Reference
ABT
Title
Bishop's Transcripts
Date free text
c1604-1878
Production date
From: 1604 To: 1878
Admin/biog history
A bishop's transcript is a copy of a parish register. As bishop’s transcripts generally contain more or less the same information as parish registers, they are an invaluable resource when a parish register has been damaged, destroyed, or otherwise lost.
Beginning in 1598, every parish priest of the Church of England was supposed to make a copy of his parish register and send it to the archdeacon or bishop every year. Termed either archdeacon’s or bishop’s transcripts, these copies were generally produced in the same form as a regular parish register. Thus, most bishop's transcripts before 1812 were recorded on blank sheets, and after 1812 on pre-printed forms.
Survival is patchy.
Archival history
The transcripts held by Bedfordshire Archives are from a range of sources and were deposited at different times. The largest part of the collection came from the Archdeaconry of Bedford and were deposited with the Record Office in 1922.
From about 1908 to 1914 a party of genealogists began sorting the yearly files into parishes (dates in blue or black were usually added at this time). They were the Rev W M Noble of Wistow rectory, Hunts, Miss Noble, Lothrop Withington (an American drowned in the Lusitania in 1915) and his wife, Mrs Burgoyne and Mr Wainwright. In 1922 the Rev W M Noble continued the work and this was later completed in the County Record office but a few transcripts are still unidentified.
In 1938 Some transcripts were received from Lincoln. They are 1604, 1606-1613, 1615 and some 19th century. Another note on the original paper conspectus suggests that further transcripts were received in 1952 and 1973. The pre-1813 transcripts were not amalgamated with the others and were referenced ABT(Lincoln). The post 1813 transcripts were amalgamated with the main post 1813 series in 2024.
In 1964 Some 19th century transcripts were received via St Albans Registry and these have been amalgamated with the Archdeaconry collection.
The Peculiar of Biggleswade transcripts, formerly referenced as PBT, and which only cover 1732 and 1798-9, have been amalgamated with ABT.
The Peculiar of Leighton Buzzard. This was received from R Richmond with his collection RI and has been amalgamated with ABT; as have a few related items received from the Bodleian Library in May 1925. Again the list shows the origns of the transcripts.
Available transcripts were used in the compilation of the published parish register transcripts series produced between 1930-1978 to fill gaps in the registers and record differences between the ABTs and the registers.
Level of description
sub-fonds