Replaced the Chester-le-Street baptism index for 1650-1699 with full entries so those 4,959 baptisms are now instantly available, including 4 new records we missed the first time around.

Abodes are mentioned in 90% of these baptisms. Abodes mentioned besides Chester-le-Street included Barras Hill, Barras Lane, Battles Green, Biddick, Birtley, Bogglehole, Broadmires, Burnt Moor, Chester Burn, Chester Deanery, Dam End, Durham City, Edmondsley, Farside or Fawside, Fatfield, Findon Hill, Floaters Mill, Foulbridge House, Garden House, Great Lumley, Hagg, Harbour House, Harraton, Harraton Outside, Holmside, Howlmire, Lambton, Lane House, Lumley, Lumley Castle, Lumley Park, Lumley Thicks, Marley Head, Nettlesworth, New Bridge, Newfield, Ouston, Pelaw, Pelton, Picktree, Plawsworth & Plawsworth Mill, Pockerley, Rickleton, Ryton Gate, Sunnyside, Tribley, Twizell, Urpeth & Urpeth Mill & Urpeth Pits, Waldridge, Waterside, West Lane, Wheatley & Wheatley Swangs, Whitehall & Whitehall Mill, and Woodstone House.

Mothers (other than single mothers and widows) are not mentioned at all.

Samples:

• 28 Jul 1650 James Aude, of Chester-le-Street, son of John Aude
• 21 Nov 1675 Eleanor Bayliffe, of Lumley Park, daughter of John Bayliffe
• 14 Sep 1680 Margaret Clerk, of Chester-le-Street, illegitimate daughter of Aaron Shaftoe & Elizabeth Clerk
• 16 Jul 1699 William Harbottle, of Broadmires, son of William Harbottle (junior)

2,524 baptisms at Bishopwearmouth St. Michael & All Angels in Sunderland district, covering 1813-1820. Also included are 15 baptisms that occurred between 1802 and 1812 but were not entered in the register until 1815-1818, so we did not discover them until we had made our way through this section of the register. If you have been unable to find a baptism that you think should be here in the 1802-1812 period, it’s worth checking again. For example, this baptism was entered nearly 10 years after the child’s birth:

• 15 Jun 1809 Michael Jackson, of Walton Place, born 15-May 1808, son of Richard (grocer) & Elizabeth Jackson
  [Note: entered in February 1818.]

This gets the award for yummiest street name:

• 16 Jan 1820 Thomas Punshon, of Pudding Skin Lane, son of William (labourer) & Sarah Punshon

and here is the most elaborate father’s name:

• 21 Jul 1819 Matilda Eliza Hughes, of Hopper Street, daughter of Provo Featherstonhaugh Hughes (lieutenant in the Navy) & Elizabeth

and here’s a random sampling:

• 10 Jan 1813 Hannah Carr, of Hilton [Hylton] Ferry, daughter of Hilton (shipwright) & Isabella Carr
• 6 Mar 1815 Robert William Fenwick, of Field House, son of Robert (brewer) & Margaret Fenwick
• 5 Apr 1820 Henry Moss Dixon, of Wearmouth, son of John Moss & Alice Dixon (single woman)
  [Note: the father's name is crossed out.]

In the last one, although the father’s name was crossed out, we have included it, because it was readable and it probably is correct, based on the child’s middle name being Moss. Most likely the clerk felt he should cross it out because it was not usual to include the father’s name in the baptisms of illegitimate children. There are several other baptisms like this, with crossed-out fathers, and also a couple of baptisms where the mother’s maiden name was included and then crossed out, so of course we have included it with an explanatory note.

Residences mentioned are mostly streets in Bishopwearmouth, but also include Ayres Quay, Bainbridge Holm, Barley Mow, Bedlington, Boldon, Burdon, Claxheugh, Crow Trees, Deptford, Diamond Hall, Farrington Hall, Field House, Fletcher’s Dub, Ford, Fulwell, Glebe House, Grange, Grindon, Hendon, High Barnes, High Pallion, Hilton or Hylton Ferry, Humbleton Hills, Hylton, Littlegate, Low Barnes, Low Grange, Low Pallion, Middle Hendon, Millfield, Monkwearmouth, North Moor, Old Burdon, Pallion, Panns, Rectors Gill, Red House, Ryhope, Silksworth, Southwick, Southwick Boat, Sunderland, Sunniside, Thornhill, Thristley House, Tunstall, Usley Hill House, Wearmouth (Bishopwearmouth), Wellington Farm or House, and White Heugh.

Replaced the Chester-le-Street baptism index for 1582-1649 with full entries so those 3,433 baptisms are now instantly available, including 4 new records we missed the first time around.

Abodes mentioned besides Chester-le-Street included Birtley, Boat House, Broom Holme, Durham City, Edmondsley, Fawside, Findon Hill, Floaters Mill, Foulbridge House, Great Lumley, Hagg, Harraton, Harraton Coal Works, Howlmire, Lambton, Lambton Coal Works, Lambton Grounds, Lambton Wood, Langley Hall, Littleburn, Lumley, Lumley Castle, Lumley Park, Marley Head, Nettlesworth, Newcastle, Ouston, Park House, Pelaw, Pelton, Picktree, Plawsworth, Pockerley, Rickleton, Sunnyside, Twizell, Urpeth, Waldridge, Wheatley Swangs, Whickham, Whitehall, Whithill Mill, and Woodstone House.

Mothers (other than unwed mothers of illegitimate children) are not mentioned except between 1633 and 1636 when some mothers are named. Abodes are mentioned in just under half of these baptisms, with no real pattern as to when they are mentioned – they seem to occur in clumps over the years; some earlier years have more baptisms with abodes than later years.

Samples:

• 4 Nov 1582 Agnes Hindmers, daughter of Thomas Hindmers
• 25 Apr 1586 Robert [Ladley/Adamson], illegitimate son of Bryan Adamson (cleric) & Margaret Ladley
• 28 Aug 1603 William Hallyman, of Lumley Castle, son of Martin Hallyman
• 10 Feb 1620 Catherine Story, daughter of Luke Story
• 9 Mar 1620 Ralph [Hall/Cotsworth], illegitimate son of a stranger supposed Christopher Hall (John Cotsworth) (to a woman came from Richmond but it proved they both was servants to Mrs Lewins of Hutton in the Hole)
• 11 Oct 1635 John Peele, son of Christopher & Mary Peele
• 5 Jul 1640 George Vicars, of Edmondsley, son of Thomas Vicars
• 21 Aug 1649 Ralph Marley, of Picktree, son of Robert Marley

1,554 baptisms and 1,352 burials at St. Giles in the city of Durham, covering 1848-1857, from the Bishop’s Transcript with some checking against the parish register. Residences mentioned include Bells Villa, Belmont, Broomside, Carrville, Claypath, Dragon Villa, Ellis Leazes House, Elvet, Framwellgate, Gilesgate, Gilesgate Moor, Grange Colliery, Grange Wood Houses, Kepier, Leazes Place, Liddells Row, Lodge Hill, Low Grange Colliery, Moor End, New Durham, Sands, St. Giles, St. Nicholas parish, West Sherburn, Wood Row, and Woodwell House.

In the baptisms, we found an unusual occupation:

• 31 Dec 1848 Ann Elizabeth Boyd, of Gilesgate, child of William (coffee roaster) & Louisa Boyd

and a pair of unusual parent names:

• 30 Dec 1856 Sampson Lee, of Church Lane, child of Righteous (grinder) & Carnation Lee

and a strange error:

• 22 Jul 1850 Leonard Tones [Stones], of New Durham, child of William (pitman) & Phoebe Tones [Stones]
  [Note: Tones in the baptism register and GRO birth index, Stones in the 1851 census and other baptisms in this parish to these parents.]

Here are some sample burials:

• 7 Jan 1848 Thomas Elsbury, of Gilesgate, age: 77
• 23 Sep 1853 Robert Stokoe, of Liddells Row, age: 40, cholera
• 25 Oct 1855 William Dougherty, age: unknown, taken out of the Wear on the Sands, drowned. Coroners Order.
• 15 Apr 1857 John Lightfoot, of Bede Houses, Queen Street, age: 85, parish Clerk of St. Mary South Bailey more than 60 years

651 baptisms and 727 burials at Norton St. Mary  in Stockton district, covering 1762-1791, from the parish register with some amendments from the Bishop’s Transcript, which had a few entries that were not in the original registers.

Sample baptisms – there are very few abodes or occupations in these, and very few mothers before 1777, when mothers start to be named in most baptisms:

• 15 Apr 1762 Jane Middleton, daughter of Capt. Christopher Middleton
• 19 Dec 1777 Charlotte Kitching, born Dec 11, daughter of James Benjamin Kitching & Ann
• 3 Apr 1782 Grace Martha Johnson, daughter of Reverend George (B.D. Vicar of Norton) & Isabella Johnson (his wife)
• 16 Jan 1791 John Arrowsmith, son of Thomas & Mary Arrowsmith

Sample burials – starting in 1786, most have ages, but not all:

• 22 Feb 1762 Robert Almoney, son of Robert Almoney
• 15 Feb 1770 Christopher Middleton, Master & Commander in the Royal Navy
• 25 Feb 1784 Jane Reah, age: 106, widow, P [poor]
• 10 Jun 1791 Edward Rowell, age: 46, killed by a bull at Cowpen
• 2 Dec 1791 Martha Gowland, wife of George Gowland

The few residences mentioned include Billingham, Blakiston Hall, Durham, Hartburn, Kelloe, Portrack, Stockton, Thorpe, and Wolviston.

Updated 2,428 baptisms at Easington St. Mary the Virgin by adding the abodes, father’s occupations, and birth dates where present in the register, and correcting errors. If you have purchased any baptisms at Easington in this period, we recommend you take another look at them to see if anything has been changed. You can review your purchased records by logging into Durham Records Online and clicking My Previous Orders in the menu at the left side of the page and looking for baptisms in Easington district between 1813 and 1851. Most errors that were corrected were minor spelling errors in names or abodes. If you purchased a record that had a more significant error, the corrected record has been emailed to you.

Sample before the update:

• 15 Jul 1835 William Angus, son of Job & Mary Angus
  

and after the update:

• 15 Jul 1835 William Angus, of South Hetton, son of Job (enginewright) & Mary Angus
  

If you have been unable to find somebody who should have been baptized at Easington in this period, please search again – we may have had their name transcribed incorrectly earlier, and now you might find them. Remember to use wildcards when searching, especially in place of vowels – for example, “f%st%r” will find Foster, Forster, Forrester, Forstar, Fewster, Fuster, and Feustur. You might even want to put a wildcard at the end to catch any spellings such as Forrestiere.

In our “spare” time, we will continue to update our baptisms that are currently “extracts” (typically these are in Easington district and are missing father’s occupation, abode, and birthdates).

618 burials at Satley St. Cuthbert in Lanchester district, covering 1852-1895. Residences mentioned include Badajoz, Blackfield, Broadwood, Broomshields, Browney Bank, Burn Hill, Byerley House, Castleside, Colepike Hall, Cornsay, Cornsay Alms Houses, Cowsley Cottages, Dean House, East Butsfield, East Edmondsley, East Hedley Hope, Eliza, Field House, Gladdow, Greenfield Cottages, Hedley Hill, Heighth, Hermitage, High Alder Heads, High Stoop, Hill Top, Inkerman, Knitsley, Lanchester, Lark Cottage, Lark House, Lesson Grove, Lodge House, Low Fell, Low Hermitage, Lyerdean, Prospect, Quickburn Cottage, Rare Dean, Salter’s Gate, Satley, Satley Grove, Satley Villa, Springwell, Stamfordham (Northumberland), Steeley Green, Stonefoot Hill, Stow House, Stuartfield Lodge, Sunniside, The Moor Cock, Tow Law, Travellers Rest, Waskerley and Waskerley Park, West Butsfield, West Carr, Wheatley Grange, Wolsingham, and Woodburn.

No burials were recorded in 1852 before May 14th, and no burials were recorded in 1864 before June 6th; we do not know whether at those times the church was under repair, or the parishioners were exceptionally healthy, or what was going on. Here are some sample burials:

• 11 Jun 1852 David Scarth, of Cornsay, age: 69
• 6 Apr 1878 Jane Richardson, of Wester Heugh, Stamfordham, age: 89
• 19 Oct 1886 Isabella Starforth, of Lanchester Workhouse, age: 78
• 24 Dec 1893 Thomas Duck, of Hedley Hill, age: 80

Replaced the index to marriage bonds in the years 1775-1779 with full details, so those 2,320 records are now instantly available, including 2 new bonds that we had missed the first time around.

Marriage bonds often provide ages, occupations, and place of residence for the bride and groom (and sometimes a parent of a minor) during a period when marriage registers did not provide that information. Please read the Marriage Bonds section of the Transcription Samples page for a description of what information is found in bonds, allegations, and associated documents, and how we present that information. Here are some samples:

•  2 Jan 1775 Joseph Proud (yeoman), age 22, of Sedgefield obtained a licence to marry Ann Beacroft, age 22, of Auckland St.Andrew, directed to Auckland St.Andrew
  Surety: George Sowler, printer, of New Elvet, Durham City
• 27 Dec 1779 Christopher Wilkinson (esquire), age 27, of St.Andrew, Newcastle-upon-Tyne obtained a licence to marry Mary Soulsby, age 22, of Ryton, directed to Ryton
  Surety: Isaac Cookson, esquire, of Newcastle-upon-Tyne
  [Note: married 27 Dec at Ryton.]

Note that “age 21” generally means “21 and upwards” in these documents.

Marriage bonds cover the entire Diocese of Durham i.e. Durham, Northumberland, North Yorkshire. There are a few licences in our collection that were issued by the Diocese of York. Because bonds cover the whole diocese, there is no way to limit your search of bonds to a single district. If you select a district from the District menu, your selection will be ignored when the marriage bonds database is searched.

2,653 burials at Hartlepool Old Cemetery, also known as Borough Cemetery, Hart Warren, and Spion Kop, covering 1895-1900. Besides street addresses in Hartlepool, abodes mentioned include Middleton, Sands, Stranton, Sunniside, Throston, and West Hartlepool.

Because these are municipal cemetery records rather than church burial records, they present many more genealogically useful details. Most of these burials provide the occupation of the deceased, or a parent or spouse’s name. Some give information about how or where the person died. Unlike some earlier records here, the clerk went back to writing full names instead of just initials for given names of spouses and parents.

Here are some sample burials:

• 31 Aug 1895 Jesse Stokes, of 1 Cleveland Lane, age: 90, hawker
• 4 Aug 1896 Catherine Jacob, of 25 Albert Street, age: 18, daughter of John & Catherine Jacob
• 21 Mar 1897 Frank Parker, of [blank abode], age: 62, ballast crane clerk, missing since January 22, found drowned
• 15 Jun 1897 Ann Coward, of 4 Blandford Street, age: 79, wife of Richard Coward, body brought from Throston parish
• 14 Feb 1900 Joseph Ellison Sellars, of 3 St Helen’s Place, age: 76, clay pipe maker
• 5 Dec 1900 Ann Kane, of [blank abode], age: 101, spinster, died at the Union Workhouse, body brought from Throston parish

796 burials at Hamsterley St. James in Auckland district, covering 1820-1856, to go with the recent addition of Hamsterley baptisms for the same period. Although no longer required after the end of 1812, many of these burials named a parent, spouse, or occupation, and some showed cause of death, for which we are grateful to the long-ago clerk.

Here are some of the more dramatic deaths:

• 15 May 1833 George Wright, of Southside, age: 39, killed by the accidental firing of a gun in his own possesion
• 17 Mar 1853 Jane Sewell, of South Side, age: 81, murdered by her son in a fit of derangement
• 4 Aug 1856 Mary Stephenson, of Crane Row, age: 17, died suddenly from diarrhea accelerated by fright

and here’s an interesting fellow:

• 25 Feb 1826 William Naylor, of Redmire, age: 67, Noted Highwayman & House Breaker

A dozen children died of scarlet fever between 1832 and 1840, eight people died of smallpox in the first few months of 1839, plus there was some typhus fever in 1828 and several drownings.