Overstrand, Norfolk Genealogy

England    Norfolk

Parish History

Overstrand St Martin is a rebuilt church on the site of a former Ancient parish in the Repps deanery of the Diocese of Norwich. Other places in the parish include Beck Hythe.

It is unclear exactly when the first church in Overstrand was built. We know there was no church recorded in 1086 and the first records we have inform us that in Edward I reign, Roger de Eccleburgh was patron of the church dedicated to St.Martin - so that provides a date of 1272 to 1307. As such it could be assumed that the church was built during that period.

We also know that it was one of the first recorded victims of local coastal erosion. Early accounts of Overstrand describe the topography as a parish extending for nearly two miles along the coast, comprising 400 acres of light and sandy soil which rises gradually from the shore and bounded on the south-west by a range of lofty hills.

Its position must have been very close to the shore as it was washed away and "swallowed up by the sea" in the late 14th century. Again we have no precise date for this but do know that it would have been after 1382 (as we have records of the rector Robert Madesone, for that date) and prior to or by 1399. John Reymes provided half an acre of land for a new churchyard before the end of September of 1399 and a licence was granted for the building of a new church probably between October and December of 1399.

The new churchyard was positioned where it is today. We do not know how long it took to build the new church, also dedicated to St.Martin, but we know it was in use by 1432 and William Dolle was rector.

The church building originally consisted of an embattled perpendicular west tower, nave, and chancel with a porch and door on the north side. A small oven for baking wafers was added to the south wall of the tower. The windows bore the arms of the de Reymes, Calthorp, Felbrigg Le Gross and Pelham.

By the latter 18th century, St.Martin's was by all accounts in a state of disrepair and by 1845 was virtually a ruin, having only part of the nave used for service.

A new church was built and consecrated in 1867, and named Christ Church. This was built in the Early English style, of cut flint and stone, and consisted of a chancel, nave and north aisle.

Resources

Civil Registration

Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

Erpingham 1837-1938

North Walsham 1939-1974

The Register Office, 18 Kings Arms Street, North Walsham, NR28 9JX.
Tel/Fax: 01692 406220. E-mail: registration.nwalsham@norfolk.gov.uk

Church records

Contributor: Include here information for parish registers, Bishop’s Transcripts, non conformist and other types of church records, such as parish chest records. Add the contact information for the office holding the original records. Add links to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection

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Census records

Contributor: Include an overview if there is any unique information, such as the census for X year was destroyed. Add a link to online sites for indexes and/or images. Also add a link to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection.

http://www.1881pubs.com/ for details of public houses in the 1881 census

Poor Law Unions

Erpingham http://www.institutions.org.uk/workhouses/england/norf/erpingham_workhouse.htm

Probate records

Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Norfolk Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Maps and Gazetteers

Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.

• England Jurisdictions 1851
• Vision of Britain

Web sites

http://www.achurchnearyou.com/overstrand-st-martin/ for information about the parish

http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51198 British History online

http://www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/overstrand/overstrand.htm Norfolk Churches website

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~tinstaafl/ for link to Norfolk Baptism project