Staffordshire Parish Registers - findmypast

[BlueSavannah]

FMP are starting to roll out their Staffordshire PRs. Apparantly these are not complete and they've not been officially announced yet but some PRs are able to search already.....

Not sure if there is a better way of putting a link but here is how I am looking at the moment

http://search.findmypast.co.uk/historical-records?SearchedRecordsetName=staffordshire&Region=World

[Mary from Italy]

Great, thanks very much.

[Kit]

Thanks. I have been waiting years for this.

[BlueSavannah]

Me too :)

Sadly I am waiting a little longer because the parishes I need are not on there (yet). Fingers crossed they are to come.

[Kit]

oh oh oh.

I didn't think anything of mine would be there but my great grandparents marriage is. I know the details but it is nice to see them online :)

[Margaret in Burton]

I've found a marriage at St Modwens in Burton today. I could have found it at the library where they have the PR's on fiche.
I do think in the long run though this will kill off local studies libraries. Ours has just been moved from quite a decent sized room at the library to a large broom cupboard.

[BlueSavannah]

I agree with your Marg. The Sheffield Archives has already reduced its opening times to only 2 and half days per week and when all the Sheffield Anglican PRs go live on FMP, then I think they will possibly close all together with just the Sheffield Central Library remaining open.

Its hard though because for someone like me who no longer lives near Sheffield and with a toddler and a baby, having the records come online is a god send but I also feel that putting local studies in a position they have to close is wrong.

I also don't live anywhere near Dudley where the records for the parishes in Staffordshire that I need are held and apparently the Dudley area records are still to come.

[Kit]

I'm not even in the country so I will never get to the archives, so this is a godsend.

But it is sad that archives will close because records are placed online for people like me.

[kiterunner]

Archives hold all kinds of records, not just parish registers, so I don't see how they could close because of PR's going online. It is true that many archives have reduced their opening hours recently, but this is to save money.

[BlueSavannah]

That is very true Kite. I am just basing mine on a conversation I had with someone last year at a family history event. It apparently is rumor that Sheffield wants to move all its other non-PR stuff elsewhere so that they can eventually close. Obviously I don't know if that is true or not and really hope it is not but it wouldn't surprise me at all. All to save money.

[Kit]

Does anyone know when the baptisms may be released?

[Margaret in Burton]

Our local studies library doesn't hold all of the archives for the area, they are in Stafford. They hold local parish registers on fiche and local newspapers on film. They do have some old maps.
The librarian I spoke to said that the move to the smaller room was because it's underused since so much is online. The old room that was the local studies is going to be the Register Office for births and deaths.
All the new room has is one long bench, the room is about 15ft x 6ft, one film reader and one fiche reader, there were two fiche readers previously plus three computers. At the moment there are no computers in there although there is supposedly going to be one only.
Access to Ancestry is available on other computers around the library. There is a large glass cabinet with old local books and that's it.

[kiterunner]

Staffordshire Baptisms (http://search.findmypast.co.uk/search-world-Records/staffordshire-baptisms?_ga=1.77437717.1494116925.1289493982)
Staffordshire Marriages (http://search.findmypast.co.uk/search-world-Records/staffordshire-marriages?_ga=1.72200339.1494116925.1289493982)
Staffordshire Banns (http://search.findmypast.co.uk/search-world-Records/staffordshire-banns?_ga=1.72200339.1494116925.1289493982)
Staffordshire Burials (http://search.findmypast.co.uk/search-world-Records/staffordshire-burials?_ga=1.51221673.1494116925.1289493982)

Looks as though their "100 in 100" event is complete now.

[ElizabethHerts]

Fantastic! I now have the baptism for OH's 2x-great-grandmother, which never seemed to have been transcribed.

[Mary from Italy]

Ooh, great, thanks!

[BlueSavannah]

Great news :)

Nothing for Brierley Hill though which I desperately needed :(

[kiterunner]

Claire, they say that there are some parishes still to come for which microfilms were not available.

[BlueSavannah]

That's good to know :) Will keep fingers crossed Brierley Hill / Kingswinford / Brockmoor are all in those to come.

[Asa]

There are quite a few parishes on Freereg that aren't on FMP but obviously without images.

[Mary from Italy]

Lichfield's missing, although I know they've microfilmed the records.

[Margaret in Burton]

Only Holy Trinity and St Modwens are on for Burton but there is loads more at the library on fiche. Even more at Stafford.

[Merry]

I need to focus on my kitchen before I can get back to my Staffs research! :o

[Kit]

I was only commenting yesterday that I want the baptisms and here they are. Now I just want them to go up to 1920, or at least 1914.

My grandma was one of 12 children, I think they lived at the same address for many years but I have only been able to find 4 baptisms of the 12 when I hired the film years ago. I know when they were born but would love to find out the baptisms.

oh well, plenty of more distant people to research. :)

[ElizabethHerts]

Found on Staffordshire family history resources page:

http://www.staffordshire.gov.uk/leisure/archives/familyhistoryresources/home.aspx

"Online Resources

'Staffordshire Collection' Digitisation Project

Phase 1 of the 'Staffordshire Collection' Digitisation Project, went live on 16 July 2014 on the Findmypast website. Phase 1 consists of over 1,800 parish registers, containing 2.8 million names. Phase 2 will be the remainder of the parish registers. Subsequent phases will cover Diocese of Lichfield wills and inventories, and marriage bonds and allegations.

Access to the 'Staffordshire Collection' on Findmypast will be free in archives and libraries in Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent. "

If I wait long enough, I won't need to order a will for OH's family - it will appear on FMP!

[BlueSavannah]

Does it give any indication to when Phase 2 goes live Elizabeth? If its ages away I will still order that will of John Carter but if its going to be soon, then I might as well wait for it to come online and use my FMP sub :)

[ElizabethHerts]

I can't see any mention of the time scale, Claire. Fingers crossed it won't be too long.

[kiterunner]

Does it give any indication to when Phase 2 goes live Elizabeth? If its ages away I will still order that will of John Carter but if its going to be soon, then I might as well wait for it to come online and use my FMP sub :)

It will almost certainly be just pre-1858 wills, Claire. John Cutler's will was 1868 so won't be included. Or is John Carter a different person?

[BlueSavannah]

Sorry Kite, another typo on my part. I meant to write John Cutler. I also have a Carter line which I am doing a lot of work on at moment so I wrote Carter due to habit ;(

Thanks for that. I will send off for John's will :)

[Mary from Italy]

How annoying, I've spent a fortune on wills and marriage bonds from Lichfield :)

[Kit]

Very exciting for me. Hurry up phase 2. There is one marriage I really want and it must be in phase 2.

For now though I am happily working on new lines as I've filled in gaps and gone back 2 generations on one branch so far. :)

[Kit]

I just wish they went to 1914, not 1900.

My grandma was one of 12 children but only 3 or 4 were baptised in the local church. I'd love to find out what happened to the others.

[kiterunner]

These have been updated today.

[Mary from Italy]

Thanks Kate, off to look.

[kiterunner]

Also, they have added a browse facility.