Hi Jim You have raised a challenging area of research. I dont think any of the reels could be said to be indexes. I have never heard of the term Bishop's Transcripts used in relation to church records in Australia. Even in the UK it only relates to C of E records I think. I suggest you consult Nick Vine Hall's Tracing your family history in Australia. As well as giving a detailed description of early church records, he also lists articles by others. I believe all the records on the Archives Kit reels can be said to be original records. As you have found, one event can have multiple entries. One simply has to look at all of them and if there are differences then, in some cases, there is probably no way one can say which is correct. There can be errors the first time an event is recorded. In writing up one's family history you probably need to refer (by note perhaps) to all entries. Hope you solve your particular challenges. Grahame On 24/05/2011, at 5:16 AM, Jim Loftus wrote: > Hello Grahame: > Thank you for sending the link to this guide. It has been a help. > > Is there a way to distinguish various indexes and transcriptions from > original pre 1856 records? Indeed, are there any original pre 1856 church > B,M,D records? As an example of my query, the NSW B,M,D index has 16 > records covering just six of the events I am looking at. Four of those > events have multiple spellings. > > Can you or another lister tell me if I have made correct conclusions > regarding the following volumes: > - are Volumes 1-3 indexes > - are volumes 147-149 & 162 indexes > - are Volumes 4-44 Bishop's Transcripts? > > Also, are the letters A,B,C in a volume # of some significance? > > > Best regards > Jim Loftus >

Thank you for your thoughts & insights Grahame, Ray, Russell & Trisha Trisha's revelations were a particular surprise - That there may be 3 James Osburnes (sp?)all baptised in 1823 to a William & Mary! The two Vol 162A records of James Osborne baptised in the Wesleyan Methodist Church Sydney & another in the Roman Catholic Church in Newcastle are indeed curious. Up until now, everything suggested only 1 pair of William & Mary. Best regards Jim -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Grahame Thom Sent: May-23-11 4:25 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [PJ] Meaning of NSWBDM Reg Nos for births and deaths? Hi Jim You have raised a challenging area of research. I dont think any of the reels could be said to be indexes. I have never heard of the term Bishop's Transcripts used in relation to church records in Australia. Even in the UK it only relates to C of E records I think. I suggest you consult Nick Vine Hall's Tracing your family history in Australia. As well as giving a detailed description of early church records, he also lists articles by others. I believe all the records on the Archives Kit reels can be said to be original records. As you have found, one event can have multiple entries. One simply has to look at all of them and if there are differences then, in some cases, there is probably no way one can say which is correct. There can be errors the first time an event is recorded. In writing up one's family history you probably need to refer (by note perhaps) to all entries. Hope you solve your particular challenges. Grahame On 24/05/2011, at 5:16 AM, Jim Loftus wrote: > Hello Grahame: > Thank you for sending the link to this guide. It has been a help. > > Is there a way to distinguish various indexes and transcriptions from > original pre 1856 records? Indeed, are there any original pre 1856 > church B,M,D records? As an example of my query, the NSW B,M,D index > has 16 records covering just six of the events I am looking at. Four > of those events have multiple spellings. > > Can you or another lister tell me if I have made correct conclusions > regarding the following volumes: > - are Volumes 1-3 indexes > - are volumes 147-149 & 162 indexes > - are Volumes 4-44 Bishop's Transcripts? > > Also, are the letters A,B,C in a volume # of some significance? > > > Best regards > Jim Loftus > ---------------------- To send a message to the Port Jackson Convicts List, send an email to [email protected] ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message ----- No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 10.0.1375 / Virus Database: 1509/3655 - Release Date: 05/23/11