St Andrew's and Family History
Like most English churches St Andrew's often receives requests for information from people researching their family trees.
Before the introduction of birth, marriage, and death certificates in 1837, the local registers of baptism, marriages, and burials were the main evidence of people's existence. However, we must point out that St Andrew's was only built in 1879, so our records of baptisms and marriages date only from then, and do not extend back before the time of the civil registration of births and marriages. Furthermore, as St Andrew's does not have a graveyard we have no records of burials at all. Therefore it is important to note that family records from St Andrew's consist solely of baptism and marriage records, and only date from 1879 onwards.
The baptism and marriage records from St Andrew's are held in two places:
All records from 1879 to about 1945 are no longer in possession of the church. These are now held at Manchester City Council Reference Library, details for which you will find in the links at the end of this page.
Before contacting us on these matters it may be helpful to consider the following:
There is little point in carrying out a search based on the belief that a family might have come from somewhere in the Greater Manchester or Salford areas. To put things into perspective, both areas are densely populated; Salford currently has a population of around three quarters of a million, and Greater Manchester a population of around two and a half million. Eccles is only one part of Greater Manchester, and lies within the Salford area. St Andrew's is one of four Anglican churches within Eccles, all covering different parishes. We generally advise people that there is really only any point in undertaking searches with us if you have good reason to believe that a family member was baptised or married at St Andrew's, or that they definitely lived in the St Andrew's parish. Ideally you would need to know roughly the year of baptism or marriage too.
Should you have good evidence of a link to St Andrew's that is dated AFTER 1945, and you wish to pursue a search of the registers held at St Andrew's, then please contact us using the form you'll find by clicking here.
Should you have good evidence of a link to St Andrew's that is dated BEFORE 1945, and you wish to pursue a search of the registers held at Manchester City Council Reference Library, then you can get to their website through the link at the end of this page.
If you wish to research your ancestors further, the following resources may also be helpful:
Greater Manchester Records Office,
56 Marshall Street,
Manchester.
M4 5FU.
Tel: 0161 - 832 5284
Contains a national index for marriage, birth, and death certificates.
Salford Local History Library,
Salford Museum and Art Gallery,
Peel Park,
The Crescent,
Salford.
M5 4WU.
Tel: 0161 - 736 2649
Open: Tuesday, Thursday, Friday: 10.00am - 5.00pm and Wednesday: 10.00am -
8.00pm.
Holds local newspapers and census records for the Salford area, including Eccles.
Salford Register Office,
Kingslea,
Barton Road,
Swinton,
Manchester.
M27 5WH.
0161 - 793 0077
Covers records for the Eccles area.
Useful Web Links:
You can read a brief history of the church here.
You can take a quick online tour of the building here.
If you would like to read the history of St Andrew's in more detail, there is a "History and Guide" book available. For further details please click here.
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