Historical data

This web site carries information that goes back as far as 1968 since that was the first time that the database was put in an electronic form. There are no current plans to do the retrospective work on earlier editions although if the web site proves popular, we may carry out this work in the future.

However, there are other sources of information on the Internet that may prove useful to you if you are looking for information that goes back further than 1968.

1540 to 1835
http://www.theclergydatabase.org.uk/

The Clergy of the Church of England Database (CCEd) is a collaborative project gathering biographical data on clergymen for the period 1540-1835 from archives in England and Wales, and making it available online. There is also information on dioceses, including lists of bishops, and on locations where clergy served. The terminal date of the project (1835) marks the period at which biographical data about clergymen becomes more accessible due to such publications as the Clergy List (and, later, Crockford's Clerical Directory).

1835 to 1967
http://www.lambethpalacelibrary.org

Lambeth Palace Library is the historic library of the archbishops of Canterbury and the principal library and record office for the history of the Church of England.  The Library focuses on ecclesiastical history, but its rich collections are important for an immense variety of topics from the history of art and architecture to colonial and Commonwealth history, and for innumerable aspects of English social, political and economic history.  It is also a significant resource for local history and genealogy.

The library can be contacted and they are happy to check their printed sequence of Crockford's Clerical Directory and other printed sources to answer specific enquiries. They will take enquiries for any period, since they do have some relevant sources (e.g. published alumni lists for universities) in addition to Crockford's Clerical Directory.