Throughout the scrapbooks there are frequent references to the incumbent Vicar, especially in the newspaper cuttings. This reflects the role of the church in public and private life in the 19th century.

The current Vicar of Deddington would always have been one of the more prominent local personalities, especially since the parish had never been dominated by a great landowning family, and the proprietors of its three manors were non-resident.

In addition, prior to the creation of parish councils in 1894 the Vicar was automatically chairman of the Vestry, a regular meeting of parish ratepayers, which was responsible for the administration of local government.

The Vicars of Deddington during the period covered by the scrapbooks were:

  • James Turner 1864-1877. He has no biography on the site at present. According to the 1871 census return he was born in Ireland . This seems to be corroborated in Scrapbook 2, Index A, pp 6&7 which states " No one but an Irishman would have committed such a blunder!"

 

Editor's note: A full list of all incumbents from 1247 AD can be found HERE