If you were fortunate enough to attend the Scott County Iowa Genealogical Society meeting on the first of June, you learned all sorts of interesting things about early English records from Pam Langston.\u00a0 One thing that really surprised me is that the vast majority of Americans will eventually find themselves searching for English ancestors, no matter what their primary ethnic background.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That being the case you will be pleased to learn that English Parish Registers can date back as far as the mid-1500\u2019s!\u00a0 The source that Pam recommended for learning whether the specific Register you need has survived is the Phillimore Atlas and Index of Parish Registers\u00a0 <\/span>(SC 942 Phi).\u00a0 This resource includes colored maps of each county that shows the situation of churches and chapels and the beginning dates of the original register of the parish that have survived.<\/p>\n Another interesting tidbit that I learned is that the land records we rely on for doing American research don\u2019t really exist in England.\u00a0 Nearly all property was owned by the crown and feudal lords, rather than the common folks that the land transfer books we are accustomed to were never needed.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t until 1925 that land transactions were required to be registered.<\/p>\n While land records aren\u2019t available, census records are available and are very similar to the U.S. Census schedules that any researcher is familiar with. \u00a0The first census was conducted in England in 1801 with another done every ten years after that.\u00a0 Unfortunately, the earliest censuses were simply counts, with no names of individuals provided.\u00a0 In 1841 names of every \u00a0individual were recorded, but without information as to the relationships between individuals.\u00a0 1851 is the first census that provides the name, age and relationship information that we are accustomed to finding in the U.S. Census.\u00a0 In the U.S. the federal census schedules are released 72 years after they were taken.\u00a0 In England the schedules are typically held for 100 years.\u00a0 That being said, the 1911 Census was recently released.\u00a0 Many of these censuses are available at the library through the Ancestry Library Edition database.<\/p>\n Another source for English research that we just received as a donation is the Topographical Dictionary of England by Samuel Lewis (SC 942 LEW<\/em>).\u00a0 This set is an alphabetical listing of just about every place in England that includes a detailed description of the place.\u00a0 The larger the place, the more description provided.\u00a0 For example, the entry for Barugh, indicates it is \u201ca township in the parish of Darton, wapentake* of Straincross, West riding of the county\u00a0 of York, 2 \u00bd miles (W>N>W>) from Barnesley, containing 396 inhabitants.\u00a0 Here is a small endowed school, also an almshouse for two poor widows.\u201d\u00a0 That for Barton-Stacey, a larger community also provides the information that a fair is held on July 31st<\/sup> and that a Roman road passed through the parish.\u00a0 If you find your ancestors in the parish registers you will want to be sure to look for their parish or township in this dictionary!<\/p>\n \u00a0___<\/p>\n *If you\u2019re like me, you have no idea what a \u201cwapentake\u201d is!\u00a0 The encyclopedia Britannica indicates it is an administrative division of the English counties of York, Lincoln, Leicester, Nottingham, Derby, and Rutland, first clearly referred to in 962\/963 and corresponding to the \u201chundred<\/a>\u201d in other parts of England. The term wapentake<\/em> is of Scandinavian origin and meant the taking of weapons; it later signified the clash of arms by which the people assembled in a local court expressed assent. Danish influence was strong in those English counties where wapentakes existed.<\/p>\n (Posted by Amy G.)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" If you were fortunate enough to attend the Scott County Iowa Genealogical Society meeting on the first of June, you learned all sorts of interesting things about early English records from Pam Langston.\u00a0 One thing that really surprised me is … Continue reading