Farndon, Cheshire Genealogy

Guide to Farndon, Cheshire ancestry, family history, and genealogy: parish registers, transcripts, census records, birth records, marriage records, and death records.

Parish History
FARNDON (St. Chad), is a parish, in the union of Great Boughton, Higher division of the hundred of Broxton, S. division of the county of Chester; it contains the townships of Barton, Churton, Clutton, and Crewe , in the township of Farndon, it is 8 miles S from Chester. This parish is situated on the road to Wrexham, and bounded on the west by the River Dee, which separates it from the county of Denbigh.

Farndon (Welsh:Rhedynfre) is an ancient parish in Cheshire, England. It sits on the River Dee, which forms the border between England and Wales. The parish includes the villages of Barton, Churton by Farndon, Clutton, Crewe (near Farndon) and Farndon itself.

A church was present on the site at the time of the survey for the Domesday Book and it is likely that Saxon churches had previously been there. The base of the tower and the plan of the church date from the 14th century although around 1622 the historian Webb described it as "a fair new church". During the civil war the church was badly damaged. In 1643 it was being used as a barracks for the Parliamentarians under Sir William Brereton when it was attacked by Royalists.

The village of Farndon sits on the border between England and Wales (the actual border is on the bridge which crosses the River Dee and which separates Farndon and the village of Holt in Wales.) Consequently, Farndon has a Welsh name: Rhedynfre. The village was an important place historically and has been a site of conflict and cultural exchange since the Anglo-Saxons settled the area in the 8th century. The border moved numerous times during the following centuries, placing Farndon alternately in Wales and England.

The English name is reported to mean "Fern Hill", and has been given as Fearndune, Farndune, Ferentone, Ferendon, Faryngdon and Ferneton, amongst other variations, since its first mention in 924 AD.

Today, Farndon is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England.

Church Records
Farndon St Chad parish registers of christenings, marriages and burials have been indexed by the following groups:

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.

The following records are deposited at the Record Office:


 * Parish registers for Farndon, 1603-1961. CRO call number: P45/1/1-3, 2, 3/1-2, 4, 5.
 * Bishop's transcripts for Farndon, 1611-1900. CRO call number: EDB 88

The following records are available on microfilm at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City:

Non-Conformist Churches

 * 1717 England & Wales, Roman Catholics, 1717 at FindMyPast ($), index and images (coverage may vary)
 * 1671-1900 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index (dates may vary by parish)
 * Farndon, Rock Chapel (Independent/Congregational). Founded 1889.

Civil Registration
Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from 1 July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. Here are two excellent Internet sites with birth, marriage and death indexes available:


 * FreeBMD
 * Cheshire BMD

Registration Districts

 * Great Boughton (1837–69)
 * Chester (1871–1937)
 * West Cheshire (1937–74)
 * Chester and Ellesmere Port (1974–98)
 * Cheshire East (1998+)

Poor Law Unions

 * Great Boughton (1837–71)
 * Tarvin (1871–1930) Tarvin (previously Great Boughton) Poor Law Union, Cheshire

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.

see also England Cheshire Probate Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

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

Websites
Farndon on GENUKI