Manorial Documents
A start has been made on transcribing manorial documents relating to our area. The manorial court rolls for the manor of Merton, dating from the 18th to 20th centuries, are held by the John Innes Centre at Norwich, and have been microfilmed. They were transcribed by the late John Wallace, but need checking against the microfilm. A copy of the draft transcript, edited to identify the individual copyhold properties, has been lodged at Surrey History Centre, Woking.
The earlier Merton Rolls, dating from the 15th to 17th centuries, and therefore in Latin, are in Guildhall Library, London. Peter Hopkins has made a start on their translation from a microfilm copy. The bulk of the material is complete, but more work needs to be done.
The medieval manor of Morden was in the possession of Westminster Abbey. Many documents survive at Westminster Abbey Muniment Room, while a few more are in other archives. The manorial account rolls and court rolls have been filmed and translated, with a view to publication in the not-too-distant future.
The initial translation of other material relating to medieval Morden has been undertaken and is awaiting expert checking.
Some work has been done in the past on documents relating to the various Mitcham manors, but this work still needs consolidating.
Offers of assistance will be warmly welcomed.
Project co-ordinator: Peter Hopkins, 57 Templecombe Way, Morden, Surrey SM4 4JF.
