Suffolk Church Records

Church Records 1538 to 1900

There are several type of records classified under Church Records. There are parish registers and Bishop Transcripts which record the baptisms, marriages, and burials in the parish. The parish kept additional records about people in the parish in what is called the 'parish chest'. The archdeaconry's kept addtional records on marriages, that is licenses, bonds, and allegations. It also convened probate courts till 1858. The Church of England was the dominate religion. There were Baptist, Independent, Methodist, and Catholic chapels in the county as well. The England Church Records article provides a more indepth view.

Parish Records[edit | edit source]

Parish Registers - The parish registers can be viewed at the Suffolk Record Office. The Suffolk Record Office also sells the registers for any pairsh in the county in microfiche form. There are numerous indexes and transcriptions that have been published by the Suffolk Family History Society. There are numerous indexes that have been created over the years that have been filmed by the Utah Genealogical Society. Check the library catalog to see what is available for your parish
- Baptisms - From about 1790 to 1812 you will often find the mothers maiden name recorded; after 1813 the fathers occupation is recorded; sometimes the birthdate is recorded.
- Marriages - Most people married by Banns, some married by license. Post 1754 the marriage record in the parish indicates whether the marriage was by Banns or License. If by license then there are more records created by the Archdeacon. Refer to England Church Records page
Churchyard - A small portion of the people had headstones. There are inscriptions available for most parishes. In larger towns public cemeteries were established, and churchyards were not used. Ipswich started its cemetery in 1855. It was in the 1850's when public cemeteries began to be establish.
- Burials - Over one million burials have been published on CD by the Suffolk Family History Society. They can be searched by surname or parish. Such a large collection of records provides clues as to where families were living in the County.

Parish Chest - Parish Chest Records are held by the Suffolk Record Office. It is unknown how complete there collection is. An index to these records can be found on National Archives of England website. (In the search box enter in the parish name, followed by 'parish records')

Suffolk Bishop Transcripts[edit | edit source]

There are two copies of the Parish Registers. The parish kept their own register and every year they sent a copy to the Bishop known as the Bishop Transcripts. The value of the Suffolk Bishop Transcripts is that it is a copy of the parish register and is available on film. The setback with using them is that all the parishes are on one film per year, so you have to order or view a new film for every year. It is advisable to check both the parish registers and the Bishop Transcripts since they are copies of each other and there is a chance that further information may be found on one or the other. Most of the People found on FamilySearch come from the Bishop Transcripts.

Extracted Records on FamilySearch[edit | edit source]

Over the years the Genealogical Society of Utah has created indexes of various parish registers and Bishop Transcripts. The indexes are called batches. (see Hugh Wallis website) The batches give you an idea of what will be found on FamilySearch. The batch numbers for the Suffolk Bishop Transcripts are a combination of parishes and years and every parish is represented. The Hugh Wallis website is a research tool whereby you can determine whether your parish of interest will be found on FamilySearch; though, not every batch for Suffolk is listed. The batches should not be considered 100% complete.

Examples of documents found in the Parish Register[edit | edit source]

Church of England Parish Record Examples
Christening Register
Marriage Record
Marriage after Year 1837
Marriage Banns
Burial Register

Archdeaconry of Suffolk[edit | edit source]

Deanries - Bosmere & Claydon, Carlford, Colneis, Dunwich, Hoxne, Ipswich, Loes, Lothingland, Orford, Samford, Southelmham, Wangford, Wilford. After 1837 Stow and Hartismere were added.

Marriage License, Bonds, Allegations - Marriage license bonds and allegations, 1610-1900
Probate - Court of Archdenconry of Suffolk
Bishop Transcripts - Bishop Transcripts is a copy of the parish registers that was sent to the Bishop from the parish every year. From 1685 to the 1875 there are Bishop Transcripts for the Archdeaconry of Suffolk which have been microfilmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah. After 1813 the parishes are filmed in alphabetical order. Before 1813 they are filmed by Deanery. From 1813 to 1875 a considerable amount of the transcripts are on FamilySearch formerly called the IGI.

Keyword search of Archdeaconry of Suffolk shows records in the catalogue.

Archdeaconry of Sudbury[edit | edit source]

Deanries - Blackbourne, Clare, Fordham, Hartismere, Stow, Sudbury, Thedwestry, Thingoe. After 1837 Archdeaconry of Sudbury was moved into the Dioese of Ely and Stow and Hartismere were added to the Archdeaconry of Suffolk.

Marriage License, Bonds, Allegations - Marriage bonds and allegations, 1684-1839; licences, 1840-1893 or do a keyword search
Probate -Court of Archdeaconry of Sudbury
Bishop Transcripts - A Bishop Transcript is a copy of the parish registers that was sent to the Bishop from the parish every year. From 1560 to the 1853 there are Bishop Transcripts for the Archdeaconry of Sudbury that have been microfilmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah. After 1813 the parishes are filmed in alphabetical order. Before 1813 they are filmed by Deanery. From 1813 to 1853 a considerable amount of the transcripts are on FamilySearch formerly called the IGI.

Keyword search of Archdeaconry of Sudbury shows records in the catalogue.

Nonconformist[edit | edit source]

Number of Dissenting Chapels in Suffolk
	1812	1827
Presbyterian	5
Independent	26	32
Baptist	16	35
Unitarian		5
The Congregational magazine [formerly The London Christian instructor], page 721. free google ebook

Nonconformist' is a term referring to religious denominations other than an established or state church. See England Nonconformist Church Records article

Events Effecting Church Records[edit | edit source]

1531 Henry VIII recognized as head of the newly created Church of England. All ties with the Pope and the church in Rome severed.
1538 Thomas Cromwell ordered all parish ministers to keep records of christenings, marriages, and burials. These records became known as parish registers.
1598 Parish ministers were required to keep their registers on parchment, and previous registers were copied onto parchment. Parish ministers were also required to send copies of their registers to the bishop of the diocese. These became known as bishops' transcripts.
1642-1660 Civil War took place in England. Charles I was executed in 1649. Oliver Cromwell became Lord Protector of England. Bishop's courts were abolished. Civil war caused political and religious upheaval. Parish registers were poorly kept. Many other changes affected record keeping.
1660 Charles II was restored as monarch, ending civil strife. Bishop's courts were restored.
1695-1706 A tax was assessed on parish register entries. To avoid the tax, some people did not register events.
1754 Lord Hardwicke's Act outlawed marriage outside the Church of England (except for Quakers and Jews) and required that separate registers for marriages be kept. Common law marriages were also outlawed.
1778 Laws against Roman Catholics were repealed, and many priests started to keep records.
1783-1794 The Stamp Duty Act again assessed a tax on parish register entries. Only paupers were exempt, so many people were recorded as paupers when they were not. Others did not have their children baptized until after the act was repealed.
1812 The George Rose Act required Church of England christening, marriage, and burial records to be kept in separate registers on preprinted forms, starting 1 January 1813.