Parish Archive - parish sources for Family History & Local History

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What are Church Manuals and Year Books?

Much rarer than parish magazines, Church Manuals and Year Books were published annually, and were a favourite with Congregational and Evangelical Churches.

They usually summarised the year's activities and organisations, and listed church members, so they can be very useful for tracking ancestors who followed non-conformist faiths.

What information do old Church Manuals and Year Books contain?

Typically, old church manuals and year books contain a selection of the following types of information of research interest: ...

Annual summary :
Most of these publications contain a brief article by the Minister, summarising the main activities of the year. An overall financial balance sheet for the church for the year is also usually included.

Rules :
A brief set of rules for members of the church is usually included.

Services and meetings :
The schedule of services and meetings is usually included, detailing which day of the week the various sessions occur.

Church officers :
Lists of the clergy and other church officers are always included.

Church organisations and societies :
Church Manuals and year books invariably list all of the associated societies and clubs. Details of committee members are given, often together with a brief summary of the years events and a financial balance sheet. This often also includes list of choir members and Sunday School teachers.

List of church members and congregation :
A list of all of the members of the church is usually included. Addresses are normally given, along with details of the year the person was admitted the church. A list of baptisms, marriages, and deaths for the year is sometimes included, as is a list of members of the church who have moved away from the area.

Donations :
Occasionally the financial balance sheets in Church Manuals and Year Books also include lists of people who made donations.

In summary :
The Victorians love of cataloging and producing lists really comes into its own with church manuals and year books. As a result, they can often help track down addresses of ancestors between census snapshots, or clarify if someone was following a non-conformist faith.

Where can I find old Church Manuals and Year Books?

Copies of these are very difficult to find.

A few County Record offices hold some church manuals and year books. Their catalogues of holdings are increasingly being made available online at www.a2a.org.uk, although you will generally need to visit the appropriate Record Office to access the documents.

Yesterdays Names publishes CDs containing name indexes and scanned page images from church manuals and year books. See the web site www.yesterdaysnames.co.uk for further details.

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Copyright © 2010 Yvonne Graves