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Quakers
or Society of Friends In 1647 the Quakers or Society of Friends were formed, stemming from the activities of George Fox. They denied the validity of any form of church structure, had no clergy, and thought that God's messages were given direct to each person. They were the first Dissenters to keep registers systematically. They became most numerous in late 17th century but dwindled after the Toleration Act of 1689. During the 18th century they gained in strength partly as a result of persecution. However, the rigid discipline and forbidding of marriage to outsiders and relatives led to their rapid decline.
The
old Quaker Meeting House in Rotton Row (later Canal Street, now
Broad Street) c.1871. Robert and Joan Hill gave two cottages in
1704
Organisation of the Quakers The group
is based on series of meetings each reporting to the other. Preparative
or Particular meetings were based on a single community but there
are few dating from before the 18th century. This meeting reported
to the Monthly Meeting, which was the principal meeting responsible
for general affairs including membership and marriage. The Monthly
Meeting normally kept records of births, marriages, and burials
although sometimes they are recorded at the Preparative Meeting.
The Monthly Meeting in turn reported to the Quarterly Meeting, which
was a form of pastoral court of appeal.
Calendar The Quakers
are distinctive in that they do not use the ordinary names for days
and months because they represent heathen gods. Instead they use
First Day for Sunday, Second Day for Monday etc., and First Month
for January (except for the period before 1752 when March was the
First Month). For more information on the changes to our calendar
see
Wolverhampton
Preparative Meeting minutes (1906)
Records of births, marriages and deaths Entries of births are similar to those of Anglican baptism. Marriages took the form of an open declaration by both parties, following an exhaustive investigation into their eligibility to marry. Unlike other Nonconformist sects, Quakers were exempted from regulations of Hardwicke's Marriage Act of 1754, and were allowed to perform marriages in their own chapels. Marriage entries often contain lists of relatives and friends who witnessed the occasion. Until they had their own burial grounds, Anglican churchyards were used. Particular Meetings might have statements of intent to marry similar to the calling of banns of marriage. Records
of the Wolverhampton Preparative Meeting are held at Wolverhampton
Archives & Local Studies but only date from the 20th century. From
the 19th century the Wolverhampton Meeting was part of the Warwickshire
Monthly Meeting with those records held at
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