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Pre 1700 Records of Wigan - Some suggestions to get you started.

There are many records in Wigan Pre 1700

Parish Registers of Wigan Parish Church and other Wigan Churches

Parish Chest, Settlement etc.
Apprenticeship Indentures Atherton 1677-1837 TR Ath/4/1
- Lowton 1683-1830 DR17/14/1
Settlement Papers
Abram 1690-1815 TR Ab/4 Settlement and Removal Papers
Atherton 1690-1840 TR Ath/3/4 Removal Orders
Ince 1693-1778 TR In/4/1 Settlement Orders
Lowton 1696-1832 DP 17/13/2 Settlement Certificates
Lowton 1698-1832 DP 17/13/7a Removal Orders from Lowton

Church wardens accounts eg Pennington Rate assessments 1697, 1706

Enclose Awards and Plans - Ince Common Enclosure 1623 DD An/B60/15

Wigan Borough
Court Leet Rolls c. 1626-1834
Burgesses' Admission Certificates 1694-1832
Wigan Borough Charters 1314-1806
Wigan Borough lots of other records, including Wigan (part) census 1811
Enrollment: Books of Oaths of Allegiance and Protestant Declarations 1663-1726, 1725-1835
Lists of masters and wardens of trade companies: 1662-1724
Register of apprentices 1663-1679

Hearth Tax Returns for Lancashire 1662-1673
Wigan. Window tax assessment 1768

Family and Estate Papers eg Ince Anderton of Ince and Euxton from 1230

Solicitors records, Title Deeds etc.

This is only a quick list of what is at Wigan and Leigh

There is also records in PRO, London; House of Lords RO

Records in Lancashire Record Office, Preston

Wills & Administrations at Chester and PCC

Settlement Records

Old poor law, parish chest.

Basically the church wardens and overseers of the poor administered the relief to poor people who had no work. They would only pay for their own parish's poor. If someone came from another parish the churchwardens and overseers of the poor of the parish they came from would have to give a settlement certificate, to say they would accept them back or pay for them should they become eligable for poor relief. If they were not sure about someone asking for poor relief they would get 2 justices of the peace and have a settlement examination, where the person asking for poor relief would have to give in effect a CV of where he was born and everything he ever worked at and if he had ever been apprenticed. A decision was then made based on the laws. The person asking for relief and their family would be removed to their parish of settlement by a removal order signed by 2 justices of the peace if needed. These settlement records are patchy in their survival but may be in the parish chest of either parish or/and in quarter sessions records [Which for Wigan are either at Wigan or Preston]

There is supposed to be lots of these records at Leigh archives for Leigh Parish. A search is long and protracted I believe.

1811 Census
Census book - covers approximately half of the borough: Market St., Hallgate, Birch's Croft, Frog Lane, Wallgate, Millgate, Scholes, Warrington Lane, Hawarden's Square, Castle Yard, Club Row. N.B. Photocopy available [on open shelves -SM] at Wigan History Shop.

Examples from Wigan Census c1811 [Open Shelves Wigan History Shop]

*N.B. This "other Book", which covered Standishgate and Wigan Lane (amongst other places) has not survived.

I am indexing the 1811 Census of Wigan the results are at - http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~copestake/lanwigan1811cen20022.html

Last updated 20 February 2002 - Web Master - Simon Martin [email protected]

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