“Why are memorial inscriptions (MIs) important and what can they tell us that other records can’t?”, by 50Connect.co.uk, is an interesting look at parish registers and church records that can help you trace your family’s roots.
For family historians, MIs are most valuable in establishing family relationships, particularly for the period before the mid-nineteenth century, when there was no civil registration of births, marriages and deaths (this began in 1837) and no useful censuses (the first one with good records of individuals was that of 1841). Before this date, the most important source of information is that of the parish registers, and here you are in the hands of the incumbent of the period and place. Sometimes the registers give some indication of relationships, often none.
It includes some examples of parish registers and how to use the records to gleam some information about your relatives.
Article Information
Memorial Inscriptions, Parish, and Church Records Help Trace Family Roots is Issue Number 139 published August 30, 2006, by Lorelle VanFossen. This is just one of many articles found in the Genealogy Techniques categories. Lorelle VanFossen writes for a variety of blogs, websites, ezines, and print publications. She also teaches and does a lot of public speaking internationally on photography, writing, blogging, web page design and development, and more. She and her husband and cat(s) travel full-time across North American and the rest of the world by RV, planes, trains, automobiles, and foot, writing and photographing their travels and nature, when they can find it. Lorelle VanFossen has written 231 articles for our our family history blog.
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