2,286 baptisms at Whitworth’s parish church (which is not dedicated to a saint, unlike most Anglican churches), covering 1813-1873. Whitworth, in Auckland district, includes residents of Bishop’s Close, Burton Beck, Byers Green, Coxhoe, Middlestone Moor, Mount Pleasant, New Whitworth, Newtown, Old Park, Ox Close, Spennymoor, Todhills, Tudhoe, Woodhouses, and Whitworth (and the associated Whitworth Colliery, Lodge, Hall, House, Park, and Pit).
Whitworth is not indexed by the IGI, so this collection adds greatly to the data available online to Auckland-area researchers. We will follow it shortly with burials for the same period, then earlier baptisms and burials.
Baptisms for 1813, 1815-29, 1834, 1848-55, 1864-73 are from the Bishop’s Transcript; the others years are from the parish register, and many were cross-checked against the GRO birth index for spelling anomalies after 1837. Here are some examples of anomalies that required a little research to understand & index properly:
- 5 Mar 1871 Elizabeth Hotterwell [Ottowell], of Spennymoor, child of Benjamin Hotterwell [Ottowell] (pitman) & Hannah
(This child was christened with the surname Hotterwell, but the GRO index and subsequent censuses show the family as Ottowell.) - 10 Jan 1871 Elizabeth Jane Anderson [Alderson], of Spennymoor, child of Matthew Anderson [Alderson] (pitman) & Margaret
[Note: Anderson in the register, Alderson in the GRO birth index and other baptisms.] - 1 Oct 1815 Mary Waskay [Wascoe], of Durham, daughter of William Waskay [Wascoe] (labourer) & Ann
(We have added Wascoe as an alternate spelling because that is how later children were registered.)
Most entries until the end of 1833 (and a scattered few after that) include mother’s maiden name, which is a great boon to researchers, as maiden names were not required after 1812:
- 22 Nov 1818 Caroline Longstaff, of Byers Green, 2nd daughter of Thomas Longstaff (labourer) & Elizabeth Barnaby [Parnaby]
- 1 Jan 1833 Elizabeth Kinleyside, of Woodhouse, 2nd daughter of John Kinleyside (farmer) & Lucy Gibson