Find your ancestors in Northamptonshire Administrations 1677-1710, Volume Introduction

Northamptonshire Administrations 1677-1710

British Record Society volume 70

Published 1947

Volume Introduction

The late Mr. Isham Longden contributed abstracts of Northamptonshire Admons. (1546-1676) to Miscellanea Genealogica et Heraldica, and these, with an index, were subsequently reprinted as a separate book (1939). The British Record Society, at his request, continued the printing of his work to the year 1710 in this volume.

The commencement of the war of 1939-1945, and the editing of this volume coincided, and although Mr. Longden's form and wording of the abstracts were used at first, the cost of printing and scarcity of paper suggested to the editor the usual abbreviations towards the end of the work. The form of index used by Mr. Longden, although not that which normally would be used by this Society, has been retained for the reason of uniformity.

Mr. Longden during a long life accumulated a large collection of MSS.; little-of which has been printed. His valuable Northamptonshire and, Rutland Clergy from 1500 is an exception. His unpublished material he bequeathed to the Northamptonshire Record Society for the use of students and searchers generally. It is to be regretted that even a short list of the items in this collection is not yet available. Inquiries should be made to the Secretary of the Northamptonshire Record Society at Lamport Hall, Northampton.

Mr. Longden unfortunately did not leave a full account of his work at the Northampton Probate Registry or give any details of the documents preserved there. In a short paragraph in Miscellanea Genealogica et Heraldica he said:

"The Administrations of the Archdeaconry begin regularly from 1660. There are both Books and Bundles. Some of the Bundles consist of Inventories only. Sometimes Books and Bundles overlap,and information is given twice over. Much was not indexed. Though the Administrations begin from 1660, I have been able to recover some from earlier sources. For instance, hidden away, unindexed, in three early books of the First Series of Wills of the Archdeaconry, are a few Administrations, one as early as 1545.

"In an old notebook, that, no doubt, belonged to one of the clerks of the archdeacon, are a variety of notes, concerning many matters relating to the Church, licences for curates, for school-masters, and for marriage, etc."

The Inventories were evidently copied by Mr. Longden only when he believed there was no administration remaining on record. Since Mr. Longden made his abstracts the Administrations have been moved to the Birmingham Probate Registry and the reader is reminded that there are other Northamptonshire Administrations preserved at the District Probate Registry at Peterborough.

It was thought advisable to insert the number of the administration in the yearly bundle in each case, and this has been placed in round brackets, which also indicate editorial comments.