South Leverton

The Library at East Retford will prove useful in your research.

In 1976 the Parish Council purchased a former allotment site from White's Farm for the purpose of a new Parish Council burial ground. Following the purchase the Council prepared the land and this culminated with the completion of the Memorial Wall of Rememberance in 1980 and bench installation in 1983.

Once the majority of plots in the Churchyard had been taken, the Parish Council took the decision to open the new burial ground in 2021.

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

• The Anglican parish church is dedicated to All Saints.
   
• Richard CROFT has a photograph of All Saints' Church on Geo-graph, taken in October, 2006.
   
• The church appears to be of Norman construction, 12th century origin.
   
• The church chancel was rebuilt in 1869.
   
• The church interior was restored in 1898.
   
• The church seats 355.
   

• The Anglican parish register dates from 1659, but earlier portions are imperfect.
   
• The church was in the rural deanery of Tuxford.
   
• The Wesleyan Methodists had a chapel here built in 1847.
   
• William METCALFE has a photograph of the Wesleyan Chapel on Geo-graph, taken in June, 2007.
   
• Graham HOGG also has a photograph of the Wesleyan Chapel on Geo-graph, taken in January, 2015.
   
• The Wesleyan Methodists chapel is now a private residence.
   
• Alan MURRAY-RUST has a photograph of the Quaker Meeting House on Geo-graph, taken in September, 2014.
   

• The parish was in the Clarborough sub-district of the East Retford Registration District.
   
• Civil Registration started in July, 1837.
   

South Leverton is a township, a village and a parish 145 miles north of London, 6 miles south-west of Gainsborough and 5.5 miles east of East Retford. The parish covers 1,630 acres.

If you are planning a visit:

• By automobile, the parish is due east of Retford on the county roads (Leverton Road).
   
• Alan MURRAY-RUST has a photograph of the Village Sign on Geo-graph, taken in September, 2014.
   
• Railway passenger service ceased in 1959.
   

• Geograph
• Flickr

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

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

• The parish feast was held on the Sunday before October 2nd.
   
• For a bit of local colour in 1876, read this Petty Sessions report.
   
• Graham HOGG has a photograph of The Plough Inn on Geo-graph, taken in January, 2015.
   
• The old Railway Inn, once a popular stopover for visitors, is now closed and has been demolished. Richard CROFT has a photograph of the Railway Inn on Geo-graph, taken in July, 2006.
   
• These are the names associated with the Railway Inn in various directories:
   

• See our Maps page for additional resources.

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SK785821 (Lat/Lon: 53.330002, -0.822751), South Leverton 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.

• Alan MURRAY-RUST has a photograph of the Memorial Institute on Geo-graph, taken in September, 2014. It was originally built to honor the dead of World War I.

Inside the parish church is a family memorial, a brass plaque, mounted on the brick wall, to private Arthur Frederick CLARKE of the 12 btln. York and Lancaster Regt., who died in July, 1916 at the First Battle of the Somme.

There is also a lancet window in the church dedicated to the three men from the parish who died in World War I, including private CLARKE, above. The other two men were: Ernest HEWITT, sergeant in the Yorks and Lancs Regt. and Fred Charles Henry SMITH, a private in the same regiment. This last man was actually named Charles Henry SMITH, but apparently preferred being called "Fred".

Again, the men are:

1. pte. Arthur Frederick CLARKE, 12th Bn York and Lancs Regt.
2. srgt. Ernest HEWITT, 2nd Bn York and Lancs Regt.
3. pte. 'Fred' Charles Henry SMITH, 10th Bn York and Lancs Regt.

• This place was an ancient parish in Nottingham county and became a modern Civil Parish when those were established.
   
• The parish was in the North Clay division of the ancient Bassetlaw Wapentake (Hundred) in the northern division of the county.
   
• In March, 1886, this Civil Parish was enlarged by gaining Westbrecks and The Clams from COTTAM Civil Parish.
   
• You may contact the local Parish Council regarding civic or political matters, but they are NOT funded to assist you with family history searches.
   
• District governance is provided by the Bassetlaw District Council.
   

• Bastardy cases would be heard at the Retford petty session hearings held in West Retford.
   
• The COMMON Land was enclosed here in 1797.
   
• After the Poor Law Amendment Act reforms of 1834, this parish became a part of the East Retford Poor Law Union.
   

Year	Population
1801	354
1811	383
1821	374
1831	400
1841	451
1851	484
1861	408
1871	488
1881	403
1891	366
1901	376

• A Village School was funded here in 1691 by John SAMPSON. It was later carried on as a Public Elementary School after 1877.
   
• The Village Website has a photo of students of the Sampson School in 1950.
   
• The Leverton Church of England Academy is on Main Street in North Leverton.