Replaced the index to marriages at Whickham St. Mary for 1750-1851 with full details, including witnesses (which started appearing in mid-1754), so those 2,354 marriages are now instantly available, including 1 we missed the first time around. Some samples:

• 6 Jun 1750 Joshua Dowsey married Ann Potts
• 17 Apr 1765 John Boucher (Curate of Whickham) married Alice Dawson, by licence
  Witnesses: Mary Radley, Jonathan Skelton
• 30 Apr 1780 Edward Bilcliff, of St.Nicholas, Newcastle-upon-Tyne married Sarah Shield, by licence
  Witnesses: Edward Shield, John Dods
• 21 Dec 1801 William Lashley married Mary Surtis
  Witnesses: Catherine Lashley, John Lamb
• 8 Dec 1822 Bartholemew Grundy married Jane Smiles
  Witnesses: William Watson, John Stark
• 27 Aug 1838 William Noble (bachelor, gentleman), full age, of Kingston-upon-Hull, son of Joseph Noble (bookseller) married Mary Frances Bennett (spinster), full age, of Whickham, daughter of George Bennett (farmer)
  Witnesses: Frances Bennett, William Ridley, Ann Noble
• 21 Jan 1849 Halliwell Oxley (bachelor, blacksmith), full age, of Swalwell, son of James Oxley (labourer) married Ann Masterman (spinster), full age, of Whickham, daughter of George Masterman (coalminer)
  Witnesses: Robert Masterman, Ann Cook

5,199 burials at South Shields St. Stephen’s, covering 1901-1947. This includes many burials from the Ingham Infirmary, Wellesley Hospital, Dene’s Hospital, the South Shields Union Workhouse, and the Harton Workhouse. Most burials give street addresses in South Shields or Harton, plus some North Shields and Newcastle-area addresses.

Sample burials:

• 10 Feb 1901 Thomas Young Brown, of Ingham Infirmary, age: 56
• 21 Apr 1902 Jane Scott, of 34 Charlotte Street, age: 84, buried without the rites of the church of England
• 20 May 1916 John Abernethy, of 48 George Scott Street, age: 88
• 06 Jun 1922 James Stephenson, of 9 Edith Street, age: 25, drowned at Sea 31st March 1922
• 25 Aug 1934 George Park Christie, of 169 Harton Lane, age: 74
  [Note: 169 Harton Lane was the address of the Harton Workhouse.]
• 18 May 1946 John William Sullivan, of 11 Thames Lane, age: 71, Roman Catholic
• 15 Apr 1941 Clara Taws Snr, of 5 Harper Street, age: 40, Enemy Action
  [Note: Killed by a German bomb that detroyed the Taws home.]

The last burial above, Clara Taws, was a mother who was killed along with her 18-year-old daughter Clara and 2-year-old son John in a direct hit of a German bomb on their house in South Shields. Click the BBC link below to read the very sad memoir written by her son Bill Taws, who had been evacuated to a farm outside the city and thus escaped the bombing:

• http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/stories/76/a2766576.shtml

This poor family had already lost a daughter, Vera, to diphtheria in 1936, and a son Stan (who was in the Air Force) was killed (along with more than 4,000 others) on the R.M.S. Lancastria when it was bombed by the Luftwaffe in June 1940. I’m sure their story is not uncommon, but it touched me that one family should suffer so much loss.

4,508 burials at Sedgefield St. Edmund the Bishop in Stockton district, covering 1855-1926. This register may well solve mysteries for many researchers who were previously unable to trace the deaths and/or burials of ancestors in various parts of the county - they were actually patients at the County Lunatic Asylum at Winterton near Sedgefield who lived out their last years there and were buried locally.

The ancient graveyard at St. Edmund the Bishop in Sedgefield had served the village for countless centuries and there would otherwise have been no real need for additional burial space by 1855, for there is no coal underneath this part of County Durham and therefore none of the consequent flood of newcomers which threatened to overwhelm other parts of the county, especially the graveyards. However, under the provisions of the 1808 and 1853 Pauper Lunatics Acts, the County Justices purchased land at Winterton on the edge of Sedgefield village in 1855 and the asylum was opened on April 13, 1858. The first burial from the asylum was registered in the St. Edmund register on September 3 of that year. It soon became obvious that the graveyard would not be able to cope with the resultant flow of corpses from the asylum, and a new cemetery was opened in Beacon Lane on January 5, 1862, though funeral services were still held at the parish church and entered in its burial registers. From 1862-64 and again from 1876-80 the burial registers indicate that the actual burial place was Beacon Lane Cemetery rather than the ancient graveyard. The burial place was not indicated in other years, but we assume that the graveyard was actually full and the vast majority of burials until 1909 took place at Beacon Lane Cemetery. On October 3, 1884, the asylum’s own church, St. Luke’s, was consecrated by the Bishop of Durham, and its own graveyard became operational in October 1891. A note in the St. Edmund burial register entry for a Jane Marshall on October 27, 1891 stated that ‘this was the last funeral from the County Lunatic Asylum to be held here’ but there were in fact a few stragglers over the next30 years, probably patients with a Sedgefield connection. After 1891, there is a separate burial register for St. Luke’s which Durham Records Online has yet to transcribe and which will cover all patient burials until the closure of the asylum in 1996.

By 1908 Beacon Lane cemetery was almost full, so another new burial ground, Sedgefield Cemetery, in Butterwick Road, was opened in 1909. This too has its own registers which have not yet been transcribed by Durham Records Online. Once the asylum had its own burial ground (1891) and the new Sedgefield Cemetery opened in 1909, the number of entries in the St. Edmund registers dropped away until there were only one or two a year in the 1920s.

The St. Edmund burial registers also covered most interments at its chapel-of-ease at St. Mary’s in Embleton. The services took place at St. Edmund and the burials at St. Mary. Some other interesting entries in the St. Edmund burial registers were several instances of people with aliases who turned out to have had their deaths registered by the GRO twice, under both names.

Residences mentioned besides Sedgefield in this register include Amerston Hall, Asylum Cottages, Beacon Hill, Bishop Middleham, Bradbury, Breckon Hill, Brakes, Bridge House, Butterwick, Chilton, Cole Hill, Cornforth, Cote Nook, Coxhoe, Crowdy Hall, Darlington, Donnewell, East Close, Elwick, Embleton, Fishburn, Foxton, Glower O’er Him, Hardwick Hall and Lodge, Hartlepool, High Swainston, Hogg’s House, Holdforth, Hole House, Horse Shoe House, Layton, Lizards, Low Hardwick, Low Swainston, Middle Swainston, Middlesbrough, Mordon, Murton, Norton, Old Acres, Redcar House, Ryall, Sands, Sedgefield Station, Shotton, South Moor, Spennymoor, Stockton, Stillington, Trimdon, West Hartlepool, Weterton, Wingate, Wolviston, Wynyard Cottages, and Yarm.

Samples:

• 19 Jan 1855 Elizabeth Younghusband, of Fishburn, age: 79
• 5 Jan 1862 Henry Carr, of Sedgefield, age: 78, buried at Beacon Lane Cemetery
  [Note: This was the first admission to the new cemetery in Beacon Lane.]
• 5 Feb 1862 Jeremiah James, of [abode blank], age: 45, buried at Beacon Lane Cemetery, died at Sedgefield Union Workhouse.
• 11 Oct 1871 Thomas Tinkler, of Cowley House, Sedgefield, age: 71
• 27 Mar 1874 John Stanley otherwise Arthur Healer, of [abode blank], age: 43
  [Note: This death seems to have been registered twice, as John Stanley and Arthur Healer.]
• 31 Mar 1880 William McAtomney, of [abode blank], age: 30, buried at Beacon Lane Cemetery, died at the County Lunatic Asylum, Winterton, near Sedgefield.
• 4 Aug 1881 George Boland, of Wolviston, age: 87, buried at Embleton
• 24 May 1897 Mabel Bee, of [abode blank], age: 22, died at the County Lunatic Asylum, Winterton, near Sedgefield. Funeral service conducted by the chaplain of the County Lunatic Asylum
• 5 Apr 1909 Christopher Wall Giles, of Sedgefield, age: 55, Church Warden & Organist
• 14 Dec 1926 Thomas Stamper, of Sedgefield North End, age: 88

7,915 burials at Shildon St. John covering 1847-1905 and 2,341 burials at New Shildon All Saints covering 1868 to 18 August 1903. New Shildon  parish was created in late 1868 from parts of Shildon, Heighington, and Auckland St. Andrew.

Residences mentioned include Adelaide Colliery, Auckland St. Andrew, Aycliffe, Bildershaw, Binchester, Bishop Auckland, Black Boy, Bolam, Brusselton, Chapel Row, Copy Crooks, Coundon, Darlington, East Thickley, Eldon, Fyland’s Bridge, Gurney Villa, Heighington, Hunwick, Leasingthorne, Middridge, New Shildon, Old Shildon, Riseburn, Royal Oak, Sedgefield, Shildon, South Church, Thickley, West Auckland, and Windlestone.

There was a smallpox epidemic extending from Dec 1871 to July 1872, which claimed at least 90 people and increased the death rate by 50% for this period.

Sample burials from New Shildon All Saints:

• 3 Apr 1872 Robert Innes Stuart, of New Shildon, age: 38, died of smallpox
• 29 Nov 1881 Louisa Anne Hogg, of Brusselton Railway Cottages, age: 9
• 7 May 1899 George William Urwin, of New Shildon, age: 3 months, Benjamin Urwin responsible for funeral
• 26 Jan 1902 Alfred Cowperthwaite, of Short Street, age: 30 (about), Coroner’s Order

Sample burials from Shildon St. John:

• 6 Jan 1847 Mary Elliott, of Old Shildon, age: 60
• 13 Jan 1853 Emma Sophia Manisty, of Shildon Parsonage, age: 8
• 2 Jan 1864 Henry William Freer Martin Lomax, of New Shildon, age: 34
• 28 Mar 1874 Margaret Cain, of Shildon, age: 93
• 25 Mar 1886 William Ruecroft, of Shildon, age: 42, killed at Eldon Colliery
• 3 Aug 1899 Edward Monaghan, of Shildon, age: 58, Roman Catholic. Burial certified under the Burials Amendment Act 1880.

This data set caused our burial count to exceed 700,000 ! Burial # 700,000 was at Shildon St. John:

• 20 Aug 1871 William Richardson, of Eldon, age: 6

1,090 baptisms  at Durham St. Margaret of Antioch, a chapelry in the parish of St. Oswald. The baptisms for 1765 - Mar 1768 and Apr 1769 - Mar 1770 are from the Bishop’s Transcript; the rest are from the parish register. Occupations were not recorded in this period here, except when the father was a soldier - for some reason, the clerk felt it necessary to record that fact. Some samples:

• 3 Feb 1765 Stephen Ross, son of William Ross & Margaret
• 22 Sep 1773 Rebeckah Brown, born 1771, daughter of William Walker (being the reputtative father) & Margaret Brown, A B [a bastard]; this child is about 2 years old at this time
• 15 Dec 1776 Bolton Ridson, son of Bolton Ridson (a soldier) & Mary
• 20 Apr 1783 Charles Denby, son of Charles Denby (a Soldier in the 68 Ridgement) & [blank]
• 16 Mar 1787 Jane Clamp, daughter of John Clamp & Jane

1,135 burials at Durham St. Margaret of Antioch, a chapelry in the parish of St. Oswald. This register was in very bad condition; parts of 1773-74 were so faded they were unreadable and there are lots of blank spaces and partial entries.  A few entries had only the date entered, with no names or descriptions attached.  We transcribed from the parish register for Jan-Mar 1765 and Mar 1770-Dec 1787, working from both the microfilm and from the original register when the film was unreadable. Only Apr 1765-Mar 1770 is from the Bishop’s Transcript.

Some samples of one useless and several useful entries:

• 4 Jan 1765 [blank], a strainger child
• 8 Jun 1766 Margaret Busby, widow of Livley Busby
• 15 Jul 1771 Ann Rickaby, daughter of Richard Rickaby
• 9 Apr 1775 George Hines, son of widow Hines
• 28 Mar 1780 Paul Nailer, soldier
• 18 Jun 1784 Thomas Heart, age: 118 years
• 18 Jan 1787 Thomas Coates, lunatick, pauper

Replaced the index to marriages at Whickham St. Mary for 1579-1749 with full details so those 3,199 marriages are now instantly available, including 12 we missed the first time around. Some samples:

• 15 Nov 1579 Anthony Grundy married Flanders Dalkin
• 23 Nov 1650 John Close married Barbary Taylor
• 6 Nov 1701 John Robinson (a soldier) married Jane Harrison, of Whickham, by licence
• 1 Aug 1749 George Bambrough married Elizabeth Wheatly

The third marriage provides a good lesson on how it pays to check the marriage bond when you see that a marriage is by licence. The accompanying bond adds the following useful details:

• 6 Oct 1701 John Robinson (yeoman), of Byermoor Lane, Whickham obtained a licence to marry Jane Harrison (widow), of [Whickham]

Replaced the index to baptisms at Whickham St. Mary for 1820-1851 with full details, so those 4,859 baptisms are now instantly available, including 4 we had missed the first time around. While the clerk unfortunately stopped recording the mother’s father and parents’ birthplaces starting in 1820, he did continue to include the child’s birthdate in most baptisms until mid-1829.

Samples:

• 2 Apr 1820 Ann Watson Smart, of Lowhand, born 10-Jan 1820, daughter of Christopher Smart (keelman) by his wife Margaret
• 15 Apr 1829 Isabella Clasper, of Dunston, born 22-Mar 1827, daughter of Joseph Clasper (keelman) by his wife Ann
• 25 Apr 1830 Catherine Turnbull, of Swalwell, daughter of William Turnbull (smith) by his wife Elizabeth
• 14 Jun 1840 Ann Alice Rotherford, of Bogglehole, Lamesley, daughter of Robert Rotherford (farmer) by his wife Ann
• 3 Oct 1851 Fanny Louise Stevenson, of Whickham, daughter of John Henry Stevenson (surgeon) by his wife Jane

1,944 baptisms and 1,205 burials at Lamesley St. Andrew in Chester-le-Street district, spanning 1813-1834, from the Bishop’s Transcript except for 1825 which is from the parish register.

Residences mentioned include Allerdean Engine, Bainesley Lane, Birkhead or Birch Heads, Birtley, Black Row, Blea-berry House, Boggle Hole, Bunker Hill, Chowdean, Coal Flat, Cow Close, Cox Close, Derwent Crook, Eighton or Ayton Banks, Farn Acres, Galloping Green, Gateshead, Gateshead Fell & Low Fell, Harlow Green, Jingling Gate, Kibblesworth, Lamesley, Long Acres, Loosing Hill,  the Mount, Newcastle, North Ends, North Shields, Old Engine, Ouston, Ouze Law, Penny Fine, Ravensworth, South Shields, Street Gate, Tinker or Tinkler Row, Trench Hall, Urpeth, Urpeth Oil Mill, Usworth, and Wrekenton.

Sample baptisms:

• 3 Jan 1813 Jane Weatherhead, of Kibblesworth, daughter of George Weatherhead (husbandman) & Elizabeth
• 19 Jun 1825 Catherine Clish, of Eighton Banks, daughter of James Clish (collier) & Martha
• 14 Dec 1834 Jacob Gowland Robson, of Eighton Banks, son of William Robson (quarryman) & Sarah

Sample burials:

• 10 Jan 1813 Mary Lumley, of Old Engine, age: 94
• 14 Apr 1827 James Bastow Weatherhead, of Urpeth Oil Mill, age: 5 and 1/2
• 15 Dec 1834 James Peacock, of Baldwin Flat, age: 90

We also took the opportunity to add the witnesses to our existing 310 marriages at Lamesley from 1813 to mid-1837, giving you 686 new names to search in. If you previously purchased a marriage at Lamesley, you can view the witnesses by clicking My Previous Orders and reviewing the marriage. Some samples of marriages of the local gentry:

• 14 Oct 1833 Charles Philip York (bachelor), of Hamble, Southampton married Susan Liddell (spinster), of this parish, by licence with consent of parents
  Witnesses: Ravensworth H.T. Liddell, C.F. Northumberland, Charlotte Amelia Liddell, sen’r, Hedworth Williamson, John Collinson, Charlotte Amelia Liddell, John Trotter
  [Note: Married by Robert Liddell, curate of Hartlepool.]
• 12 Aug 1818 Rt. Hon. Henry Constantine Phipps (Viscount of Normanby), of this parish married Maria Liddell, of this parish, by licence
  Witnesses: [blank] Mulgrave, T.H. Liddell, H.T. Liddell

I got to wondering how some of the locations in Lamesley got their names and did a little research. Jingling Gate was a pub near West Pelton, now defunct. Here is an interesting history of Loosing Hill by the Sunniside Local History Society:

• http://www.sunnisidelocalhistorysociety.co.uk/loosing.html

3,196 baptisms at Stranton (West Hartlepool) All Saints from July 1892 to July 1901. All but one baptism include the child’s birth date. Residences are primarily street addresses in Stranton, but also include Brierton, Middleton, and South Parade.

Some samples:

• 28 Jul 1892 Wilson Fleetham Benson, of 34 Havelot St., born 12 Jul 1892, child of John William Benson (butcher) & Mary Ann Benson
• 17 Jan 1897 Lillian Johnson, of 8 Silver St., born 28 Dec 1896, child of Samuel Johnson (theatrical professional) & Caroline Elizabeth Johnson
• 27 Jun 1901 Robert Shields, of 8 Isaac St., born 18 May 1901, child of John Shields (labourer) & Rachel