Our Channel Islands Help Pages

Our Channel Islands Help Pages

Research in the Channel Islands from "Down Under"
Civil Registration
Parish Registers
Census Records
Wills and Probates

Civil Registration

° Jersey
For birth, marriage and death certificates after 1842 contact:
R.J. Kerley, The Superintendent Registrar, 10 Royal Square, St. Helier, Jersey JE2 4WA. Telephone (01534) 502335. Office Hours 9.30 a.m.to 12.30 p.m.

If you know the Date/Name/Parish of the event he will charge ś10 per certificate. If searching is required, a further charge of ś 7 is levied for a five year search for a birth or death and ś 14 for a five year search for a marriage. Add a postal handling charge of ś1.00 for overseas and 50 pence for British Isles. Please make cheques payable to "Treasurer of States". There are no facilities for personal research.

If you are in Jersey, these charges can often be alleviated as the Registrar's Indexes from 1842-1900 are available at both the Societe Jersiaise and Jersey Archives.

Due to a recent relaxation of the rules there is now some limited access to the registers by appointment between 9.00 and 11.00am, Monday to Friday. Ensure you telephone first as Jersey is once again in demand as a Wedding Destination!

° Guernsey
H.M. Greffier, The Royal Court House, St Peter Port, Guernsey GY1 2PB. Telephone (01481) 725277. Office Hours 9.00am-5.00pm. The charge is ś5 for a full certificate or ś3 for a short certificate. A search fee of ś5 is additional.
If you are in Guernsey, this charge can be alleviated as there is public access to the Strong Room between 2.00pm and 4.00pm for a nominal ś1.00 charge and details can be copied from their records.
The Priaulx Library also have the indexes on microfilm. (Check the LDS Family History Library Catalogue first, you may be able to call a film into your local Family History Centre or the FRC in Panmure)
Note: Guernsey Marriages were not subject to Civil Registration until 1919, so the coverage is incomplete prior to that date. Go to the Parish Registers instead.

In Guernsey
Births, Deaths and Marriages from 1925 to date only H.M. Greffier, The Royal Court House, St Peter Port, Guernsey GY1 2PB. Telephone (01481) 725277. Office Hours 9.00am to 5.00pm, personal visits 2.00- 4.00pm only - ś1 admission to Strong Room.

The Priaulx Library Candie, St Peter Port, Guernsey GY1 1UG have incomplete microfilmed sets of Civil Registration records.

° Alderney
Births, Deaths from 1850, Marriages from 1886
The Greffier, Registry for Births, Deaths, Companies, Land and Marriages, St Anne, Alderney GY9 3AA is custodian but all enquiries will be sent to Mrs Mignot. Births from 1850, missing May 1871-December 1874.
There is a hand-ruled book of declarations, from August 1850 to December 1874, that can be used to fill this gap.

Deaths from August 1850-1855, 1907 onwards. Hand-ruled book of declarations from October 1855 to December 1874. Gap 1875-1907. Marriages from 1886 (from St Anne's Church). 1891 onwards from elsewhere on the Island.

Alderney Greffe Records -
Births July 1850-July 1857, July 1857- July 1860, July 1860-August 1885. Deaths 1850-1855, 1907-1925.

° Sark
Birth, Death and Marriage records from 1925 can be found at The Greffe, La Chasse Marette, Sark GY9 0SF. Telephone (01481) 832012. The Greffier's office hours are 2.00-4.00pm Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday. and at HM Greffier, The Royal Court House, St Peter Port, Guernsey GY1 2PB. Telephone (01481) 725277. Office Hours 9.00am-5.00pm.

Parish Registers

° Jersey
St Helier: The Town Church
Baptisms, Marriages and Burials from 1596
St Helier: Later Parishes (created when the Town Church was no longer big enough) St Mark, St James, St Paul, St Jude, All Saints, St Simon, St Andrew, St Luke.
All of these parishes commenced operation after 1842 and therefore their registers are at the Superintendant Registrar's Office

Country Parishes
St Lawrence: Baptisms and Burials from 1564 - Marriages from 1655
St Brelade: Baptisms, Marriages and Burials from 1560
St Aubin (District Church for St Brelade): commenced operation after 1842 and therefore the registers are at the Superintendant Registrar's Office
St Peter: Baptisms, Marriages and Burials from 1626
St Ouen: Baptisms, Marriages and Burials from 1634
St Saviour: Baptisms from 1540 - Marriages and Burials from 1542
St Martin: Baptisms and Marriages from 1594 - Burials from 1593
Gouray (District Church for St Martin): Baptisms from 1875 - Marriages from 1901 - Burials from 1900. From foundation in 1835 until the dates above the records are mixed in with St Martin's Parish Church registers.
St John: Baptisms from 1594 - Marriages from 1583 - Burials from 1581
St Mary: Baptisms and Marriages from 1648 - Burials from 1647
Trinity: Baptisms from 1624 - Marriages and Burials from 1612
Grouville: Baptisms from 1584 - Marriages from 1598 - Burials from 1593
St Clement - Baptisms, Marriages and Burials from 1623.

° Guernsey
St Peter Port: The Town Church
Baptisms from 1563 - Marriages from 1565 - Burials from 1566
St Peter Port: Later Parishes (created when the Town Church was no longer big enough)
St Johns: Baptisms from 1840 - Marriages from 1858
St Stephens: Baptisms, Marriages and Burials from 1865
Holy Trinity: Baptisms from 1847 - Marriages from 1858 - Burials from 1858

Other Miscellaneous Registers
The Marriage Chapel at St James-the-Less: Marriages 1915-1970
Candie Cemetery: Burials 1847-1986

Country Parishes
Vale: Baptisms, Marriages and Burials from 1577
St Pierre-du-Bois: Baptisms, Marriages and Burials from 1625
Castel: Baptisms, Marriages and Burials from 1674
Castel: St Matthews: Baptisms from 1854 - Marriages and Burials from 1855
St Sampson: Baptisms, Marriages and Burials from 1713
St Saviour: Baptisms and Marriages from 1582 - Burials from 1609
St Martin: Baptisms and Marriages from 1660 - Burials from 1728
Forest: Baptisms and Marriages from 1700 - Burials from 1704
St Andrews: Baptisms from 1575 - Marriages from 1573 - Burials from 1574
Torteval: Baptisms from 1684 - Marriages from 1721 - Burials from 1739.

° Alderney
Anglican
The Church of St Anne: Baptisms 1662-1902 with annotations copied from an earlier (missing) book commenced in 1628. 1902 to present day in Church only. Deaths from drowning and Burials 1652 to 1863.
Succeeding Registers lost during the Occupation.
Marriages from 1657-1886.

The Priaulx Library have photocopies of Baptisms 1822-1832, Private Baptisms
1819-1821. Burials 1809-1812, 1853-59. Marriages 1841-1886 .
Non-Conformists (Alderney only)
Catholic Church of St Anne & St Mary Magdalene: Baptisms March 1849-Oct 1952. Deaths January 1859 to April 1940 and two entries in 1946. Marriages from February 1852 to July 1924.
Methodist (English and French) and Presbyterian Church records prior to 1945 were destroyed during the Occupation.

° Sark
The Church of St Peter, Sark GY 9 0SF:
Baptisms, Burials and Marriages from 1570
Curate (Priest-in-Charge) Rev. Graham Leworthy.
First Register of Baptisms, Marriages and Deaths begun May 19 1570 - 1602 Missing 1577-1588
Long Book begun April 30 1605 - 1673 and continues 1703-1757 Missing Baptisms 1633-1638 and 1664-1674, Marriages 1644-1661
Third Register contains entries for 1675-1702.
After 1702 entries were recorded in the Long Book
2nd Long Book contains incomplete records of Baptisms and Marriages 1757-1795; no burials are recorded for this period.
Fifth Register opened in 1795, contains records up to 1820, and some entries for 1787- 1792 omitted from 2nd Long Book
Sixth Register 1821-1835
Seventh Register 1836-September 1960
Eighth Register 1960 to date
Apart from the omissions recorded above, short gaps occur at changes of Minister.
Cosm‚ Brevint Minister 1570-1605, d. 30 April 1605 and Elie Brevint b. Sark 1586,
son of Cosm‚, Minister 1612-1674, d. 30 March 1674.

The Priaulx Library Candie, St Peter Port, Guernsey GY1 1UG has a microfilm set of the Parish Registers. Film 1 1570-1795 . Film 2 1795-1899. Apply direct to the Church for 20th Century registers.

Duplicate Sark Church Registers (1570-1795) can also be consulted at the Island Archives Service 29 Victoria Road, St Peter Port, Guernsey, if you are visiting them but they would prefer that postal research enquiries are directed to the Priaulx Library.

Census Records

Census Records for the Channel Islands come under the jurisdiction of the British Government and as such are held by The National Archives(TNA). The census records for the Channel Islands are available on film through the LDS Family History Centres and online through Ancestry.com, Ancestry.uk or Ancestry.au

The Channel Islands Interest Group NZSG bought copies of all the census 1841-1901 on microfiche. This has been part of the group library for several years and was available to members of the Interest Group for borrowing. Now it is part of the NZSG Library and is available for borrowing by post by all NZSG members.

Wills and Probates

° Jersey
Jersey Archive has an index of Wills online in their Public Access Catalogue at:
Jersey Heritage Trust Archives
These are Wills of Personalty (cash and personal possessions).
Wills of Realty (from 1851) fixed property (houses, land, rentes and hypotecs) are at the Land Registry. Both have been filmed by the Mormon Church and are available on film at Family History Centres.

° Guernsey
Wills of Personalty (each book indexed individually in Greffe) and Wills of Realty (one big card index in Greffe)H.M. Greffier, The Royal Court House, St Peter Port, Guernsey GY1 2PB.
Telephone (01481) 725277. Office Hours 9.00am-5.00pm.
The former are the responsibility of the Ecclesiastical Court from whom permission must be sought before copies are made. The Greffier can do this for you.
Copying Costs: 30p per page - minimum handling charge ś2.00. Payment by sterling cheques or drafts drawn on a British bank.

° Alderney and Sark
Wills are held at the Greffe.

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Last updated 01 Feb 2008