Rocester, Staffordshire Genealogy

England Staffordshire



Parish History
Rocester St Michael is an Ancient Parish in the county of Staffordshire. Other places in the parish include: Combridge, Denstone, Stubwood, Rocester Green, and Quixhill.

ROCESTER (St. Michael), a parish, in the union of Uttoxeter, S. division of the hundred of Totmonslow, N. division of the county of Stafford, 4½ miles (N. by E.) from Uttoxeter; containing 1136 inhabitants. This parish, anciently called Rocetter, or Roucestre, comprises about 2370 acres; the soil is very good, consisting for the most part of rich meadow and pasture. The Churnet and Dove rivers unite a little below the village: in 1838, an act was obtained for building a bridge over the latter. A canal from Uttoxeter to the Potteries passes here, by which coal and lime are brought for the supply of the neighbourhood, as also goods from Liverpool and Manchester. A large cotton-mill built by Sir Richard Arkwright is now employed for doubling lacethread. The living is a perpetual curacy, valued in the king's books at £4; net income, £69; patron, George Alsop, Esq.; appropriators, the Dean and Canons of Windsor. The church, an ancient edifice, has been enlarged. There are places of worship for Baptists and Methodists: and a national school. An abbey for Black canons, in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary, was founded here in 1146 by Richard Bacoun, the revenue of which at the Dissolution was valued at £111. 11. 7.: no traces now remain.

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
Rocester St Michael Ancient parish

Deposited parish registers at Staffordshire Record Office Bap 1564-1812 Mar 1564-1812 Bur 1564-1812 Post 1812 registers are with incumbent the church. Lichfield Record Office holdings of Bishop's Transcripts Bap 1674-1868 Mar 1674-1842 Bur 1674-1868 Missing Bap/Bur 181848-1850, 1853-1855

Include here information for parish registers, Bishop’s Transcripts 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

Census records
Include an overview if there is any unique information, such as the census for X year was destroyed. Add a link to online sites for indexes and/or images. Also add a link to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection.

Poor Law Unions
Uttoxeter Poor Law Union, Staffordshire

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Staffordshire 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
Add any relevant sites that aren’t mentioned above.