Analyse the extent to which Villages across Britain have changed during the 19th and 20th centuries

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Analyse the extent to which Villages across Britain have changed during the 19th and 20th centuries

Ripley is a village in the parish of Send and Ripley in Surrey. Close to the River Wey and the current London to Portsmouth road it has a population of 1,697 (1991 census). Within this essay I hope to demonstrate the variety of sources that are available to gather information about the landscape of the village and how it has changed during the 19th and 20th centuries. I will also analyse how the sources provide information and whether it is better to use them together or independently. The main sources I have use are local maps – tithe and Ordnance Survey – Kelly’s Directories, a book of photos published by the Send and Ripley Local History Society, some Francis Frith postcards, the Victoria County History for Surrey and the Census enumerator schedules for the village over a number of years.

The Victoria County History is an excellent place to begin research into any village or town within the UK. The VCH was begun in 1899 to collect and document the history of all the counties within the UK divided up by their hundreds. Although even now not all counties are completed. The Surrey edition has a number of entries for Ripley which details the village from Victorian times back to its origins. According to the VCH the earliest mention of Ripley is in 1279 when the Prior of Newark claimed to ‘have suit’ at Ripley and proclaimed his right to hold a market, which no one came to. It also states that the London to Guildford Road ran straight through Ripley, which suggests that the village grew up along this road to provide services to travellers. The Ripley entry also documents in detail the church within the village – St Mary the Virgin – which apparently dates from 1160 but was partially rebuilt in 1845-6. This kind of discrepancy between the date of the first mention of the village and the age of the church – over 100 years – is an interesting point which could inspire the researcher to investigate why the church was there and what kind of settlement was there originally. If the VCH has covered the area you are studying, it can give you a number of pointers to continue your research, but does not provide a complete history therefore it needs to be combined with alternative sources.

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Kelly’s Directories were published for each county since the 16th century. Each entry has a brief historical description of a village, followed by a contemporary description, then a list of private inhabitants and local trades people. These directories are published every few years so can provide a valuable insight into the changes of building usage, business ownership and the growth of local families. The brief village history provides information about land type, landowners, religion, estates, fairs and markets, transport and population. Kelly’s also lists the gentry or private residents within the village which can give you a clue as to ...

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