Durham Bishop's Transcripts: The Howe Manuscript Collection

Introduction

The Howe manuscript (MSS) collection of early Durham Bishop's transcripts has an interesting history and enables us to understand the recording of the transcript collection for the diocese over recent centuries.

The Discovery

The documents forming this collection were discovered on 27 October 1998 in the Dean and Chapter Library of Durham Cathedral in tray numbered 6a . The Howe manuscripts as they are known were transferred that day to the Durham University Library (DUL) which houses the main surviving series of parish register transcripts for the diocese of Durham, among the Durham Diocesan Records (DDR) together with some stray transcripts from parishes and chapelries in the Durham ecclesiastical peculiars in Yorkshire among the Muniments of the Dean and Chapter of Durham (DCD)

Cuthbert Mills Carlton

Carlton was a journalist, antiquarian and genealogist who was a native of Durham and who died on 19 January 1892. By his will made on 21 July 1890 and proved at Durham on 5 February 1892, he left to his friend John Howe for life “all my volumes of MSS as belong to me and are marked [for Howe]” with a request that after Howe’s death “all such manuscripts and papers” should be handed to the secretary of the Newcastle Society of Antiquaries”.

John James Howe

Howe had been the chief or principal clerk in the Durham District Probate Registry at the time of his retirement. He left all the volumes and manuscripts bequeathed to him by Carlton to the Durham Dean and Chapter Library. His will made on 2 March 1935 and proved on 26 April 1937 created the Howe legacy and the MSS collection rediscovered in 1998.

Contents of the Howe MSS Collection

• Transcripts from two ecclesiastical peculiars in Allertonshire in Yorkshire. These were respectively responsibility of the Bishop of Durham and the Dean and Chapter of Durham.
• Transcripts from Crayke, a detached part of Durham County until 1844, when it became part of Yorkshire. Part of Durham diocese until 1837 when it became part of York Diocese.
• Transcripts from 6 parishes in the diocese of Durham all with initial letters from the same part of the alphabet Denton (Durham County 1756-1757) Elwick Hall, Escomb, Esh and Greatham (Durham County 1709-1710) Elsdon (Northumberland 1720)

The Mystery of the finds

The six Durham discoveries mentioned above are tantalising as they indicate that the main series of surviving parish register transcripts for the diocese from 1760 onwards for chapelries and parishes have been detached from earlier transcripts. Theoretically transcripts can exist from the sixteenth century onwards. The Durham DDR transcripts were placed with Durham University library from 1951 onwards and the fate of earlier transcripts remains a mystery. The Howe MSS strays together with occasional strays which surfaced earlier, suggest that pre 1760 transcripts did exist and one day may be discovered.
The Howe MSS also suggest that the 1709-1710 years are particularly strongly represented and that the transcripts had previously been grouped alphabetically and within each year.