Cumberland, England Genealogy

Cumberland is a maritime and border county in England, bounded on the north by Scotland.

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"CUMBERLAND, a maritime and border county bounded on the N by the Solway frith and Scotland, on the E by Northumberland and Durham, on the SE and S by Westmoreland and Lancashire, and on the W by the Irish sea...

"The county contains 106 parishes and 5 extra-parochial places... eighteen towns are market-towns; and there are upwards of 340 smaller towns, villages, and hamlets... in the diocese of Carlisle. The assizes and the quarter sessions are held at Carlisle...

"The places of worship in 1851 were 161 of the Church of England, 2 of the Church of Scotland, 5 of the English Presbyterian church, 10 of the United Presbyterian church, 24 of Independents, 9 of Baptists, 20 of Quakers, 1 of Unitarians, 96 of Wesleyan Methodists, 23 of Primitive Methodists, 17 of the Wesleyan Association, 2 of Brethren, 7 of isolated congregations, 4 of Latter Day Saints, and 8 of Roman Catholics...

"Pop., in 1801, 117, 230; in 1821, 156, 124; in 1841, 178, 038; in 1861, 205, 276..."

The above extract is from: John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72). For the full account, go to Vision of Britain.

Civil Districts
When civil (government) registration of births, marriages and deaths began in 1837, Cumberland was divided into civil districts, each containing several parishes. Go to a list of Cumberland districts and the parishes they include. Read more about England Civil Registration.

Parishes
Go to a list of the historic parishes of Cumberland with links to articles.

Probate Jurisdictions
Before 1858, every town and parish in Cumberland was under the probate jurisdiction of several ecclesiastical courts. To learn more, go to the article on Cumberland Probate Records.