A
nonconformist is a person who doesn't conform. In this case, a protestant
"who would not, because of diverse view, conform to the doctrines,
practices and government of the Church of England" (Smith and Gardner,
vol. 1, pg. 236).
After King
Henry VIII made a complete break with the Roman Catholic Church in 1534, he
created the Church of England (Anglican) and declared himself its supreme head.
After that time, any person affiliated with any other religious group was known
as a nonconformist. Jews and Society of Friends (Quakers) may sometimes be
referred to as exempted from the name, however they were only exempted as to
retaining the right to marry in their own religious rites.
The
centuries following Henry brought periods of persecution and tolerance to most
of the nonconforming groups. Various religious groups sprang up espousing their
own ideas and keeping their own records. A few of the larger groups are
Presbyterians, Methodists, Baptists, Congregationalists, Roman Catholics, Jews,
and Society of Friends (Quakers). Smaller groups include Swedenborgians,
Plymouth Brethren, Lady Huntingdon's and the Campbellites.
A person
who was mentioned in a nonconformist record may not have been of that religion
all his or her life. A family may have changed religions for a number of
reasons, few of which are given to modern day researchers. Perhaps the family
disagreed with the minister, or he died, or it was closer to go to church in a
different location. It is not unusual for a family to "bounce"
between religions when children are born. For example, child 1 was christened
in the Church of England, child 2-3 in a nonconformist church, and child 4-5
back in the Church of England. Be aware that nonconformist ministers generally
rode a "circuit" or "conference", traveling up to 30 miles
in the area, visiting towns and hamlets to perform ordinances, then record the
same in the record books he carried with him.
With the
passage of Lord Hardwick's Act in 1754, nonconformist marriages were illegal
unless solemnized in the Church of England (except for those religions
mentioned earlier). The restriction was relaxed in 1837 when civil registration
started. Therefore, an ancestor's marriage was found in the records of a Church
of England parish, but no christenings or baptisms are registered for the
children.
Nonconformist
church records include confirmation lists, transfers of individuals,
excommunications as well as the ordinances of baptism/christenings, marriages
and burials. may give more information than found in the Church of England
records, including maiden name of the mother, occupation of the father,
grandparents of a child or addresses.
Clues
pointing to nonconformist leanings are found in family tradition, obituaries
and the failure to find the christening of the children in a Church of England
parish following a marriage. Comparing the number of marriages verses the
number of christenings in a given time period may also point to nonconformity.
A gazetteer, such as The Imperial Gazetteer. mentions nonconformist
chapels in the area.
In 1837,
nonconformist ministers were asked to deposit their records in the Public
Record Office. Not all were turned in, but those that were are on film in the
Family History Library. The Locality section of the catalog, under ENGLAND,
[COUNTY], [PARISH] - CHURCH RECORDS lists the film numbers. Some records are in
the county record offices or in religious denomination historical archives.
A volume
written by Donald J. Steel and a series produced by the Society of Genealogists
titled My Ancestor Was... give more in-depth information about
nonconformist groups and records.
Return to
Non-conformist summary.