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Before 1837, there was no nationwide scheme of registration. You will need to use registers of baptism, marriage and burial kept by local parish churches, so it is important to have an idea of where a person lived.
The systematic keeping of parish registers began between 1538 and 1598 and should continue to the present, except for the period 1640-1660. You will need to bear in mind that not all parishes will have registers dating back this far.
The amount of information varies. The early registers (sometimes written in simple Latin) include baptisms, marriages and burials all in the same volume.
Separate registers were introduced for marriage in 1754 and for baptism and burial in 1813.
Abbreviated copies of all entries were sent to the bishop and are known as Bishop’s transcripts. They can be useful where the original register is lost or difficult to read.
Registers and Bishop’s transcripts are generally held by County Record Offices, Details can be found in Phillimore Atlas and Index of Parish Registers, Cecil R Humphery-Smith, (3rd edition 2003).
Marriage licence bonds and allegations
Some marriages were by licence rather than by banns. The bonds and allegations (which are part of the licence process) can provide extra information on the parties to a marriage. Those for the Archdeaconry of Chester (Cheshire and South Lancashire) survive from 1661 and are held in the Cheshire Record Office, available on microfilm.
Monumental Inscriptions
Gravestones are also useful in giving some detail on a person's family relationships. Many churchyards have been surveyed and recorded.
Useful Link
Cheshire Link
- GEN UKI
Cheshire Record Office holds monumental inscriptions for many Cheshire churches. Check our online catalogue for details |