Thursday 31 December 2015

Churches- Baptisms, Marriages, Funerals

Was it Clyde or Cranbourne? Do you need to check the church's records?
Clyde people often recorded their family events as having taken place in Cranbourne.

Hint / Suggestion
Consider looking at church documents to be the last resort rather than at the beginning of your search.
All events such as Birth Marriage Death have been recorded in the Victorian Registry Office. Church baptisms, marriages and burials from 1836-1985 are also recorded in the Vic Reg office. Copies of documents are available for a fee.

When might it be important to check church records?
  • Baptismal / Christening records may indicate where the ceremony took place and conducted by whom. Such information may be clues to the location of the family at the time. Being baptised at Scots Cranbourne Presbyterian church or St Agatha's Catholic church is no guareentee that the baby's family lived in Cranbourne. However, being baptised or married in Clyde Church of England is likely to be a strong clue that the family lived in Clyde.
  • Church Records of sacraments/ceremonies other than marriage or funeral, may hold the key that unlocks a family mystery.
  • Church Records in the period between 1836-1853 before the Victorian Government established a Registry Office.
My personal story is an example. My father, an abandoned baby was named George Coppin by a Judge.  His adopted mother, a Presbyterian, went to a Methodist minister to have the baby privately baptised and christened as Mervyn Richmond Campbell.  Genealogy websites and Victorian Registry office do not have any details about his birth.There is no birth certificate. Details of his life are recorded in the Ward Register linked to the Infant Life Protection Act (in the  Public Records Office, Victoria) and possibly  a copy in Court documents in Richmond.
We have a some correspondence about his baptism- the only proof of a name change- but no record of his birth.


Where are the church documents?
1. Cranbourne Scots Presbyterian Church documents

2. St Agatha's Catholic Church documents
3. Anglican Church documents ( Clyde and Cranbourne)
4. Methodist Church documents.

You will need to make an appointment to see church documents and possibly pay a Search Fee.


Please refer to the following as initial contacts in your search. The Editor hasn't explored them all and has only listed what has been found on a general internet search.

Presbyterian Church Victorian Archives: 156 Collins St, Melbourne
Methodist Church Archives: Uniting Church Archives 54 Serrel St, East Malvern  9571 5476
Anglican (Church of England) Archives: 203 Flinders Lane Melbourne Tel 9653 4220
Catholic Church Archives:  St Patricks Cathedral, East Melbourne