Brough Christenings

[peterdwalker]

I have found 7 christenings for the Richardson family between 1800 and 1815 on the Mormons site which say that they took place at Punch Bowl, Brough. This sounds very much like a pub and I wonder if anyone knows if pubs were used at that time for christenings?

[sillgen]

Hi
Welcome to rootschat.  I know the Punch Bowl - it closed fairly recently when the route of the road altered slightly.  It is on the A66 just east of Brough on North Stainmore.  Are these extracted records or member submitted?    If the latter then you have to take them with a pinch of salt.   St Michael's is the main local church, in Church Brough, however there is a building near the Punch Bowl which looks like a small church and it is marked as such on my old map.
You may find information on www.genuki.org.uk or Kendal Record Office will know about it.   Kirkby Stephen has a flourishing Historical Society who might be able to help too.
Andrea

[Brie]

Hello,

There are two churches on North Stainmore, the Chapel of St Mary which was I believe Anglican and a Methodist Chapel. St Mary's was built in 1873 so that is ruled out for your purposes. I can't find a date for the Methodist Chapel at present but will keep looking. I'm not sure which is next to the Punch Bowl.

Do you know what denomination your ancestors were? As far as I am aware it is not unusual for non-conformists to use part of, or a room in a building for their services if they didn't happen to have their own building. For example up here I know of a barn that was used by Quakers and the early Independents (Congregationalists) often met in houses. 

Another possibility is that they may have lived at the Punch Bowl. It would have been a large Posting House at the time requiring a lot of indoor staff, grooms etc and so there would have been quite a number living there. Children were baptised at home as well as church especially if they seemed frail.

If the Methodist Chapel hadn't been built by that time I think the nearest church would be the Anglican Church in South Stainmore that was consecrated in 1608 - at the time the schoolhouse but rebuilt 1842. There is a Methodist in South Stainmore as well but again too late as it was built in 1909.

The dates of the Churches are from Kelly's Directory of Westmorland 1938. In this Directory there is a Richardson farming at Slapstones, North Stainmore. 

Brie

(Modified later - because not 100% sure which is the Church next to The Punch Bowl.)

[peterdwalker]

Thanks to everybody for their replies. I was able to make contact with the Kirkby Stephen Historical Society and the contact provided the following reply:  "Brough and Stainmore registers show the addresses of some families with common surnames, and those outside the main villages. The family  seems to have been living at the Punch Bowl, probably as both inn-keepers and small scale farmers, or as part of the staff there. The Mormons generally take the information from the registers and although they are inaccurate, the inaccuracies are generally omissions or because they do not understand a local situation. If an address is given, it will be that of the family. The registers from the mid-18th century become more detailed than previously, when only the child's name and those of its parents were given."

[briant]

Here is a link for The Punch Bowl  http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/136760

I was past the place last June and it was  looking very delapidated then,

The church across the road is/was to the left,and if i remember,it was converted to residential a few years ago,


Regards Brian