There are over 35,000 baptism records from the Worcestershire parishes of Astley, Bretforton, Droitwich, Hanbury, Shrawley, Shap, and Worcester, St Helen. The records include the name of your ancestor’s parents, which will help you to move your family tree back another generation.
There are over 35,000 baptism records from the Worcestershire parishes of Astley, Bretforton, Droitwich, Hanbury, Shrawley, Shap, and Worcester, St Helen. The records include the name of your ancestor’s parents, which will help you to move your family tree back another generation.
Each record includes a transcript of the information found in the original parish register. While the amount of information may vary transcript to transcript, most will include the following details:
Name
Gender
Birth year
Baptism date
Parish
Parents’ names
Place of abode
Note or occupation, may include mention of illegitimacy
There are a small number of records which will display an image along with the transcripts. These records were provided by the College of Arms, the official heraldic authority for England, Wales, Northern Ireland and much of the Commonwealth including Australia and New Zealand.
The county of Worcestershire is located in the English Midlands. These records include baptisms from four parishes: Astley (1539- 1900), Droitwich (1571-1900), Hanbury (1700 – 1900) and Shrawley (1537 – 1900).
The Droitwich records come from St Andrew’s and St Nicholas’. From the 1650s up until 1870 when a new St Nicholas’ was erected, the population of St Nicholas’ was served by St Andrew’s church. This explains why some entries recorded at St Andrew have their place of adobe listed as St Nicholas. Some entries from St Nicholas’ were gathered from the surviving bishop’s transcripts; however, this is not a complete sequence.
St Andrew’s Church is likely the location of St Richard’s baptism and his place of worship during his early years. St Richard, also known as Richard of Chichester, was born in 1197 and was canonized as a saint in 1262. In 1244, he was made Bishop of Chichester.
The original registers can be viewed at the family history section of The Hive in Worcester.
In the registers, we can find the baptism record for Thomas Winford, who became the second Baronet of Glasshampton. The baptism would have taken place in the Astley parish church. Astley is in the hundred of Doddingtree and would have been included in the Martley Poor Law Union. The church dates back to the 12th century and includes memorials to the Winford family.
The family lived at Glasshampton manor. After the Winfords left Glasshampton, it became the residence of Rev. D J J Cookes. He planned a renovation of the manor house; during that time his family vacated the site and allowed the staff and workmen to reside there until the project was completed. However, in April 1810, someone left either a candle or a fire unattended during the night and the house caught fire. It first engulfed the staircase and then the whole interior until the roof caved in. Only an organ and some wines and valuable paintings survived. Nothing inside was insured, and today only the stable blocks remain.