Hi Janet, Lots of information was written in the margins, remember one about a woman falling out of a tree, probably picking apples and Children drowning in the stream. Certainly adds to the usual BMDs. The Vicar sounded very "sympathetic" didn't he? (;-)) Edna - Ottawa Merry Christmas and a Healthy New Year ----- Original Message ----- From: "Janet Cuff" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Thursday, December 16, 2010 12:55 PM Subject: Re: [B&D] Memorandum in Meare Parish Church Register Hi Edna, I too have found the old Parish Church Registers to yield some very interesting information apart from the usual BMDs. One vicar in a Devon parish I came across had written a lengthy account in 1726 entitled "Touching the Green" which set out the games which were allowed on the Green by the Church and things which were forbidden such as digging a pit for the sawyer plus an account of a game which had ended in a brawl when the ball had been thrown over a hedge . He also added his comments to accompany various deaths such as the accidental death by drowning of two of his young parishioners when he noted "the loss of two fine young men" When an older member of his flock had come home from the village pub, fallen over his front doorstep and incurred a fatal injury the vicar wrote, rather caustically I thought,that the doorstep had long been there. It made me wonder if he had cause to remonstrate with the man on previous occasions about his drunkenness! Janet