Hi Listers, This will certainly free many of us from the reliance on Censuses, Church Parish Records, County Record Offices, Wills and Administrations, and the absences of evidence in them that produce so many road-blocks and dead-ends in UK research. This is part of the FREE project done by volunteers, and for which only the English Counties of Devon and Cornwall have some Parishes completed. These clerks are not employed by the Parish or County, and will do free look-ups. Volunteers can offer their transcribing time from thousands of miles away. You might want to contact FHS's in the Counties of your interest to see if they have OPC's what they have done so far. Cheers!!!! Richard Allicock Toronto, Canada From Rootsweb Review, Vol.6, no. 21, May 21, 2003. 1b. English Lessons: What's an OPC? By Lynda Mudle-Small Coordinator Dorset OPC Project: http://www.dorset-opc.com/ An Online Parish Clerk (OPC) is a relatively new initiative originating in Cornwall more than two years ago from discussion on the RootsWeb Mailing List. Like any good idea it spread to Devon and has now been launched in Dorset. Whilst each county scheme has its differences, the general principle of providing free information about a parish, its people and history, to assist family historians, is common to all. So, what do OPCs do? Well, they will first of all select a parish (several do more than one) in which they have an interest and will then gather and transcribe as much information as they can about that parish in order to eventually have an overall picture of that parish and the way of life of the inhabitants from the time records began until about 1900. What OPCs transcribe is up to them, but many start with the parish records (PR) and all the census. OPCs fully support the other initiatives to provide free information, especially the FreeCens, FreeBMD and FreeReg and will exchange data. But after PRs and census there are land tax records, wills and probates, street directories, parish and church histories, churchwardens' accounts, overseers' accounts, poll books, militia lists, protestation returns, hearth tax, etc. All of these records, which are often overlooked by family historians, help to provide a wealth of material about the life of a parish through the centuries. It could be said that the OPC project crosses the fine line between family history and social and local history, but then most researchers want more than just a pedigree. Although the Dorset scheme only started on 1st April there is already a large amount of data on the website. However not all OPCs have submitted data for the site, some have a link to data on their own sites, others you can contact by e-mail from the website to ask for their assistance. We already have OPCs working on one-quarter of Dorset parishes and more volunteers are always needed. You do not have to live in Dorset. Many of the volunteers live thousands of miles away, although ideally you need to be within reasonable reach of an LDS centre [Family History Center]. I am sure extra volunteers would also be welcome for Cornwall and Devon. Although OPCs vary enormously with the amount of time they can give to the project, all find it very rewarding. You can learn a great deal about the parish in which your ancestors lived and might even put a few "twiglets" on your tree, or find a missing link -- and you will be helping to make these national records freely available to all. If you want to find out more about the information available or about becoming an OPC, visit these websites: Cornwall OPCs: http://west-penwith.org.uk/opclista.htm Devon OPCs: http://www.cs.ncl.ac.uk/genuki/DEV/OPCproject.html * * *

What a super idea! Of course both Devon & Dorset are full the the retired educated middle classes which must account for its success and genesis there. Edward Crawford ----- Original Message ----- From: "Richard Allicock" <richwyn@idirect.com> To: <CARIBBEAN-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, May 23, 2003 10:10 PM Subject: On-Line Parish Clerks/Other Records/Most Welcome Development > Hi Listers, > > This will certainly free many of us from the reliance on Censuses, Church Parish Records, County Record Offices, Wills and Administrations, and the absences of evidence in them that produce so many road-blocks and dead-ends in UK research. > > This is part of the FREE project done by volunteers, and for which only the English Counties of Devon and Cornwall have some Parishes completed. These clerks are not employed by the Parish or County, and will do free look-ups. Volunteers can offer their transcribing time from thousands of miles away. You might want to contact FHS's in the Counties of your interest to see if they have OPC's what they have done so far. > > > Cheers!!!! > > Richard Allicock > Toronto, Canada > > > >From Rootsweb Review, Vol.6, no. 21, May 21, 2003. > > 1b. English Lessons: What's an OPC? > By Lynda Mudle-Small > Coordinator Dorset OPC Project: http://www.dorset-opc.com/ > > An Online Parish Clerk (OPC) is a relatively new initiative originating > in Cornwall more than two years ago from discussion on the RootsWeb > Mailing List. Like any good idea it spread to Devon and has now been > launched in Dorset. Whilst each county scheme has its differences, the > general principle of providing free information about a parish, its > people and history, to assist family historians, is common to all. > > So, what do OPCs do? Well, they will first of all select a parish > (several do more than one) in which they have an interest and will then > gather and transcribe as much information as they can about that parish > in order to eventually have an overall picture of that parish and the > way of life of the inhabitants from the time records began until about > 1900. What OPCs transcribe is up to them, but many start with the parish > records (PR) and all the census. OPCs fully support the other > initiatives to provide free information, especially the FreeCens, > FreeBMD and FreeReg and will exchange data. But after PRs and census > there are land tax records, wills and probates, street directories, > parish and church histories, churchwardens' accounts, overseers' > accounts, poll books, militia lists, protestation returns, hearth tax, > etc. All of these records, which are often overlooked by family > historians, help to provide a wealth of material about the life of a > parish through the centuries. It could be said that the OPC project > crosses the fine line between family history and social and local > history, but then most researchers want more than just a pedigree. > > Although the Dorset scheme only started on 1st April there is already > a large amount of data on the website. However not all OPCs have > submitted data for the site, some have a link to data on their own > sites, others you can contact by e-mail from the website to ask for > their assistance. We already have OPCs working on one-quarter of Dorset > parishes and more volunteers are always needed. You do not have to live > in Dorset. Many of the volunteers live thousands of miles away, although > ideally you need to be within reasonable reach of an LDS centre [Family > History Center]. I am sure extra volunteers would also be welcome for > Cornwall and Devon. > > Although OPCs vary enormously with the amount of time they can give to > the project, all find it very rewarding. You can learn a great deal > about the parish in which your ancestors lived and might even put a few > "twiglets" on your tree, or find a missing link -- and you will be > helping to make these national records freely available to all. > > If you want to find out more about the information available or about > becoming an OPC, visit these websites: > Cornwall OPCs: http://west-penwith.org.uk/opclista.htm > Devon OPCs: http://www.cs.ncl.ac.uk/genuki/DEV/OPCproject.html > > * * * > > > > ==== CARIBBEAN Mailing List ==== > ROOTSWEB MAILING LIST HELP PAGES > What is a Mailing List? > http://helpdesk.rootsweb.com/help/mail1.html > > > ______________________________________________________________ > This message has been scanned by the Datanet VirusScreen Service, > powered by BT Ignite and Messagelabs. For more information please > visit http://www.VirusScreen.co.uk. > ______________________________________________________________ This message has been scanned by the Datanet VirusScreen Service, powered by BT Ignite and Messagelabs. For more information please visit http://www.VirusScreen.co.uk.