Lowdham

The Library at Newark-on-Trent will prove useful in your research.

The Nottingham Library would also be a good resource.

The nearby Burton Joyce Library is a handy place to start your search.

• "LOWDHAM IN THE 19TH CENTURY. Portrait of a Village," Lowdham Local History Society, 2000, ASIN: B004URU5ZY.
   

• The Lowdham Cemetery at the end of Church Lane was opened in 1953. It is managed by the Newark and Sherwood District Council.
   
• Alan MURRAY-RUST has a photograph of Lowdham Cemetery on Geo-graph, taken in October, 2008.
   

• The parish was in the Southwell sub-district of the Southwell Registration District.
   
• The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
   

• The Anglican parish church is dedicated to Saint Mary the Virgin.
   
• The date of construction is in the 13th century in the Early English style.
   
• The Church Tower is a separate building from the late 12th century. The spire was added some two centuries later.
   
• Around 1560 the church was reported to be in "great decay".
   
• In 1821 there was ‘restoration of its dilapidated walls’ and ‘erecting entire new slated roofs’, with other reparations including building the buttressed to support the tower.
   
• The church chancel was restored in 1895.
   
• In 1953 fourteen feet of the church steeple was removed temporarily when the top began to lean.
   
• There is no clock in the church or church tower.
   
• The church seats 410.
   
• Alan MURRAY-RUST has a photograph of St. Mary's Church on Geo-graph, taken in October, 2008.
   
• The churchyard was closed to burials when the new cemetery was opened. Ashes in urns may still be interred in the churchyard.
   
• In 1850, a small chapel of ease was built in the village of Gunthorpe.
   
• Richard VINCE has a photograph of the Church of St John the Baptist in Gunthorpe on Geo-graph, taken in August, 2013.
   

• The Anglican parish register dates from 1559 for baptisms and burials, 1564 for marriages, and is in good condition.
   
• The LDS Family History Library has the register of marriage certificates from 1 July 1837 to 2 Aug 1897 on microfilm #0095038.
   
• The church was in the rural deanery of Gedling.
   
• The Wesleyan Methodists built a chapel here by 1863. They also had a chapel in Caythorpe. The Wesleyan Methodist Chapel on Ton Lane suffered from rising damp and a declining congregation. On 30th March 1986 its final service was held and the chapel demolished. As a result of the bond which had existed between the Chapel and St Mary’s, its Altar Cross, Minister’s stall and War Memorial Tablet were reinstalled in St Mary’s.
   
• The Primitive Methodists built a chapel here in 1844.
   

• The parish was in the Southwell sub-district of the Southwell Registration District.
   
• Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
   

Lowdham is a village and a parish near the Dover Beck. The Dover Beck and Cocker Beck both feed into the River Trent and run through the parish. The parish is138 miles north of London, 6 miles south-west of Southwell, and 8 miles north-west of Nottingham. Gunthorpe is a village and a township in this parish, lying south-south-east of Lowdham.

If you are planning a visit:

• By automobile, take the A612 arterial road out of Nottingham. This road runs right through the village of Lowdham.
   
• Mat Fascione has a photograph of the Village Sign (and other signs!) on Geo-graph, taken in March, 2016.
   
• Check the Carlberry site for Bus service.
   
• The Railway came to Lowdham in 1846. There is still a railway station at Lowdham. Trains run to Nottingham, Newark-on-Trent, Lincoln, Crewe and London.
   

• Geograph
• Flickr

• We have an extract from White's 1853 Directory relating to this parish.
   

• Ask for a calculation of the distance from Lowdham to another place.

• Lowdham village held a feast on the first Sunday in September.
   
• Gunthorpe village held its feast on the second Sunday in October.
   
• The castle mound is to the west of the bypass.
   
• In the 1800s and early 1900s many of the people in the parish were employed as framework knitters.
   
• In the early 1900s bricks were made here.
   
• Harold COTTAM is considered a Hero due to his diligence as a 21 year old wireless operator on the RMS Carpathia bound for New York. He managed to help the Carpathia's crew find the Titanic survivors and took 705 on board. Harold lived in Lowdham from 1958 – 1964.
   
• Ian S. has a photograph of the sign for The Railway Inn on Geo-graph, taken in May, 2016, near the south end of the village.
   

• Richard CROFT has a photograph of the Railway Station on Geo-graph, taken in July, 2010.
   
• Mat FASCIONE has a closeup photograph of the Magna Charta Pub on the A612 on Geo-graph, taken in March, 2016.
   
• Norman GRIFFIN has a photograph of the Magna Charta Public House on Geo-graph, taken in October, 2017.
   
• The Magna Charta now operates as the Greene King Pub. and Grill.
   

• Richard CROFT has a photograph of The Old Volunteer Pub. on Geo-graph, taken in July, 2010. The pub is on the eastern side of the village.
   
• The Old Volunteer has its own website.

• See our Maps page for additional resources.

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SK662468 (Lat/Lon: 53.01442, -1.014702), Lowdham which are provided by:

• OpenStreetMap
• Google Maps
• StreetMap (Current Ordnance Survey maps)
• Bing (was Multimap)
• Old Maps Online
• National Library of Scotland (Old Ordnance Survey maps)
• Vision of Britain (Click "Historical units & statistics" for administrative areas.)
• English Jurisdictions in 1851 (Unfortunately the LDS have removed the facility to enable us to specify a starting location, you will need to search yourself on their map.)
• Magic (Geographic information) (Click + on map if it doesn't show)
• GeoHack (Links to on-line maps and location specific services.)

• All places within the same township/parish shown on an Openstreetmap map.
• Nearby townships/parishes shown on an Openstreetmap map.
• Nearby places shown on an Openstreetmap map.

• The WW One War Memorial was dedicated in April 1921 by the Bishop of Southwell and Colonel W. WARWICK D.S.O.
   
• Gary RADFORD has a photograph of the War Memorial on Geo-graph, taken in April, 2007.
   
• Jonathan THACKER also has a photograph of the Lowdham war memorial on Geo-graph, taken in April, 2021.

There is one Commonwealth War Grave in St. Mary's churchyard extension from World War I:

1. John William WATSON, priv., 9th Btn. Sherwood Foresters, age 36, died 12 Feb. 1918. Son of James WATSON.

The Newark Great War Bulletin for August 9th, 1915 tells us that Thomas William JUBB, age 23, of the 8th Btln, Sherwood Foresters, was killed in the trenches on 30 July, 1915. He was the only son of Charles and Eliza Ann JUBB.

The Newark Great War Bulletin for December 6th, 1915 tells us that private Frederick HOLLAND, age 26, of the 8th Btln. Sherwood Foresters, was at home on furlough because of wounds received on 25 September. He had been awarded the French Military Cross. Frederick had worked as a plate-layer for the Midland Railway before joining the service 4 years earlier.

There are 60 names listed on the memorial, all of whom perished in the war. Five names were added from WWII:

1. Pte. Allison, Richard, MGC
2. Pte. Appleton, Harold Edward, 1st Sherwood Foresters
3. Sgt. Barlow, Garold Edward, 17th Bn Sherwood Foresters
4. Bishop, Reginald George
5. Lt. Bond, Bernard, Sherwood Foresters
6. Breedon, Amos Gratton
7. Breedon, Harry
8. Breedon, John
9. Breedon, John Fred, 7th North Staff. Regt.
10. Brett, Henry Sydney
11. Drvr. Brisland, Ernest, Royal Field Artillery
12. Cpl. Cammack, Samuel Richard, 7th Leics. Regt.
13. Sapper Carnill, Albert
14. Cooper, John Thomas
15. Cordy, Charles Ernest
16. Sgt. Cox, Charles Enos
17. Dawson, Walter
18. Dickinson, George William
19. Faulkner, Arthur Edward
20. Foster, George Henry
21. Foster, Robert
22. Sgt. Foster, Walter
23. Freeman, Ernest Henry
24. Furley, Thomas
25. Goddard, Ernest
26. Haslam, Charles
27. Jubb, Thomas William
28. Lce. cpl. Knight, Wilfrid Ratcliffe
29. Sgt. Linley, John Henry, Royal Engineers
30. Mayo, Thomas Henry
31. Mills, Herbert
32. Moisey, William Wragg
33. Cpl. Moon, Charles George
34. Nelson, Francis
35. Lce. cpl. Newton, Harold Arthur Edgar
36. Parkes, Arthur
37. Parkins, Bernard
38. Pashler, Charles William
39. 2nd Lt. Pearson, Oliver Charles
40. Peatman, William Bernard
41. Pitt, Lawrence Charles Brooks
42. Pownall, Clement Hinton
43. Reavill, John William, 7th Leics. Regt.
44. Rimington, Arthur
45. Roberts, Bert
46. Shipstone, Percy
47. Simms, Harold
48. Drvr. Simpson, John Johnstone
49. Slater, Thomas Henry
50. Soar, Albert Victor, 1/8 Sherwood Foresters
51. Straw, Tom
52. Swallow, William Henry
53. Thornhill, Charles Henry, 1st Coldstream Guards
54. Thraves, Frank
55. Vann, Arthur
56. Watson, John
57. Watson, John William, 9th Sherwood Foresters
58. Widdowson, George
59. Widdowson, John
60. Willoughby, Jack

The World War II veterans are listed on a separate plaque below the one above:

"AND
IN MEMORY OF

Sgt. A. REEVE.
KING’S Cpl. S. WATTS.
Pte. G. S. ALLWOOD.
Pte. J. S. GREAVES.

1939-45"

There is an Effigy of Sir John de Ludham in the north-west corner of the church. It is inscribed on the right side:

"SIR ION DE LOVDHAM GIT ICI DE SA ALME DEUS YET MERCI"

Lowdham is derived from the Old English "Hluda+ham", which means "Homesead of a man called Hluda." It appears in the 1086 Domesday Book as Ludham.
A. D. MILLS, "A Dictionary of English Place-Names", 1999, Oxford University Press.

• This parish contained three townships: Lowdham, Caythorpe and Gunthorpe. Each township had its own village with the same name as the township.
   
• The parish was in the south division of the ancient Thurgarton Hundred (Wapentake) in the southern division of the county.
   
• In September, 1899, a portion of Gunthorpe Civil Parish was annexed to Lowdham Civil Parish.
   
• Lowdham Parish Council maintains a presence on the Internet. The old www.lowdham.net no longer functions.
   
• District governance is provided by the Newark and Sherwood District Council.
   

• Bastardy cases would be heard in the Nottingham petty session hearings.
   
• Agnes CROSS left a charity (undated) that provided 50 shillings per year to the parish poor.
   
• The Common Land was enclosed here in 1765.
   
• As a result of the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act reforms, this parish became part of the Southwell Poor Law Union.
   

Year	Lowdham	Caythorpe	Gunthorpe
1801	553	168	278
1851	930	315	351
1861	868	304	331
1881	740	294	318
1901	923	232	368

• The National School was built in 1843 to hold 200 students.
   
• Am Infants School was built here in 1897 to hold up to 100 children.

• There is a: Lowdham Local History Society, 3 Red Lane, Lowdham, Notts NG14 7AU.