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Oxfordshire Family History Society

Monumental Inscriptions


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Monumental Inscription Transcribing News for 2017

Transcripts for Chalgrove (OXF-MI-CHG) and the Wortons (OXF-MI-WOR) were completed at the start of the year and for Freeland (OXF-MI-FRE) in March.

The Bampton team who started work there last summer are continuing this year. The team at Sandford St Martin have now completed work in the churchyard but there is still some checking required for the monuments within the church. This is presently "on hold", awaiting the completion of building work for a new vestry, during which the interior has been covered with protective sheeting. However a benefit of this work is that it has temporarily permitted access to a crypt or family vault beneath part of the south aisle. We have been allowed access to photograph and record the monuments there and these will be included in the transcript. Meanwhile this team have moved to Wroxton to put the finishing touches to a transcript started there some 15 years ago but never published. The intention is now to publish it in our standard form on CD. Additional members for either of these teams are always welcomed. No previous experience is necessary. If you think you may be able to lend a hand with any of these projects, please email me, Alan Simpson, at:

mis@ofhs.org.uk

The Littlemore History Group have completed their work recording this church and churchyard and this transcript is partially converted to CD form. It is hoped to have this available for release as soon as possible but during the summer months it is in competition with recording in the field, so it may be delayed until the end of the year. A very active local group at North Leigh is busily transcribeing there, following a "training session" with the Bampton team. We have also had an enquiry from Great Milton and hope we may at least get a plan completed this year with a view to transcribing there in 2018. If you have a project under way at your local churchyard, or are thinking about starting one, we would be very happy to offer help, advice and encouragement. Please email me at the address above.

A Puzzling Headstone at Duns Tew

A puzzling headstone was discovered during recording in the churchyard at St Mary Magdalene, Duns Tew. A piece about this appeared in the August 2015 issue of Oxfordshire Family Historian, in which we appealed for suggestions from members. Details of the stone and the responses received can be found here.

Illustrated Monumental Inscription Transcripts on CD

At Oxfordshire Family History Society we have pioneered a technique for producing Monumental Inscription Transcripts in the form of an Illustrated, Interactive CDROM complete with Plans, an Index and Photographs of every grave. Viewing the transcript requires nothing more than a standard web browser, thus making the transcript available to the widest possible audience. A small example of the final result, for the Church of St Peter-le-Bailey, can be seen by following the link to "View The Transcript" in the section below.

Production of the CDROM has been automated by means of a set of software "tools" that we have developed. These are made freely available, for the benefit of other family history societies or individuals wishing to produce similar transcripts for their own local churchyards. They may be downloaded from their author's web site at www.shotover.org.uk/micd/ and include a comprensive Instruction Manual describing the complete process. No programming experience is required to use the tools, beyond the ability to create a simple web page. Even this is described in detail in another section of the same web site at www.shotover.org.uk/webweave/ which provides all the help needed for complete beginners.

Monuments at   St PETER-le-BAILEY,   Bonn Square,   Oxford

View the Transcript

The redevelopment of Bonn Square, carried out in 2008, provided an opportunity to view and record a number of gravestones which had been buried since the existing church of St Peter-le-Bailey on the site was demolished in 1873 as part of a road widening scheme.

During the redevelopment, archaeological work on the site was carried out on behalf of the city council, by Oxford Archaeology. They have generously made their transcripts and photographs of the grave stones available to OFHS. These are presented here in the same format used for OFHS own Illustrated MI Transcripts (available from the society as CDs).

Monuments at   St CROSS, HOLYWELL,   Oxford
Balliol College has recently acquired a 999 year lease on the former parish church of St Cross, Holywell, Oxford. The church is to be used to house the college's Historic Collections under archival conditions, whilst the chancel will remain in use for occasional services. The monuments in the church and churchyard will be protected during the building works and will remain in situ after the work is completed. Dr John Jones, Fellow of the College 1966-2009 and Fellow Archivist from 1981, is supervising the work and has made a record of the essential details of the monuments. It is hoped that this will eventually be converted to a full transcript complete with photographs and published, either on CD or on-line. In the interim, John has made his summary available on the Balliol College web site for the benefit of Family Historians and others who may be interested. It can be found by following the links below.

An Introduction to the Project
Details of the Monuments
Details of the Stained Glass

(Note that these records relate to the church and the ancient churchyard, immediately beside it and not to the adjacent Oxford City Holywell Cemetery. Monuments in the latter were transcribed in 1986 and are included on CD OXF-MON.)

Contact Details

Information about current MI transcription projects may be obtained by emailing:

mis@ofhs.org.uk

Offers of help with transcribing will of course be especially welcomed!


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