Stockport, Cheshire Genealogy

England Cheshire  Stockport

Parish History
Historically a part of Cheshire, Stockport in the 16th century was a small town entirely on the southbank of the Mersey, and known for the cultivation of hemp and rope manufacture and in the 18th century the town had one of the first mechanised silk factories in the United Kingdom. However, Stockport's predominant industries of the 19th century were the cotton and allied industries. Stockport was also at the centre of the country's hatting industry which by 1884 was exporting more than six million hats a year. In December 1997 the last Stockport hat works closed. The town's hatting heritage is preserved at 'Hat Works – the Museum of Hatting'.

Stockport was first recorded as "Stokeport" in 1170. The currently accepted etymology is Old English stoc, a market place, with port, a hamlet (but more accurately a minor settlement within an estate); hence, a market place at a hamlet. Older derivations include stock, a stockaded place or castle, with port, a wood, hence a castle in a wood. The castle part of the name probably refers to Stockport Castle, a 12th century motte-and-bailey first mentioned in 1173. Other derivations have been formed, based on early variants of the name such as Stopford and Stockford. There is evidence that a ford across the Mersey existed at the foot of the town centre street now known as Bridge Street Brow. Stopford retains a use in the adjectival form, Stopfordian, used for Stockport-related items, and pupils at Stockport Grammar School style themselves Stopfordians. By contrast, former pupils of nearby Stockport School are known as Old Stoconians. Stopfordian is the general term used for people from Stockport, much as someone from London would be a Londoner.

Stockport has never been a sea or river port. The Mersey is not navigable to anything much above canoe size; in the centre of Stockport it has been culverted and the main shopping street, Merseyway, built above it.

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.

Registration Districts

 * Stockport

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. Contributor: Include here information for parish registers, Bishop’s Transcripts, nonconformist and other types of church records, such as parish chest records. Add the contact information for the office holding the original records. Add links to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection.

Non-Conformist Churches
Stockport has numerous churches and chapels. The principal faiths include:

Stockport, Our Lady and the Apostles (Roman Catholic), Edgeley Road. Founded 1799, rebuilt in 1905. Stockport, St. Joseph (Roman Catholic), Tatton Street. Founded 1851, the present church was Built in 1862. Registers of baptisms 1862–1912, marriages 1863–1934 and burials 1862–1905 are at the Cheshire Record Office. Stockport, St. Michael (Roman Catholic). Registers of baptisms 1851–1895, marriages 1856–1882 and burials 1863–1866 are at the Cheshire Record Office. Stockport, St. Ambrose (Roman Catholic), Adswood Road. Founded 1939. Stockport, Friends' Meeting House (Quakers), Lower Hillgate. Built in 1705. Stockport, United Reform Church (Hanover Chapel) (Independent/Congregational). Records of baptisms 1816–1961 are at the Cheshire Record Office.

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

Poor Law Unions

 * For more information on the history of the workhouse, see Peter Higginbotham's web site: www.workhouses.org.uk and http://www.workhouses.org.uk/index.html?Stockport/Stockport.shtml

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.

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