Our indexes include entries for the spelling bispham. In the period you have requested, we have the following 73 records (displaying 51 to 60): 

These sample scans are from the original record. You will get scans of the full pages or articles where the surname you searched for has been found.

Your web browser may prevent the sample windows from opening; in this case please change your browser settings to allow pop-up windows from this site.

British merchant seamen (1835-1840) At this period, the foreign trade of ships plying to and from the British isles involved about 150,000 men on 15,000 ships; and the coasting trade about a quarter as many more. A large proportion of the seamen on these ships were British subjects, and so liable to be pressed for service in the Royal Navy; but there was no general register by which to identify them, so in 1835 parliament passed a Merchant Seamen's Registration Bill. Under this act a large register of British seamen was compiled, based on ships' crew lists gathered in British and Irish ports, and passed up to the registry in London. A parliamentary committee decided that the system devised did not answer the original problem, and the original register was abandoned after less than two years: the system was then restarted in this form, with a systematic attempt to attribute the seamen's (ticket) numbers, and to record successive voyages. The register records the number assigned to each man; his name; age; birthplace; quality (S = seaman, &c.); and the name and official number of his ship, with the date of the crew list (usually at the end of a voyage). Most of the men recorded were born in the British Isles, but not all. The system was still very cumbersome, because the names were amassed merely under the first two letters of surname; an attempt was made to separate out namesakes by giving the first instance of a name (a), the second (b), and so on. During 1840 this series of ledgers was abandoned, and a new set started with names grouped together by surname. BT 112/6	Sample scan, click to enlarge
Bankrupts' Assignees (1841) Assignees of bankrupts' estates (usually principal creditors and/or close relatives of the bankrupt) in England and Wales	Sample scan, click to enlarge
London Policemen (1830-1842) The Metropolitan Police Register of Joiners (MEPO 333/4) lists policemen joining the force through to 31 December 1842 (to warrant number 19892). The register is alphabetical, in so far as the recruits are listed chronologically grouped under first letter of surname. It is evidently a continuation of a similar earlier register, not closed until its alphabetical sections were filled: consequently, there are no entries in this register for the initial letters N, O, Q, U, V, X, Y or Z; and the sections of this register start at different dates - A 18 April 1840 (warrant number 16894); B 11 December 1830 (5570); C 7 September 1830 (4988); D 27 May 1833 (8445); E 15 December 1838 (14476); F 30 March 1832 (7372); G 1 December 1835 (11,184); H 25 April 1832 (7457); I and J 13 February 1837 (12449); K 2 January 1838 (13457); L 3 October 1834 (9905); M 15 November 1832 (7999); P 4 October 1831 (6869); R 4 September 1837 (13021); S 30 March 1835 (10366); T 6 April 1840 (16829); W 30 December 1833 (9096). The register gives Date of Appointment, Name, Number of Warrant, Cause of Removal from Force (resigned, dismissed, promoted or died), and Date of Removal. Although the register was closed for new entrants at the end of 1842, the details of removals were always recorded, some being twenty or more years later. Those recruits not formerly in the police, the army, or some government department, were required to provide (normally) at least two letters of recommendation from persons of standing, and details of these are entered on the facing pages: the names in these are indexed separately - this index refers only to the police constables. Where a recruit was only recently arrived in the metropolis, the names and addresses of the recommenders can be invaluable for tracing where he came from.	Sample scan, click to enlarge
Persons of standing recommending London police recruits (1830-1842) The Metropolitan Police Register of Joiners (MEPO 333/4) lists policemen joining the force through to 31 December 1842 (to warrant number 19892). The register is alphabetical, in so far as the recruits are listed chronologically grouped under first letter of surname. It is evidently a continuation of a similar earlier register, not closed until its alphabetical sections were filled: consequently, there are no entries in this register for the initial letters N, O, Q, U, V, X, Y or Z; and the sections of this register start at different dates - A 18 April 1840 (warrant number 16894); B 11 December 1830 (5570); C 7 September 1830 (4988); D 27 May 1833 (8445); E 15 December 1838 (14476); F 30 March 1832 (7372); G 1 December 1835 (11,184); H 25 April 1832 (7457); I and J 13 February 1837 (12449); K 2 January 1838 (13457); L 3 October 1834 (9905); M 15 November 1832 (7999); P 4 October 1831 (6869); R 4 September 1837 (13021); S 30 March 1835 (10366); T 6 April 1840 (16829); W 30 December 1833 (9096). The register gives Date of Appointment, Name, Number of Warrant, Cause of Removal from Force (resigned, dismissed, promoted or died), and Date of Removal. Those recruits not formerly in the police, the army, or some government department, were required to provide (normally) at least two letters of recommendation from persons of standing, and details of these are entered on the facing pages: the names in these are indexed here (the police recruits are indexed separately and not included here). Recruits transferred from other forces or rejoining the force did not normally need recommendations - in the latter case, former warrant numbers are given - but some recommendations are from police inspectors, even other constables. Recruits coming from the army sometimes have general military certificates of good conduct, but most often have a letter from their former commanding officer; recruits recommended by government departments (most often the Home Office) similarly have letters from the head of department. But the great majority of the names and addresses in these pages are of respectable citizens having some sort of personal acquaintance with the recruit. Where more than two recommendations were provided, the clerk would only record one or two, with the words 'and others'. Tradesmen are sometimes identified as such by their occupations; there are some gentry. Although the great bulk of these names are from London and the home counties, a scattering are from further afield throughout Britain and Ireland.	Sample scan, click to enlarge
Insolvents in Bankruptcy (1844) Insolvency in bankruptcy notices for England and Wales: insolvency often caused people to restart their lives elsewhere, so these are an important source for lost links	Sample scan, click to enlarge
Royal Sappers and Miners in Kensington Palace Barrack (1851) The 1851 census enumerators' books for the mass of the population record the information as in this sample scan. However, there were also separate books for the major public institutions. The instructions for the first column (Name and Surname of each Person who abode in the Institution on the Night of the 30th March, 1851) run: "Write after the Name of the Master or Head of the Institution the Names of his Wife, Children, other Relatives, and Servants; then the Names of the Officers, their Families, and Servants. Commence the list of Inmates for which the Institution is provided on another page." For the second column (Position in the Institution): "State whether the person is the Head, or an Officer or Servant, or the Wife, Son, Daughter, or other relative of such Officer or Servant. If an Inmate, state whether patient, soldier, scholar, &c." For the third column (Condition): "Write 'Married,' 'Widower,' 'Widow,' or 'Unmarried,' against the Names of all Persons except Young Children." For the fourth column (Age (last Birthday)): "For Infants under One Year state the Age in Months, writing 'Under 1 Month,' '1 Month,' '2 Months,' &c." For the fifth column (Rank, Profession or Occupation): "State here the profession, or what is believed to have been the ordinary occupation of the Inmate before admission into the Institution. Carefully distinguish in this column the different kinds of 'laborers,' and those who have been masters in trade from others." For the sixth column (Where Born): "Opposite the Names of those born in England, Scotland, or Ireland write the County, and Town or Parish. If born in the British Colonies, the East Indies, or in Foreign Parts, state the Country; in the last case, if a British Subject, add 'British Subject.'" For the seventh column (Whether Blind, or Deaf-and-Dumb): "Write 'Deaf-and-Dumb,' or 'Blind,' opposite the Name of the Person.'" Kensington Palace Barrack was in the city of Westminster; in the parish of St Margaret and the ecclesiastical district of All Saints Knightsbridge; in Westminster superintendent registrar's district, and St Margaret registrar's district. HO 107/1480	Sample scan, click to enlarge
Bankrupts' Assignments (1854) Assignments of bankrupts' estates (usually to principal creditors and/or close relatives of the bankrupt) in England and Wales	Sample scan, click to enlarge
London Policemen (1843-1857) The Metropolitan Police Register of Joiners (MEPO 4/334) lists policemen joining the force 1 January 1843 to 1 April 1857 (warrant numbers 19893 to 35804). The register is alphabetical, in so far as the recruits are listed chronologically grouped under first letter of surname. It gives Date of Appointment, Name, Number of Warrant, Cause of Removal from Force (resigned, dismissed, promoted or died), and Date of Removal. Although the register was closed for new entrants at the end of 1842, the details of removals were always recorded, some being twenty or more years later. Those recruits not formerly in the police, the army, or some government department, were required to provide (normally) at least two letters of recommendation from persons of standing, and details of these are entered on the facing pages: the names in these are indexed separately - this index refers only to the police constables. Where a recruit was only recently arrived in the metropolis, the names and addresses of the recommenders can be invaluable for tracing where he came from.	Sample scan, click to enlarge
Masters and Mates of Merchantmen: Certificates of Competency (1857) The Mercantile Navy List and Annual Appendage to the Commercial Code of Signals for All Nations, edited by J. H. Brown, was published By Authority in 1857. It includes this full list of 'Masters and Mates who have passed their examination and obtained Certificates of Competency', from number 1 to number 15816, except for those whose certificates had been cancelled. The first column gives the number of certificate; the second column full name, surname first (an asterisk before the name denotes those who are found qualified to act in fore and aft-rigged vessels only; two vertical lines denotes in North Wales fishery only; a double dagger, passed the examination in steam; and a dagger refers to honorary testimonials, details of which are printed at the end of the section. A B C D are the distinguishing letters for the four classes of Meteorological Observers); third column, class examined (1 ex, 1, 2 and 3 denote First Extra, First, Second and Third Class Master's Certificate, granted under the Voluntary Examination, by Order in Council dated August 1845; Ex C, Master Extra; O C, Master Ordinary; 1 M, First Mate; O M, Only Mate; 2 M, Second Mate; L. R. N., Lieutenant Royal Navy; M. R. N., Master Royal Navy; E. I. C., East India Company; M. I. N., Master Indian Navy.); fourth column, year of certificate (where there are two dots, this is to represent a 'ditto' to the year next above); fifth column, Examining Board (Aberdeen, Belfast, Bristol, Cork, Dublin, Dundee, Glasgow, Greenock, Hull, Leith, Liverpool, London, Newcastle, Plymouth, Shields or Sunderland).	Sample scan, click to enlarge
Civil Service Certificates (1859) The Civil Service Commission published this annual list of all persons who had obtained certificates of qualification for appointment in the various public departments. The list gives full name (surname first); department (such as Post Office, or Inland Revenue); situation (such as Letter-carrier, or Clerk); and date of certificate. Candidates whose names are preceded by a dagger obtained appointments as the result of competition. A double dagger shows those who obtained their appointments as the result of open competition. Those whose names are preceded by an asterisk obtained honorary additions to their certificates either for proficiency in extra subjects chosen by themselves, or for marked proficiency in the prescribed subjects.	Sample scan, click to enlarge

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8

Research your ancestry, family history, genealogy and one-name study by direct access to original records and archives indexed by surname.