Manningtree Wesleyan

Manningtree’s Methodist chapel was reputedly the first in Essex, and is alleged to have been built by Wesley himself. These transcriptions come from two registers, both held at The National Archives. Non-conformist baptism registers were rounded up after civil registration for births, marriages and deaths began in mid-1837, hence the latest record here is from July 1837. Later registers are held at ERO.

These records can be searched via FreeREG.

Notes

• The earliest baptism is 1788, which counter-intuitively is the last one in the register, entered in 1837. Then there is one baptism in 1793, two in 1795, and none in 1796. From 1797, there are several baptisms a year. Almost half the records in this set are for baptisms in the 1830s.
• Almost every baptism from 1835 to 1837 (nearly 200) includes the father’s abode and occupation, as well as the mother’s first name and her parents. This means that if you find your ancestor in these years, you’re likely to not only find the names of their parents, but also their maternal grandparents!
• To search by mother’s maiden name, open the baptism spreadsheet and press control F (on Windows machines). This will pick up the maiden name from the notes field.
• Some early baptisms have crept into the register covering 1835-1837, which means that even if your ancestor was baptised before 1835, their baptism record might contain their maternal grandparents.
• This set of records includes the baptism of Hannah Angier, who eventually married John Southgate. She appears in Poison Panic.

Baptisms

• 1788, 1793-July 1837. Alphabetically by father’s surname: 988 baptisms (PDF – 316KB)

Burials

• 1823-1837: 17 burials (PDF – 40KB)