Astbury, Cheshire Genealogy

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

Parish History
ASTBURY (St. Mary), is a parish, that is chiefly in the union of Congleton, consisting of the townships of Eaton and Somerford Booths in the hundred of Macclesfield, and the market-town of Congleton, and the townships of Astbury-Newbold, Buglawton , Davenport , Hulme-Walfield , Moreton with Alcumlow , Odd Rode , Radnor , Smallwood , and Somerford , in the hundred of Northwich, county of Chester. There are also churches or chapels at Congleton, Buglawton, Mossley, Rode, Smallwood, and Somerford; together with several places of worship for dissenters, in the parish. Astbury St Mary is an Ancient parish in Cheshire and originally included Davenport, Eaton, Holy Trinity, Hulme Walfield, Moreton cum Alcumlow, Somerford Radnor, Mossley, Newbold Astbury, Odd Rode, Radnor, Somerford, Somerford Booths, and Mosley.

The first church on the site was in the Saxon era but the present church dates from the 15th century. It is unusual in that its spire is at a distance from the main body of the although although it is attached to it by a porch.

A Saxon church was on the site at the time of the Domesday Book and it was replaced by a Norman church. It was originally the mother church of Congleton.

Find Neighboring Parishes
Use England Jurisdictions 1851 Map
 * Type the name of the parish in the search bar
 * Click on the location pin on the map
 * Choose Options from the pop up box
 * Click "List Contiguous Parishes" to find the neighboring parishes

Church Records
The Church of England (Anglican) became the official state religion in 1534, with the reigning monarch as its Supreme Governor. Non-Conformist refers to all other religious denominations that are not the official state religion.

Church of England
Due to the increasing access of online records: Hover over the collection's title for more information Other Websites These databases have incomplete parish coverage.
 * Individual parish coverage for databases in this table are inconsistent and should be verified
 * Dates in the following table are approximate
 * Joiner Marriage Index - Cheshire ($)
 * The Genealogist Parish Registers - Cheshire ($)
 * UK Websites for Parish Records - Links to online genealogical records
 * Online Genealogical Index - Links to online genealogical records

Non-Conformists (All other Religions)

 * 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)
 * Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
 * Primitive Methodist
 * Society of Friends/Quaker
 * Wesleyan Methodist

Wornish Nook, Methodist Chapel (Wesleyan). Built in 1852. Originally a Primitive Methodist Chapel later Wesleyan.

Non-Conformist Records:

Cheshire Record Office Document Reference EMS 94 Somerford Booths Wornish Nook Methodist Chapel Description Various records1882-91 URL http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/a2a/records.aspx?cat=017-ems94&amp;cid=0

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. 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

 * Congleton (1837–1937)
 * Macclesfield (1937–74)
 * Congleton &amp; Crewe (1974–88)
 * South Cheshire (1988–98)
 * Cheshire West (post1998)

Poor Law Unions

 * Congleton

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
Astbury on GENUKI