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Helpful minister provides maiden names in register

Whilst searching for some maternal ancestors today, I had recourse to look at the parish register of baptisms for Elham, Kent, on the Find My Past site.

In order to ensure he was compliant with the law, the minister(s) started the particular register by including the mother’s maiden or previous name alongside that of the father, even if both parents were married! Unfortunately for us, the practice did not continue through the register!

Ref: Canterbury Cathedral Archives, CCA-U3-32/1/5, Elham (St. Mary the Virgin) Parish Registers, Baptisms 1813-1865, page 1.

Published in: Genealogy | on May 8th, 2013 | No Comments »

Canterbury Cathedral Archives images reach Find My Past site

This week Find My Past finally released  a chunk of Kent parish registers onto their site, accessible by those of us with a full subscription.

At first we were led to believe that it would be Thanet and coastal parishes which would arrive, yet there appear to be far more. I have personally already started browsing the Eastry registers.

Church of St Mary the Virgin, Eastry, Kent

Church of St Mary the Virgin, Eastry, Kent (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Yes, I said ‘browsing’. Brightsolid have not yet indexed the registers, and I have already reported a couple of issues, yet to receive a reply. However, it has to be said that they should be commended for the release, well overdue in my opinion. The images are of very good quality (bar the couple I found which were ‘fuzzy’ and illegible), and probably much better than any of us could achieve by printing from the CCA microfiche.

The deal with Brightsolid has hopefully brought welcome license fees into the Cathedral coffers, especially since the Archives are closed whilst repair work is undertaken. This is surely not a coincidence, and will help out Kent genealogists, whether seeking or residing.

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Published in: Genealogy | on July 12th, 2012 | 1 Comment »

Kent parish records get digital boost …

A recent announcement by Brightsolid, the publishers of FindMyPast.co.uk, indicates that they have entered an arrangement with Canterbury Cathedral Archives to provide digital access to their Kent parish records. This coincides with the closure of the Archives for roof repairs until autumn 2012.

Records will be rolled out gradually, and will include Thanet, coastal towns from Whitstable round to Hythe, and one would assume eventually all Kent PRs held at CCA. Initially, only scans will be viewable, but indexes are promised to follow.

It is not clear whether Bishop Transcripts and/or Archbishop Transcripts will be included.

Published in: Genealogy | on January 29th, 2012 | 1 Comment »