England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Walton Upon Thames St Mary

The Parish

The parish of Walton upon Thames lies on the northern border of Surrey, here formed by the River Thames, a stretch of the county's border with neighbouring Middlesex. Walton upon Thames is located roughly 18 miles southwest of the City of London and sits on the Thames-side A3050 road which links Weybridge with Thames Ditton. Walton upon Thames is a much changed place, early maps show an L-shaped settlement, a long southeasterly running lane from the Thames' crossing and a northeastern spur along the line of today's A3050. The small settlement was surrounded by fields which continued southwards in a large swathe of land to the west of the River Mole. At the time of this transcript much of the economy was driven by the needs of the capital, close to the village were extensive market gardens whilst the more rural areas of the wider parish were farmed largely by arable means. The Thames was also a major source of employment, river craft shipping the produce to the capital. Growth initially came to Walton upon Thames as a site for the great and good to erect their out-of-city mansions, following in the footsteps of the Duke of York and Cardinal Wolseley who both had estates in this parish. During more modern times the railway from London arrived bringing suburban growth such that nowadays Walton upon Thames is contiguous with Greater London. A feature of the parish landscape are the flooded former gravel pits which now form storage reservoirs to balance the Thames' flow. Walton upon Thames is, of course, drained eastwards by the Thames which wends its way east through the capital to the North Sea. Walton upon Thames is sited at around 10 metres above the sea, away from the river land rises steadily to St George's Hill which reaches 78 metres as the highest ground around. Walton upon Thames parish was extensive covering a little over 6,700 acres which would have supported a growing population which expanded to reach over 2,500 parishioners, the volume of marriages recorded is much lower than that and more in keeping with a population of around 1,400. Domesday Walton upon Thames was shared between Count Gilbert's son Richard and Edward of Salisbury, its assets were extensive, 14 ploughs, meadows & woodland, 2 mills and a fishery all made for a profitable manor.

The Church

St Mary's church sits on the southeastern side of the A3050 which here is Church Street. St Mary has fabric dating back to the 12th century, the northern arcade is late Norman in style with a proposed date of the last quarter of the 12th century. The church was expanded considerably in the 14th century with the addition of today's chancel, the southern arcade & arches of the northern arcade. These additions whilst 14th century in style do incorporate further 12th century masonry. The Perpendicular period saw a typical addition, a clerestory, here in brick, to improve internal lighting, some of the square headed windows were also added at a similar date. The last additions were from the Tudor period of c1630 which saw the upper portion of the northern aisle and the nave roof added. For once Pevsner does not mention any substantial Victorian restoration so if one occurred then it was light & sensitive. Only two small parking slots lie outside the gates so this is a church best visited after finding a town car park. The churchyard appears tree-clad from the road but the churchyard is extensive allowing ample spots for the favoured aspects preferred by the photographer.