The free genealogy website FamilySearch has just launched name indexes for its collection of Bishop’s Transcripts for the county of Devon. Previously these records were only available on the site as ‘browse only’ digitised versions of the original documents. From today, you can search them by name and be taken straight to the baptismal, marriage or burial entries that relate it that name, dating from between 1558 to 1887.
Bishop’s Transcripts were contemporary copies of parish registers, made by the Parish Clerk of each parish church, that were sent to the Bishop each year. They are therefore a useful alternative to the parish registers themselves, particularly if those registers have been damaged or lost. Bishop’s Transcripts can also sometimes contain additional or different information to that contained in the parish register.
Find out more about this new source at the FamilySearch website.
