Ancestors

We often get requests from individuals who are trying to trace their family history. The usual questions concern the Christening, Wedding or Burial of relatives. Sometimes they are simply trying to see if anyone with a specific surname still lives in the village, in an attempt to trace long-lost relatives. The following information is intended to help anyone trying to trace their family trees:

  • The FIRST entries in the registers currently held by the church are as follows:
    Baptisms Rosanna Birch 4th June 1876
    Weddings

    Donald Pratt &
    Dorothy Fox

    		 2nd December 1957
    Burials Samual Smith 20th March 1813

  • We can provide copies of entries and/or make these registers available. The Diocese charges a small fee for this service.
  • Any records dating before these are kept at the Suffolk Records Office in Bury St. Edmunds (77 Raingate Street - opposite new Shire Hall and the Police Station). In most cases they are available on microfische or microfilm, though if they are not very clear staff will usually let you see the originals.
  • The Suffolk Records Office (SRO) has a website at: www.suffolkcc.gov.uk/sro and they will sell you copies of documents (click on the 'Fische Details' on the left-had side).
  • The staff in the searchroom are very helpful, so it might be worth calling them for advice. Their telephone number is 01284 352352 (or +44 1284 352352 if you are calling from overseas).
  • You may also find the Suffolk pages at www.sog.org.uk/prc/index.html to be of help. Their staff will carry out a half-hour search for £15 and send you copies of any relevant documents.
  • As Hinderclay is on the Suffolk / Norfolk border some people find that relatives moved just across the border so if there is no trace of relatives in Bury St. Edmunds you may find the Norfolk Records Office website helpful: http://archives.norfolk.gov.uk/nroindex.htm
  • Unfortunately there have never been any plans kept of our church burial yard. This is a great pity as some graves are just mounds of earth and some headstones can no longer be read, due to weather erosion of the stones. However we are beginning to collect details and hope eventually to be able to provide the names of those buried here on the website; it will be a long process and will take many months to complete.
  • For a small donation towards the upkeep of the church, the webmaster will see if he can track down specific names on gravestones, as long as you are in no hurry. You can send him an email by going to our 'Contact us' webpage.