St Dunstan in the East, London Genealogy

London St Dunstan in the East ancestry, family history, and genealogy research page. Guide to parish registers, transcripts, census records, birth records, marriage records, and death records.

Parish History
Originally built about 1100, over the next several hundred years, additions and repairs to the church were conducted. In 1817, the building was torn down and rebuilt, re-opening in 1821. The church was severally damaged in the Blitz of 1941, and following the war it was decided to turn the ruins into a public garden rather then rebuild. St Dunstan in the East is now combined with the parish of Benefice of All Hallows by the Tower, although open-air services are held occasionally at St Dunstan in the East.

Timeline

 * 1100 - church built
 * 1666 - church severely damaged by Great Fire of London
 * 1668-1671 - church repaired
 * 1817-1821 - church rebuilt
 * 1941 - church severely damaged in London Blitz
 * 1971 - church ruins converted into a public garden

1831 description
"St Dunstan in the East, the church of, is situated between Idol Lane and St. Dunstan's Hill, Tower Street, the latter of which is carried from the south side of the lofty tower and spire of the church southwards into Thames Street opposite the eastern wing of the customhouse. The ancient Church was damaged by the great fire of 1666, and was shortly after repaired but the elegant spire and tower were not finished till 1699. The body of the Church, having been only repaired by Sir Christopher Wren, having fallen into much decay, it was taken down and rebuilt in 1821... The patronage of this living was anciently in the prior and canons of Canterbury, who in 1365 granted it to Simon Islip, their archbishop and his successors. It is directory, and one of the 13 peculiar churches of the arch episcopal see of Canterbury."

1848 description: St. Dunstan in the East is a parish of the city of London Within the Walls. The patron is the Archbishop of Canterbury. It is a parish within the poor-law union of the City of London.

Additional jurisdictions
St Dunstan in the East was part of Tower Ward.

Published histories
A history of the parish was published in 1860:


 * Murray, Thomas Boyles. Chronicles of a City Church; Being an Account of the Parish Church of St. Dunstan in the East, In the City of London: With Short Biographical Notices of Eminent Persons Connected with the Church and Parish. London: Smith, Elder, and Co., 1859. Digitized by Google Books.

Church records
Publications of the Harleian Society Parish Register Series has published the parish registers from 1558 through 1758 (burials up to 1766).

Webb published an index to burials for the years 1813 to 1853.

James Greenstreet, Honorary Secretary of the Pipe Roll Society, published abstracts of early marriages:


 * 1605-1625 - Greenstreet, James. "Parish Register of St. Dunstan in the East, London, England, 1605-1625 - Marriages," The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, 1605-1611: Vol. 25, No. 4 (Oct. 1894):194-196; 1611-1616: Vol. 26, No. 1 (Jan. 1895):21-24; 1616-1625: Vol. 26, No. 3 (Jul. 1895):110-114. Digital version at New York Family History (£); . Internet Archive has digitized Vol. 25 and Vol. 26 - free.

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.

1564 Subsidy



 * St Dunstan in the East, Tower Ward, London (The National Archives, Ref: E179/145/201); copy:.

1577 Subsidy

 * 1576 London Subsidy Roll, St Dunstans Mary Barking St Olyves and Allhallowes at Alan H. Nelson website (The National Archives, Ref: E179/145/252)
 * St Dunstan in the East, All Hallows Barking, St Olave, Hart Street, and All Hallows Staining, Tower Ward, London (The National Archives, Ref: E179/145/252); copy:.

1582 Subsidy

 * 1582 London Subsidy Roll, Tower Ward - St Dunstan in the East Parish at British History Online

1621 Subsidy

 * St Dunstan in the East, Tower Ward, London (The National Archives, Ref: E179/147/501); copy:.

1638 Inhabitants List

 * Inhabitants of London in 1638 - St. Dunstans in the Eastat British History Online

1666 Hearth Tax

 * Hearth Tax: City of London 1666 - St Dunstan in the Eastat British History Online

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.

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish.

Court of the Deanery of the Arches of London, Croydon, and Shoreham probate records are available online at for free.

Before 1858, probate matters for St Dunstan in the East residents were handled by the Court of the Deanery of the Arches.

Go to London Probate Records to find the name of the court having secondary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Cemetery




A survey of monumental inscriptions published in 1860 is available online. (begins on page 52)

Records of the Poor
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

Websites

 * London Family History Centre Catalogue (St Dunstan in the East Parish Church records)
 * Sketch of St Dunstan in the East Parish Churchat London Ancestor
 * (to narrow results, conduct a subject search for 'London St Dunstan in the East')