Chester Cathedral, Cheshire Genealogy

England Cheshire  Cheshire Parishes Chester Cathedral

Parish History
The city comprises the parishes of St. Bridget, containining 675 inhabitants; St. John the Baptist, 6752;Little St. John, extra-parochial; St. Martin, 532; St.Michael, 649; St. Olave, 430; and St. Peter, 847;part of the parishes of St. Mary on the Hill, 2975, St.Oswald, 5959, and the Holy Trinity, 3340; and theprecinct of the Cathedral Close, 329. The living of St.Bridget's is a rectory not in charge, with that of St.Martin's; net income, £150; patron, the Bishop. Thechurch, lately rebuilt, is a chaste and elegant structureof the Doric order; towards its erection the BridgeCommittee gave £4000, and the parishioners £500.The living of St. John the Baptist's is a vicarage not incharge; net income, £237; patron and impropriator,the Marquess of Westminster. The church, formerlycollegiate, and, on the removal of the see of Lichfield toChester by Bishop Peter, used as the cathedral, consistsof the nave and portions of the transepts of the ancientcruciform structure, of which the eastern part has beenlong destroyed. The nave has massive Norman piers,with a triforium and clerestory of early English character; the north porch, in the same style, is very beautiful: the tower, a fine composition though greatly mutilated, is detached from the church by the shortening ofthe western part of the nave. Little St. John's is a perpetual curacy; net income, £164; patrons, the Mayorand Corporation, who, by the Municipal Corporations'act, were directed to dispose of the advowson. Theliving of St. Michael's is a perpectual curacy, with thatof St. Olave's; net income, £173; patron, the Bishop.St. Peter's is a discharged perpetual curacy, valued inthe king's books at £6. 13. 4.; net income, £120;patron, the Bishop. The living of the parish of St.Mary on the Hill is a rectory, valued in the king's booksat £52, and in the gift of the Marquess of Westminster:the tithes have been commuted for £400. The churchis a venerable building, in the later style of Englisharchitecture. St. Oswald's is a discharged vicarage, withthe chapelry of Churton-Heath annexed, valued in theking's books at £8. 18. 4.; net income, £245; patrons,the Dean and Chapter. The church is formed of thesouth transept of the cathedral. The living of theparish of the Holy Trinity is a discharged rectory, valuedin the king's books at £8. 15. 6.; net income, £290;patron, the Earl of Derby: the tithes have been commuted for £245. An additional church, dedicated toSt. Paul, has been erected at Boughton, of which theliving is a perpetual curacy; net income, £60; patron,the Vicar of St. John's. In New Town, likewise, is achurch, dedicated to Christ, built in 1835: the living isa perpetual curacy in the gift of the Bishop, with a netincome of £150. There are places of worship for Baptists, the Society of Friends, the Connexion of theCountess of Huntingdon, Independents, Welsh andWesleyan Methodists, New Connexion of Methodists,Sandemanians, Unitarians, and Roman Catholics.

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 a nd death indexes available:


 * FreeBMD
 * Cheshire BMD

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.

Chester Cathedral (C of E). Dedicated to St. Werburgh. Registers of Baptisms 1688–1958, Marriages 1688–1754 &amp; 1869–1998 and Burials 1688–1896 have been deposited at the Cheshire Record Office.Cheshire Record Office reference: EDB 50

Here is a list of church records on microfilm at theFamily History Library(FHL) in Salt Lake City.

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
Contributor: Add information about the pertinent poor law unions in the area.

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