“Why are memorial inscriptions (MIs) important and what can they tell us that other records can’t?”, by 50Connect.co.uk, is an interesting look at parish registers and church records that can help you trace your family’s roots.
For family historians, MIs are most valuable in establishing family relationships, particularly for the period before the mid-nineteenth century, when there was no civil registration of births, marriages and deaths (this began in 1837) and no useful censuses (the first one with good records of individuals was that of 1841). Before this date, the most important source of information is that of the parish registers, and here you are in the hands of the incumbent of the period and place. Sometimes the registers give some indication of relationships, often none.
It includes some examples of parish registers and how to use the records to gleam some information about your relatives.
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