Seaton Carew, Durham Genealogy

England Durham



Parish History
Holy Trinity Seaton Carew was formed as parish from the ancient parish of Stranton Stranton, Durham in 1841 and was previously a chapelry within Stranton.

SEATON-CAREW, a township and ecclesiastical district, in the parish of Stranton, union of Stockton, N. E. division of Stockton ward, and S. division of the county of Durham, 3 miles (S. by W.) from Hartlepool, and 10 (N. E. by N.) from Stockton; containing 588 inhabitants. The township comprises 2870 acres, of which 590 are common or waste. The surface is generally level, but with fine views of the Cleveland hills, the towns of Redcar and Hartlepool, the mouth of the Tees, and the bold headlands of Huntcliff, and Rowcliff; and in clear weather the eye can reach nearly as far as Whitby. The village is much resorted to during the bathing season; the sands are firm and level to an extent of several miles, affording great convenience for bathing. The Stockton and Hartlepool railway passes through the vicinity by an embankment of puddled clay, which has effectually resisted the inroads of the sea: there is a station a quarter of a mile from the village. Here was a chapel dedicated to St. Thomas à Becket, the site of which is still called Chapel-opening. The present church was built in 1831, and a chancel added in 1842, with a burialground, the whole cost being £1600; it is in the early English style, with a square tower, and has an eastern window of stained glass, executed by Wailes, of Newcastle, after a window in York cathedral. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £ 120; patron and incumbent, the Rev. John Lawson. The tithes have been commuted for £131 payable to the impropriator, and £105 to the vicar of Stranton. There are places of worship for Wesleyans and the Society of Friends.

From: 'Seaton - Sedgwick', A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 40-44. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51262 Date accessed: 27 March 2011.

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.

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.

Durham University Library Archives and Special Collections DDR/EA/PBT/2/221 1833-1879Parish Register transcripts are available to search free online at FamilySearch Historical Records.

The dates of the post-1760 transcripts have been noted in detail and sometimes only cover years. For most parishes in the collection there are gaps in the sequence of transcripts. It is advisable to consult the original parish registers for these years and events.

The Parish Registers for the period 1831-1937 are deposited at Durham County Record Office, County Hall, Durham, DH1 5UL (EP/SC).

FamilySearch Historical Records includes England, Durham Diocese, Marriage Bonds and Allegations (FamilySearch Historical Records)

Poor Law Unions
Stockton Poor Law Union, Durham

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Durham Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

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

Web sites
Contributor: add any relevant sites that aren’t mentioned above.