Prominent Family Names
Before Rose’s Act in 1813, there was no consistency in the way church records were kept and the standard of record keeping varied enormously. An injunction by Thomas Cromwell in 1538, Vicar General to Henry VIII, required each church in England and Wales to enter christenings, weddings and burials in a register. Elaborate instructions were given for the register’s safe keeping. Parish registers were then accepted as legal documents as they were the only written evidence that could be produced especially in inheritance cases—to support the existence of a marriage or the legitimacy of a child. The first registers were of paper but an Act of 1598 ordered that the registers be copied into parchment books which were more durable and more expensive. The wording of this Act was unfortunate which stated that old registers were to be copied from the first year of Her Majesty’s reign. This provided an excuse to copy only from 1558 when Elizabeth I came to the throne.
During the Civil War many registers were not properly maintained. In 1733 the use of Latin in English and Welsh registers was discontinued. The Hardwicke’s Marriage Act introduced the use of proper marriage registers to prevent clandestine marriages. The Rose’s Act of 1813 required each parish to save separate registers for baptisms, marriages and burials.
W. Buchanan
Baptisms 1560-1999 | ||
NAME | YEAR RANGE | ENTRIES |
Smith | 1564-1992 | 373 |
Price | 1581-1965 | 171 |
Bowley | 1620-1996 | 154 |
Maltby | 1732-1933 | 128 |
Spencer | 1560-1886 | 127 |
Marshall | 1791-1985 | 105 |
Sharp(e) | 1591-1956 | 103 |
Harrison | 1769-1991 | 100 |
Redfern | 1586-1859 | 99 |
Holland | 1666-1969 | 85 |
Powdrill | 1772-1997 | 81 |
Hallam | 1566-1969 | 79 |
Hogg | 1748-1996 | 75 |
Burrows | 1561-1931 | 74 |
Bexon | 1765-1994 | 74 |
Hemsley | 1645-1872 | 71 |
Pepper | 1671-1948 | 63 |
Dring | 1784-1964 | 61 |
Shepherd | 1562-1973 | 60 |
Dabell | 1792-1997 | 59 |
Goddard | 1811-1965 | 54 |
Carver | 1765-1952 | 53 |
Burton | 1764-1866 | 40 |
Woolley | 1740-1995 | 37 |
Wheatley | 1652-1855 | 37 |
Oliver | 1602-1802 | 37 |
Taylor | 1714-1988 | 36 |
Hall | 1575-1967 | 34 |
Burials 1560-1999 | ||
NAME | YEAR RANGE | ENTRIES |
Smith | 1563-1997 | 265 |
Bowley | 1649-1998 | 152 |
Price | 1651-1989 | 130 |
Holland | 1669-1970 | 117 |
Sharp(e) | 1560-1982 | 111 |
Spencer | 1566-1993 | 100 |
Maltby | 1738-1900 | 100 |
Powdrill | 1794-1996 | 80 |
Marshall | 1592-1996 | 78 |
Hallam | 1565-1959 | 74 |
Bexon | 1578-1985 | 72 |
Hemsley | 1659-1891 | 69 |
Harrison | 1635-1970 | 65 |
Pepper | 1667-1993 | 62 |
Redfern | 1625-1836 | 60 |
Dabell | 1826-1996 | 59 |
Shepperd | 1632-1990 | 54 |
Hogg | 1726-1917 | 53 |
Dring | 1745-1900 | 51 |
Goddard | 1813-1991 | 45 |
Carver | 1762-1960 | 40 |
Taylor | 1728-1997 | 38 |
Fletcher | 1798-1986 | 36 |
Burrows | 1583-1956 | 34 |
Oliver | 1610-1839 | 30 |
Where is my Father’s. Records . Born in Gotham 1898 (malt street) and buried in the cemetryin1976 after a service in the church?
Roy Meakin. royjunemeakin@gmail.com
In Sutton on Sea I have found a tapestry/alphabet by Maggie Carver, made at Gotham Board School in 1893 when she was 10. It is a lovely thing, I’ve given it to my mum (Judy Raven) for her birthday, but I’d like to find out if any of Maggie’s relatives are still in the village? I understand that Carver was a prominent family name in the village from the mid 1700’s to the 1950’s, with 40 burials in that name. I will bring the tapestry back to Gotham and make it available to the History Society to do a bit… Read more »
Can anyone tell me if its possible to get hold of a locally produced book on Gotham, which, as well as telling the story of The Wise Fools of Gotham, includes lots of detail re the family tree of some families tracing them to 1500s?
My grandfather (the 1st in his line born outside Gotham) had a copy but its been lost. From either 1980s or 1990s. I recall it being approx A4 size, stapled, with a white glossy cover. It has detail tracking his family back to then & I’d love to have a copy.
Thanks
Sarah
I’m looking for any information regarding the Hogg family in Gotham.