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Ancestry Daily News
4/22/2003 - Archive
The Parish Constable
Before the Rural Constabulary Act of 1839 there were no police forces
in the modern sense; policing was a local matter. Unlike some other offices,
that of constable did not have a property qualification and every householder
was liable to serve.
The role of parish constable evolved from the old manorial position of "headborough"
or "tithingman" and grew steadily into much more than a mere preserver
of local peace. Duties varied by time and place but among the long list of those
that a constable may have undertaken were:
--- Apprehending vagrants and offenders.
--- Keeping offenders in custody until the sessions (occasionally in the constable's
own house!).
--- Conveying those being held to court.
--- Serving writs and summonses.
--- Making lists of jurors.
--- Inspecting public houses.
--- Checking weights and measures.
--- Supporting bailiffs at evictions.
--- Giving evidence before magistrates.
--- Maintaining the parish armor and weapons.
--- Managing the militia obligations of the parish.
--- Collecting many duties and taxes.
Generally, after the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, the parish vestry
selected the constable and the justices of the peace confirmed the appointment,
although it was legally the responsibility of the manor court until 1842. It
must have been a difficult position, particularly when it involved collected
hated levies, such as the hearth tax. It happened, then, that it was not always
easy for a parish to fill the position. If volunteers were in short supply the
parish might combine two offices; e.g., making one person the constable and
the surveyor of the highways. The appointment was meant to be for one year but
some men served several years consecutively. In some parishes there was a rotation
and there are many instances of men paying deputies to act for them.
The duties of constable meant that he was responsible to the secular authorities
and the church authorities. He would not only appear at quarter sessions court
or the assizes but also at the church courts when the parish made its "presentments."
At regular intervals parishes were required to make reports to their ecclesiastical
superiors--presentments. These reviewed the condition of the church and reported
on many aspects of the lives of parishioners such as attendance at church and
the birth of illegitimate children.
Separate parish constable records are not widespread. The county of Bedfordshire,
according to The Parish Chest (W. E. Tate, 1983), has just eighteen sets of
records. In Essex, it became usual for the constable to submit his bills to
the overseer of the poor and his records reflect the activities of the constable.
A search for records of the constable in the Family History Library Catalog
(FHLC) supports this; there are not many separate listings and they frequently
occur with the poor records. Using a place search, you may encounter constable's
accounts under several headings such as Church records, Occupations, Public
records, Poor houses, and Taxation. If you have the FHLC on CD-ROM then use
the keyword search with the county name: e.g., "Lancashire constable."
You can check for records of the constable at the websites of county record
offices and local libraries. Some present-day police force websites include
background information in accounts of police history. I found several of these
by going to the UK version of Yahoo, restricting the search to UK sites, and
inputting "parish constable." Start your search for county record
offices and libraries at such gateway sites as GENUKI, Cyndi's List
or Archives Online. It is important to do this because a negative result in your FHLC search
only tells you the Family History Library has no constable records for your
area.
It gives no idea of what survives.
For more detailed information on the search for parish chest records refer to
my article on churchwardens' accounts. Any records of parish administration contribute to the details of your family
history. Those of the parish constable encompass national defense, taxes, law
and order, vagrancy, and a host of regulations; certainly matters that touched
the lives of your ancestors.
Sherry Irvine, CGRS, FSA(Scot) is an author, teacher, and lecturer specializing
in English and Scottish family history. She is the author of Your English
Ancestry (2nd ed, 1998) and Your Scottish Ancestry (1997) and a regular
contributor to several journals including Genealogical Computing. Since
1996, she has been a study tour leader, course coordinator, and instructor for
the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research, Samford University. She
teaches online for the family history program of Vermont College and has lectured
at conferences in Canada, the United States, and Australia. She is president
of the Association of Professional Genealogists.
Your Scottish Ancestry: A Guide for North Americans
Your English Ancestry: A Guide for North Americans
Sherry's MyFamily.com Classes
Sherry will be teaching the following classes online at MyFamily.com. For more
information see the links provided:
Irish Research Class, 29 April 2003
English Family Trees , 1 May 2003
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