England, Staffordshire, Church Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record description
This collection will include images from 1600-1920 of church and school records. This will include baptismal records, and school admission registers. Staffordshire (abbreviated Staffs) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Stafford. The largest city in ceremonial Staffordshire is Stoke-on-Trent. School records are a good resource for genealogists. They generally have the child's name and address and his or her date of birth. Some records will show the name and occupation of the parent or guardian, the name of the previous school attended and the reason for leaving. For immigrant children the name of the previous school may provide the child's place of origin. Siblings of the child may be identified with this information.

Record Content
School records may contain the following information:


 * Name of Child
 * Age and Birthdate of Child
 * Residence
 * Years at Current Address
 * Names of Parents
 * Emergency Contact Information (Relative or Neighbor)

Baptismal Records usually include:


 * Date and Place of Baptism
 * Given Name of Child
 * Date and Place of Birth
 * Parents' Names
 * Occupation of Father
 * Legitimacy of Child and Parents
 * Names of Godparents

How to Use the Record
As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor's given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence, age, and family relationships. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

Search the Collection
To search by image:

To search the collection you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒Select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page ⇒Select the "Province/Department/Island” category ⇒Select the "City/Town” category ⇒Select the "Name of Denomination/Parish” category ⇒Select the “Record Type and Year Range” category which takes you to the images

Search the collection by image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * Titles of parents may be clues to property ownership, occupations, rank, or status within the community.
 * Continue to search the index and records to identify siblings, parents, and other relatives.
 * Be aware that, as with any index, transcription errors may occur.

Unable to Find Your Ancestor?

 * Check for variant spellings of the names, and for possible nick-names.
 * Look for birth places, which can tell you former residences and help to establish a migration pattern for the family.
 * Use the residence and names to locate census records for the time period.
 * Be sure to extract all families before you look at other records. The relationships given will help you to organize family groups. The family groupings will help you identify related families when you discover additional information in other records.
 * Search the records of nearby localities (Cheshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Warwickshire, West Midlands, Worcestershire and Shropshire.)

Related Websites

 * Staffordshire Genealogy
 * Staffordshire Marriages
 * Staffordshire Parish Records
 * England Church Records
 * England and Wales Historic Maps
 * England and Wales History Links

Related Wiki Articles

 * Staffordshire Census
 * Staffordshire Parishes
 * Staffordshire Probate Records
 * Staffordshire
 * England Church Records

Citations for This Collection
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information; that is, cite your sources. This will help people find the record again and evaluate the reliability of the source. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records. Citations are available for the collection as a whole and each record or image individually.

Collection Citation:

Image Citation: