a little over 20,000 acres it would have supported barely 350 parishioners. Domesday Book has very little coverage north of the Tees and as such Thorneyburn & the rest of Northumberland is not mentioned in that book.

The Church

St Aidan's church is a relatively recent church built to support the elevation of the parish in 1818. Funded by the Commissioners of Greenwich Hospital it is a simple box of nave & chancel combined but augmented by the short embattlemented western tower and a northern transept. Whilst a pleasant small country church it clearly had little interest for Pevsner whose account is a mere 5 lines of descriptive text. The church sits on the western banks of the Tarset Burn opposite Greenhaugh which holds the basic facilities of the parish. A small parking area to the north of the churchyard permits careful parking and allows for a visit, although one is unlikely to be disturbed by much traffic hereabouts. Whilst much of the churchyard has few obstacles there are a few close trees around the western end limiting views of that western tower.