Sydling St Nicholas

	Sydling St Nicholas is a parish and a village 8 miles north-west from Dorchester in the Cerne valley. Although the church of St Nicholas stands on the site of earlier churches the earliest part of the present church is the tower which dates from the 1430s. Within are many memorials to the Smith family, The church clock dates from 1593. The registers date from 1565 although there is a 30 year gap during the Commonwealth period. A Congregational chapel was opened in 1834 and a Methodist chapel in 1866
Sydling Court is adjacent to the Church and was the seat of the Smith family for many generations. A charitable donation in 1795 led to the establishment of the first school, which was closed in 1966. The parish covers 5028 acres and agriculture used to be the main occupation with sheep farming predominating. In 1859 the population was 675, in 1891 it was 563. In 1986 the population was estimated as 425. Above. The Church of St Nicholas. Right, East Street. All photographs © Lynda Mudle-Small, October 2003 For more photographs see the link below.
The Online Parish Clerk for Sydling St Nicholas is Sharon Churchill
Census	The 1841, 1851, 1861 & 1881 are online
Parish Registers	Baptisms 1568-1578, 1576-1589, 1590-1607 Baptisms 1813-1848, 1848-1905 [Christel Muncaster] Other records will be transcribed, any donations of complete years are welcome.
Postal Directories	Will be transcribed.
War Memorial	A transcription of the two War Memorials in the Church
Incumbents of the Parish	A list of Rectors from 1333 to the present day.
Photographs	Fourteen Photographs of the church and the village
Maps	The 1891 Ordnance Survey maps of the parish can be seen at the old-maps site, just enter 'Sydling' under place search.
	For modern location maps visit:- www.multimap.com For a 1920s map of the area click on the thumbnail opposite [181kb]

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