FLINTSHIRE
"The County of FLINT is 40 Miles in Circumference, contains about 160000 Acres, and is divided into 12 Hundreds in which are 3 Market Towns & only Flint the County Town sends a Member to Parliament; has 28 Parishes & about 3150 Houses. The Air is good but pleasant, somewhat cold by reason of the North Wind. The Soil is not so mountainous as in other parts of Wales, for here are many Valleys and Cornfields, loaden with Wheat, Barley, Pease, Oats, &c. Its cheif commodities are Cattle, Butter, Cheese, Pit-Coal, Lead, Milstones, and Honey, with which they make Metheglin."
[Emanuel Bowen, Britannia Depicta, 1720]
INFORMATION RELATED TO ALL OF FLINTSHIRE
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After having survived for almost seven centuries, the historic county of Flintshire was abolished in the controversial re-organisation of 1974, and was absorbed into the newly created county of Clwyd.
Ironically, the county of Clwyd was itself abolished on 31st March 1996, after a brief existence of twenty-two years. At the same time, four new "unitary" authorities were created. These were given the names: Flintshire, Denbighshire, Wrexham County Borough and Conwy County Borough.
It is important to realise that the boundaries of the "new" Flintshire and Denbighshire are considerably different from those of the historic counties of the same names.
Fortunately, family historians have been little affected by these changes; because throughout the short lifetime of the county of Clwyd, records for historic Flintshire remained at the Hawarden branch of the Clwyd Record Office, while records for historic Denbighshire remained at the Ruthin branch. These two offices have now become the county Record Offices for "new" Flintshire and "new" Denbighshire respectively. The County Archivists have stated that they do not expect that there will be any major movement of records between the two Record Offices.
In these GENUKI pages, all references to Flintshire (unless specifically stated otherwise) apply to the historic (pre-1974) county - i.e. Chapman County Code FLN.
Archives and Libraries
- Flintshire Record Office,
The Old Rectory,
Hawarden,
Flintshire.
CH5 3NR.
Tel: 01244 532364 (for enquiries and reservations)
Tel: 01244 532414 (Flintshire County Archivist)
Fax: 01244 538344
E-mail: archives@flintshire.gov.uk
Opening hours - Monday to Thursday - 09.00 to 16.45; Friday - 09.00 to 16.15.
The Record Office is very busy - researchers are strongly recommended to reserve a desk and/or a microfilm/microfiche reader at least one week in advance.
More details of the Record Office are available on the Flintshire County Council web site.
- A small number of records relating to Flintshire may also be found at:
Denbighshire Record Office / Archifdy Sir Ddinbych
and at
Wrexham Archives Service / Gwasanaeth Archifau Wrecsam
- Flintshire Library & Information Service,
Reference and Information Centre,
Library Headquarters,
County Hall,
Mold,
Flintshire.
CH7 6NW.
Tel: 01352 704411.
E-mail: libraries@flintshire.gov.uk
Opening hours - Monday to Friday - 09.00 to 17.00; Saturday - 09.00 to 12.30.
The following Family History facilities are available:
More details of the Library & Information Services are available on the Flintshire County Council web site.
- St. Deiniol's Residential Library,
Hawarden,
Flintshire.
CH5 3DF.
Tel: 01244 532350.
Fax: 01244 520643.
Email: deiniol.visitors@btinternet.com
St. Deiniol's Residential Library was founded in 1889 by the Rt. Hon. W.E. Gladstone; and the magnificent building which now houses the Library was erected as a national memorial to him. Mr Gladstone intended that the library should be "a haven where men and women of 'any faith or none' could stay to read and study". It is believed to be the only one of its kind in the world.
- A copy of a leaflet describing the
Record Offices in North East Wales
has been provided by the Flintshire county archivist.
Cemeteries
Flintshire County Council is responsible for the administration of 14 public cemeteries located in "new" Flintshire (created 1996). There is more information about each cemetery on the appropriate parish page. The cemeteries are:
- Bagillt - New Brighton Road
- Buckley - Elfed Drive
- Connah's Quay - Bryn Road
- Flint - Northop Road & London Road
- Greenfield - School Lane (No. 1 & No. 2)
- Hawarden - Cross Tree Lane (No. 1 & No. 2)
- Holywell - Fron Park Road
- Hope - Fagl Lane (Bryn-y-Grog & Hope Old)
- Rhewl (Mostyn) - St. Margaret's
- Treuddyn - Ffordd-y-Rhos
These cemeteries are open from 8.00 a.m. until sunset; and there are full time Sextons at Connah's Quay, Hawarden and Hope. The burial registers are held at the following address, to which all enquiries should be addressed:
Census
Flintshire Record Office holds microfilms of the original census returns for the whole of the former county of Clwyd (which includes "old" Flintshire), and for some adjoining areas, from 1841 to 1891. There are occasional gaps, particularly in 1861. For a few parishes, lists of names which were made in connection with the census returns prior to 1841 have survived, and have been deposited in the Record Office.
Members of Clwyd FHS participated in the 1881 Census project - in fact, the first counties to be published were Flintshire and Denbighshire, in 1991. Copies of the microfiche for Flintshire and Denbighshire are held at Flintshire Record Office, and at many LDS Centres.
Church Records
Historically, the (Anglican) Church in Wales was an integral part of the Church of England - i.e. the "Established" Church. Its influence declined during the nineteenth century, when a considerable proportion of the people of Wales - perhaps more than half - became adherents of the various nonconformist denominations; and eventually, in 1920, following many decades of religious and political debate, and intermittent civil disturbances, the Church in Wales (not "Church of Wales") was disestablished and disendowed - i.e. it ceased to be the "State" or "Established" Church.
Because of this, the Parochial Registers and Records Measure of 1978, regarding the care of parish records of the Church of England, does not apply to Wales.
However - in 1944, the Representative Body of the Church in Wales showed considerable foresight, by making an agreement with the National Library of Wales whereby various Church records would be deposited in the Library; and in 1976, the Representative Body reached an agreement with the majority of the Welsh counties, which designated the county Record Offices as additional suitable repositories. The Archbishop of Wales issued instructions as to which records should be deposited, and appointed Diocesan Advisors to ensure that his instructions were followed. Virtually all parish registers for Flintshire (with the obvious exception of those in current use), together with various other records, have now been deposited in Flintshire Record Office and/or the National Library of Wales.
Contrary to erroneous statements which have appeared in a recently published reference work, the records which have been deposited do include almost all the surviving registers of the parishes of Maelor Saesneg ("Flintshire detached").
Members of the public are not normally allowed to handle the original
registers. The policy of the Flintshire Record Office is to microfilm the registers on receipt; and members of the public are expected to use copies of these microfilms, rather than the original registers, in the Record Office searchrooms.
Clwyd Family History Society has published full transcriptions, with indexes, of all the parish registers of Flintshire, up to 1812 (and in a few cases, up to 1837 and beyond).
Copies of all the transcribed parish registers published by Clwyd FHS are available for study at the Flintshire Record Office.
Church Records - Bibliography
- A.J. Veysey. Guide to the Parish Records of Clwyd, Clwyd County Council, 1984, 123p.
ISBN 0-905349-98-9
This is the standard guide to Flintshire's parish registers and other parish records. The former Clwyd Record Office has from time to time published "update" leaflets.
- C.J. Williams and J. Watts-Williams. Parish Registers of Wales, National Library of Wales, 1986, 217p.
ISBN 0-907158-14-5
- Dafydd Ifans. Nonconformist Registers of Wales, National Library of Wales, 1994, 195p.
ISBN 0-907158-75-7
- Handlist of Chapel Registers, Clwyd Record Office, 1993, 19p.
Church Records - I.G.I.
The authorities of the Church in Wales have consistently refused to allow the LDS Church to microfilm any Parish Registers. They have also refused to allow any "controlled extractions" of data from Parish Registers, for incorporation into the IGI.
It does not seem likely that this policy will be relaxed in the foreseeable future.
However, almost fifty years ago, the Church in Wales did allow the LDS Church to microfilm most of the Bishops Transcripts for Welsh parishes which had been deposited in the National Library of Wales at that time; and some information has subsequently been extracted from these microfilmed B.T.s and incorporated into the IGI. Unfortunately, only a very limited amount of information has been extracted for Flintshire parishes - the extractions have been for Baptisms only, and very often for no more than a 30-year period in the early- to mid-nineteenth century.
Details are given below, on each parish page.
Civil Registration
Here is detailed information about the "historic" Registration Districts for Flintshire, which came into being on 1 July 1837.
Here are the addresses, telephone numbers, opening hours, etc. of the present-day Registration Districts which hold records for "pre-1974" Flintshire.
North Wales BMD is an on-going project which aims to provide an easy search facility via the Internet for births, marriages and deaths recorded in the North Wales Register Offices between 1837 and 1950; and to enable researchers to order copies of the certificates from the local Register Offices.
See also the Parish pages - there is Civil Registration information on each Parish page.
For searching "further afield", Brett Langston has provided details of all the Registration Districts of England and Wales, from 1837 to 1946
Barbara Dixon (who is a Superintendent Registrar) has compiled an excellent Tutorial about Birth, Marriage and Death Certificates in England and Wales.
(Note - you will leave the "GENUKI environment" when you link to this Tutorial).
When ordering certificates from a Superintendent Registrar, please note the following:
- The G.R.O. ("St Catherine's") index references have no relevance at a local Office.
- When requesting marriage certificates, the precise place of the marriage must be stated - otherwise the Superintendent Registrar may decline to search.
- The cost of a certificate is currently £ 7.00 - send a Sterling
cheque payable as indicated below, plus return postage or two International Reply Coupons.
- Civil Registration in England and Wales began on July 1st 1837.
- Historically, most Registration Districts were not confined within County boundaries.
- Registration Districts have changed considerably over the last 168 years, and it is quite possible that the records are not now held by the Registration District which originally issued them - in fact, that District has probably been abolished, and its records distributed between its replacement District(s).
Directories
Flintshire Record Office has microfilms and facsimiles (i.e. bound photocopies) of the following representative selection of directories:
| Year |
Publisher |
Area covered |
| 1822
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Pigot
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Denbighshire, Flintshire and Montgomeryshire |
| 1828 / 1829
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Pigot
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North Wales
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| 1835
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Pigot
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North Wales
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| 1840
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Robson
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North Wales
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| 1844
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Slater
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North Wales
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| 1850
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Slater
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North Wales
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| 1856
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Slater
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North Wales
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| 1859
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J. Jones
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Wrexham
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| 1868
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Slater
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North Wales
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| 1874
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Worrall
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Chester and North Wales
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| 1876
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Cassey
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Chester and North Wales
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| 1881 / 1882
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Crocker
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Wrexham
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| 1883
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Slater
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North Wales
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| 1886
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Porter
(Postal Directory)
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Denbighshire and Flintshire
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| 1889 / 1890
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Sutton
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Chester and North Wales
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| 1895
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Slater
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North Wales
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| 1913 / 1914
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Bennett
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Chester and North Wales
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| 1922
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Bennett
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Chester and North Wales
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| 1932
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Cope
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North Wales
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| 1936
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Bennett
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Chester and North Wales
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Over 33,000 names of persons listed as living in North-East Wales have been extracted from these directories; and indexed in the general index of persons which is held in the Record Office.
Genealogy
Graham Jaunay's Welsh
Names Research Directory covers this county.
John Fuller has provided full details of
CLWYD, the Genealogy Mailing List
serving Flintshire, Denbighshire and the Edeyrnion district of Merionethshire.
This is but a small part of the data available on the
"Genealogy Resources on
the Internet" pages maintained by John and Chris Gaunt.
History
The County of Flint came into existence in 1284, when following many years of warfare, Edward I proclaimed the Statute of Wales at Rhuddlan. At that time, the new county consisted of three separate areas, which were Englefield, Hopedale and Maelor Saesneg.
In 1536, Henry VIII passed the Act of Union, which decreed that Wales should be incorporated into the kingdom of England. He also decreed that all areas of land which had not, until then, been included in a county should either be made into counties, or be added to existing counties. Following this decree, the lordships of Mold and Hawarden, which had separated Englefield from Hopedale for two and a half centuries, were initially added to Denbighshire. However, in 1541, it was realised that this was an unsatisfactory arrangement, and these lordships were transferred to Flintshire. The two small townships of Marford and Hoseley, to the north-east of Wrexham, became a detached section of Flintshire. Maelor Saesneg remained as the other detached section.
With minor adjustments, this was the format of Flintshire for the next 435 years, until the "reorganisation" of 1974.
Maps
Flintshire Record Office has a computerised catalogue of estate maps, from the early seventeenth to the late nineteenth century, which is available for reference in the search room. It includes over 900 entries. Separate lists and indexes of tithe and enclosure maps are available.
Merchant Marine
Flintshire Record Office holds Shipping Records from 1863 to 1913, which include lists of the crews of ships trading from Flintshire ports on the River Dee. Two bound volumes of indexes to these records (about 30,000 names) are available.
Military Records
Flintshire Record Office has a card index, known as the County of Flint War Memorial, which gives details of more than 10,600 Flintshire men who served in the armed forces during the First World War. For each man, the index has his home address, his unit, rank and number. The index may also provide further details such as postings, wounds, and (if he was killed in action) the circumstances, the place of burial, etc.
Names, Personal
Flintshire Record Office has a printout of its computer-based general index of persons. The references in this index, in general, point to a further set of lists and / or indexes, which in turn point to the original source. (Names of persons in parish registers are not included).
Newspapers
The following newspapers may be viewed at Flintshire Record Office:
| Name of Newspaper |
Microfilm |
Original documents |
| Alyn and Deeside Observer |
None |
1975 (March to December) |
| Chester Chronicle |
1807 - 1909
1935 - 1945
1972 |
None |
Colwyn Bay Weekly News /
North Wales Weekly News |
1889 (part) - 1906 |
None |
| County Herald |
1887 - 1896
1898 - 1910
1912 - 1945
1951 - 1955 |
1923 - 1949 |
| County Leader |
None |
1908 (September) |
| Deeside Advertiser |
None |
1971 - 1984 |
| Evening Leader |
None |
1973 - 1986 |
| Flintshire Leader |
None |
1953 - 1958 |
| Flintshire News |
None |
1909 - 1913 |
| Flintshire Observer |
1857 - 1895
1897 - 1915
1919 (part)
1920 - 1922
1924 - 1939
1943
1946
1948 - 1964 (part) |
1904 - 1912
1918
1923
1933 - 1947 (with gaps) |
| Mining Journal |
1845 - 1853
1857 - 1872 |
None |
| Mold and Buckley Advertiser |
None |
1973 - 1975 |
Mold, Deeside and Buckley Leader
(mostly Wrexham coverage) |
1923 - 1936 |
1948 - 1952 |
| Prestatyn Weekly |
1908 - 1933
1939 - 1944
1946
1948 - 1949 |
None |
| Rhyl Journal |
1925 - 1926 |
1925 - 1974
1976 - 1983
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| Rhyl Leader |
None |
1949 - 1956 |
| Rhyl Observer |
None |
1923 - 1924 |
Rhyl Record and Advertiser /
Rhyl Record and Visitor |
1855 - 1869
1875 - 1911
1913 - 1921 |
None |
- The Flintshire Record Office holds additional original copies of newspapers, but unfortunately they cannot be made available to researchers because of their extremely fragile condition. There are no funds available at the present time to microfilm these newspapers.
Periodicals
- "Clwyd Historian" is published twice each year by the Friends of the Clwyd Archives. It is devoted to the local history, archaeology, biography and antiquities of the counties of Flintshire and Denbighshire.
- "Hel Achau", the journal of Clwyd FHS, is published four times each year.
- Flintshire Historical Society publishes an annual journal.
Poorhouses, Poor Law, etc.
The records of the Holywell and St. Asaph poor law Unions, from 1837 to 1930, are held at Flintshire Record Office. They include registers of admissions and discharges, and of births and deaths. The records of the Hawarden Union, from 1853 to 1930, are also at the Record Office, but they are much less complete.
Population
- In 1801, the population of Flintshire was 39,469.
- In 1811 - 45,937.
- In 1821 - 53,893.
- In 1831 - 60,244.
- In 1841 - 66,919.
- In 1851 - 68,156.
- In 1861 - 69,737.
- In 1871 - 76,312.
- In 1881 - 80,587.
- In 1891 - 77,428.
- In 1901 - 81,485.
- In 1951 - 145,279.
Probate Records
Flintshire Record Office has microfiche copies of the Calendars of Grants of Probate for England and Wales, from 1858 to 1935.
Most probate records for Flintshire, for the years prior to 1858, are to be found in the National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth. Indexes, and in some cases, copies, are held in Flintshire Record Office.
The parish of Hawarden was an ecclesiastical "peculiar", and had the power to grant probate. The majority of its original wills, administrations and inventories (from 1554 to 1858) are held in the National Library of Wales. An index is available at Flintshire Record Office.
Schools
Flintshire Record Office holds many records of former British, National, Board and Council schools. Those of most interest to family historians are the admission registers, which were kept from the mid-nineteenth century, giving the names and dates of birth of the pupils, and the names and addresses of the parents. Although a considerable number of these registers have been deposited, some are known to be in private hands.
Many log books have also been deposited. These were required to be kept by head teachers from 1862, and sometimes provide information on individual pupils. (Access may be restricted).
Societies
- Flintshire Historical Society, founded 1911.
- Friends of the Clwyd Archives.
-
Clwyd Family History Society.
The Society publishes a journal, "Hel Achau", four times per year, and has a resource centre for the use of members. It has more than 1100 members, many of whose "interests" are listed in the "Members Interests" booklet published by the Society.
Voting Registers
Flintshire Record Office holds copies of the Electoral Registers for Flintshire, from 1912. The earlier registers, with a few exceptions, were destroyed during the First World War.
When consulting the Electoral Registers, it should be noted that they refer to Urban Districts, Rural Districts and "Civil Parishes", which were created during the late Victorian period - and which, in general, no longer exist. In some cases, the names chosen for these administrative units were those of the old "townships"; but as these were somewhat loosely defined, it is advisable to ask the Record Office staff for advice before searching through the Electoral Registers.
The GENUKI Flintshire pages are maintained by Gareth Hicks. Help and information has been provided by a number of assistants.
Find help, report problems, and contribute information
Last Updated 21 Nov 2009 - Gareth Hicks
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