Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900/Bawdwen, William
BAWDWEN, WILLIAM (1762–1816), antiquary, the son of William Bawdwen, of Stone Gap, Craven, Yorkshire, was born 9 March 1762. He was educated at Manchester school, and subsequently took holy orders. He is described on the title-pages of his books as B.A., but his name does not occur in the lists of Oxford or Cambridge graduates. He is said to have been at one time curate of Wakefield (Lupton's Wakefield Worthies, p. 9); he afterwards became curate of Frickly-cum-Clayton and vicar of Hooton Pagnel, benefices near Doncaster, which he held till his death. He married, 30 Dec. 1793, Ann, daughter of William Shackleton, of Wakefield, and died at Hooton Pagnel 14 Sept. 1816, leaving twelve children. The estate of Stone Gap, which had been in his family for two hundred years, was sold by Bawdwen soon after he succeeded to it.
Bawdwen, who devoted all his leisure to antiquarian research, began a translation of the Domesday Book from the edition published by the Record Commission in 1783. He intended to complete it in ten volumes, but two only appeared before his death. The first volume was published in 1809 at Doncaster with a dedication to Lord Fitzwilliam, under the title of ‘Dom Boc; a translation of the Record called Domesday, so far as relates to the county of York, including Amounderness, Lonsdale, and Furness in Lancashire, and such parts of Westmoreland, Cumberland, as are contained in the Survey; also the counties of Derby, Nottingham, Rutland, and Lincoln, with an introduction, glossary, and indexes.’ The second volume appeared in 1812, and dealt with the counties of Hertford, Middlesex, Buckingham, Oxford, and Gloucester. Bawdwen also contributed a translation of the Domesday survey of Dorsetshire to the fourth volume of Hutchinson's ‘History of Dorsetshire.’
[Manchester School Register, ed. Finch Smith, published by Chetham Society, i. 212; Gent. Mag. lxxxvi. pt. 2, p. 286; Hunter's Hist. of Deanery of Doncaster, 1828, ii. 146.]