Nature of Source
Records and registers of birth/baptism, marriage and death/burial records from Congregational and Independent congregations. The Protestant Congregational movement began in 1582 in England during the Puritan reformation. Originally known as Independents or Separatists the movement took its religious guidance from Robert Browne. Congregationalists believe that each congregation derives its authority from God and not from any temporal body.
Before the early 1640s, no nonconformist sects kept registers as most strived to change the workings of the Anglican church from within. Some nonconformists were also concerned for their own safety. The Declaration of Indulgence, 1672 allowed the issue of licences for dissenter meetings and preachers. In 1688 the Dutch William of Orange seized the Crown from the Catholic James II in the so called ‘Glorious Revolution’. One of the first acts of the new monarch, now William III of England, was to pass the Toleration Act in 1689. The Act, for the first time, guaranteed freedom of worship for the dissenting groups and granted these groups the right to establish their own licensed places of worship (attendance at Anglican church services was compulsory up until the Act). Although nonconformists were forced to accept the 39 Anglican articles of faith and remained barred from public office, Protestant congregations grew in numbers along with and a growth of separate registers. Many nonconformists also recorded vital events within the established church to ensure the legality of the event so no separate registers exist.
Most registers survive after 1780 when the authorities decreed that nonconformist congregations should keep registers. Most complied with the ruling and these registers form the bulk of those handed in to the Registrar General in 1837. Collectively these registers are known as the Non-Parochial Registers and are held at The National Archives with copies available at various record offices. Burial records of nonconformist sects are rare as many chapels could not afford the necessary ground. Furthermore, some sects did not believe in infant baptism at all whilst others saw no necessity for recording baptisms, marriages and burials. As child baptism was shunned, the baptism date is not necessarily a clue to the birth date.
Search for names in minute and membership books. Some congregations kept their own birth (not baptism) books as well as burial registers. Burial grounds were often attached to chapels and some transcriptions of Congregational Monumental Inscriptions have been produced.
Bunhill Fields
Bunhill Fields is a significant historical burial ground in Islington, just north of the City of London. It is particularly known for its association with religious nonconformists, although it was open to anyone who could afford the fees. It became a popular burial ground for London dissenters with over 123,000 nonconformist burials taking place at the site between 1665 and 1854. Unlike consecrated churchyards, it provided a suitable burial ground for those who did not adhere to the Church of England’s practices or denied burial in Church of England consecrated ground. Notable Congregationalist buried in Bunhill Fields include Isaac Watts, Congregationalist minister and hymn writer, John Bunyan, author of ‘The Pilgrim’s Progress’ and Daniel Defoe, author of ‘Robinson Crusoe’.
For help in finding places of worship and names of ministers consult the ‘Evans List’ of Dissenting Congregations and Ministers compiled in 1715 and updated in 1730, the similar 1773 Josiah Thompson List and the Surman Index of dissenting ministers compiled by Charles Surman covering the period from the mid-seventeenth century to 1972. The Surman Index is available online and the other indexes are available at Dr Williams Library.
The Hardwicke Act of 1753 ended the near anarchy of marriage ceremonies taking place outside of official jurisdiction. The Act compelled all marriages (except for Quakers and Jews) to take place in a licensed Anglican church and only after the publication of banns. After the introduction of the Act, nonconformist marriages are found in parish registers and before the act within the records of dissenting churches or the various unauthorised places of marriage. After the introduction of civil registration in 1837, all religious denominations were free to hold legal marriage ceremonies and were free to keep their own registers. Post 1837 nonconformist registers contain similar information to the Church of England parish registers. Consult directories or the Ecclesiastical Census of 1851 for the location of individual chapels.
In 1831 the Congregational Union of England and Wales (CCEW) was founded and lasted until the Congregational Church in England and Wales was established in 1966. This prompted the formation of a breakaway group called the Evangelical Fellowship of Congregational Churches. In 1972 the CCEW and the Presbyterian Church of England and Wales merged to form the United Reformed Church. Three factions continued as separate entities namely the Congregational Federation, the Evangelical Fellowship of Congregational Churches and the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches. In Wales the Union of Welsh Independents remined independent of the United Reformed Church. Some churches remained free of any of the groupings.
A useful resource for researching Congregationalists is the Protestant Dissenters Registry which contains records of birth registered at the Dissenters Library (Doctor William’s Library). The registry allowed Baptists, Congregationalists and Presbyterians to register the birth of a child. The register, officially known as the General Register of Protestant Dissenters, was only open to those living within twelve miles of London, however later the registry opened up to all regardless of distance and denomination. The registry began when a committee representing Presbyterians, Independents and Baptists, known as the Dissenting Deputies, arranged with the library to keep an official register of births. After a slow start the registry grew in popularity and for the years in operation from 1742 to 1837, there are 29, 865 entries. Some retrospective entries date back to 1716. The officials at the registry produced two copies of the birth certificate, one was handed to the parents and the other kept at the library. The entries were then entered into the register kept at the library. The registers and certificates were handed to the Registrar General in 1837 and are now housed at The National Archives. A typical entry should show the name of child, date and place of birth, parent’s name, mother’s maiden name, occasionally the names of the mother’s parents and the father’s occupation. The collection is available at Dr William’s Library and at The National Archives in series RG 4, Registers of Births, Marriages and Deaths surrendered to the Non-parochial Registers Commissions of 1837 and 1857 and in RG 5, Birth Certificates from the Presbyterian, Independent and Baptist Registry. Copies can be found at LDS Family History Centers. The register is available online at www.bmdregisters.co.uk and at www.familysearch.org.
Also see
Oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy
Sacrament Certificates
Where Found
The National Archives (RG 4, RG 8: non-parochial registers; RG 4: Dr Williams Library registers; RG 5: the original certificates: Records of dissenters burial grounds such as Bunhill Fields: Irregular marriage records: Licences issued for dissenter meetings and preachers)
County Record Offices (Non-parochial registers: extant Congregational/Independents church records: Meeting Houses Registration [Quarter Session records]: Church books & membership rolls. Find the details of a local UK archive from a searchable list of over 2,500 archives hosted by The National Archives)
Society of Genealogists (Copies of nonconformist registers and other nonconformist material)
Westminster College Cambridge (The college archives holds the collections of the United Reformed Church History Society)
The Mitchell Library (Non-Presbyterian records include baptisms, marriages and burials, confirmations for Episcopal churches, communion rolls, membership lists and pew rents covering Baptist, Congregationalist, Evangelical, Methodist and Unitarian churches as well as Quaker meeting houses)
Dr Williams Library (Nonconformity literature and various finding aids and indexes)
LDS FamilySearch Centers (Non-parochial registers)
Lambeth Palace Library
Individual churches
Period Covered
1582 – Onwards
Genealogical Value
Baptism
- Full name, address, date of baptism, possibly date of birth.
- Name of parents and father’s occupation.
- Name of minister.
Marriage
- Full name of bride and groom and address.
- Name of bride’s father.
Burial
- Name and date of burial.
- Address of deceased.
Other Records
- Names, addresses, occupations of practicing Congregationalists.
- Location and description of chapels and meeting houses.
Further References
- Clifford, David. My ancestors Were Congregationalists in England and Wales: How Can I Find Out More About Them? London: Society of Genealogists, 1997
- Gandy, Michael. Basic Facts About English Nonconformity for Family Historians: Federation of Family History Societies, 1998
- Gandy, Michael. Tracing Nonconformist Ancestors: PRO Publications, 2001
- Gandy, Michael. Family History Cultures and Faiths: How your ancestors lived and worshipped: Expert Advice to Speed up Your Search: The National Archives, 2007
- Livingstone, E.A (ed). Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church: Oxford University Press, 2013
- McLaughlin, Eve. Nonconformist Ancestors: Varneys Press, 1995
- Palgrave-Moore, Patrick. Understanding the History & Records of Nonconformity, Elvery Dowers, 1994
- Ruston, Alad (ed). Obituaries and Marriages of Dissenting Ministers in the Gentleman’s Magazine in the 18th Century: Rushton, 1996
- Steel, D J. National Index of Parish Registers, vol. 2: Sources for Nonconformist Genealogy and Family History: Phillimore, 1973
- Thomas, Amanda A. The Nonconformist Revolution: Religious dissent, innovation and rebellion: Pen and Sword Books, 2020
- Waller, Ian H. Introducing Nonconformist Records: Explaining Nonconformist Records for Family Historians: Family History Books, 2023
The EurekA Partnership: Various titles containing transcriptions of Congregational and Independent Church records and registers covering Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Gloucestershire, Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire, Surrey, Warwickshire and Worcestershire
Websites
www.dwl.ac.uk/view.php?page=95 (Congregational Library: The Library is located at 14 Gordon Square in the same building as Dr. Williams’s Library. The are divided into Printed Books and Manuscripts/Archives and include the archives of the Congregational Union of England and Wales/Congregational Church in England and Wales)
https://oldmeetinghousechurch.org.uk/history-of-congregationalism (Old Meeting House Congregational Church: History of Congregationalism)
https://quintapress.webmate.me/PDF_Books/RW_Dale/History_of_Congregationalism.pdf (The History of English Congregationalism, by RW Dale)
https://urchistory.wordpress.com/archives (United Reformed Church History Society. Archives and local church history. Details of the various places holding archives from the traditions that make up the United Reformed Church)
https://urchistory.wordpress.com/family-history (Guide to researching family history from United Reformed Churches as well as Congregational, Presbyterian, and Churches of Christ congregations)
www.chapelssociety.org.uk (The Chapels Society: The Society seeks to foster public interest in the architectural and historical importance of all nonconformist places of worship including churches, chapels and meeting houses throughout the United Kingdom)
www.soas.ac.uk/library/archives/collections/missionary-collections (SOAS Library: Missionary Collections. SOAS holds the largest collection of Christian missionary archives in the UK; as well as personal papers of many individual missionaries)
www.swheritage.org.uk/da-ls-research-guides (North Devon Record Office Information Leaflet: Nonconformist Records)
www.swheritage.org.uk/da-ls-research-guides (Devon Heritage Centre Information Leaflet Non-Conformist Records)
www.wyjs.org.uk/archive-service/our-collections/guides-to-our-collections (West Yorkshire Archive Service: Collections Guide 2 Nonconformist Registers)
www.qmul.ac.uk/sed/religionandliterature (The Queen Mary Centre for Religion and Literature in English. The Centre is an association of individuals, societies, centres, and projects with a shared commitment to the broad subject of religion and literature in English. The focus is on the history of Roman Catholicism, the Church of England, Protestant dissent, Methodism, and Judaism)
www.qmul.ac.uk/sed/religionandliterature/dissenting-academies (The Dissenting Academies Project: The project brings a wealth of information about dissenting higher education from the later 17th to the later 19th centuries. The site has a history of nonconformity and individual dissenting denominations as well as Timeline charting key dates and events in nonconformist history as well as a history of dissenting academies)
www.qmul.ac.uk/sed/religionandliterature/dissenting-academies/dissenting-academies-online (Dissenting Academies Online: Database and Encyclopedia, 1660-1860. The site is major research resource containing detailed historical accounts of individual dissenting academies including biographical articles about leading tutors and biographical data for thousands of students educated at the academies)
www.qmul.ac.uk/sed/religionandliterature/dissenting-academies/dissenting-academies-online (Dissenting Academies Online: Virtual Library System. The System is a union catalogue recording the holdings of leading Baptist, Congregational, and Presbyterian academy libraries in England over the 18th and 19th centuries compiled from a range of sources)
www.thegenealogist.co.uk/researchguide/?cid=1&p=100 (The Genealogist Research Guide: Non-Conformist & Non-Parochial Records)
Victoria County History (Description and location of chapels and meeting houses county by county with some volumes online at British History Online. The Victoria County History series of county histories is an ongoing project recording county by county England’s places and people from earliest times to the present day)
www.buildinghistory.org/buildings/chapels.shtml (Researching the history of chapels)
https://bmdregisters.co.uk/help/research-guide/what-are-they (BMD Registers: Guide to Non-Parochial Records)
www.berkshirerecordoffice.org.uk/nonparochial-register (Berkshire Record Office: List of Berkshire nonconformist places of worship and the whereabouts of their registers)
www.sog.org.uk/leaflets/nonconformists.shtml (Nonconformist Records guide from the Society of Genealogists)
www.parishchest.com (Online store selling nonconformist records from a variety of suppliers)
https://search.lma.gov.uk/scripts/mwimain.dll/144/RESEARCH_GUIDES/web_detail_rg?SESSIONSEARCH&exp=SISN+92 (London Metropolitan Archives Information Leaflet No. 3: Records of nonconformists in London)
https://search.lma.gov.uk/scripts/mwimain.dll/144/RESEARCH_GUIDES/web_detail_rg?SESSIONSEARCH&exp=SISN+92 (London Metropolitan Archives Information Leaflet Number 60: Non-Anglican register transcripts. This leaflet lists all the transcripts of non-Anglican registers held in London Metropolitan Archives)
www.history.ac.uk/gh/17.htm (Guildhall Library Manuscripts Section: Non Anglican Religious Bodies including records of non-conformist and foreign protestant congregations in the City of London)
Online Databases
https://bmdregisters.co.uk (BMDRegisters. Search records of birth, baptism, marriage, death and burial taken from Non-Conformist registers including Methodists, Wesleyans, Baptists, Independents, Protestant Dissenters, Congregationalist, Presbyterians, Unitarians, Quakers [Society of Friends], Dissenters and Russian Orthodox. The registers from Bunhill Fields Burial Ground are included in the dataset)
www.findmypast.co.uk (England & Wales Non-Conformist Births and Baptisms. Search non-conformist baptism registers to find ancestors who did not follow the established Church of England such as Methodists, Wesleyans, Baptists, Independents, Protestant Dissenters, Congregationalist, Presbyterians, Unitarians, Quakers [Society of Friends] and Huguenots. The records are extracted from TNA series RG 4, RG 5 and RG 8 and include records from the Methodist Metropolitan registry and Dr Williams’ Library in London)
www.findmypast.co.uk (England & Wales Non-Conformist Burials. Search non-conformist burial registers to find ancestors who did not follow the established Church of England such as Methodists, Wesleyans, Baptists, Independents, Protestant Dissenters, Congregationalist, Presbyterians, Unitarians, Quakers [Society of Friends] and Huguenots. The registers include the Bunhill Fields Burial Ground. The records are extracted from TNA series RG 4, and RG 8 and include records from the Methodist Metropolitan registry and Dr Williams’ Library in London)
www.findmypast.co.uk (England & Wales Non-Conformist Marriages. Search non-conformist marriage registers to find ancestors who did not follow the established Church of England such as Methodists, Wesleyans, Baptists, Independents, Protestant Dissenters, Congregationalist, Presbyterians, Unitarians, Quakers [Society of Friends] and Huguenots. The records are extracted from TNA series RG 4 and RG 8 and include records from the Methodist Metropolitan registry and Dr Williams’ Library in London)
https://historycollection.wordpress.com/dissenting-chapels/hanover-chapel-peckham-baptisms-1801-45 (Hanover Chapel Peckham: Baptisms, 1801-1845 transcripts)
https://blogs.bl.uk/thenewsroom/british-newspaper-archive (British Library Newspapers: Whereabouts of nonconformist journals and newspapers)
www.ancestry.co.uk (England & Wales, Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial Registers, 1567-1970 This collection is mainly comprised of birth, marriage, and death registers from non-conformist congregations and churches in England and Wales that were turned over to the Registrar General following the Non-Parochial Register Act of 1840 and a later request in 1857)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Non Conformist Registers, 1694-1921: Baptism, marriage, and burial registers for many Non-Conformist churches in the greater London area digitised in partnership with London Metropolitan Archives and Guildhall Library Manuscripts)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Bristol, England, Non-Conformist Baptism, Marriage and Burial Registers, 1644-1981. This collection comprises baptism, marriage and burial records from Non-Conformist congregations in the Bristol area. These include Roman Catholic, Methodist, Quaker, Presbyterian, Wesleyan, Congregationalist, Baptist, Unitarian, and other denominations)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Parish Records: West Yorkshire, Nonconformist Records, 1646-1985. This database contains a compilation of records from Nonconformist congregations in the West Yorkshire area of England including Methodist, Baptist, Society of Friends (Quaker), Presbyterian, Congregationalist, and other congregations)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Manchester, Non-Conformist Births and Baptisms, Marriages and Deaths and Burials, 1758-1987. This database contains birth records from Nonconformist congregations in the Manchester area. These include Methodist, Quaker, Presbyterian, Wesleyan, URC, Congregationalist, Baptist, Unitarian, and Jewish congregations)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Wiltshire, England, Non-Conformist Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1810-1987. This collection comprises baptism, marriage and burial records from Non-Conformist congregations from the county of Wiltshire. These include Methodist, Quaker, Wesleyan, Independent, Baptist, and other denominations)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Bristol, England, Non-Conformist Baptism, Marriage and Burial Registers, 1644-1981. This collection comprises registers from Non-Conformist congregations in the Bristol area. These include Roman Catholic, Methodist, Quaker, Presbyterian, Wesleyan, Congregationalist, Baptist, Unitarian and other denominations)
www.findmypast.co.uk (Cornwall baptism, marriages and burials. Search over a million Anglican and nonconformist record transcripts covering more than three hundred parishes across the Cornish peninsula. Transcripts supplied by the Cornwall Family History Society)
www.findmypast.co.uk (Yorkshire Baptisms and Burials. Search parish register transcripts across the three historic Yorkshire counties of Anglican parishes as well as records from some Roman Catholic and Non-Conformist parishes)
www.findmypast.co.uk (Greater London Marriage Index. Search the vast collection of transcribed marriage records created by various family history societies and covering the Greater London area including Middlesex, Surrey and Hertfordshire. The dataset includes Anglican, Non-conformists, and Quaker marriages and covers 1502 up to 1871. A full list of parishes is available at the website)
Findmypast
Northamptonshire Quarter Sessions Licences, 1689-1932. Discover the names of any individual or group who wished to open a Nonconformist chapel or hold such religious services in a house or other premises and needed to obtain a licence from the Quarter Sessions.
Familysearch.org (Historical Record Collections: Transcripts of baptisms, marriages and deaths extracted from non-parochial/nonconformist registers including those held at Dr. Williams Library, nonconformist records held by the Cheshire Record Office, Northumberland Nonconformist Records; Bristol Non-Conformist Registers and non-Conformist Record Indexes extracted from TNA series RG 4-8. The site incorporates the data formerly known as the International Genealogical Index and also data formerly sold on CD as the British Isles Vital Records Index. The former Ancestral File and Pedigree Resource File can be found under the heading of ‘Family Trees’)
www.findmypast.co.uk (Greater London Burial Index, 1399-1992. Search burial records across 300 parishes in the Greater London area including Anglican parishes and nonconformist registers. The record set includes the Middlesex Memorial Inscriptions, South London Burials Index 1545-1905, City of London Burials 1754-1855 [originally compiled by Cliff Webb] and Middlesex Burials 1538-1992. Also included are records from the Bunhill Fields and Spa Fields Burial Grounds which catered mostly for nonconformists)
www.findmypast.co.uk (London, Bunhill Fields Non-Conformist Burials 1713-1826 Browse. Browse this collection of nonconformist burial registers and monumental inscriptions to discover your ancestor’s age at the time of death, death date, and burial date)
www.findmypast.co.uk (The Cheshire Collection: Non-Conformist and Roman Catholic Records 1671-1910. The original records are held by the Cheshire Archives and Local Studies)
www.findmypast.co.uk (The Shropshire Collection, 1538-1900. The collection includes searchable transcripts and scanned colour images of Non-Conformist Shropshire registers)
www.findmypast.co.uk (Essex Memorial Inscriptions. The dataset contains records covering Anglican, Roman Catholic, Quaker, and non-conformist, as well as community and war memorials)
www.findmypast.co.uk (Norfolk Non-Conformist Records 1613-1901 Image Browse. This collection comprises registers of baptisms, marriages, and burials as well as membership lists and meeting minutes covering Methodist, Quaker, Baptist and Congregational congregations)
www.durhamrecordsonline.com (Durham Records Online: Transcripts from Congregational registers covering County Durham and Northumberland)
ww3.gloucestershire.gov.uk/genealogy/Search.aspx (Gloucestershire Archives Genealogical Search: Non-conformist baptisms for some chapels in Gloucestershire. Also try searching for a named individual at the Gloucestershire Archives Online Catalogue which includes the General Personal Names Index and other specialist indexes)
www.ideastore.co.uk/local-history-archives-online (Tower Hamlets Archives Collection. Search digitised items from the Collection including the Bethnal Green Congregational Church Baptism Register, 1860-1945)
https://sheffieldindexers.com (Sheffield Indexers: Sheffield Cemetery Road Congregational Church Members, 1859-1908)
www.familysearch.org (Lancashire Non-Conformist Church Records, 1647-1996. Non-Conformist Church records from the county of Lancashire containing baptisms/christenings, marriages, and deaths)
www.familysearch.org (Gloucestershire Non-Conformist Church Records, 1642-1996. Non-Conformist Church records from the county of Gloucestershire containing baptisms/christenings, marriages, and deaths)
Ancestry
West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, Non-Conformist Parish Registers, 1840-1969. The collection includes registers of Baptists, Methodists, Catholics and many other groups.
CD Roms
www.midlandshistoricaldata.org (Old Non-Parochial Registers of Dudley, 1899)
S & N Genealogy Supplies (Worcestershire, Dudley Non-Parochial Parish Registers 1656-1837)
Gloucestershire Family History Society (Gloucestershire Non-Conformist Transcriptions – Vol 1 Baptisms; Gloucestershire Non-Conformist Transcriptions – Vol 2 Baptisms and Burials; Gloucestershire Non-Conformist Transcriptions – Vol 3 Baptisms)
GenFair (Sussex Family History Group: Sussex Nonconformists Registers: Over 50 Sussex Nonconformist Chapel pre-1837 Registers, mainly baptisms and burials, transcribed by Michael Burchall. Set out in alphabetical order by place, then date. Full search facility for names, occupations and places)
GenFair (Browse tens of thousands of family history products including nonconformist registers and records from hundreds of suppliers. The largest range of products covering the British Isles)
