News of Chalk and Trees in the Chilterns

Chalk and Trees is the magazine of the Chilterns Conservation Board and the Winter 2012 has several items of relevance to this web site:

Online Information on Studham and Kensworth

The Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and Records Service is creating detailed web pages covering the history of Bedfordshire villages. There is excellent information for Studham, and pages for Kensworth are being planned - both these villages having previously been part of Hertfordshire.

 

First World War Trenches at Berkhamstead

Work is currently being carried out to map and eventually preserve some of the training trenches by troops who had been based on "Kitchener's Field" near Berkhamsted Castle. The magazine includes a call for volunteers between now and next April - contact Norman Grove for details.

Ancient Woodland in the Chilterns

The Chilterns Ancient Woodland Survey has now been published and is available online. There are detailed maps which show where there are still woods that were there when our ancestors farmed in the area.

A Local Hill Fort is Revealled

Living in Tring I find it frustrating that three Iron Age forts - on Ivinghoe Beacon, Boddington Hill and at Cholesbury are just over the county boundary into Buckinghamshire. The magazine describes work to make the Boddington Hillfort (in Wendover Woods) more visible - so you can now clearly see the structure of the surviving banks and ditches. The Conservation Group would welcome more volunteers.

Markyate - On the County Boundary with Bedfordshire

Until 1877 the village of Market Street, or Markyate, was in three separate ecclesiastical parishes - Studham, Caddington and Flamstead and later became a civil parish in 1897. This causes difficulties as to knowing what the records mean, and where the records are held. For instance someone living in the house they were born in at the time of the 1901 census may be living in Markyate but Markyate (as a parish) did not exist when they were born - so what will they record as their place of birth. In addition civil registration records might be in Hemel Hempstead, Herts, or Luton, Beds.

This post has arisen because the help messaging facility has been broken and as a result I have been feeling somewhat deprived as I have had fewer help requests than usual . I saw a request linked to Markyate on Rootsweb relating to the birth of a Mary Vass (possibly in the Markyate area) circa 1780 and her death as Mrs Mary Cain circa 1861. You may see the original request, and my reply, on Rootsweb - but I have also posted them as VASS/CAIN. Markyate, late 18th & 19th centuries on this site - with added links.