Dear Spiders
This has just came up on a family history discussion group.
It's from an article in 'The London Times' of 22nd.May 1830.
Just a matter of interest. The article is a review of a book entitled
'The History of Parish Registers' by John Southerden Burn.
'Parish registers commenced in England in consequence of the
injunction of Lord Cromwell in 1538 (some think earlier): but few
entries are to be found of this date. The destruction of these
valuable records took place chiefly in the Puritan times, when they
were used in lighting the pipes of the soldiers quartered in the
churches. Of those which escaped, Mr.Burn says that "some are
miserably defective, some having the appearance of being kept
regularly from month to month and year to year, yet being deficient of
a great many entries: others having a break of several years together;
while a third class are written with a carelessness amounting to
little better than a total neglect of registry."
Dr.Burnaby, inquiring for the register of a certain parish, was told
that they had only a modern one; that the other was old, out of date,
and of no use, for the people could not read it; so it had been tossed
about the church, and at length torn to pieces by the children. In
another parish, the register was used (perhaps for the same reason -
it's antiquity) by the daughters of the parish clerk, who were
lace-makers, and cut it up for the sake of the parchment.'
Brenda in Allhallows, Kent
http://paternoster.orpheusweb.co.uk/index.html
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