Birtley, Northumberland Genealogy

= Parish History =

Birtley St Giles parochial chapelry was separated from the parish of Chollerton,_Northumberland in 1765, and received an independent jurisdiction. It includes the townships of Broomhope with Buteland, and anciently formed part of the barony of Prudhoe.

BIRTLEY, a parochial chapelry, in the union of Bellingham, N. E. division of Tindale ward, S. division of Northumberland, 5 miles (S. E. by S.) from Bellingham; containing, with the township of Broomhope with Buteland, 472 inhabitants. It is situated on the east of the North Tyne: the land in the northern part is mountainous and sterile, but near the bank of the river it is of better quality. Coal and limestone are found in the vicinity. The place was separated from the parish of Chollerton, and formed into a chapelry, in 1765. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £84; patron, the Duke of Northumberland. The chapel is a small ancient edifice. The great tithes of the High and Low divisions of Birtley have been commuted for £70, and the vicarial tithes for £129.

From: 'Birstal - Bishopstrow', A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 263-267. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=50803 Date accessed: 14 March 2011.

= Parish Records =

Durham University Library Archives and Special Collections DDR/EA/PBT/2/29 1769-1834 Parish Register transcripts are available to search free online at Record Search. The Record Search images for the parish registers have not yet been loaded on Record Search.

The dates of the post-1760 transcripts have been noted in detail and sometimes only cover years. For most parishes in the collection there are gaps in the sequence of transcripts. It is advisable to consult the original parish registers for these years and events.

Birtley, St Giles: Records of baptisms 1730-1991, marriages 1730-1976 and burials 1728-1993 are available at Northumberland Collections Service. Bishops' Transcripts for the period 1769-1834 are deposited at Durham University Library Archives and Special Collections, Palace Green, Durham City. The International Genealogical Index (I.G.I.) includes baptisms 1728-1875 and marriages 1730-1877 for this parish, but it is not included in Boyd's Marriage Index.