Parish Chest Records

The following source list was originally available only on paper in one of the West Yorkshire Archive Service offices. It may have been compiled many years ago and could be out of date. It was designed to act as a signpost to records of interest on a particular historical subject, but may relate only to one West Yorkshire district, or be an incomplete list of sources available.

The parish was originally an ecclesiastical unit which was adopted as a civil administrative unit. Under the Tudors the parish became the main unit of local government. On a day to day basis the parish became responsible for:-

Relief of the poor
The maintenance of highways and bridges
The regulation of law and order

The parish worked by having a vestry which acted as a representative of the inhabitants of the parish and made decisions. There were two types of vestry – the closed or select vestry and the open vestry. Membership of the select vestry included the minister, churchwardens and leading parishioners. All male ratepayers were allowed to participate in open vestry meetings and were able to vote on its proposals. Annually elected unpaid officials administered the vestry’s responsibilities, and these officials were:-

The churchwardens (normally two of them) – who were concerned with church matters
The parish constable – who enforced the law
The overseer of the poor – who cared for the poor
The surveyor of the highways – who maintained the roads

Types of records associated with the parish

These officials, described by Tate as an ‘odd hierarchy of parochial dignitaries’ generated records which were stored in the parish chest (a ‘sure coffer’) originally kept in the vestry. Examples of these records are held by WYAS offices, such as:-

Vestry books or minutes – these record the decisions of the vestry and the people involved in the process. They can give insights into the appointment of annual officers and the administration of the parish, but may not be very detailed. Tate says that vestry minutes may contain ‘orders upon almost any subject under the sun.’ He cites an example in South Littleton in Worcestershire of a minute that allowed the vicar to keep pigeons in the church tower providing he supply the parish with new service books.
Churchwarden’s accounts – the use of rates for the upkeep of the church fabric was recorded in the accounts. They deal with payments for repairs and improvement to the church fabric, payments to tradesmen, and the collection of pew rents.
Accounts of the overseers of the poor – which detail regular payments of maintenance to the poor, and the distribution of clothes or disbursements for the cost of materials for them to work.
Poor and Church rate books – which record the collection of funds based on the value of property occupied. The names of individuals are often given accompanied by the name of their dwelling. NB – until the early part of the eighteenth century rates were often collected as a single, general levy but later on they tended to be split up and separate demands were made for the poor rate and for the church rate.
Highway surveyor’s accounts – can contain the names of those in default of statutory labour (whereby people had to work for several days each year in repairing the roads).
Settlement and removal papers – parishes were concerned to ensure that they maintained only those paupers who were truly their responsibility. When someone needed relief but was suspected of being the responsibility of another parish, the vestry books may record that they were subject to examination by two Justices of the Peace to discover their last place of settlement. Removal was under escort by the parish constable. Settlement certificates, removal orders and settlement examinations survive from the late 17th century and are of great help when tracing movements of individuals before the census returns, as well as including details of human interest. For further information please see Settlement records and Removal Orders
Apprenticeship indentures – these give details of children apprenticed in the parish. For more information on Apprenticeship Indentures and the records available see Apprenticeship Indentures.
Bastardy bonds – illegitimate children could be a financial burden to a parish so from the mid-eighteenth century it was common for the father of an illegitimate child to enter into a bond of indemnity, or bastardy bond, with a parish whereby he would bear the cost of supporting the child should it become chargeable to the parish. These documents are of particular value when the identity of the natural father is not indicated in other sources such as the parish registers. See Bastardy orders for more information on Bastardy Orders and available documents.
Miscellaneous records – papers relating to the local militia may survive; vestry books may contain details of the control of vermin and stray animals; records relating to tithes may be found (most likely the map and apportionment); sometimes Acts of Parliament are found in the parish records such as Enclosure Maps acts.

This system of parish government survived until the nineteenth century; it was gradually replaced by the new Poor Law introduced in 1834, and secular parish councils replaced the vestry in 1894.

Further reading

Herber, D, Ancestral Trails, Sutton Publishing Ltd, 2000

Tate, W E, The Parish Chest, Cambridge University Press, 3rd ed., 1969