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About Parish Registers

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What are Parish Records?

Parish Records are records of baptisms, marriages, and burials made by the Church. They are a valuable resource for researching your family tree because the census and official records of birth, marriage and death do not go back further than 1837. Parish records can extend your research back to the time of King Henry VIII.

How can Parish Records help me with my research?

These records can help you trace your family roots back through baptisms, marriages, and burials. Most parish records go back to the 1600s, and some even go back to the 1500s.

How do I know which records to search for?

You will need to know where your ancestor lived, and the church they went to - Parishes correspond quite closely to villages of the same name. Whereas a rural parish may include a small village and two or three hamlets, there will be many parishes in the city, so you would need to determine in which your family lived.

What information can I expect to find on these records?

Baptism Records

Marriage Records

Burial Records

On baptism records, you may only find the name. You may also find that on some records, the father's name and the mother's name has also been recorded. Marriage records contain the name of the bride and groom, the Parish where they were married and sometimes details of the brides parish. The level of detail changes depending on the year. On burial records, you should be able to find the name and, especially for children, the father's name. They also may note the age of the deceased.