St Peter's Church/Holy Cross, Wallsend - early records

[Sandrafamilytree]

I've been following Tickettyboo's excellent advice on how to find the names of specific churches used for baptisms, marriages etc, which I at first couldn't find on Family Search.

Using that method, I now find I have some relatives with a link to St Peter's Church in Wallsend.

Family Search and Northumberland Archives refer to the relevant records as: 'Parish registers of St. Peter's Church, Wallsend, 1669-1941'...

...but I know St Peter's wasn't built until 1809, when it replaced Holy Cross, which had fallen into disrepair.

So would that mean that (for example) my relative, baptised in 1764, would actually have been baptised at Holy Cross?

[River Tyne Lass]

https://my.northtyneside.gov.uk/category/1017/local-studies-and-information

If you look on the North Shields local studies website the Parish Registers are under St Peter - no mention of Holy Cross. Scroll down on link and click parish registers. So I would think your ancestors would have been baptised at St Peter.  No doubt someone will correct me if I am wrong.  Actually, it looks like the local studies doesn't have the baptisms for St Peter 1764.

Added: yes, it looks like you are right.  I have googled and it does seem St Peter replaced Holy Cross.  Strange that the Parish registers are just under the 'banner' of St Peter.   Perhaps someone might be able to explain.
Actually it looks like the local studies doesn't have the baptism records for 1764. 

[Sandrafamilytree]

Many thanks for the link. 

I've found a relative who falls under those records, but as he was actually baptised in 1764 I thought he can't have been baptised at St Peter's because the building of that church didn't start until early 19th Century, when it replaced Holy Cross.

That made me wonder whether the St Peter's records absorbed previous records from that Parish, if you see what I mean. (Maybe it never works like that, and I have the wrong end of the stick!)

[River Tyne Lass]

Yes, I see what you mean.  I wonder if St Peter's did absorb the records.
I daresay someone on here will be pop along and be able to explain it all soon soon.

https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/history/gallery/ancient-abandoned-church-tales-witchcraft-24064944

From photo on above link it looks like on a different site to St Peter.  I have been to St Peter, and don't recall seeing that ruin on the photo.  Perhaps it is somewhere near the Holy Cross Cemetery.

[Tickettyboo]

From what I can see Wallsend did not exist as an ecclesiastical  parish until 1807. Prior to that it was a chapelry of Jarrow Parish. (both sides of the Tyne were in the Diocese of Durham).

https://ancientmonuments.uk/116845-holy-cross-church-and-graveyard-wallsend-howdon-ward

That page says that Holy Cross was a parochial chapel, rather than a parish.

https://www.familysearch.org/mapp/
go there, put Wallsend in the search box then click the link that comes up.
that confirms Wallsend became a parochial parish in 1807 and list records from 1669 - so I assume that the time frame encompasses all events in the boundaries of Wallsend , no matter which church they happened in.

(that site is very useful for parish info and jurisdictions)

Northumberland Archives hold the original registers. Try an email enquiry to them to get a definite answer.

Boo

[River Tyne Lass]

I did not know that Boo, thanks for posting more on this.  You learn something new every day!

[Sandrafamilytree]

Many thanks Boo. New knowledge for me, too!