St Michael's Mount Genealogical Records
St Michael's Mount Birth & Baptism Records
An index to births registered throughout England & Wales. Provides a reference to order copies of birth certificates from the national registrar of births, marriages and deaths – the General Register Office.
Browsable images of Church of England baptism, marriage and burial registers for the county of Cornwall.
A searchable database containing over 1,000,000 baptisms from Anglican churches in Cornwall.
A searchable database containing over 90,000 baptisms from non-conformist churches in Cornwall.
An index to baptisms in most Cornwall parishes
St Michael's Mount Marriage & Divorce Records
An index to marriages registered throughout England & Wales. This is the only national marriage index that allows you to search by both spouse's names. Provides a reference to order copies of marriage certificates from the national registrar of births, marriages and deaths – the General Register Office.
Browsable images of Church of England baptism, marriage and burial registers for the county of Cornwall.
A searchable database containing over 300,000 marriages from Anglican churches in Cornwall.
A searchable database containing over 50,000 records recording intention to marry from Anglican churches in Cornwall.
Abstracts of marriage licences granted by the Vicar-General in London. These licences could be used to marry in any church in the Province of Canterbury.
St Michael's Mount Death & Burial Records
An index to deaths registered throughout England & Wales. Provides a reference to order copies of death certificates from the national registrar of births, marriages and deaths – the General Register Office.
Burial records for people buried at St Michael's Mount between 1813 and 1837. Lists the deceased's name, residence and age. Some records may contain the names of relations, cause of death and more.
Transcriptions of burials from 215 parishes in Cornwall.
Browsable images of Church of England baptism, marriage and burial registers for the county of Cornwall.
A searchable database containing over 900,000 burials from Anglican churches in Cornwall.
St Michael's Mount Census & Population Lists
An index to and digital images of records that detail 40 million civilians in England and Wales. Records list name, date of birth, address, marital status, occupation and details of trade or profession.
The 1911 census provides details on an individual's age, residence, place of birth, relations and occupation. FindMyPast's index allows searches on for multiple metrics including occupation and residence.
Transcripts of surviving returns of heath and poll taxes for the county of Cornwall.
A searchable transcript of documents signed or marked by people swearing to uphold the reformed protestant religion.
An index to documents recording residents liable to pay tax based on the number of hearths they possessed.
Newspapers Covering St Michael's Mount
A politically independent newspaper, covering the affairs of Dorset, Devon, Cornwall and Somerset. It includes family notices.
A newspaper including local news, family notices etc. from across the county of Cornwall.
A short regional paper covering local occurrences, business news, family notices and more.
A regional newspaper including news from the Cornwall area, family announcements, business notices, advertisements, legal & governmental proceedings and more.
A liberal newspaper covering the counties of Cornwall, Devon and Dorset. It includes family notices.
St Michael's Mount Wills & Probate Records
Searchable index and original images of over 12.5 million probates and administrations granted by civil registries. Entries usually include the testator's name, date of death, date of probate and registry. Names of relations may be given.
A searchable index to surviving wills and administrations proved in the Connotorial Archidiaconal Court of Cornwall. The index contains the name of the testator, residence and date & type of grant.
An index to some Cornish wills. Names of beneficiaries have been extracted.
An index to estate administrations performed by the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. The index covers the southern two thirds of England & Wales, but may also contain entries for northerners.
Abstracts of select Cornish wills, naming beneficiaries and witnesses.
St Michael's Mount Immigration & Travel Records
A database containing genealogical, biographical and immigratory data for Cornish men who emigrated to Latin America.
Extracts from passenger lists, detailing the emigration and transportation of people from Cornwall, primarily to the New World and British colonies.
Historical details of the Cornish migration to Latin America.
An index of Cornish men an women who died out of county.
Abstracts of documents recording the forced movement of people and families between parishes.
St Michael's Mount Military Records
Extracts from records listing those liable for militia service. Details of arms have been transcribed.
A list of names found on World War One monuments in Cornwall, with some service details.
A list of names found on World War Two monuments in Cornwall, with some service details.
A searchable list of over 100,000 British Army POWs. Records contains details on the captured, their military career and where they were held prisoner.
Details on around 165,000 men serving in the British Army, Navy and Air Force who were held as prisoners during WWII.
St Michael's Mount Court & Legal Records
A searchable transcript of documents signed or marked by people swearing to uphold the reformed protestant religion.
Abstracts of documents recording people incarcerated in Cornwall. Index may include name, age, abode, occupation, crimes and numerous other details.
An index to defamation, divorce & alimony, marriage contract and church rate records in Cornwall Archdeaconry.
An index to names and places mentioned in act books of the Province of Canterbury. It records various licences and conferments, such as marriage and physician licences.
A handful of names, with ages, occupations and abodes appearing in depositions in various courts.
St Michael's Mount Taxation Records
Transcripts of surviving returns of heath and poll taxes for the county of Cornwall.
An index to documents recording residents liable to pay tax based on the number of hearths they possessed.
An index to land tax records and the 1873 landowners return from Cornwall.
An index to 11,000,000 parcels of land and property, connected to digital images of registers that record their owner, occupier, description, agricultural use, size and rateable value.
This vital collection details almost 1.2 million properties eligible for land tax. Records include the name of the landowner, occupier, amount assessed and sometimes the name and/or description of the property. It is a useful starting point for locating relevant estate records and establishing the succession of tenancies and freehold. Most records cover 1798, but some extend up to 1811.
St Michael's Mount Land & Property Records
An index to land tax records and the 1873 landowners return from Cornwall.
Extracts from lists recording those eligible to vote. Index contains place of residence and entitlement to vote.
An index to 11,000,000 parcels of land and property, connected to digital images of registers that record their owner, occupier, description, agricultural use, size and rateable value.
This vital collection details almost 1.2 million properties eligible for land tax. Records include the name of the landowner, occupier, amount assessed and sometimes the name and/or description of the property. It is a useful starting point for locating relevant estate records and establishing the succession of tenancies and freehold. Most records cover 1798, but some extend up to 1811.
Poll books record the names of voters and the direction of their vote. Until 1872 only landholders could vote, so not everyone will be listed. Useful for discerning an ancestor's political leanings and landholdings. The collection is supplemented with other records relating to the vote.
St Michael's Mount Directories & Gazetteers
An exhaustive gazetteer, containing details of settlement's history, governance, churches, postal services, public institutions and more. Also contains lists of residents with their occupation and address.
A comprehensive place-by-place gazetteer, listing key historical and contemporary facts. Contains details on local schools, churches, government and other institutions. Also contains a list of residents and businesses for each place.
A comprehensive place-by-place gazetteer, listing key historical and contemporary facts. Contains details on local schools, churches, government and other institutions. Also contains a list of residents and businesses for each place.
A comprehensive place-by-place gazetteer, listing key historical and contemporary facts. Contains details on local schools, churches, government and other institutions. Also contains a list of residents and businesses for each place.
A directory of residents and businesses; with a description of each settlement, containing details on its history, public institutions, churches, postal services, governance and more.
St Michael's Mount Cemeteries
An index to vital details engraved on over 300,000 gravestones and other monuments across the county of Cornwall.
An index to almost 20,000 gravestones, with extracted details.
An index to monuments recording deaths, such as gravestones, with some transcriptions and abstracts of memorials.
Photographs and descriptions of Cornwall's most illustrious church monuments, often featuring effigies, medieval inscriptions and heraldic devices.
Images of millions of pages from cemetery and crematoria registers, photographs of memorials, cemetery plans and more. Records can be search by a name index.
St Michael's Mount Obituaries
The UKs largest repository of obituaries, containing millions of searchable notices.
A growing collection currently containing over 425,000 abstracts of obituaries with reference to the location of the full obituary.
A collection of 364 obituaries of Quakers from the British Isles. The volume was published in 1849 and includes obituaries of those who died in late 1847 through 1848.
This transcribed and searchable work by Sir William Musgrave contains 10,000s of brief obituaries. The work is a reference point for other works containing information on an individual.
A text index and digital images of all editions of a journal containing medical articles and obituaries of medical practitioners.
St Michael's Mount Histories & Books
A history of Catholicism in South West England with biographies of noted Catholics. Contains details of the Dominican, Benedictine, and Franciscan orders.
A general and parochial history of the county, with sections for each parish.
Photographs and images of churches in Cornwall.
A history of turnpikes and tollhouses in Cornwall. Includes profiles of individual turnpikes.
Histories of parish churches in Cornwall. Includes some photographs.
St Michael's Mount School & Education Records
A database of children admitted to Cornwall schools. The index contains the name(s) of parents and guardians. Original records will contain further details.
A name index connected to digital images of registers recording millions of children educated in schools operated by the National Society for Promoting Religious Education. Records contain a variety of information including genealogical details, education history, illnesses, exam result, fathers occupation and more.
A name index linked to original images of registers recording the education and careers of teachers in England & Wales.
A name index linked to original images of short biographies for over 120,000 Oxford University students. This is a particularly useful source for tracing the ancestry of the landed gentry.
A transcript of a vast scholarly work briefly chronicling the heritage, education and careers of over 150,000 Cambridge University students. This is a particularly useful source for tracing the ancestry of the landed gentry.
St Michael's Mount Occupation & Business Records
Background information on women employed by the mining industry in Devon & Cornwall. Includes a database of over 25,000 women and oral histories.
An index of documents recording the apprenticeship of children to a master. Original records usually contain ages and names of relatives.
An introduction to smuggling in Devon, Cornwall & the Bristol district.
Histories of Cornwall pubs, with photographs and lists of owners or operators.
Profiles of coal and metal mines in the south of England.
Pedigrees & Family Trees Covering St Michael's Mount
Extensive and impeccably sourced genealogies for British, Irish & Manx royalty and nobility. Scroll down to 'British Isles' for relevant sections.
A searchable database of linked genealogies compiled from thousands of reputable and not-so-reputable sources. Contains many details on European gentry & nobility, but covers many countries outside Europe and people from all walks of life.
A searchable book, listing pedigrees of titled families and biographies of their members.
A book containing genealogies and biographies of Britain's titled families.
A book containing genealogies and biographies of Britain's titled families.
St Michael's Mount Royalty, Nobility & Heraldry Records
Three books recording the lineage, marriage and collateral lines of Cornish families. Compiled form 16th and 17th century genealogical manuscripts, these works contain biographical and heraldic information.
Photographs and descriptions of Cornwall's most illustrious church monuments, often featuring effigies, medieval inscriptions and heraldic devices.
Extensive and impeccably sourced genealogies for British, Irish & Manx royalty and nobility. Scroll down to 'British Isles' for relevant sections.
A searchable database of linked genealogies compiled from thousands of reputable and not-so-reputable sources. Contains many details on European gentry & nobility, but covers many countries outside Europe and people from all walks of life.
Over 600 pedigrees for English and Welsh families who had a right to bear a coat of arms.
St Michael's Mount Church Records
The primary source of documentation for baptisms, marriages and burials before 1837, though extremely useful to the present. Their records can assist tracing a family back numerous generations.
A history of Catholicism in South West England with biographies of noted Catholics. Contains details of the Dominican, Benedictine, and Franciscan orders.
A searchable transcript of documents signed or marked by people swearing to uphold the reformed protestant religion.
Browsable images of Church of England baptism, marriage and burial registers for the county of Cornwall.
Browsable images of Church of England baptism, marriage and burial registers for the county of Cornwall.
Biographical Directories Covering St Michael's Mount
Biographies of Cornish men who emigrated to Latin America.
A searchable book, listing pedigrees of titled families and biographies of their members.
A book containing genealogies and biographies of Britain's titled families.
A book containing genealogies and biographies of Britain's titled families.
Brief biographies of Anglican clergy in the UK.
St Michael's Mount Maps
A collection of digitalised maps covering the county.
Detailed maps covering much of the UK. They depict forests, mountains, larger farms, roads, railroads, towns, and more.
Maps showing settlements, features and some buildings in mainland Britain.
An index to 11,000,000 parcels of land and property, connected to digital images of registers that record their owner, occupier, description, agricultural use, size and rateable value.
Maps of parishes in England, Scotland and Wales. They are useful in determining which parish records may be relevant to your research.
St Michael's Mount Reference Works
Short descriptions of Cornish surnames, with details of their prevalence.
A beginner’s guide to researching ancestry in England.
Compiled in 1831, this book details the coverage and condition of parish registers in England & Wales.
A comprehensive guide to researching the history of buildings in the British Isles.
A service that provides advanced and custom surname maps for the British Isles and the US.
Civil & Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction
Historical Description
From Marazion, at low-water, there is a causeway, not more than a furlong in length, to St. Michael's Mount; a place that well deserves the attention of the curious traveller. At high tides it is completely insulated by the sea; but at low-water it may be approached, over the causeway just mentioned, which is formed of sand and rocks, connecting the mount with the shore. The rock itself is composed of hard granite.
The rock of which St. Michael's Mount is composed is nearly bare of soil, and extremely steep and craggy. The height from low watermark to the top of the chapel-tower is about 240 feet; in circumference at the base it measures about three quarters of a mile.
In 1471 John de Vue, Earl of Oxford, fortified himself here against Edward IV. and bravely defended the place for some time. During the civil wars in the reign of Charles I. it was reduced, after considerable resistance, by Colonel Hammond. There was formerly a monastery here, first noticed by a charter of Edward the Confessor. William the Conqueror constituted it a cell to the Abbey of St. Michael deperiento maris in France. In the reign of Henry VIII. the Mount came into the possession of Humphry Arundell. It belongs at this time to Sir John St. Aubyn, Bart. A number of curious figures, escutcheons, emblems, and cyphers, occur in the different apartments.
The Mount gradually diminishes in size from the base, and is terminated in a very curious manner by the tower of a chapel upon its summit, making a complete pyramid. On the side next Marazion there are a few houses, with a pier and small harbour for shipping. There is a tradition that the Mount was formerly surrounded by a wood, which was part of the mainland, and its Cornish name Carakludgh or huz, signifying the grey or hoary rock in the wood, gives this tradition some degree of credibility. Leland also remarks that "In the baye betwixt the Mount and Pensans, he found neere the low water marke rootes of trees yn dyvers places." And Borlase relates, in a paper published in the 15th volume of the Philosophical Transactions, the discovery of roots and trunks of trees, some of them embedded in the natural soil, covered with sand, and twelve feet below the water.
ST. MICHAEL'S MOUNT, formerly extra-parochial, is now a parish, in the Western division of the county, Penwith hundred, petty sessional division of Penwith West, Penzance union and county court district; it is 3 miles east from Penzance and 1 south-east from Marazion Road station on the Great Western railway. St. Michael’s Mount is connected with Marazion by a natural causeway of rocks and pebbles about 40 yards wide and 500 yards in length from the shore at Marazion, formed by the tidal currents meeting in opposite directions, and passable for about four hours during low water. The northern part of the island is on the slate; the junction of the granite and slate, to be seen at low water, is said to be geologically the most interesting spot in Cornwall: the rock is in the form of a pyramid and extremely steep and craggy; its circumference at the base is about one mile, and it diminishes gradually upwards to the height of 250 feet above the level of the sea. The Mount was purchased from the Basset family by John St. Aubyn in 1657, and is still the property of the St. Aubyns. On the summit of the mount is the castle, and a beautiful chapel of the 15th century. The armoury, or guardroom, is small, but well supplied and decorated with ancient armour; to the right is the breakfast-room, a fine old-fashioned interior. Further on is the apartment, formerly the refectory, now the dining or Chevy Chase room, so called from the rich stuccoed frieze which runs round the room, depicting scenes of the chase; it has a highly polished oak floor, and many specimens of antique furniture from 300 to 500 years old; over the fire-place are the royal arms, and the date 1660, and at the west end armorial bearings of the St. Aubyn and Godolphin families, handsomely emblazoned; in the corridor leading towards the drawing-room is to be seen an immense leather bottle or black jack, and the skull of a Danish chieftain, supposed to be upwards of 1,000 years old, respecting which there is a long history engraved on brass. The drawing-room, a more modern chamber, was built on the site of a chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary, by an ancestor of Sir John St. Aubyn, created Lord St. Levan in 1887, and is a spacious and handsome apartment; it contains two splendid Italian vases, and some ancient and curiously carved ivory pictures in frames, all scriptural pieces, and upwards of a century old: an ante-drawing-room adjoins. On the south-east side another drawing and billiard room have been built, with sleeping apartments under. The whole pile of buildings was considerably altered in 1760, and the chapel renovated in 1804; in 1826 some decorative work was carried out, and in 1850 a portion of the south court rebuilt; during 1875—8 a new south-east wing was added; near the chapel are several crosses elaborately sculptured. The priory, founded in 1135 as a cell to the abbey of Mont St. Michel, in Normandy, for monks of the Benedictine order, was converted by Henry de Pomeroy, in the reign of Richard I. into a house of Gilbertine canons. The small church or chapel of St. Michael, originally built in 1044 by Edward the Confessor, consists of chancel and nave, divided by a screen bearing the shields of St. Aubyns, and a central battlemented tower containing 6 bells, of which the third is dated 1784—5, and the tenor 1640, the others have inscriptions in Old English letters ; the sixth bell only is hung, and two are broken: in one of the angles of the tower is a small turret projecting from and rising above the battlements, and commonly called “St. Michael’s chair,” but probably the remains of a stone lantern of ancient date: the seats are all of carved oak, and at the west end is a fine organ: the reredos is of rare and beautiful alabaster carved with scriptural representations, three of which were brought from Rome: the windows are filled with costly stained glass, and there is a fine chandelier, added in 1811, ornamented with groups of St. George and the Dragon and the Virgin and Child: a fragment of the inscribed tombstone of one of the priors has been found, and another stone, conjectured to have covered the remains of Sir John Arundell, of Trerice, slain in a skirmish with the Lancastrians on the neighbouring sands, and buried in this church in 1471: beneath the east end is a stone vault, approached by a flight of ten steps in the south wall, in which were found the remains of a man of great size, afterwards reinterred in the body of the church: the structure is about 70 feet long by 20 wide, and has 60 sittings. On this island, and on the side towards Marazion, are about 20 houses and a harbour for shipping capable of receiving vessels of 500 tons. A pier was built so early as 1425, which in 1727 was enlarged and rebuilt by Mr. George Blewett; in 1823 the entrance was widened by Sir John St. Aubyn to admit vessels of 500 tons: at the east pier head is fixed a brass plate, commemorating the visit of Her Majesty and the Prince Consort, 6th Sept. 1846; on the 23rd July, 1865, T.R.H. the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall came here, and on the 17th May, 1862, the Mount was visited by H.R.H. Prince Arthur, now Duke of Connaught K.G. The views from the summit will fully repay the arduous ascent. The surface generally is diversified with small clusters of trees. Marazion supplies the inhabitants with water, and there is a spring above the second gate, and a well of 37 feet in depth, yielding a good supply. A portion of the ground at the base of the mount has been used as a cemetery, and a fragment of a tomb was lately discovered with the date 1618. At the entrance to the cemetery a handsome lych-gate was erected in 1889. On the sands near Marazion is Chapel Rock, where a chapel, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, is said to have once stood, and where it is said pilgrims offered their orisons at the shrine of St. Michael. The area is 20 acres; rateable value, £291 ; the population in 1891 was 81, exclusive of the castle.
The children of this parish attend the school at Marazion.
Most Common Surnames in St Michael's Mount
| Rank | Surname | Incidence | Frequency | Percent of Parent | Rank in Penwith Hundred |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mathews | 24 | 1:4 | 5.26% | 119 |
| 2 | Thomas | 11 | 1:8 | 0.21% | 2 |
| 3 | Jago | 9 | 1:9 | 2.52% | 182 |
| 4 | Burt | 6 | 1:14 | 1.55% | 162 |
| 5 | Johns | 5 | 1:17 | 0.22% | 11 |
| 5 | Sennett | 5 | 1:17 | 83.33% | 3,835 |
| 7 | Teague | 4 | 1:21 | 1.17% | 186 |
| 8 | Fyfe | 2 | 1:42 | 100.00% | 6,123 |
| 8 | Uren | 2 | 1:42 | 0.22% | 43 |
| 8 | Opie | 2 | 1:42 | 0.34% | 81 |
| 8 | Dusting | 2 | 1:42 | 8.70% | 1,773 |
| 12 | Williams | 1 | 1:84 | 0.01% | 1 |
| 12 | McDonald | 1 | 1:84 | 1.92% | 1,057 |
| 12 | Pearce | 1 | 1:84 | 0.04% | 9 |
| 12 | Rowe | 1 | 1:84 | 0.03% | 4 |
| 12 | Stokes | 1 | 1:84 | 9.09% | 2,635 |
| 12 | John | 1 | 1:84 | 1.22% | 728 |
| 12 | Donald | 1 | 1:84 | 1.82% | 1,005 |
| 12 | Searle | 1 | 1:84 | 0.22% | 123 |
| 12 | Nicholas | 1 | 1:84 | 0.15% | 67 |
| 12 | Moyle | 1 | 1:84 | 0.12% | 52 |
| 12 | Courtice | 1 | 1:84 | 7.14% | 2,312 |
| 12 | Steiner | 1 | 1:84 | 100.00% | 7,242 |