Parish Registers were instigated by Thomas Cromwell from 1538 in the reign of Henry VIII, recording every wedding, baptism and burial. There are gaps in the records for a variety of reasons, such as the civil war, but these records are a prime source for building family trees. From 1597 a copy of the records had to be made and sent to the Bishop. Sometimes the Bishops' Transcript may contain more information than the original, so it can often be worthwhile tracking down both. For more information on Parish Registers there is a brief history on the Wikipedia Parish Register page.
After 1837 Civil Registration was introduced and the Local BMD and GRO BMD records become the primary source.
| Classification: | GRO BMD, Births, Deaths, Marriages, National, Parish Records, Wills / Probate |
| Title: | Birth, Marriage & Death Certificates - BMD Index |
| Link: |  |
| Description: | Complete GRO indexes online & Non-Parochial BMDs service. Includes overseas BMD's for armed forces. |
| Extra Info: | Includes Pre-1837 Non-Conformist BMDs |
| Classification: | GRO BMD, Baptisms, Births, Burials / Cremations, Deaths, Marriages, National, Parish Records, War Memorials & Other Memorials |
| Title: | Find My Past - BMD's, Parish Records and More |
| Link: | |
| Description: | Find My Past - BMD's, Parish Records and More |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Census, Marriages, Parish Records |
| Title: | A Romany Gypsy & Traveller Heritage Project |
| Link: | https://www.romaheritage.co.uk/ |
| Description: | Romani Parish and Census records |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Parish Records |
| Title: | Baptisms - England and Wales Christening Records |
| Link: | England & Wales Christening Records, 1530-1980 |
| Description: | England and Wales Christening Records, 1530-1980 |
| Extra Info: | Not complete. |
| Classification: | GRO BMD, Census, Parish Records, Pedigrees, Visitations |
| Title: | England Data from Ancestry |
| Link: | England Data from Ancestry |
| Description: | England Data Collection from Ancestry |
| Extra Info: | Includes 1861-1901 Censuses; 1837-2005 GRO BMD; visitations and other records. |
| Classification: | Marriages, Parish Records |
| Title: | English Clandestine Marriages |
| Link: | https://search.findmypast.co.uk/search-world-Records/england-clandestine-marriages |
| Description: | English Clandestine Marriages from 1667 to 1775. |
| Classification: | Parish Records |
| Title: | Extracts for various surnames in Ireland, Scotland and Northamptonshire. |
| Link: | http://www.chrismahoney.co.nz/ |
| Description: | Extracts for various surnames in Ireland, Scotland and Northamptonshire |
| Extra Info: | Click on 'Records' |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Marriages, Parish Records, Wills / Probate |
| Title: | Family History Books via Family Search |
| Link: |  |
| Description: | Family History Books via Family Search |
| Extra Info: | More than 40,000 digitized genealogy and family history publications from the archives of some of the most important family history libraries in the world. Read online for free. Includes some parish register transcripts. |
| Classification: | Parish Records |
| Title: | Family Search - Maps |
| Link: | |
| Description: | Family Search - Maps |
| Extra Info: | Maps showing where parish boundaries are, when registers were first started. Not complete coverage. Click on map in the map screen to view road names. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Bishops Transcripts, Burials / Cremations, Marriages, Parish Records, Wills / Probate |
| Title: | Family Search Records Collection - England |
| Link: | |
| Description: | Family Search Records Collection - England |
| Extra Info: | An increasing number of records, including census and parish records. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Census, Marriages, Parish Records |
| Title: | Family Search Records Collection - Worldwide |
| Link: | |
| Description: | Family Search Records Collection - Worldwide |
| Extra Info: | Includes the England and Wales 1841 & 1861 Census, and foreign records, such as the American census that contains Britons who were aboard. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Marriages, National, Parish Records |
| Title: | FreeReg Project |
| Link: |  |
| Description: | Transcriptions for Parish Registers |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Marriages, Monumental Inscriptions, Parish Records |
| Title: | Internet Archive |
| Link: | http://archive.org/ |
| Description: | Internet Archive |
| Extra Info: | Has many scanned books, including some parish registers. Click on texts and then search the archive. Note baptism and baptisms give different results. |
| Classification: | Marriages, Parish Records |
| Title: | Marriages - England and Wales |
| Link: | England & Wales Marriages, 1538-1988 |
| Description: | England and Wales Marriages, 1538-1988 |
| Extra Info: | Not complete. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Marriages, Monumental Inscriptions, Parish Records, Wills / Probate |
| Title: | Maureen S. Bryson's Genealogy Page |
| Link: | http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~maureenbryson/genea... |
| Description: | Yorkshire/Lincolnshire/Northamptonshire /Huntingdonshire Records |
| Extra Info: | Parish Register extracts for Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire and Huntingdonshire. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Census, Marriages, Monumental Inscriptions, Parish Records, War Memorials & Other Memorials, Wills / Probate |
| Title: | Milton Keynes Heritage Association |
| Link: | https://www.mkheritage.org.uk/ |
| Description: | Records from Milton Keynes and the Surrounding Areas |
| Extra Info: | Click on Topics, then Genealogy, then scroll down for online information, listed by place. Covers Buckinghamshire and Northamptonshire. |
| Classification: | Banns, Baptisms, Births, Burials / Cremations, Deaths, Marriages, National, Parish Records |
| Title: | Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial BMDs |
| Link: | https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/affiliate/?affid=... |
| Description: | Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial BMDs from the National Archive, hosted by The Genealogist |
| Extra Info: | They include the birth records at Dr Williams' Library in London, hospital records of maternity, overseas registrations for British citizens and those on board ships. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Marriages, Parish Records |
| Title: | Nonconformist Register - Northowram of Coley Register |
| Link: | http://archive.org/details/nonconformistreg00byuhe... |
| Description: | Nonconformist Register - Northowram or Coley Register 1644-1752 |
| Extra Info: | Online book. Parish Registers 1584-1620. Index of surnames and place names at end of book. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Marriages, Parish Records, Wills / Probate |
| Title: | Northamptonshire County Data from Ancestry |
| Link: | Northamptonshire County Data from Ancestry |
| Description: | Northamptonshire County Data Collection from Ancestry |
| Extra Info: | Includes parish register extracts. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Deaths, Marriages, Parish Records, War Memorials & Other Memorials, Wills / Probate |
| Title: | Northamptonshire Family History |
| Link: | https://web.archive.org/web/20200127191346/http://... |
| Description: | Indexes for the county of Northants |
| Extra Info: | An archived copy of a site that is no longer active. Links to purchase indexes do not work, however the online indexes still seem to be available to view. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Marriages, Parish Records, Wills / Probate |
| Title: | Open Library |
| Link: | http://openlibrary.org/ |
| Description: | Open Library - Scanned Books Online |
| Extra Info: | Includes full images of many books of transcribed parish registers. Use the search facility and select e books only. Can also search within book text easily. |
| Classification: | Parish Records |
| Title: | Parish Register - William Bradock's Guide 1910 |
| Link: | http://archive.org/details/parishregister00braduof... |
| Description: | Parish Register - William Bradock's Guide 1910 |
| Extra Info: | Online book. It explains that start of parish registers and other associated items, such as Phillimore marriages, Hardwicke's marriage act, banns, explanation of register entries, foundlings, as well as some interesting register extracts. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Marriages, Parish Records |
| Title: | Parish Register Extracts from a Notebook of Sir Justinian Isham |
| Link: | http://archive.org/details/parishregisterex00ishai... |
| Description: | Parish Register Extracts from a Notebook of Sir Justinian Isham |
| Extra Info: | Online Book. Parishes of Barby, Maidwell, Pytchley, and Rothwell in Northamptonshire, and Stoneleigh, in Warwickshire. Title says these are extracts from the 'lost' registers. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Parish Records |
| Title: | Parish Registers of Moulton, Northamptonshire |
| Link: | http://archive.org/details/registersofmoult47moul |
| Description: | Parish Registers of Moulton, Northamptonshire |
| Extra Info: | Online book. Baptisms 1565-1812. |
| Classification: | Parish Records |
| Title: | Parishmouse Family History Guides |
| Link: | https://www.parishmouse.co.uk/ |
| Description: | Parish Registers, Parish Records and Historical Directories. |
| Extra Info: | Each parish page provides a list of adjacent parishes, historical descriptions of the parish, links to free parish registers and records. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Marriages, Parish Records |
| Title: | Romany Genes 2 Website |
| Link: | https://web.archive.org/web/20210423045021/http://... |
| Description: | Romany Genes 2 Website |
| Extra Info: | An archived copy of a site that is no longer active. Most information is still available to view. Maybe slow to load. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Census, Marriages, Parish Records |
| Title: | Romany References and Records |
| Link: | http://web.archive.org/web/20091026134802/http://g... |
| Description: | Romany References and Records |
| Extra Info: | This is an archived copy of a site that is no longer active, although most information still seems to be available. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Births, Burials / Cremations, Deaths, Marriages, Monumental Inscriptions, Parish Records |
| Title: | The Village of Potterspury's Website |
| Link: | https://web.archive.org/web/20140512050355/http://... |
| Description: | The Village of Potterspury's Website |
| Extra Info: | An archived copy of a site that is no longer live, however most information, including parish registers are still available to view. Click on family history or history. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Marriages, Monumental Inscriptions, Parish Records, War Memorials & Other Memorials |
| Title: | Towcester and District Local History Society |
| Link: | http://www.mkheritage.org.uk/tdlhs/ |
| Description: | Towcester and District Local History Society |
| Extra Info: | Look under Family History. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Bishops Transcripts, Burials / Cremations, Census, Marriages, Monumental Inscriptions, Parish Records, War Memorials & Other Memorials |
| Title: | UK Transcriptions Website |
| Link: | http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~uktranscriptions/ge... |
| Description: | UK Transcriptions Website Various Counties |
| Extra Info: | Transcriptions for Northamptonshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire. Click on Other Counties for Lancashire, Leicestershire, Norfolk and Shetland. |
| Classification: | Baptisms, Burials / Cremations, Census, Marriages, Monumental Inscriptions, Parish Records, Wills / Probate |
| Title: | Various English Parish Records |
| Link: | https://www.obliquity.com/family/parish/ |
| Description: | Various English Parish Records |
If you know of any web sites for BMD data not listed here, please let us know via the Contact Us page.