Search for missing chapel records (From Penarth Times)

Search for missing chapel records

The Pembrokeshire Record Office has recently completed a survey of the records held by nonconformist chapels in Pembrokeshire resulting in the deposit of a number of registers and other records at the Record Office.

The survey has also revealed that the records of some chapels have disappeared. While some records are known to have been destroyed by accident or by vandalism, others are thought to have passed into the hands of private individuals.

Initially this has usually meant that a member of the chapel has taken the records home for safekeeping but, over the years, these documents may have found their way into the possession of persons not currently members of a particular denomination. The Pembrokeshire Record Office is keen to try and locate some of the missing registers and the staff would like to hear from anyone who may be able to help.

The Record Office is based at Haverfordwest Castle (Tel. 01437 763707), e-mail records.office@pembrokeshire.gov.uk) and its aim is to preserve and make available to the public, for research, documents and records relating to all aspects of life in Pembrokeshire.

Genealogy has become a popular hobby and the majority of visitors to the Record Office are pursuing their family history.

In order to make such records more easily available - and to reduce the wear and tear on these old documents - members of the Dyfed Family History Society are currently working on a project to index the original registers.

The indexing project will include registers deposited at the Record Office and some still held by the chapels. The project will take several years and, once completed, the index will be made available at the Pembrokeshire Record Office.

For anyone interested in starting to trace their family tree, a course entitled Family History for Beginners is being organised by the Pembrokeshire Record Office, in conjunction with Haverfordwest Local Studies Library, on Saturday, September 22nd. Details of the course, including booking forms, can be obtained from the Pembrokeshire Record Office or local libraries.

Pictured with one of the chapel records is archivist Nicky Bosworth.