Birth Registration of Babies Born into Baptist Families Before 1837 in Wales?

[White Mist]

I know that it would be a matter of going to look at Parish records for births and baptisms for Church of England babies before 1837, but how would babies born into Baptist families have their births recorded before this date within the Baptist religious community. How would the Baptist families register the civil birth registration requirement after 1837?


My Great Grandfather born about 1820, was living in Pontipool before he moved to London. His Church of England Bishops Transcript marriage certificate recorded in London 1843, states that he was of full age. All his subsequent census records confirm that he came from Pontypool, Monmouthshire and that he was born about 1820.


My Great, Great Grandfather was also born in Wales (either Abertillery or Abergavenny) and I am assuming that his birth date was at the at least 1801 at the earliest.


As they were both born before 1837 it means a trip to Wales so where would I start the research if they were both born into the Baptist religious community?


Many Thanks
White Mist

[AntonyM]

Religious groups outside of the CofE were still required to keep registers - however, some did not do so as well as they should and those that were kept do not always survive. They are grouped together in archives under the "Non-Conformist" title. In the 1840s these registers were required to be sent to the Registrar General (now at TNA) and are now accessible through Ancestry (and other sites).

A quick look at the coverage on Ancestry shows that they do include some Baptist registers for Pontypool and Abergavenny for the early 1800s.

If they don't have the records you need I would suggest contacting the relevant County records office - the staff there should know which other records may survive and where they are held. Don't forget that until 1837, all marriages (other than Quaker and Jewish) were required to take place in an Anglican church whatever religion they were brought up in- so even if baptism records don't survive the marriages can be tracked through the local parish registers.

[Christine in Herts]

I have a number of "birth registrations" (that's what they are called) in the late-C18th Baptist records of Arnesby, Leics.

Christine

[Olde Crone Holden]

You may also find some families kept a foot in both camps - in other words, baptised Anglican AND baptist or whatever. It really depended on the economic status of the family - if they were ever likely to need parish relief, they would need to be baptised C of E. Many of my non-cons (Methodists) didn't bother with the double baptism because they had a financial brotherhood within their own chapel and would turn there if they fell on hard times.

Also - lots of non-con records on Familysearch.

OC

[clematised]

https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1666142 The link to non-conformist records on Familysearch just add the name and approx. date first as less is more when searching these records

Edna

[White Mist]

Thank you very much to you all. Your replies have given me lots of helpful information and guidance about where to start looking and the other issues that should be taken into consideration. Also your comments made me realise that firstly, I need to think about my proven documentary evidence that I already have and what I could deduce from other reliable facts that I have about them both to enable me to form a research plan. I think, at the moment, that I am trying to put the cart before the horse!

So, having mulled over your advices, I sat down last night and put everything I knew about them on paper – both proven and unproven evidence not just about them as individuals but the lives of my great aunts and uncles. I know very little about them, having not studied them in great detail at the moment, there could be some more clues lurking somewhere.
Hmmmmm. I have a lot more intense research to be done in this area of my Grandfather’s three siblings before I can realistically plan the trip.

Thank you very much – your expertise is much appreciated.

White Mist

[Harrys mum]

Some of the non-con certificates are beautiful. My husband's family have many non-cons and the certs have given me three generations is most cases complete with signatures of witnesses. These were from the late 1700s.

[White Mist]

Thanks for your reply Harrys Mum. My ultimate goal is a visit to Wales but there is much to be done inbetween. I have found a online store that has an Index of non-com registrations from specific churchs/chapels for much of the counties in Wales that can be downloaded and much more besides ( http://www.uk-genealogy-online-store...conformist.htm ). I look forward to the time when I am able to be in a position to send for a birth registration cert. I hope my ones will be as beautiful as your ones.

White Mist

[Olde Crone Holden]

White Mist

Before you pay for records, do have a look at the familysearch site - they have many noncon records.

OC

[kylejustin]

findmypast has welsh parish registers, and ancestry has loaded the non conformist ones which do have some welsh in them.

[Harrys mum]

White Mist....

I took out a sub to The Genealogist for 6 months. Lots of people don't like the site but I have kept my sub up and would give up Ancestry of FMP first.

Not only do you get the non-con records as part of your sub (well worth it for me) but all the PCC wills are there as well.

Put up some names and we'll see what we can find.