Where's Enfield?!!!

[trachelospermum]

Hi, this is a stupid question! I can't work out which Record Office to go to for records relating to Enfield! Jo

[devongirl]

Hi Jo

Enfield area is covered by the Westminster and Middlesex Family History Society and the Local History Unit is in Southgate Town Hall, Green lanes, London N13 4XD

or London Metropolitan Archives, 40 Northampton Row. London EC1  which is near the Family Records Office in Islington, hold the parish registers for that area.

devongirl

[trachelospermum]

Thanks, London confuses me so much! Now all I have to do is identify which William Clarke is the right one!

[JanetteO]

Hi I've been to the Local History Unit and I'd ring them before arriving if planning to go as there really is limited space there. I think they only let two people in at any one time. The historian there is fantastic and a real expert on Enfield.

They don't hold any parish registers there, they do hold lots of other information though. I spent a wonderful afternoon there once reading all the old newspapers. I think if memory serves me right that they do have some electorial registers, but I would check first they are very helpful there.

The civic centre in Enfield hold records for the cemetries, so if you want to read through any of their books to determine if and where someone was buried etc, I think they like you to ring them first and you can go along and read their book.

I do pop along to a few cemetries when I get the chance if I can be of any help

Jan

[JanetteO]

Hi again just checked and I've got a couple of William Clarkes on my tree... can you tell me what you've got already as I might be able to save you a journey.

Jan

[trachelospermum]

Hi, thanks for the replies, my William Clarke married lived and died in Hertfordshire, but the census returns state Enfield as his pob. He was born around 1812. He married Ester Croft in Chipping Barnet, herts in 1833. Thanks for your interest. Jo

[JanetteO]

Hi Jo,

I'm not having a good day, thought I'd check the census to see if anything familiar came up and I couldn't even find your William, was his surname transcribed correctly in the census or am I being partiuculary dumb today (wouldn't surprise me  )

I have a few links with Clarkes, my earliest William was born in 1829 and the census states he was born in the Meesden area. He had a son William who was born in Enfield.

I see you also have Latchford's on your surname list, we have Latchfords in the Bedfordshire area.

I don't know if this is of any help to you or not, but prior to 1831 the main church in Enfield was St.Andrews church and if you do a search on the LDS the batch number for christenings is C067862 and for marriages batch number M067861

Jan

[trachelospermum]

Thanks, I can't remember if he is badly transcribed, but judging on ancestrys track record, it would be a fairly safe bet! They lived in Lemsford Mills, Hatfield until he died in 1875. They had 9 children and it's the youngest, Rebekah, who started me on this whole thing! We just managed to intercept the family bible from going to a charity shop, which was given to Rebekah by her parents. Theirs is one of 2 lines which I have yet to get beyond 1800 with!
My Latchfords are based around Wheathampstead and Sandridge, Herts. There are 3 Latchford families in the area, mine, one in Hemel Hemstead (lots of mention of them in the court records!) and one in Hitchin. We beleive they all stem from Dunstable originally and my Wheathampstead Latchfords are an offshoot from the Hitchin ones in about 1780. I wonder if yours are linked to these? Jo

[JanetteO]

Hi again

I'd be very shocked if they didn't all get related in the end, my Latchfords at the moment seem to be coming from the Biggleswade area, I've not an idea at all as to how close that is to Dunstable.

They connect to my tree by a marriage of an Oakman who married an Archer who descends from a  Latchford, the Archer's originate in the Woburn area at the moment, that line also brings in the Hensman line, which seem to be originating at the moment from the Ampthil area.

One thing most of my tree has is a direct link to Enfield and Hertfordshire which is why I have a big interest in Enfield, having been born and lived there most of my life, but I'm out in Hertfordshire now about 10 miles away.

My Hertfordshire families are mainly based around Standon, Albury and the Pelhams which all come under the registration district of Ware. One of my Clarke lines having children in the Cheshunt and Hatfield area.

Jan