Dear listers, Although many records are lost sometimes the Bishops transcripts are available. The minister had to deliver copies of the registers to the archdiocese at regular intervals. The originals are better and sometimes the copies have parts missing-e.g. I have one marriage that lists the bride and groom but the transcript failed to note that she was a widow which led my research in the wrong directiuon and in another there was some nice little jibes -"people are going to the next parish because of the poor state of the Church" (the steeple had fallen down). As I do most of my research from L.D.S. films because I am in Australia I always go for the original records if possible. Another good research tool is to look at the accounts books and manorial records if posssible. The manorial records are great because they often follow the ownership or leasing of the land back through several generations when it changes hands and even sometimes mention wills or parts of them is their records. Sometimes wills are mentioned which no longer exist. Hope that this helps, Anne Ringer