Parish Records

[scoobydoo2]

Hi I need to research parish records - where do I start and who do I need to contact to look at them?
Any help appreciated.

[craft1948]

you may need dot for this but I think it varies as to where you live........in Yorkshire all the parish records are held at the Borthwick Institute in York University.

[dothawkes31]

parish records contain a vast amount of administrative records, they cover the versty committee minutes, the constables accounts, the apprenticeship records, many overlap with the quarter sessions depending on the Parish. If you are just wanting Patish registers of christenings and marriages you can start with the IGI, it contains many Yorkshire parishes from 1537 - 1920s.
The actual Parish records will have been sent to the County Record Office in most cases, Wakefield has the CRO for the West Riding, some records that were originally in Richmond will be at the Lancashire Record Office at Preston, from previous questions I expect you will need Wakefield though.

http://www.wakefield.anglican.org/support/issues/recordsoffice.htm

[dothawkes31]

the other offices for the rest of Yorkshire are here:
http://www.archives.wyjs.org.uk/

I can explain what sort of record you may find for your ancestors if you know where they lived and what their standing was, most CROs have great handwritten index cards that list individulas mentioned in the records or the quarter sessions in alphabetical order. Many people never came into contact with the parish records because they did not serve in any local office, they did not commit any breach of the parish law, they may not have had an illigiyimate child or they may never have needed poor relief, but they may have served on the vestry committee, contributed to the poor tax, sold wrens or starlings to the parish constable!!! lots of things!

[dothawkes31]

Oh but if it is the Sutcliffes of Erringden, i have them back to 1600ish from the land tax assessments and the manoral records. : )

[scoobydoo2]

I'm after the Sutcliffes of Derbyshire, most of them were bricklayers but turned to mining - most of them lived in or around Alfreton, hence my last post of trying to find the death of George Sutcliffe which I still haven't got anywhere with.
I appreciate all your help.

[dothawkes31]

lol sorry I've just realised that you don't want Yorkshire DOH!!!

For Parish Records (as opposed to parish Registers of baptism marriage and burial i.e. hatched matched and despatched, ) you need to Diocesan Record Office, which in most counties in England is housed in the archive of the County Record Office. This is the Derbyshire CRO and it should give you an online guide:

http://www.derbyshire.gov.uk/leisure/record_office/

[scoobydoo2]

Thanks dothawkes31 I will give it a try. The problem I have is I work nights so it's difficult to get to records offices, that's why I try to do as much as I can online.