Baldock/Fagg/Small Family History

Sorry, have hit a snag with downloads ….. currently trying to fix it !!

Watch this space …

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 (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.

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.