Seax - Essex Archives Online

Civil registration

In 1837 a system of civil registration of births, marriages and deaths was introduced to England and Wales. From this date onwards it should be possible to purchase copies of birth, marriage and death certificates. Certificates may give you more information than a parish register entry and can make tracing your family history easier.

Records of civil registration are not held in the Essex Record Office. The National Archives, Ruskin Avenue, Kew, Richmond TW9 4DU holds the General Register Office (GRO) indexes for certificates for the whole of England and Wales. The Essex Society for Family History has microfiche copies of the indexes which can be seen in their Research Centre on the ground floor of the Chelmsford Office. Booking is necessary to use the Research Centre (telephone 01245 244670).

You can also search the GRO indexes online free at www.ancestry.com in the Essex Record Office and in Essex Libraries at and at other sites such as www.findmypast.com.  An ever-increasing percentage of the index can be searched free of charge at freebmd.rootsweb.com.  Certificates can be ordered from www.direct.gov.uk/gro. 

If you know the registration district where an event occurred then you can apply for a certificate from the local Superintendent Registrar. The GENUKI website www.genuki.org.uk for each county allows you to identify the registration district for each place and give contact details for the local Register Office.

Parish registers

Before 1837 Church of England parish registers are the main source for family history. The earliest parish registers start between 1538 and 1598. The registers for some parishes may not have survived and in these cases the first date of the registers will be much later. Where early registers do survive, they may have gaps in the years where records were not kept. Registers after the last date shown are usually still held in the parish church.

All of the registers deposited in the Essex Record Office appear on Seax and can be found by searching for parish register or the type of register and the parish name. Click on the Quick Find Registers part of Seax for a quick guide to parish registers available in the Essex Record Office.

Registers for the London Borough of Waltham Forest are deposited at the Vestry House Museum in Walthamstow.

Almost all of the parish registers are available on microfiche, with copies at Colchester and Southend Libraries. Registers for the north-west of the county, and an increasing number of other parishes in the county can be seen at the Saffron Walden Access Point. The Harlow Access Point has registers for the Harlow area.

Where the original registers have been microfiched, microfilmed or digitised, the original registers would not normally be produced without the specific authorisation of the searchroom archivist.

Copies of individual entries can be supplied where you are able to give the specific date and name of the person mentioned in the entry. You can complete a photocopy order form and send it to the Essex Record Office. If you visit the Essex Record Office in person, copies can be requested. Alternatively, the Record Office has self-service reader-printers.

Where individual parishes have given permission, it is possible to purchase microfiche copies of parish registers. Further details of this service can be provided on request from the Essex Record Office Reprographics Service ero.reprographics@essexcc.gov.uk.

Searches of parish registers can be requested through our search service. Details of the search service can be found here on the website: Search Request Form

Bishops’ Transcripts

Annual returns of baptisms, marriages and burials were made by each parish to the diocese. Many counties have long series, but the Essex Bishops’ Transcripts are very poor, with few surviving before 1800, and many gaps for each parish. The originals can be ordered by searching Seax for bishops transcripts and the name of a parish. Click on the Quick Find Registers part of Seax to find Bishops’ Transcripts for any parish.

Nonconformist registers

The first nonconformist congregations appeared in the second half of the 17th century. From the late 18th century Methodist churches also started to appear. Although nonconformist do not have the same legal obligations as the Church of England to deposit records, the Essex Record Office does hold records from all of the different churches.

Before 1837 all marriages should be found in Church of England registers. Burial registers may also contain entries for people where there was no alternative burial yard. Often a Church of England incumbent may have made a note of nonconformists in parish registers. Remember that not every parish would have had a nonconformist church and people may have travelled some distance to another parish. Nonconformist churches have not always kept registers of baptisms, marriages and burials in the same way that Church of England parishes have done. However, church books and other records may record individuals and be useful for family history.

In 1837 various nonconformist churches surrendered their registers to the Registrar General. These records are deposited at the National Archives, Ruskin Avenue, Kew, Richmond TW9 4DU. Microfilm copies of the registers are held at the Family Records Centre, 1 Myddelton Street, London EC1R 1UW and individuals in these registers can be found on the International Genealogical Index (IGI) compiled by the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints (Mormons). This can be searched on the website www.familysearch.org. Microfilm copies of registers from Essex churches are available at the Chelmsford office.

Nonconformist records deposited in the Essex Record Office can be found by searching Seax for nonconformist and a place name, or a specific denomination, for example Methodist and a place name.

Roman Catholic registers

A very small number of registers from Roman Catholic churches have been deposited in the Essex Record Office. Until 1837, as with nonconformists, all marriages should have taken place in the Church of England parish churches. Lack of alternative burial places may also mean that Roman Catholics were buried in parish churchyards. Consequently Roman Catholics may appear in Church of England parish registers.

A search for Catholic on Seax will find all references to Roman Catholic records deposited in the Essex Record Office.

Most Roman Catholic churches keep their registers of baptisms, marriages and burials and you should apply to the church for copies of entries.

Census returns

The first census in Britain was in 1801 and has been held every ten years since, with the exception of 1941. All census records are closed to public access for 100 years. Until 1841 the census recorded only totals of populations in different areas. The first to record names, ages, addresses and occupations of individuals was in 1841. From 1851 the census also included family relationships within a household and a place of birth.

Census returns for Essex are held on microfilm for 1841-1901. For 1851 no returns survive for the Dunmow registration area. There are name indexes available for 1851, 1861 and 1881 and various street indexes for the more built up areas, such as West Ham, Colchester and Romford districts.

Transcripts of the 1881 census can be searched on the website www.familysearch.org, the 1901 census can be searched at www.censusonline.com; and the 1911 census at www.1911census.co.uk. All census returns for England and Wales for 1841-1901 can be searched (for a fee) on the website http://www.ancestry.co.uk. Other websites also have census returns, for more details see the website http://www.familyrecords.gov.uk.

Some early census returns for individual parishes have survived and have been deposited in the Essex Record Office and a search for census and a date or a place would locate any entries.

Marriage licences

Original marriage licences, bonds and allegations are available to order. There is also an index to surnames.

A search on Seax for marriage licences and a date will locate the item so that it can be ordered.

Wills

Wills before 1858 were proved in ecclesiastical courts. Essex was originally in the diocese of London and records of the courts in the county are deposited in the Essex Record Office.

You can find wills on Seax by searching for a surname or place name and the word will.

Details of wills and digital images are being gradually added to Seax through a volunteer scheme. There is a three-volume index Wills at Chelmsford ed. F.G. Emmison which lists the wills in surname order. Copies of pages from this can be provided on request for a surname.

The references in the volumes are abbreviated and need to be converted before locating the will. Place D/A in front of the two letters and move the first number to the end, e.g.

21 EW 13 becomes D/AEW 13/21

58 CR 6 becomes D/ACR 6/58

Some wills are from the Peculiar Courts of the Deanery of Bocking (A or D/APb), Good Easter (GE or D/APg), the Sokens (D/APs) and Writtle and Roxwell (D/APw) and their references need further conversion, e.g. 49 AW 2 becomes D/APbW 2/49.

Wills with the letter R in the reference are available on microfiche at Chelmsford, with copies at Saffron Walden, and at Colchester and Southend branches. With these references the second number is the folio number which can be seen at the top right of alternate pages, e.g. D/ACR 6/58 is folio 58 of the volume D/ACR 6.

Wills containing the letter W are original wills and are deposited in the Chelmsford office.

Not all Essex wills are deposited in the Essex Record Office. Wills from other diocesan courts are deposited at the London Metropolitan Archives, 40 Northampton Road, London EC1R 0HB or at the Guildhall Library, Aldermanbury, London EC2P 2EJ. There were also other peculiar courts whose records may be held elsewhere.

The Prerogative Court of Canterbury was superior to the other courts in the county. Many of the more important Essex people chose to have their will proved there. The original records are deposited at the National Archives and it is now possible to search the indexes online and view the image of the will for a charge. To do this go to the Documents Online part of the National Archives’ website www.documentsonline.nationalarchives.gov.uk

From 1858 a centralised system for probate was introduced. The national indexes can be seen at The Probate Department, Principal Registry of the Family Division, First Avenue House, 42-49 High Holborn, London WC1V 6NP. Microfiche copies of the annual indexes from 1858 to 1943 are available in the Chelmsford searchroom. Having checked the indexes you can order a copy of the will at First Avenue House or any district probate registry. Alternatively, you can write to the Postal Searches and Copies Department, The Probate Registry, 1st Floor, Castle Chambers, Clifford Street, York YO1 9RG. Further details can be seen on the Court Service’s website www.courtservice.gov.uk/cms/wills.htm.

Electoral registers

Electoral registers can be used to find further details of the owners or occupiers of a property. The earliest registers date from 1832. It is important to remember that the right to vote has not always been universal and individuals may not appear because of this.
Electoral registers can be found on Seax by searching for the phrase electoral register and the place name. You can specify a date or date range to refine your search.

Tax and rate records

Land Tax assessments (Q/RPl) have been deposited and are available on microfiche in Chelmsford and Saffron Walden and at Colchester and Southend Libraries. These cover the years c.1780-1832 and list owners or occupiers, with a brief description of the property and the tax payable. The records of the hearth tax (Q/RTh), 1662-1673 have also been deposited, with copies available there. These list the name of each owner or occupier and the number of hearths in the house. Both the land tax and hearth tax are arranged by hundred (ancient divisions of the county) and may be useful for locating ancestors.

Rate books were kept listing all those paying rates and can be useful to identify people in a parish. From the late 19th century these can be found as part of local authority records. Before this individual parishes were responsible for collecting poor, church and highway rates. These rate books are in parish collections (D/P). A search for Seax for rates and a parish name or local authority area name should locate any rate books.

Poor Law records – accounts, settlement

Parish records include records of the poor who were supported by the parishes. These records include overseers’ accounts, settlement certificates and examinations and removal orders. A search on Seax for the type of record, for example, overseers accounts and a place name will identify any records. An index to settlement records is available on microfiche. After 1834 responsibility for the poor passed to Poor Law Unions (G/), which were groupings of several parishes. Each union built one large workhouse where the poor would be accommodated. Very few Union workhouse records survive for Essex but a search on Seax for workhouse and union will identify the records. Microfilm copies of records of the Saffron Walden union are available at the Saffron Walden Access Point.

Militia

Muster rolls and lists give names and other details of men serving in Essex militia and volunteer units from c.1775-1865. A search on Seax for militia and a place name will identify any records that survive.

Other sources

Transcripts. As well as original registers the Essex Record Office has a number of transcripts of registers that have been deposited over the years. A search for transcript register and a place name should locate these. The Essex Record Office Library also has Boyd’s Marriage Index, which provides an incomplete index to marriage registers for 1538-1837 arranged by surname.
Monumental inscriptions. The Essex Society for Family History has a continuing programme to record monumental inscriptions in the county. Copies of their surveys have been deposited. Surveys compiled by others have also been deposited. A search on Seax for monumental inscriptions and a place name will identify copies in the Essex Record Office or click on the Essex Ancestors part of Seax.
Internet. Family history is one of the most popular subjects on the internet and there are many websites with transcripts of records and individuals’ family histories.

Copying documents

It is possible to provide photocopies from documents where the original will not be damaged by the process. Photocopying Request Form

We can produce digital images or photographs of documents unsuitable for photocopying. Contact the Essex Record Office Reprographics Service at ero.reprographics@essexcc.gov.uk for further information.

Useful links

The ancient county of Essex began at West Ham, with the River Lea forming the boundary between Essex and Middlesex.  Records of parishes in Middlesex are deposited at the London Metropolitan Archives, 40 Northampton Road, London EC1R OHB (telephone 020 7332 3820, e-mail ask.lma@cityoflondon.gov.uk, website www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/Corporation.).  The Guildhall Library, Aldermanbury, London EC2V 7HH (telephone 020 7332 1862/3, e-mail manuscripts.guildhall@cityoflondon.gov.uk, website www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/Corporation) holds records for the City of London.