Understanding Parish Registers

If you want to trace your ancestors further back than what you'll find from the civil registration of births, marriages and deaths you need to get up to speed with church and parish registers. These are vital records for family historians. In this episode, we explore parish and church registers, looking at how they can help you uncover baptisms, marriages and burials going back centuries. We’ll look at the differences between England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, including the impact of the Hardwicke Marriage Act, Rose’s Act, Bishop’s Transcripts and the famous marriages at Gretna Green. We’ll also explore why records can be missing, incomplete or recorded differently depending on the church, denomination and time period — and why you shouldn’t give up when you can’t find your ancestor. 00:00 Introduction 00:49 Baptism and Burial 02:29 Specifics of England and Wales 04:35 Specifics of Scotland 05:52 Specifics of Northern Ireland 06:50 Summary