Esh, Durham Genealogy

England Durham



Parish History
Esh was created as a parish from the ancient parish of Lanchester, Durham and had an old chapelry on the site until the church of St Michael was built in 1770, rebuilding the chapelry and forming a parish. Ushaw, Ushaw Moor,Esh Village,Esh Winning and Langley Park are within the parish and subsequent parishes were created from within the parish.

ESH, or ASH, a chapelry, in the parish and union of Lanchester, W. division of Chester ward, N. division of the county of Durham, 5 miles (W. N. W.) from Durham; containing 518 inhabitants. The manor gave name, at a very early period, to a family of considerable local consequence, who held the estate, with little interruption, from the middle of the 13th century till the time of Henry VIII.; it afterwards came, among other families, to the Smythes. The chapelry comprises 1123a. 1r. 6p., of which 461 acres are pasture, 617 arable, and 44 waste: the village occupies the centre of the heights between the vales of Browney and Derness. At Walls-Nook, a hamlet in the chapelry, are a flourmill and an iron-foundry. Esh Hall, the deserted seat of the Smythes, of whom Sir Edward, the first baronet, most probably erected it, is a long irregular building fronting the south, and shaded by a grove of old sycamore-trees. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Bishop of Durham; net income, £190. The tithes have been commuted for £77. 16. 6.; there is a glebe of 20 acres. The chapel, dedicated to St. Michael, was almost entirely rebuilt in 1770, and consists of a narrow nave and chancel, and of a south porch, which opens under a low pointed arch. There is a Roman Catholic chapel in the village; and at a short distance to the east is the Roman Catholic College of Ushaw

From: 'Erith - Essex', A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 181-186. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=50950 Date accessed: 26 March 2011.

Civil Registration
Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

Church records
To find the names of the neighbouring parishes, use England Jurisdictions 1851. In this site, search for the name of the parish, click on the location "pin", click Options and click List contiguous parishes. Durham University Library Archives and Special Collection Reference number: DDR/EA/PBT/2/103 Date: March 1795 Contents: Including transcripts from Satley, August 1796-August 1797, 1802, 1820 DDR/EA/PBT/2/219 Related material at DULASC: Some Esh transcripts May 1763-1803 are included with Lanchester transcripts DDR/EA/PBT/2/164 Related materials (elsewhere): Transcripts for 1709-1710 are among the Durham Bishop's Transcripts: The Howe Manuscript Collection Parish Register transcripts are available to search free online at FamilySearch Historical Records. The transcripts May 1763-1867 should be considered along Lanchester transcripts which include Esh transcripts for May 1763-1807. Esh is also included Durham Bishop's Transcripts: The Howe Manuscript Collection

Transcripts for Satley County Durham for the years August 1796- August 1797,1802,1820 are also included (see also the Satley transcripts)

The dates of the post-1760 transcripts have been noted in detail and sometimes only cover years. For most parishes in the collection there are gaps in the sequence of transcripts. It is advisable to consult the original parish registers for these years and events. The Parish Registers for the period 1567-1981 are deposited at Durham County Record Office, County Hall, Durham, DH1 5UL (EP/Esh).

FamilySearch Historical Records includes England, Durham Diocese, Marriage Bonds and Allegations (FamilySearch Historical Records)

Poor Law Unions
Lanchester Poor Law Union,Durham

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Durham Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Maps and Gazetteers
Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.


 * England Jurisdictions 1851
 * Vision of Britain

Web sites
Contributor: add any relevant sites that aren’t mentioned above.