Farnborough Kent Baptismal Register 1908-1918

The clasped Register of Baptisms for 1908-1918 held at Bromley Historic Collections reference,P/144/1/11 is an interesting insight into the over 600 inhabitants of the parish and the additional population of Bromley Union Workhouse with resident staff of around 700 people.
Baptisms at Bromley Union Chapel which are in a Parish provided register from 1908 are for Farnborough Hospital reflecting the growing role of the Infirmary under control of the Board of Guardians. The Maternity ward of the Infirmary dealt with births from family doctor referred women and twins are often included in this group along with the poignant infant mortality deaths.
The Chaplain throughout this period was Reverend Ebenezer Joseph Welch and rarely are Baptisms at the Workhouse Chapel performed by other clergy. Unlike earlier Parish Baptismal Registers Ebenezer Welch copied all Workhouse Chapel Baptisms into the Parish register.
The Parish in this period was growing in population and the Register reflects the growth  in the number of Railway Workers living in the village.
There are 799 Baptisms recorded in this volume with only one crossed out and entered on the line below. Unfortunately the entries are not always legible or accurately spelled surnames and some date entries in Ebenezer's spidery hand are debatable. I have transcribed all of the entries and spent additional research time in other sources to identify correct surnames and parents names as the original entry is scrawled and unreadable.
The transcript will be prepared for publication online at Kent Online Parish Clerks in due course and will be the final Baptismal Register for Farnborough in the series.

© Henry Mantell Farnborough Online Parish Clerk 2013-2019

Farnborough Saint Giles Kent Baptismal Register 1893-1908

This clasped volume for 800 Baptisms is completed with 798 entries and two crossed out or blank entries.
It had been practice in earlier Baptismal registers of the parish for those from 1845 onward baptised at Bromley Union Workhouse Chapel to be copy entered into the parish register.
At the beginning of this volume Reverend Fred J Kelly is Vicar and Reverend Philip H Percy is Chaplain to Bromley Union Workhouse and Percy or a scribe copy baptisms at the Workhouse Chapel. It is worth bearing in mind that the chapel also was used for the children of staff and also local parishioners in the northwest of the parish.
There are entries for Reverend J Pulling Curate although these are few in number.
In autumn 1898 Reverend Percy signs entries as Curate in Charge prior to the arrival of Reverend G Lombard MA who resides at Netherby (Bush's Directory 1899 and 1900);Reverend Percy resides at Feniton Farnborough. In 1902 and 1903 Bush's Directory Lombard is residing at The Rectory.
Lombard ends the practice of recording Workhouse Chapel Baptisms in the register in December 1898 and until September 1904 the register only contains parish baptisms. There is a sense that he insists that people come to Saint Giles from all areas of the parish.
For the searcher there are two valuable records of Workhouse Baptisms of children and adults and Births to cover this gap in parish register entries. I have transcribed both records:
Hospital Chapel baptisms
Bromley Union Births Register (1900-1913) Bromley Historic Collections reference 846 GBy/W/I/b12 which includes still births and supplements Anglican Baptisms.

In September 1904 Reverend Ebenezer Joseph Welch is appointed Vicar and also serving as Chaplain to the Workhouse he ensures that all Workhouse Chapel baptisms are copied into the Parish Register.
This register also records in a marginal entry by Ebenezer Welch "By an Order in Council dated 7 August 1905 the parish of Farnborough was formally transferred from the Diocese of Canterbury to the Dioces of Rochester. One of the last entries in 1908 records a Canon of Rochester Diocese performing a baptism.

© Henry Mantell Farnborough Online Parish Clerk 2013-2019