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 About the Database

The Pirton Local History Group began working on a village database in July 2002.

Aim of the database

The aim of the database is to store information extracted from a variety of sources of archive material relating to the village of Pirton and to provide an easy to use search facility. The website enables users to search for the names of individual people across the entire collection of documents stored in the database which will enable any researcher to build up a historical picture.

In future it is planned to enable users to search by property. Then it will be possible to view all people that have lived at a particular location and identify what land they owned or leased. It will also be possible to search for all properties by street name.

It is up to users to make the links between people to deduce whether individuals with the same name in two different records (i.e. a marriage record and a baptism record) are in fact the same person -- not just two people with the same name.

Drawing of Dance by Mike James
Using the search function
The minimum requirement for a search is either a surname or a first name.

In order to look for a particular person, enter the first name and the surname. To narrow your search you may also enter a date range that surrounds the period during which that person was alive. (Bear in mind that probate documents may be dated some years after a person’s death.)

Searching first names: when, for example, searching for the first name ‘Anne’ it should be remembered that some records may have different variations of the name e.g. Ann, Anne and Anna. To find all records of the longer form Anne, it is best to search for Ann as this will find all records with first names starting with ‘Ann,’ including ‘Anne’ and ‘Anna.’

Searching surnames: the search function finds records for names which have common variations in spelling, or which may have been spelled incorrectly in some records. For example, the name Handscombe has the following different spelling variations within documents:
Anscomb, Hancombe, Hancsomb, Handscomb, Handscombe, Handscome, Handsomb, Hanscom, Hanscomb, Hanscombe, Hanscome.
The search will return all documents that contain the name and close variations.

Searching occupations: you may filter your search by occupation. This will narrow your results to include records where the occupation matches the occupation chosen in the drop down list. Occupations are grouped into similar variations; e.g. Farmer, Farm labourer, Agricultural labourer are all grouped together.
Records where the occupation is unknown are not included in the search results.

Searching record types: you may filter your search by record type. If you want to see only records that contain a certain name of a certain type e.g. census then you can choose a record type from the drop down list.

Search results: The search function returns all documents where the name searched for appears in that document.

In the results table click on a name link to view the document in which that name appears.
When viewing a record that contains other names, it is possible to perform a new search on that name by clicking on the name link.

Historical sources

Table of Sources currently in the database: see below for record office contact details.
Name of sourcePrefix codeSource DescriptionYear FromYear ToNumber Of RecordsLocation
Board school admission registersADMThese admission lists are from Pirton Board School which opened in 1877.18861898513Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
ApprenticeshipsAPRA list of boys whose apprenticeships were financed by Hammonds Charity.1823190672Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
St Mary's Parish register baptismsBAPThese are baptism records from St Mary's Parish Registers.156219015450Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Pirton methodist registerBAPMThese are baptism records of children who were baptised at Pirton Methodist Church.1907192565Pirton Methodist Church
Wesleyan methodist register Brand Street HitchinBAPMHThese are baptism records of children from Pirton who were bapised at Brand St Methodist Church Hitchin.1839185311Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
St Mary's parish register burialsBURThese are burial records records from St Mary's Parish Registers.155819143077Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Pirton census 1901C01All persons in the same household as listed in the census.19011901921Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Pirton census 1841C41All persons in the same household as listed in the census.18411841761Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Pirton census 1851C51All persons in the same household as listed in the census.18511851894Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Pirton census 1861C61All persons in the same household as listed in the census.186118611024Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Pirton census 1871C71All persons in the same household as listed in the census.187118711083Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Pirton census 1881C81All persons in the same household as listed in the census.188118811130Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Pirton census 1891C91All persons in the same household as listed in the census.189118911071Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Directories of Hertfordshire, Kellys,PigotsDIRAll persons listed in the directory with their status, trade and location if given.18321937595Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Hearth Tax returnsHTXIn the 1660s an annual tax of one shilling per hearth was made on all houses in the land, the records for Pirton for 1663 and 1666 have survived.1663166654The National Archives, Kew
Land Tax AssesmentLTXThis is a tax based on land listing owners and sometimes tenants.174518322239Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
St Mary's parish register marriagesMARThese are marriage records from St Mary's Parish Registers.156019091178Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Militia listMBLA list of all males between the ages of 18 and 45 with a comment as to whether drawn in ballot or reasons for exemption.175817891146Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Monuments at St Mary's churchMONList of names of all the individual persons named on the monument and their dates16451990831St Mary's Parish Church in Pirton
Memorials in Pirton Methodist ChurchMONMA list of names of all the individual persons named on memorial objects and their dates1906199123Pirton Methodist Church
Probate documents at Bedford Record OfficePROBBProbate documents which are held in Bedford.164116411Bedford Record Office
Probate documents at HALSPROBHProbate documents, wills and inventories are held in Hertford on microfilm.16001853300Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Probate documents at HuntingdonPROBHuProbate documents held in Huntingdon.These engrossed copies are held in numbered volumes called the Archdeaconary of Huntingdon Wills Registers.1488160930Huntingdon Record Office
Probate documents at National ArchivesPROBKThe Prerogative Court of Canterbury was the highest probate court in the land, probate would be taken there if the deceased had land in more than one jurisdiction.1565185328The National Archives, Kew
Probate documents at LincolnPROBLProbate documents held in Lincoln.157716253Lincoln Record Office
Settlement certificatesSETLA list of people who who held settlement certificates1700178122Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Transportation recordsTRANA list of persons who were transported to Australia in 19th century.1800184914Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies


Future historical sources
The following sources have been transferred to electronic format and it is planned to include them in the database:

Record offices contact details

Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies (HALS)
Contact Details:
County Hall
Hertford
SG13 8EJ
England
Tel: 01438 737333
Fax: 01992 555113
Email: hertsdirect@hertscc.gov.uk
Website: http://www.hertsdirect.org/heritage


Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and Records Service
Contact Details:
County Hall
Cauldwell Street
Bedford
MK42 9AP
England
Tel: 01234 228833/22
Fax: 01234 228854
Email: archive@bedscc.gov.uk
Website: http://www.bedfordshire.gov.uk/archive


County Record Office Huntingdon
Contact Details:
Grammar School Walk
Huntingdon
PE29 3LF
Tel: 01480 375842
Fax: 01480 375842
Email: county.records.hunts@cambridgeshire.gov.uk
Website: http://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/leisure/archives/visiting/crohuntingdon.htm


Lincoln Record Office
Contact Details:
St Rumbold Street
LINCOLN
LN2 5AB
ENGLAND
Tel: 01522 526204
Fax: 01522 530047
Email: lincolnshire_archive@lincolnshire.gov.uk
Website: http://www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/archives/

The National Archives
Contact Details:
Kew
Richmond
Surrey
TW9 4DU
Tel: +44 (0) 20 8876 3444.
Website: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/

Warning: Though due care has been taken to accurately transcribe entries into the database, no liability is implied or accepted by the transcribers for any errors or omissions. This database is intended only as a guide, the user should check relevant entries at source.
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