Nonconformist Church Records Nonconformist Defined Timeline of

Nonconformist Church Records

Phillip Dunn, England AG

dunnpb@familysearch.org

Nonconformist Defined

Catholicism was the main religion in England until 1534 when King Henry VIII severed all ties to

the Pope in Rome, and then began the Church of England. Those who chose not to conform to

the beliefs and teachings of and to attend services in the Church of England were considered

Nonconformists. In spite of persecution Nonconformists –including Catholics,

(papists/recusants), Dissenters/Puritans (Congregationalist/Independent, Presbyterians,

Baptists) all conducted their own rites and kept their own records as much as allowed. Not all

Nonconformist registers survive or were consistently kept, but existing, surviving registers are

now mostly available online. View a list of each denomination name and its various branches

and respective nicknames: wiki.familysearch.org/; type “England Non-conformist Churches”

Timeline of Non-Conformity

1300s-1400s

• 1324-1385- John Wyclif translates Bible into English; a spiritual revolution begins

• The Renaissance, new learning, ideas, and creative expression

1500s-

• Protestant Reformation: Martin Luther, Guttenberg, John Calvin, William Tyndale’s

English translation of the Bible – complete set of the Biblical stories of Christ thrill and

inspire deeper feelings in worship and spiritual dedication

• 1534- England Protestantism arises, Catholic Church severed, and the Church of

England established.

• 1534- Act of Supremacy: All Englishmen owes support to the Church of England.

• 1568- Puritans split into the Separatists and the Presbyterians (established through

teachings of John Calvin).

• 1581- Independents/Congregationalists evolve from the Separatists.

1600s-

• 1612- First Baptist Church was organized

• 1620- Many Nonconformists/ separatists leave for the New World on the Mayflower and

other ships.

• 1642-1660- England Civil War. Nonconformists enjoyed a large degree of religious

freedom; still many emigrate (New England).

• 1652- Society of Friends or Quakers began by George Fox

• 1654- Quaker records begin

• 1660- Puritans were suppressed by Charles II. Many more emigrate to New England

• 1664- Conventicle Act was passed. Prohibited Nonconformists from building their own

chapels or holding open air meetings in or near a town.

• 1672- Declaration of Indulgence. Allowed Protestant Nonconformists to apply for

licenses for meeting houses and preaching.

• 1673- Test Act passed. Penal Laws disallowed Nonconformists from public offices

• 1680’s- Independents and Baptist records began

• 1689- Act of Toleration. Prior to this act it was compulsory to attend the Church of

England services.

• 1695-1705- Marriage Duty Act. Anglican clergy were required to register the births of any

children in their parish who were not baptized. This included many Nonconformists.

• Very few Nonconformist registers survive in this time period.

1700s-

• 1711-1715- The Occasional Conformity Bill was passed and later repealed. Protestant

Nonconformists running for public office had to partake of the Church of England

sacrament once a year.

• 1735- Wesleyan Methodists began with founders John Wesley and Charles Wesley

• 1738- Welsh Calvinistic Methodist movement began-within the established church

• 1754-1837- all were required to marry in the Church of England with the exception of

Quakers and Jews.

• 1778- Catholics felt safer to keep records

• 1791- More than 100,000 Wesleyan Methodists; separation from Church of England;

some registers began

• Many Nonconformists registers survive

1800s-

• Nonconformity grows due to the Industrial Revolution. Ten to twenty percent of religious

attendees were Nonconformists—depending on county and town or city.

• 1829- Catholic Emancipation Act passed giving Catholics access to all political and civil

rights. Greater religious freedom commences from this time, forward.

• 1837- Civil birth, marriage, and death records begin. Mormonism introduced in

July,1837; by 1851: 50,000 converts; Nonconformist marriages permitted in chapels or in

presence of or by a civil registrar; all Nonconformist registers called for/demanded by

Public Record Office; sent to London. By this time, Preston and Liverpool, Lancashire,

Northumberland, South Staffordshire, Worcestershire, Middlesex, and Sussex were rife

with higher percentages of Nonconformists. Wales was over 80 percent by 1851.

For a comprehensive listing of names of Nonconformist denominations go to

www.familysearch.org > go to Search > click Wiki

Nicknames of England’s religious denominations: Papists or recusants (Catholic), Puritans and

dissenters (including Congregationalists/Independents, Baptists, Presbyterians) Quakers

How Do I Know If My Ancestor Was a Nonconformist?

• Family tradition

• A marriage record of parents can be found in the Church of England but no christenings

of their children appear in the Church of England parish registers.

• An ancestor is not found in the Church of England records in the place where it is known

they came from or in which they resided.

 
 
 
 
•  A civil registration marriage certificate indicates marriage in a Nonconformist chapel.  
•  Ancestor has a Biblical name such as Abraham, Jeremiah, Rebekah 
•  Church of England parish register entry shows only a birth date—not a christening date.  
•  Census, wills, tax records and church monuments or tombstones bear ancestral names, 
but not in pre-1754/post-1837 baptisms and marriages in Church of England registers. 
•  Church of England registers reference Nonconformists with such words as “papist”, 
“popish”, Quaker, “dissenter”, ‘of the Methodist chapel’, etc. 
 
Nonconformist Registers Online 
www.familysearch.org- FamilySearch microfilmed many Nonconformist registers in the 1970’s. 
Indexes are available on FamilySearch.org linked with some images or via its online catalog (by 
parish name). For images to most of these registers visit the Family History Library (FHL) or use 
FamilySearch.org’s online catalog and lookup the name of the township to find them. Try the 
following FamilySearch online resources containing Nonconformist name entries: 
 
1.  England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975: 
•  Go to Search > click Records > click the map of England > click England. Search 
the ‘England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975’ for indexes to microfilm 
copies at the Family History Library. Included in this collection are the following: 
•  Extracted records from original parish registers. 
•  Dr. Williams’ Library- A central birth registry for Independents, Baptists and 
Presbyterians. Most of the collection is available at www.familysearch.org or see 
also at www.bmdregisters.co.uk. ($)  
•  The Wesleyan Methodist Metropolitan Registry- A central birth registry for 
Methodists containing about 10,000 names from 1773-1838. Most of the 
collection is available at www.familysearch.org or www.Findmypast.co.uk.  
2.  ‘England and Wales, Nonconformist Record Indexes, 1588-1977’ (RG4-8). A specific 
Nonconformist registers database. Note:  Links to subscription images on 
BMDregisters.co.uk.  
3.  To access the largest database source—that gives the best chance for successfully 
locating Nonconformist ancestry, always use/search the main search engine at:  
www.familysearch.org/search. 
 
www.findmypast.co.uk - findmypast is placing many digital images (with an index) of the 
Nonconformist church records online. When you search findmypast.co.uk > go to Search 
records > click A-Z of record sets. In the Search box type England > Click England and 
Wales Nonconformist Births and Baptisms or Marriages or Burials.  
www.bmdregisters.co.uk- The official website for Nonconformist church registers. Includes 
registers for Methodists, Wesleyans, Baptists, Independents, Protestant Dissenters, 
Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Unitarians, Society of Friends (Quakers), French 
Protestants, Dissenters and Russian Orthodox. Also includes overseas records, Dr Williams 
Library, and other miscellaneous records.  
www.ancestry.co.uk – see Card Catalog; type “Nonconformist” 
www.thegenealogist.co.uk- Subscription website that links directly www.BMDRegisters.co.uk. 
  
 

Nonconformist registers in Libraries, County Record Offices, and

Local Churches

Using the FamilySearch Catalog to Find Original register copies if Parish name is known:

Go to www.familysearch.org and log in (Register for free)

1. Go to Search > click Catalog

2. Next to the Places box enter the name of your ancestor’s parish- ‘England, Yorkshire,

Thirsk’ and then click Search.

3. Click the Church records link

4. The name of the religion will be shown next to the Author name. Click the link then click

the little camera icon on the far right-hand margin to view at home. You may, if

prompted, have to view from (by visiting) a Family History Center or, the Salt Lake

Family History Library.

Using FamilySearch Catalog to Find Original register copies if County name is known:

Go to www.familysearch.org and log in (Register for free). Then

1. Go to Search > click Catalog

2. Click Keyword

3. In Keyword box, type name of county or the name of the denomination, or the

chapel name of your ancestor (if known)

Click the desired link/name of the place

4. Click the little camera icon on the far right-hand margin to view at home. You may, if

prompted, have to view from (by visiting) a Family History Center or, the Salt Lake

Family History Library.

To access a marriage index for a specific county, follow steps 1-2 above then for step 3 only

type the name of the county and country, ‘Yorkshire, England’. In Step 4 click the Church

records – Indexes link and then record the microfilm number or, click the Camera icon.

A guide to Church of England, Roman Catholic, and other Nonconformist church registers

county-by-county. Shows what churches exist, years registers began, and their location.

Registers at County Record Offices or local Nonconformist chapels

Records not turned into the General Register’s Office may have been turned into local County

Record Offices or remain in the local chapels themselves. The following is a link to information

and websites for local County Record Offices throughout England and Wales.

http://www.ancestor-search.info/CRO-INDEX.htm-

Strategies for Searching Non-Conformity

• Learn as accurately as possible what Nonconformist denominations were in your

ancestor’s (Church of England) parish by looking up the name of the parish in the

following places (at least 3) websites:

1. Topographical Dictionary of England – at www.british-

history.ac.uk/topographical-dict/england - 1848 view of town/parish and churches

2. maps.familysearch.org - 1851 Jurisdictions Map; see at:

http://maps.familysearch.org. Type the parish name; click Search > Click on the

name of the parish > a box will pop up with info about all Non-Church of England

denominations in that parish.

3. www.visionofbritain.org.uk - Imperial Gazetteer of England – an 1870 view of

each town/parish showing all churches

4. National Indexes of Parish Registers- see online FHL catalog at:

https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog: Click “Call no.”; then type “942

D27ste” – then click camera icon to view online:

• Two distinct registries identify many England Nonconformists: Dr Williams Library, and

the Methodist Metropolitan Registry. See “Keyword” search in

www.FamilySearch.org/search/catalog/search

• County directories, gazetteers, maps, local and county histories, the 1851 religious

census--all may help you locate church congregations.

• Nonconformists were required to marry in Church of England parishes from 1754-1837,

and from early times respectively, and may have chosen to marry by license in order to

marry in privacy. Marriage bonds and allegations can be found in the FS Catalog under

the county name (“Church Records”). Nonconformists were likewise buried mostly in

Church of England churchyards prior to 1853.

• Nonconformist church boundaries could cover wide areas and distances. Search both

Nonconformist and Church of England parish registers, up to at least 20 miles.

• Reconstruct Nonconformist families by searching not only in church records but other

records like census, civil registration, probate, parish chest, court records, recusant rolls

• Some children (eldest male child) may be christened in the Church of England while the

other siblings were baptized in Nonconformist churches.

• Many Nonconformist people changed their religion back and forth. Search all

Nonconformist chapels in a given area if ancestor can’t be found in the Church of

England (baptisms) registers, or if there’s a large gap between children’s birth years.

• Quakers, Baptists and the LDS (Mormons) did not believe in infant baptisms so they

recorded the births instead. Baptists had adult baptisms; LDS baptize(d) at age 8.

• Quakers did not believe in baptism so they only recorded births (and marriages).

• One generation may have been Nonconformist while another the Church of England.

• Early LDS converts joined an average of three other Nonconformists denominations

before their conversion to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Search all

churches in the township/civil parish area.

PRACTICE EXERCISE: ENGLAND NONCONFORMIST CHURCH RECORDS

1. Count the total number of Nonconformists churches in the market town of Preston,

Lancashire. Using the following three key reference aids, determine as correctly as

possible all congregations such as lay within the Preston, Lancashire civil parish

boundary up to 1850:

1) www.https://Maps.familysearch.org

2) Topographical Dictionary of England, (see at www.british-history.ac.uk)

3) https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/search

A. 17 (or more)

2. What are three key websites for finding Nonconformist ancestry?

1) BMDregisters.co.uk

2) FamilySearch.org

3) Ancestry.co.uk

4) Findmypast.co.uk

3. What are the next steps to be taken in order to view original Nonconformist church

registers online at FamilySearch.org for Dudley, Worcestershire’s Wolverhampton

Street Presbyterian Church (FHL film #1482406, item 17)?

1) Log-on to FamilySearch.org

2) Click “Search” then click “Catalog”

3) Type-in “Dudley” and click “Dudley”, Worcestershire, England

4) Click “Church Records”

5) Click Dudley, Wolverhampton Street Presbyterian Church

6) Click the little camera icon and scroll to item no. 17

any form for any purpose without prior written permission. Approved 08/2018