Layston

Deserted village in Hertfordshire, England

The formerly roofless St Bartholomew's Church near Buntingford, now converted to a house

Layston is a former village and parish located about a kilometre north-east of Buntingford in Hertfordshire, England, at 51°57′50″N 0°00′45″E.

In 1931 the parish had a population of 724.[1] On 1 April 1937 the parish was abolished and merged with Buntingford, part also went to form Hormead.[2]

Its former church, St Bartholomew's, became derelict but is the subject of a restoration project. People connected with the church include:

* Thomas Crouch, who was baptised in St Bartholomew's in 1607
* Robert Wogdon (January 1734 – 28 March 1813), founder of the gunsmith firm Wogdon & Barton, who was buried in the chancel with his wife, who had died in 1805
* Rev. Jonathan Gilder and Mary Brazier, who were married there in 1759; their daughter Sarah, baptised there in 1767, became (posthumously) the maternal grandmother to New Zealand suffragette Catherine Fulton
* Claud Lovat Fraser (15 May 1890 – 18 June 1921), who was buried in the churchyard.
* Joseph Ironmonger Snoxell (1743-1810) of Stanmore, Middlesex, married Martha Moore (1740-1785) in the church on 15 November 1763. He owned or leased farms in Great and Little Stanmore, and Hatch End, Middx; Hitchin and Watford, Herts; and Barton, Cambridgeshire. Husband and wife are buried next to the ruined church at Stanmore, where there are memorials to them.

There is a state-funded primary school, Layston First CE School.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Population statistics Layston AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
2. ^ "Relationships and changes Layston AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 24 October 2022.

## External links

[edit]

* Layston Church website \- history and restoration
* Church family history index