Explore a window into England’s parish life and its records from 1538 onward.
This meticulously edited volume presents the Chesham parish register along with introductory notes, appendices, and an index. It guides readers through how early English registers were created, kept, and later transcribed, with clear explanations of their purpose and limitations.
The book explains how parish registers began in 1538 and outlines the key rules that shaped their preservation. It focuses on Chesham, a large market town, and describes how the register collection grew to eleven folio volumes, spanning baptisms, marriages, and burials from 1538 to 1812. You’ll learn about the people who kept these records, the methods used to post and organize entries, and why some early entries are not original. The text also discusses how transcripts were made and preserved, and what these records reveal about the town’s population and daily life in centuries past.
- A clear history of parish records in England and how Chesham’s registers were kept and copied
- A detailed look at the first Chesham volume, its structure, and the sequence of entries
- Insights into who recorded the entries, how handwriting reveals authorship, and transcription practices
- Figures on the register’s contents: baptisms, marriages, burials, and total entries, plus notes on population estimates derived from the records
- Context for the town’s economy, growth, and local governance as reflected in the registers
Ideal for readers of local history, genealogists, and anyone curious about how centuries of life are captured in parish books.