Does anyone know of a good searchable (i.e. CD or Web site) source for parish registers for Belper in Derbyshire (UK)? I have tried to contact the Derbyshire family history society for information but haven't received any response at the time of writing. Their CDs-for-sale don't seem to cover Belper specifically. The Web site belper-research looked very useful but it relied heavily on LDS records, and they point out that the interface to FamilySearch has been broken by recent changes made there. The LDS records do contain some Belper data but it looks like they are not complete and does not include the names I'm looking for. I have subscribed to the RootsWeb mailing list for Derbyshire but I don't think I've seen a single message since then so I'm guessing that it doesn't really get much use. I recently joined eastmidlandsgenealogy but their Derbyshire coverage doesn't yet include Belper.
2 Answers
Derbyshire Record Office holds the original parish registers, some of which have been transferred to DVD and microfilm. Their holdings for Belper are on page 23 of http://www.derbyshire.gov.uk/images/Parish%20Register%20Guide_tcm44-17013.pdf . It appears only 20th cenutry records are on DVD, and I suspect the older records have not been digitised. I suggest you contact Derbyshire RO for clarification and access.
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Thanks Sue. I'm interested in 1830-1880 here in order to solve a riddle so I will check with the RO. Commented Nov 30, 2012 at 15:38
From your question it is not clear which "LDS" records you have seen.
This statement comes from https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Belper,_Derbyshire#Church_records
Belper St. Peter was created as a chapelry in Duffield parish in 1783, with St. John the Baptist chapel built in 1824, and made a civil parish in 1843. Parish registers for baptisms start in 1783 and burials in 1794, while marriages begin in 1847. The original registers are held at the Derbyshire Record Office (call no.: D2609A/PI/1/1-2, D2609A/PI/2/1-6, D2609A/PI/3/1-7, P1928/PI/4/1, D1928/PI/5/1-4, D2609A/6/1/1-3). They have been microfilmed and are available through the Family History Library [emphasis added]. The records include an index.
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1Thanks @Fortiter. I contacted the RO just yesterday by phone since my previous email had "fallen through the net". There are no digital versions of these records that they have available, leaving me with the only choice of a 400-mile journey. LDS does have some Belper transcriptions, but no images that I have found. Some of the specific events I wanted do not seem to be present either, and the RO confirmed that the LDS set was incomplete. Commented Dec 6, 2012 at 13:11