Many thanks Julie for your prompt reply. I am most grateful. I will copy your excellent and most comprehensive reply to my co-researcher on this particular family 'line', John Lovelock, as well as the other Lovelock reseachers with whom I am in email contact. Best wishes from 'Down Under'. Robert Sterry > -----Original Message----- > From: ARCHIVES [mailto:ARCH@reading.gov.uk] > Sent: Thursday, May 30, 2002 9:36 PM > To: 'Robert Sterry' > Subject: RE: 'Parish Chest' records at Reading St Mary > > > JG/BE/E02S > 30 May 2002 > > Dear Mr Sterry > > Thank you for your e-mail dated 26 May 2002 regarding John > Lovelock and his > family. > > Care of the poor in a parish was the responsibility of that parish until > 1834 when the "New Poor Law" combined groups of parishes into a > "Union" and > "Guardians of the Poor" were appointed to administer relief, either in a > workhouse (often purpose-built) or in the recipients own homes. As you > rightly say, therefore, for the period in which you are > interested, only the > parish records will contain material relevant to your search. The records > of the parish Overseers of the Poor for Reading St Mary have recently been > transcribed and indexed. This index covers all settlement, removal, > bastardy, apprenticeship and militia records that survive from the "parish > chest". I have therefore been able to check this and can confirm that the > only two references there to John Lovelock are to the two documents about > which you already have information, i.e. his Settlement Examination, 1739 > and the family's Settlement Certificate, 1843. > > There is no reference to the family in our Personal Names Index > (to material > mostly deposited from private sources). Therefore, all we can offer to > further your enquiry, is a search in Reading St Mary parish registers for > any events which you require. Our fees for searches are £15 per hour, > payable in advance, by cheque in sterling, drawn on a bank with a > UK branch. > Details are available on our website. > > An alternative would be for your co-researcher to visit this Office to > search the St Mary parish registers for you. We have a good coverage of > registers for this large parish: > > baptisms: 1538-1954; marriages: 1538-1954; burials: 1538-1903 > > Many registers are freely available to view on microform during > our opening > hours (please see our website). > > Please let me know if we can help further. > > Yours sincerely > > JULIE GRISMAN > Searchroom Assistant > > Berkshire Record Office > 9 Coley Avenue > Reading > RG1 6AF > tel 0118 901 5132 > fax 0118 901 5131 > www.berkshirerecordoffice.org.uk > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Robert Sterry [mailto:rsterry@zip.com.au] > Sent: 26 May 2002 07:55 > To: John Lovelock; ARCH@Reading.gov.uk > Subject: 'Parish Chest' records at Reading St Mary > > > Greetings from Australia. > > I seek your advice regarding source material for my family > history research, > in particular the availability of relevant 'parish chest' records for > Reading St Mary. > > I am searching for the family of a John Lovelock who married Elizabeth > Woolfe on 3 Oct 1739 at St Mary, Berkshire Reading. > > We know, from a 'Settlement Examination' dated 3 Oct 1739 at the > Borough of > Reading, that John Lovelock was born in Burghfield, Berkshire. > Presumably, > his marriage on the same day was connected to the settlement > examination and > his 'settlement' was probably conditional on it. Four years later, in a > Settlement Certificate dated 26 Oct 1743, John, his wife Elizabeth and his > three children at that time, John, Lucy and Dorcas (spelt 'Darkis' on > Certificate), were stated as legally settled in the parish of South Stoke, > Oxfordshire. The 1743 Settlement Certificate was addressed to the Church > Wardens and Overseers of the Poor at St Marys, Reading. > Presumably John and > his family were still living at the time at Reading and were seeking to > remain there. > > We know from his Settlement Examination that 'he was hired for 4 years to > Thomas Jennes of Woodcott in the parish of South Stoke in the > County of Oxon > with whom he lived as a servt (servant?) for the space of two years and > saith that he hath not gained any settlement since his service at Stoke as > aforesaid'. > > Elizabeth Woolfe was born about 1718 and baptized at St Mary, > Reading on 31 > Aug 1718. She was probably buried at St Mary, Reading on 5 Aug, > 1767. There > is no record of John Lovelock having been also buried there. > > John and Elizabeth's first child, John Lovelock, was also named > John. He was > baptized 2 Jul 1739 at St Mary, Reading and was born illegitimate. John is > the only known male descendent of John and Elizabeth Lovelock. He > married in > 1779 at Wallingford St Mary le More, Berkshire and was buried > there in 1817. > > We do not know what became of John and Elizabeth's daughter, Lucy, who was > also baptized at St Mary, Reading on 1 Feb, 1740/41. Dorcas died when she > was about 16 and was buried in 1759 at St Mary Reading. John and Elizabeth > had five other known children: Martha, Mathew, Elizabeth I, James and > Elizabeth II. However, of these, only Martha, who was baptized at St Mary > Reading on 3 Oct 1745, survived. We do not know what happened to her. > > I WOULD BE MOST GRATEFUL IF YOU WOULD ADVISE WHETHER A SEARCH OF > ANY OF THE > 'PARISH CHEST' RECORDS AT READING ST MARY IS LIKELY TO PROVIDE ANY FURTHER > INFORMATION ON THIS FAMILY. > > I have checked the records that have been filmed by the Mormons and that I > can access from Australia. There's a huge number that have been > filmed. The > likely ones include Settlement Certificates 1682-1779 (LDS Film 88380) and > Examinations, Bonds etc. (LDS Film #88382) There don't appear to > be any Poor > Law records on film. Perhaps they don't survive? > > My co-researcher, John Lovelock (to whom I'm copying this query) > fortunately > lives in England and can visit the Berkshire RO on occasion. If you could > possibly steer us in the right direction as to the availability > of relevant > parish records, I would be most grateful. Of course, I would be very > interested in any that have been surname indexed. > > Many thanks for your assistance. I would be happy to meet any search fees > involved. Perhaps you have a list of your holdings on sale that might be > useful. > > Robert Sterry > > ---------------------------------------- > Lovelock Web Site: > www.ri.silicomp.fr/~loveluck/genealogy/lovelock >