England Nonconformist Church Records

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Bassingham Wesleyan Methodist Chapel Lincolnshire

Nonconformist is a term referring to religious denominations other than an established or state church.

Introduction[edit | edit source]

A nonconformist denomination in England is any denomination not conforming to the Church of England. Sometimes nonconformist was restricted to Protestant religions other than the Church of England; occasionally the term was intended to include Roman Catholics and Quakers, and rarely the term included other non-Christian faiths. The registers of other Christian denominations sometimes contain more information than those of the Church of England, often including a person’s birth date, baptism date, father’s name and residence, and mother’s name (including maiden name).

Lord Hardwicke’s Act, passed in 1754, required that couples had to be married in the Church of England for their marriage to be legal, regardless of what religion one belonged to.  An exception was made for Jews and Quakers.  The law lasted until 1837 when civil registration began.

Nonconformist records are essential for those families who did not have a baptism, marriage, or burial take place in a Church of England or Church of Wales ceremony. As a result the Nonconformist records should be consulted when your ancestor does not show up in the Church of England or Wales records. Nonconformist registers contain some burial entries, though nonconformists were usually buried in parish churchyards until the chapel obtained its own burial grounds or until civil cemeteries opened.

It is not uncommon to find an ancestor affiliated with more than one religion during his or her lifetime. Search all religions and all chapels of a particular religion if an ancestor might be a nonconformist because some people changed religions and travelled long distances to attend their meetings. Ministers often travelled large circuits keeping the vital statistics of several places in the register they carried with them.

A law passed in 1836 required many nonconformist groups to send their registers into the Public Record Office. The Family History Library has microfilm copies of those that were deposited. Many of these records have been extracted, and the names appear on www.familysearch.org under 'Records.'

The Official Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial BMDs Service (BMDRegisters) is a database to search for records of birth, baptism, marriage, death and burial taken from non parish sources. Currently, the site indexes The National Archives records for RG4 and RG5. The projects continues by indexing RG 6, RG 7, RG 8, RG 32, RG 33, RG 34, RG 35, RG 36 and BT 158, BT 159, BT 160.

The Family History Library has some of the RG 4 and RG 5 records and most of the RG 4 series of what the Family History Library has was extracted and put into the International genealogical Index, which is included in the global records search on FamilySearch.org.

As a result, both FamilySearch and BMDRegisters should be used to locate nonconformist records. As time goes more records will be available and your search may be more fruitful.

The index on BMDRegisters is free to use, but to look at the details or the image of the record www.bmdregisters.co.uk is a pay website, but could very well be the answer. The International Genealogical Index is free to use at www.familysearch.org.

Major nonconformist groups are discussed below. The following two works contain more information about nonconformist sects:

  • Steel, Donald J. Sources for Nonconformist Genealogy and Family History. London, England: Phillimore, 1973. (FHL book 942 V26ste, vol. 2.)
  • Sources for Roman Catholic and Jewish Genealogy and Family History. London, England: Phillimore, 1974. (FHL book 942 V26ste, vol. 3.)

Presbyterians, Baptists, and Independents[edit | edit source]

These religions evolved from 16th century Puritanism. The records of these religions are similar to those of the Church of England. The Baptists, however, practiced adult baptism and recorded births in birth registers, not baptism registers. The Independent Church is also known as the Congregational Church.

Societies[edit | edit source]

For information about the different denominations, you may contact their respective historical societies:

Records[edit | edit source]

Many congregations did not keep consistent records. In January 1743 officials formed a central registry for births for all three denominations, called Dr. Williams' Library. This registry contains about 50,000 birth records. Information recorded includes the child’s name, parents’ names, birth date, address, names of witnesses, registration information, and sometimes the grandparents’ names.

The original records of Dr. William's Library are housed at The National Archives near London, England. Copies of these records are on microfilm in the Family History Library.  They include:

Indexes[edit | edit source]

Ministers[edit | edit source]

Charles Surman compiled a biographical card index of Congregational ministers which was given to Dr Williams' Library in 1960. The Surman Index Online makes the contents available electronically via the internet for the first time. The index includes the names of about 32,000 ministers, and, where known, their dates, details of their education, ministries or other employment, together with the sources used. It covers the period from the mid-seventeenth century to 1972, and though it focuses on England and Wales, it includes Congregational ministers serving abroad provided they trained or served as ministers in Britain. Although intended as an index of Congregational ministers, it also gives details of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Presbyterians.

For Further Reading[edit | edit source]

For information on the various denominations, see:

  • Breed, Geoffrey R. My Ancestors Were Baptists: How Can I Find Out More About Them? London, England: Society of Genealogists, 2002, 4th ed. (FHL book 942 K23bg.)
  • Clifford, D. J. H. My Ancestors Were Congregationalists in England & Wales: How Can I Find Out More About Them? London, England: Society of Genealogists, 1997, 2nd rev. ed. (FHL book 942 K23cdj.)
  • Ruston, Alan R. My Ancestors Were English Presbyterians/Unitarians: How Can I Find Out More About Them? London, England: Society of Genealogists, 2001, 2nd ed. (FHL book 942 K23ra.)
  • The Congregational Magazine [formerly The London Christian instructor) for 1827: pages 681 to 721, Supplement to the Congregational Magazine for the year 1827 - Congregational Churches of the United Kingdom. free google ebook

Methodists[edit | edit source]

There are many forms of Methodists Societies in England:

  • Wesleyan
  • Primitive
  • New Connexion, and so on.

The Wesleyan group was the largest. They were all united under the United Methodist Church in 1932. Some groups recorded their baptisms and burials in the Church of England until the 19th century. For historical material, contact:

To find the location of the original birth and burial records, contact:

A useful guide for tracing Methodist ancestors is:

  • Leary, William. My Ancestors Were Methodists: How Can I Find Out More About Them? 2nd ed. London, England: Society of Genealogists, 1999. (FHL book 942 D27l 1999.)

The Wesleyan Methodist Metropolitan Registry[edit | edit source]

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The Wesleyan Methodist Metropolitan Registry recorded over 10,000 Wesleyan Methodist births and baptisms that occurred between 1813 and 1838 throughout England, Wales, and elsewhere. The records are available at the The National Archives of the UK (part of collection codes RG4 and RG5).

Indexes and Copies of Records[edit | edit source]

Many Methodist records are indexed in a searchable online database called BMDRegisters.  A basic search is free but there is a fee for advanced searching and to download images.

The records of the Metropolitan Registry are also available on microfilm at the Family History Library (FHL).  In addition, the library holds copies of records of individual circuits and congregations.  Many of the records are indexed in the British Isles Vital Records Index, which is available at the FHL, family history centers, and other archives and libraries. See England Vital Records Index (FamilySearch Historical Records)

Shovellers List of Methodist Churches[edit | edit source]


Roman Catholics[edit | edit source]

Catholic priests usually did not keep registers before 1778 and many registers were written in Latin. Baptism registers usually include the names of the child’s sponsors or godparents.

Some registers have been published by the Catholic Record Society. The Family History Library has most of these published registers, and depending on the area, may have microfilms of some Catholic parish registers. Currently, unlike in Scotland, and most other church registers of the United Kingdom, the vast genealogical treasures of the Roman Catholic parish registers have mostly never been centrally located--at least on a national basis, for preservation and security, nor microfilming/imaging purposes.

For information on records not available at the Family History Library, contact the society.

Huguenots[edit | edit source]

This Protestant group began in France then spread to England as its members fled persecution. Huguenots began keeping records as early as 1567; however, few pre-1684 records still exist.

After arriving in England many Huguenots changed their names from French to English. For example, the French surname LeBlanc may have changed to White.

Until 1754, Huguenots often recorded their marriages in both Huguenot and Church of England registers. None were recorded in Huguenot registers after that date. The Huguenot Society has transcribed and published most of their original church records. Contact them at:

Just about all of the published Huguenot records are held at the Family History Library and are listed in the library's catalog under:


Most of the names from these Huguenot registers are listed at FamilySearch.org and at BMDRegister.co.uk.

Society of Friends[edit | edit source]

Also known as Quakers, the Society of Friends did not have appointed clergy to perform the rites of baptism. They recorded births instead. Burial registers usually include the date of death. Quakers recorded marriages to ensure their validity.

The organization of Quaker religious groups, known as "meetings," includes:

  • The preparative meeting or the local church group, about the size of a parish.
  • The monthly meeting, made up of several preparative (local) groups, is the primary meeting for church affairs and includes records of births, marriages, and deaths.
  • The quarterly meeting, comprised of two to seven monthly meetings, similar to a diocese.
  • The yearly meeting includes representatives from the quarterly meetings and Friends from other countries.

Quaker registers began in the late 1650s. From 1840 to 1842, the Society made digests of its records (to about 1837), which cover all English meetings. The digests are arranged first by date and then alphabetically by surname. Copies of digests and original registers are in the Family History Library. The original records are in The National Archives, England.

For a valuable booklet on this subject, refer to:

  • Milligan, Edward H., and Malcolm J. Thomas. My Ancestors Were Quakers: How Can I Find Out More About Them? London, England: Society of Genealogists, 1983. (FHL book 942 D27m.)

Anglican records that include Nonconformists[edit | edit source]

Until the advent of the English Civil War in 1642 most Puritans stayed within the Church of England so their records will be found in the parish registers. For 18 years there was turmoil, a state church that was Presbyterian, and relative religious freedom. However, records were kept abominably, if at all, and nearly a whole generation of genealogical data is thus missing in the majority of parishes. However, civil marriage registrars (confusingly called registers) acceptable to Puritans were appointed in 1653 so from then until 1660 most marriages were recorded usually in the same books as had been in use for the Anglican records.

The Restoration in 1660 brought back control by the Anglican Church and better record-keeping but Nonconformists discontinued attending except when forced to by a lack of alternatives. Most Nonconformist burials were still in the parish churchyard, and many marriages took place in Anglican facilities, but the baptisms were done by their own ministers and few such records survive from this early period. A 1696 Act instructed Anglican ministers to record the births of all nonconformist children in their parish, but this seems to have only been complied with until about 1704. Methodists, in particular, were content to baptize in the Anglican church where they gained the advantage of sure legal evidence of age, parentage and legitimacy. Many Nonconformists continued to be buried in their parish churchyard, for want of an alternative, until borough cemeteries were provided starting in 1853.

Although many Nonconformists are recorded in parish registers without comment, especially after 1691, many vicars did note them. Each incumbent and parish differed according to the personalities concerned. Some examples are given in the next three sections.

Baptisms[edit | edit source]

After 1695 Protestant dissenters, especially those who had heritable property to protect, may have availed themselves of the legal provision for registering births, without going through Anglican baptism, in the Established Church registers. Entries which record a birth, as opposed to a baptism, may therefore indicate parental nonconformity. Baptisms of Catholics in the Anglican church are very rare, and late baptism may indicate parental Protestant Nonconformity but should not be considered more than a clue; examples are given below.

Chart: Late Anglican Baptisms as Clues
to Parental Nonconformity

20 May 1711 Aldenham, Hertfordshire
John ye son of John and Mary RADLET (An adult whose parents (were crossed out) are anabaptists)
13 Dec 1712
William TOPHEL (an adult) baptized on his deathbed
18 Apr 1735 Burstow, Surrey FHL film 1470975
David TERRY. He was married the same day
5 May 1743 Eversholt, Bedfordshire
Thomas Samuel BRITNAL at years of discretion was baptized
Elizabeth Mary BRADFORDat years of discretion was baptized
Henry John BRADFORD at years of discretion was baptized
29 Jan 1808 Aldenham, Hertfordshire
Ann, wife of Wm KING, born 23 Novr 1766 of Anabaptist parents but never before baptized
29 Jun 1820 St. Luke, Finsbury, London
William, adult s/o Heyman and Henrietta KARGE, Jewish parents, Unruhstadz in Russia, merchant
20 Apr 1827 Dunstable, Bedfordshire FHL film 0826469
Francis son of Francis and Sarah HEWS of Dunstable, Minister of the Baptist Dissenters. Born 23 Mar 1791. Witnesses Gouger, Thos Noble, Mary Eggleton. Upon the evidence attached (a certificate from Dr. Williams Library is appended - see Chart 8.)
17 Dec 1835 Old Church St. Pancras, Middlesex
Jemima an adult daughter of Edmund and Maria JUPP, Coburg Street, carpenter, said to be born June 1812. The above adult was married to Wm PILBEAM in May 1829.

Marriages[edit | edit source]

Before 1754 anyone could marry anywhere and some references to Nonconformity occur in Anglican registers such as the following inter-faith union:

St. Sidwell, Exeter, Devon 17 Jul 1701
Robert STEPHENSON of St. Thomas married Elizabeth BIDGOOD, Quaker

Hardwicke’s Marriage Act of 1754 applied to all except Jews, Quakers and the Royal Family and continued in effect until the introduction of civil registration in 1837. Marriages were only legal if performed in an Anglican church, so Nonconformists and Catholics had to choose this venue for their children to be considered legitimate and able to inherit. Catholics typically had a second ceremony in their own faith, but Nonconformists usually did not.

Burials[edit | edit source]

Nonconformists and Catholics were often buried in the parish churchyards and some parishes had more than others, perhaps because of a larger number of Non-Anglicans, or because of a sympathetic vicar. If the burials were without Anglican services one can often find this noted directly, or indirectly, such as a reference to being:

  • Interred without ceremonies/service/rites.
  • Hurled in ye ground.
  • Put/tossed/tumbled in the ground.
  • Burial between 9 pm and 12 midnight, although this also applied to suicides and some others.
  • Excommunication of Nonconformists especially in the 1660s and 1670s. Anglican sinners can also be excommunicated of-course.

Examples are shown below. Some Anglican registers have a special section, such as that in Speldhurst, Kent commencing in 1709 entitled Buried at the Anabaptists Burial Place.

Chart: Burials of Non-Anglicans in Parish Churchyard

8 Oct 1844 St. Mary le Strand, Westminster, Middlesex FHL film 0572513
John BORKIN of No.6 Clare Market, age 3 years, (buried in) Russell Court Ground. Roman Catholics who refused to have the service performed. J.M. Denham M.A. Rector.
20 Aug 1626 Tarporley, Cheshire
Richard Welde, papist and excommunicate.
10 Dec 1679 Waterbeach, Cambs
Francis Wilson, excommunicated, buried in his orchard.
23 Feb 1700/01 Brenchley, Kent
Buried John Albourn of Pembury, but not ye burial service as by ye Book of Common Prayer appointed read; he dying a propper Anabaptist.
29 Mar 1707 Sundon, Beds
Affidavit made concerning a son of Richard Carter of Sundon who was not baptised nor buried in the church yard.
1735 Brenchley, Kent
Hurled into ye ground being an Anabaptist
5 Jul 1723 St. Mary Cray, Kent
Mrs Anne Parker. A midnight funeral when I fell headlong into her Grave, and so much bruised my leg, that I was confin’d to my bed and chamber and lay under ye surgeon’s hand 5 weeks: a painful yet happy retirement Deo Gratias.
11 Feb 1723 St. Mary Cray, Kent
Stephen Parker Esquire most obstinate sinner midnight id:


Those buried in dissenting burial grounds were noted in the Anglican registers either instead of, or in addition to their own registers. Other burial items may contain clues to nonconformity as well as in a certificate for burial in woollen shown below.


Chart: Certificate for Burial in Woollen

To the Reverend the Minister of Luton
Susannah Punter of the Parish of Luton in the County of Bedford maketh Oath, That the Body of Mary Kingham of this Parish which was lately buried at the Burial Ground of the Baptist Meeting House was not wrapped up, when buried, in any Suit, Sheet, or Shroud, but what was made of Sheep’s Wool only; nor put into any Coffin, lined, faced, or covered with any kind of Cloth, or Stuff, but what was made of Sheep’s Wool only, according to the Direction of an Act of Parliament, intituled, An Act for burying in Woollen.
Taken and Sworn this second Day of December 1795
Before me Coriolanus Copleston, curate

N.B. Affidavits of Burial in Woollen must be delivered in to the Minister of the Parish where the Deceased was buried, in eight Days from the Time of Burial, on pain of the Penalty if Five Pounds for neglect thereof.


It wasn’t until 1880 that Nonconformist burial ceremonies were officially allowed in parish churchyards, and one can identify them in the Anglican burial register by the name of the dissenting minister performing the service instead of the regular incumbent or his curate.

Diaries of local Anglican clergy who were involved in disputes over tithes, church attendance or other unco-operative behaviour by dissidents can be mother lodes of personal information about your ancestors’ lives. Dissenters tended to be determined and outspoken, characteristics which engendered records and did not endear them to those keen on preserving the status quo.[1]

Monumental Inscriptions[edit | edit source]

In the 17th century Puritans who could afford to would be more likely to erect a memorial plaque inside the church than to mark a burial spot with a gravestone. This attitude ameliorated with time and when the middle classes started having gravestones then all Nonconformists except Quakers did so.

Parish Chest Records[edit | edit source]

All of the other parochial records kept in the parish chest will refer to all inhabitants since the Anglican parish collected civil taxes and paid benefits to all who were in need until the New Poor Law of 1834. Non-Anglicans took their turn as parish officials and did so with no note of their religious preference. They received relief as necessary likewise, but very few Nonconformists were so destitute as to qualify for poor relief, although many immigrant Irish Catholics were. That having been said, it does occasionally happen that a person’s religious affiliation is mentioned in miscellaneous parochial records so they cannot be ignored. Thus, the 12d fines for recusancy occasioned by the Act of Uniformity 1559 was collected by the church wardens for relief of the poor until 1581 and will appear in parish records if they go back that far.

Ecclesiastical Court Records[edit | edit source]

Two of the most used genealogical documents emanating from diocesan or higher levels are the various probate records and marriage licences. They applied to everyone regardless of religious adherence until 1837 (marriages) and 1858 (probate) when these came under civil administration.

Wills can provide important clues to religious affiliation by:

  • Particular words and phrases used; but be careful not to misread the intent of standard preambles which may have only reflected the lawyer’s or court’s viewpoint, not that of the testator.
  • Burial requested in a Catholic or Nonconformist burial ground. Thus, a request by Mary Dashwood in her will dated 1771, to be buried in Rev. Wallin’s Burying Ground led me to find out from a local archives that he was the pastor of the Maze Pond Particular Baptist Chapel in Southwark, Surrey from 1740-1782.
  • Bequests to a religious charity, school or minister.
  • Bequests of named books or articles that only someone of a certain religion would possess.
  • Oaths presented in lieu of standard Anglican records. For example a dissenter who had not been christened in the Church of England needed to prove his relationship to the deceased to inherit, see below.


Chart: Oaths at Sutton Bonnington, Nottinghamshire regarding Parentage of Thomas Palmer — Found in Miscellaneous Parish Documents on FHL film 1517777

Slip of Paper
We hereby certify that Thomas Palmer is the only son of Thos Palmer, the others died in their infancy.
1837 May 5th John Bramley, Thomas Dalby

Mr Thomas Bramley’s Declaration in support of Mr Thomas Palmer’s Pedigree
I Thomas Bramley of Sutton Bonnington in the County of Nottingham yeoman aged eighty four do solemnly and sincerely declare that I knew and was intimately acquainted with Thomas Palmer formerly of the Parish of St. Michael’s in Sutton Bonnington in the County of Nottingham yeoman and Ann his wife formerly Ann Pave spinster and that they had seven children namely six Daughters and one Son Thomas. And that their son the said Thomas Palmer (who is now living and residing at Sutton Bonnington aforesaid) was born on or about the nineteenth day of November One thousand seven hundred and seventy four. And further that the said Thomas Palmer the father died on or about the seventh day of December One thousand seven hundred and ninety one intestate and without having made any Will as they said Thomas Bramley has always understood and verily believes to be the fact, and was also buried in the burial ground belonging to the said General Baptist Chapel at Kegworth in the County of Leicester and leaving the said Thomas Palmer (the younger) his only son and heir at law him surviving, and who thereupon became seized and possessed of all his real estate situate at Sutton Bonnington aforesaid. And also that the said Thomas Palmer the younger as such only son and heir at law of his said father as aforesaid has ever since his death been and continued and now is seized and possessed of all the said real estate situate at Sutton Bonnington aforesaid. And further that the said Thomas Palmer the father and Ann his wife and their son the said Thomas Palmer and all their Children were dissenters from the Established Church and Members of the General Baptist Connexion at Kegworth aforesaid and that not any of their children were baptised, not such of them as are dead were buried at the Parish Church of Sutton Bonnington aforesaid but at the General Baptist Meeting House at Kegworth aforesaid, and that no registers thereof were ever made or are kept at the said Meeting House. And further that the said Thomas Palmer (the Son) is now living at Sutton Bonnington aforesaid and is a bachelor. And I make this solemn Declaration conscientiously believing the same to be true and by virtue of the Provisions of an Act made and passed in the fifth year of the reign of his late Majesty entitled ‘An Act to repeal an Act of the present session of Parliament intituled, An Act for the more effectual abolition of Oaths and Affirmations taken and made in various departments of the state and to substitute Declarations in lieu thereof and for the more entire suppression of voluntary and extrajudicial oaths and Affidavits and to make other provisions for the abolition of unnecessary Oaths.’
Declared by the said Thomas Bramley at Sutton Bonnington aforesaid the eighteenth day of August 1837
                  Before me Thos Cradock, A Master extra in Chancery.
                             X Thomas Bramly, his mark.


Ever since the mid-16th century teachers and midwives had to be Anglicans in good standing licensed by a bishop. This applied at first only to Catholics, but later when Nonconformists left the Established Church they were discriminated against too. The rule about midwives’ licences died out but that for teachers continued into the 18th century, when only parish school teachers had to be Anglican. Nonconformists could set up private schools.

Those who held ‘wrong’ beliefs were brought before ecclesiastical courts before 1642 and trouble-making Puritans and those accused of heresy could be excommunicated in severe cases. However Puritans were not prevented from preaching or writing about their views. From 1642 to 1660 the ecclesiastical courts were abolished in favour of civil ones, and after the restoration they had diminished powers.

Bishops’ Visitations to the parishes in their dioceses took place regularly and the Anglican incumbents were required to report on the spiritual state of their parishioners. Records contain lists of numbers of papists and dissidents and sometimes names as well. However it also has to be born in mind that the laws were not applied equally strictly from place to place. Thus, Rendel states that up until the end of the 18th century one quarter of the Anglican livings in the Wirral area of Cheshire (south of Liverpool) were held by Catholic squires. Naturally, sympathetic very High Anglican ministers would be chosen and the church would attract Catholics.

The marriage details of those who were married illegally by their own priest or minister, especially Catholics, are often referred to in ecclesiastical court records when they were presented for fornication if they had omitted to be legally married in the Anglican church as well.[2]

Online non-conformist church records[edit | edit source]

  • The Official Non-Parochial BMDs Service is for records of birth, baptism, marriage, death and burial taken from non parish sources BMDRegister.co.uk such as non-conformist records of Methodists, Wesleyans, Baptists, Independents, Protestant Dissenters, Congregationalist, Presbyterians, Unitarians, Quakers (Society of Friends), Dissenters and Russian Orthodox. Maternity Records plus various other BMD records are also included.
  • The Genealogist has recently placed millions of entries of names transcribed from nonconformist church registers. See their website for searching.
  • Record Search at FamilySearch.org has millions of entries transcribed and indexed over the last 40 years, now available online.

Wiki articles describing online collections are found at:

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ Christensen, Penelope. "England Anglican Records that Include Nonconformists (National Institute)," The National Institute for Genealogical Studies (2012), https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/England_Anglican_Records_that_Include_Nonconformists_%28National_Institute%29.
  2. ↑ Christensen, Penelope. "England Additional Anglican Records that Include Nonconformists (National Institute)," The National Institute for Genealogical Studies (2012), https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/England_Additional_Anglican_Records_that_Include_Nonconformists_%28National_Institute%29.

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