Most dean and chapter property was held on the basis of renewable leases (any remaining copyhold tenure being converted to leasehold after 1577). The leases were usually for a term of 21 years (40 years for some town properties), and were
repeatedly renewed after only 7 (or 14) years. A “reserved” rent was payable annually, which was far below the nominal market or “rack” rent for the property and fixed from before 1660
(unless property was divided or waste land improved). Therefore, a “fine” was additionally payable on renewal of the lease, every 7 years. This fine was considerably higher than the annual rents, and was calculated to
recover the difference over 7 years between the value of the reserved rents and the market value of the property. The renewal of the leases was by “contract” with the lessees, and many of the records in this section
relate to these contracts and the collection of fines for lease renewals. More background on this form of 'church leasehold' is included within the
online.
From the middle of the 19th century, a series of acts, in particular 14 & 15 Vict c.104, enabled or encouraged cathedrals to sell outright (enfranchise) their leasehold properties, or to convert them to ordinary agricultural tenancies, and
church leasehold was effectively abolished by 1870.
Records of Dean and Chapter estates held by leasehold, until its abolition in 1870
These records have been in the custody of Durham University since the 1950s, with some transferred by the Dean and Chapter of Durham Cathedral, and most items deposited by the Church Commissioners in 1956. Church Commissioners' references for
these items are noted within the list ('CCD' numbers).
Records older than 30 years are open for consultation. More recent records may require prior written permission from the Chapter Clerk.
Permission to make any published use of material from the collection must be sought in advance from Durham Cathedral Library (library@durhamcathedral.co.uk). The Library will assist where possible with identifying copyright owners, but
responsibility for ensuring copyright clearance rests with the user of the material.
In addition to the series of counterpart leases and title deeds in connection with properties surrendered to the Dean and Chapter ca.1860s (DCD/F/AA-AB below), other deeds survive in the boxes temporarily marked 'St Helen's Deposit'. These boxes
are not yet listed, but an incomplete box list on index cards is kept within the search room at 5 The College, listing the main places included within each box
¾ metre
The 'contracts' were the renewals of leases, typically every 7 years, for a lump sum or fine agreed (contracted) between the lessee and the dean and chapter.
These two series document the lease renewals for each property separately, and are the primary means of tracing the tenurial history of Dean and Chapter properties from the Restoration in 1660 to the enfranchisement of the estates ca.1870. They
detail the (usually fixed) reserved rent for each property and list the leaseholders and renewal fines, alongside the 'habendum' date for each lease (i.e. the date when each lease took effect). They differ chiefly in their order, with the earlier
Renewals Books arranged geographically and the Notitia Books alphabetically by township.
With a few exceptions as noted, all these volumes form part of the Church Commission Deposit of Durham Dean and Chapter Estates material (CCD), their CCD reference numbers being noted within the list.
Digitised versions of the Church Commission items are available at
. When using the images on familysearch, note:
Renewals BooksReference: DCD/F/CADates of creation: ca.1660-1790s
Extent: 8 volumes (1 boxed) and folders of loose papers
Records of dean and chapter property by township and teneement, with details of successive issues and renewals of leases. These volumes were compiled from 1675, with lease renewals information being traced and entered retrospectively in the 1690s
and again in the 17030s. Book 2 includes a memorandum towards the back of the book relating the history and use of the volume and of its predeceessor, book 1: a transcription of this memorandum is
available online.
All the renewals books include additional notes, plans and surveys, either pasted into the book or kept separate, as noted within the list.
The most useful of the volumes for research purposes are numbers 2 and 4, the other volumes being generally false starts or containing mostly duplicated information.
The order of the townships within each Renewals Book is the usual estate order, viz a geographic order starting at Durham, moving north fo Gateshead and Heworth, then proceeding roughly clockwise around the county, ending just south of Durham
within Shincliffe and Croxdale. Entries for Northumberland, mining leases and rectories (leases of tithes) follow the County Durham entries.
Microfilms of the Renewals Books 1-4 have been digitised and made
available online on familysearch, with the Loose Papers
separately filmed and digitised. See under
DCD/F/C for further notes on access to these digital images.
DCD/F/CA/1 1660-1734
Lease renewals book 1, including lease renewals information for 1660-1714 and annual lists of contracts for 1660/1-1733/4.
This book was first compiled in 1675, and maintained initially up to 1686, with lists of contracts entered retrospectively from 1660/61. In the 1690s, it was further revised, with earlier (1660-1675) lease renewals being added retrospectively.
After 1704, the lease renewals were apparently not always fully entered, and it was not updated after 1714 (see
Renewals book 1A). in 1722, the entries were copied into
Renewals book
2 and updated, so that for most purposes the lease renewals infromation in this volume is superceded by Renewals book 2. See also memorandum at back of Renewals book 2 for further information on the compilation, revision and extension of this
volume.
p.i and 2: notes and tables for calculating renewal fines on leases
p.3-161: lease renewals information arranged by property (townships in geographical order as summarised under
DCD/F/CA)
p.162-164: notes on rents of prebendal (corps) lands
p.165: list of reserved rents paid to the crown and various named bailiffs, curates and chaplains (with reference to the endowment charter as at
DCD/A/AA/2)
p.166: memorandum about lands granted to the crown 1544/5 (in Ketton, Heseldon, Eden, Bradbury, Frampton in Lincs, Ruddington in Notts and Harborow in Oxon), and list of augmentations of vicarages
p.167-169: notes on sales of land at Aycliffe during the Commonwealth period; memorandum of promise by Bishop John Cosin to pay £596 towards "the water conduit [and] ... our old lead;" notes and rentals for various tithes and rectories
p.170-177: notes on leases for tenements at Bellasis, South Shields, Gateshead (with note of disputed ownership of house in Pipewellgate, apparently sold during the Commonwealth), Whitehouse, Bolsden, Burnhope, Whitehall and Allansford,
Wodingfeild, Hamsterley, Westoe, Pittington, North Pittington, Monkwearmouth, Harton, Aldingrange, Owengate, Durham Mills (with transcript of grant of riverbanks at
DCD 2.10
Pont. 6) and South Bailey, most cross-referenced to (and from) pages within the lease renewals section of the book
p.179-409: yearly lists of contracts (lease renewals), as described under
DCD/F/BA (“since their happy Restitution by your Gracious Soveraignes noe lesse miraculous than mercifull
Restauration”)
p.412: list of allotments (with names and acreages) from Merrington enclosure, 1666
p.413: description of boundaries of Spennymoor, “by Mr Symon Comyns deposicion” (undated)
p.414: note of numbers of trees on the corps land of the 11th prebendary at Relly, 1710
p.416: survey of manor of Gateshead by trustees for the disposal and sale of late Bishops' lands, 1647
p.418: survey of lands belonging to town of Berwick, with names of fields and acreages (as acres, roods, 'day works' (? about 4 perches) and perches)
p.419-420: notes on property in Holy Island, with notes from a manorial court (34 Eliz. I), a rental of 1602 and from Chapter and Priory registers
p.422-423: terrier of lands in Holy Island held by Mr Watson from the Dean and Chapter, 1701
p.425-428: maps showing fields and other features in relation to properties at Gateshead (ref. to p.171), Croxdale (surveyed by John Leighton and countersigned by Anthony Salvin, 1698), and Bearpark (survey by John Leighton 1699)
p.431-432 (in reverse): notes on procedures for installations of deans and prebendaries
p.434-435: notes of payments for repairs “since his Majesty's happy return” on cathedral, prebendal houses and other churches, noted as in Dr Naylor's handwriting [Joseph Naylor, died 1668]
p.439-456: index of names
p.460-463: index of places
p.465: note of “decays and desperate rents revived upon renualls and new improvements” (cross-referenced to pages within the lease renewals section of the book)
Loose in a pocket at back of volume are:
Part of a letter or petition from Grace Davidson of North Charlton to [her uncle], relating to “a bargen” with a family member (lease renewal contract?), place
and details unclear, 11 February 1695
List of “Farmes that have noe improvements 1695”, arranged by township with leaseholder details (see also above p.465)
Draft letter to Jonathan Hutchinson about a house in Pipewellgate, Gateshead, setting out rents from the Receivers' Books “to the Great Rebellion”, with reference to Bulmer Iley and [Ralph] Rutter as previous
leaseholders. See also p.170 above and entry for 'free rent' at p.50.
Letter from Thomas Richardson of Hurworth about Bossall tithes, with reference to tithes from Bossall and Barmby, Flaxton, Claxton, Harton, Sand Hutton and Aldby and Buttereram [? all in Howdenshire, Yorkshire], also requesting return of a
Communion Table cloth, 30 July 1729
1 volume, ii + 232 folios (paginated)
Part of Church Commission deposit, reference CCD 235423
See notes under
DCD/F/C for digital images available on familysearch.
For later lists of contracts, see under
DCD/F/BA.
Digital images of Renewals Book 1Digital images of loose papers from Renewals Book 1 DCD/F/CA/1A 1714-1722
Lease renewals book 1A, including lease renewals information which is mostly duplicated within
Renewals book 2. This volume is in effect a false start for a new renewals book to succeed
Renewals book 1, and is referred to in the memorandum at the back of Renewals book 2. It was apparently written by Postumus Smith, treasurer.
single gathering (unbound, boxed), 52 folios (f.1-2 and 50-52 blank)
Binding: bound with section cut from deed of agreement between Dean and Chapter and Edward Haggerstone [of Northumberland] relating to
lands in Ellingham, Northumberland, ? early 18th century
This volume is a cathedral item, not part of the Church Commission Deposit.
See notes under
DCD/F/C for digital images available on familysearch.
Digital images of Renewals Book 1A DCD/F/CA/2 1660-1759
Lease renewals book 2, incorporating lease renewals information from
Renewals book 1. Initially compiled 1722, intermittently revised until 1734, more fully revised and extended in 1735 and thereafter
maintained until about 1759, when it was succeeded by
Renewals book 4.
Towards the back of this volume is a detailed “Memorandum on the nature and use of the Lease Renewal Books”. This is written in the hand of Thomas Sharp (canon 1732-1758, treasurer 1736-1740 and 1754-1757), and is
also recorded by him in
Cosin MS B.ii.16. A transcription of this memorandum is
available online, and is useful for understanding more precisely how the Renewals books were drawn up and how the lease renewals information within them
was compiled.
f.v-vii: index of places
f.ix: copy of inventory of books of chancery of Prior of Durham (original dated 1421), i.e. chiefly of medieval archive volumes
f.x: notes on inquisitions of lands belonging to the Prior and Convent
f.1-306: lease renewals information arranged by property (townships in geographical order as summarised under
DCD/F/CA). Main lease renewals are listed only on right hand pages, with facing pages left blank
for additional notes and details of specific leases etc, with additional notes, plans, letters etc pasted into the volume (see also loose papers listed below). Leases up to 1734 are cross-referenced to the numbered entries within the lists in
DCD/F/CA/1.
f.313a-b: notes on division of Aycliffe in 1652 and further notes on Mr Holmes' farms to 1748 (apparently in connection with a dispute about the status of the land)
f.318-319: surveys and terriers of Sadberge, apparently supplied by Brasenose College, Oxford in 1724, with commentary by J. Johnson, 1737
Loose papers are kept separately and consist of further notes in relation to particular leases and townships, as follows (numbers omitted are miscellaneous calculations and minor notes, not relating to specific places):
/1. Edlingham rectory (tithes), [Northumberland], 1776
/2. Read House, Middridge Grainge estate, Heighington parish (George Young and Hannah Young), 1789-1791
/4. Edisbridge Mill (John Ward), 1762
/5. Hamsterley, 1725
/6. Lord Strathmore's rents
/7. Newton Town (sketch plan), 1731
/10-11. Merrington mill (Henry Smurthwaite), 1766
/14. Southwick (plan of properties on Town Street and King's Street)
/17-18. Salt Panns (?) (Robert Ellison of Ravensworth Castle), 1753
/19. house at [South] Shields (Alexander Donnison), 1766 (plan and elevation)
/20-21. Salt Panns and Seat House [at South Shields] (Burdon et al), 1747
/22. [South] Shields Hugh [Heugh], note from lessee or vicar relating to case against Thomas Sellar, 1742
/23. leasehold of Robert Atkinson (place not stated), 1752
/24-26. Claypath, Durham, 1701-1703
/27. Westoe, properties on Town Street and High Street (sketch plan)
/30. Felling (plan, showing river Tyne and “Fellon Dock”)
/31. houses near river Tyne (plan with elevations), no place name but including glass house, ware houses, bottle house [kiln?], pottery and dwellings
/32-39. South Shields (and Jarrow?), sixteeen pann ground and ballast quay (John Burdon of Cleadon), 1752-1755
/40. Fulwell and Monkwearmouth quarries and shore (Hedworth), 1758-1761
/41-42a. Monkwearmouth tithes (Hylton), 1754
/42b-43. List of tenements with tenants and bounds, ? Shields or Jarrow (Long Row, Ballast Quay, King's Street)
/44. Fulwell quarries, showing quays and (?) waggonways (sketch plan)
/45, /51-52. Correspondence concerning mill and dam (proposal to demolish water mills and build windmill), South Shields or environs (John Burdon), 1743
/47. rough draft for notes on [Sadberge] surveys sent to Brasenose College, Oxford (as f.319 above)
/49. Haygarth Intacks, Muggleswick Common (? sketch plan at /48)
/50-50a. houses on bank of river Tyne (Richard Wigam?), 1765, sketch plan and note
/53. Monkwearmouth (Sir H[edworth] Williamson), 1758
1 volume, xi + 344 folios (f.i-iv, viii, xi, 312, 314-317 and 320-344 blank; f.18 fragmentary and loose but kept with volume)
Part of Church Commission deposit, reference CCD 235424. Noted as rebound by Ecclesiastical Commissioners, December 1895
See notes under
DCD/F/C for digital images available on familysearch.
Digital images of Renewals Book 2Digital images of loose papers from Renewals Book 2 DCD/F/CA/3 ca.1660-1760s
Lease renewals book 3, apparently drawn up to replace and extend
Renewals book 2 but in effect a false start, and largely superceded by
Renewals book 4 (may be required for
information on 1750s leases, which may be omitted in both books 2 and 4). Entries are cross-referenced to both Renewals book 2 (column headed "G[reat] B[ook]" at right hand side) and to the Receivers' Books, and this book may have been drawn up
partly as a means of cross-referencing the Receivers' Books and Renewals Book 2 (see also index of places). Both sides of the pages are used for lease renewals, with a few letters and additional notes pasted in.
This book excludes South Shields properties, for which see
Renewals book 3A. Heworth Common entries are apparently duplicated between the two volumes, but ordered differently.
f.1-352: lease renewals information arranged by property (excluding South Shields, townships in geographical order)
f.354-363: index of places, showing correspondence between Receivers' Books pages and Halmote Court wards of County Durham, and including some details of farms, place names etc
Some loose papers are kept separately as follows (numbers omitted are miscellaneous calculations and minor notes, not relating to specific places):
/2. Additional reservations to be added into leases for Southwick and Monkwearmouth (in
relation to wayleave for carrying “lime stones coals wood timeber or any other materials ... to the sea shore and the river of Wear”, in relation to land leased to Sir Hedworth Williamson), 1758
/3. List of leases for houses on Heworth Common, 1740-1756
/4-5. Letter about lease of fish tithes of Berwick, Holy Island and Norham, 1767
/6. Draft for assignment of lease of Roses House in Ferryhill, 1764
/7. List of lease renewals for parcels of waste ground at Monkwearmouth, 1746-1765
1 volume, 365 folios (f.113-115, 353 and 364-365 blank)
Part of Church Commission deposit, reference CCD 235425. Noted as rebound by Ecclesiastical Commissioners, December 1895
See notes under
DCD/F/C for digital images available on familysearch.
Digital images of Renewals Book 3Digital images of loose papers from Renewals Book 3 DCD/F/CA/3A ca.1660-1760s
Lease renewals book 3A, as
preceding volume but in relation to South Shields and Heworth Common only
f.1-58, 62-69: lease renewals information arranged by property (South Shields only), cross-referenced to Receivers' Books and to 'GB' ('Great Book',
Renewals Book 2)
f.59-61: list of places included in Receivers' Books
f.62-69: lease renewals information for properties on Heworth Common. These entries largely duplicate entries at f.104-112, but are arranged in a different order (apparently following the order in Renewals Book 2 more closely)
f.73-74: notes on Fishburn farm (Hartwell Charity), written in reverse from back of volume
1 volume, 75 folios (foliated at foot of pages, f.1-2, 70-72 and 75 blank)
This volume is a cathedral item, not part of the Church Commission Deposit.
See notes under
DCD/F/C for digital images available on familysearch.
Digital images of Renewals Book 3A DCD/F/CA/4 1740s-1790s
Lease renewals book 4. This volume follows on from
Renewals Book 2, to which it is cross-referenced (folio and item numbers in left hand margin, headed "G[reat] book"). It is succeeded by the series of Notitia
books at
DCD/F/CB. The lease renewals are written onto right hand pages, with a large number of additional notes, plans and lists written or pasted into facing pages: many of these have become detached from the
page and are stored separately, as briefly listed below.
f.iii-iv: index to places (damaged)
f.1-326: lease renewals information arranged by property (townships in geographical order, with entries for South Shields Market Place at p.316-326). Many of the entries for South Shields have been marked 'U', probably to indicate that they
are included in the endowment of the University of Durham in 1832.
f.337: a sketch plan of an unidentified property with notes on leases have been attached to the facing page (f.337 is itself blank), but caught in the [1895] binding so that they cannot be examined
Loose papers are kept separately and consist of further notes in relation to particular leases and townships, as follows (numbers omitted are miscellaneous calculations and minor notes, not relating to specific places):
/1. Glebe and tithes of Fishlake, 1790
/3. South Shields (Market Place), 1781
/5. Burnhall tithes (Mr Smith), 1786
/7. Farn Islands lighthouse (with observation on decline in shipping and in the Greenland trade), 1798
/8. Norham corn tithes (valuation and land tax)
/9. Note on [Seamarks Act] 1566 and rebuilding of Eddystone lighthouse
/10. Petition from inhabitants of Muggleswick about absentee leaseholder's failure to fence off their land so that sheep and cattle grazing on the Common are disturbed
/11. Note of request by Matthew Egleston for lease of lead (and silver) mine at Heley Field, Muggleswick, 1787
/12. Request by John Collingwood of Rookhope for lease of lead mines in Stanhope, 1791
/13-14. Note and sketch plan for lands at Croxdale or Butterby
/15. Corn tithes of Edlingham estate, 1787
/16, 19. Quantities of lead ore smelted at Felton Foot mill, 1775-1788
/17-18. Request for lease renewal by Bowlby for Moorhouse Farm at Ferryhill, 1793
/23. Sketch plan for land next to turnpike road to Ferryhill (showing site of [former] stone quarry)
/24. Declaration by John Dodshon relating to cottage and garth (Cross House) in Merrington, leased to John White, 1777
/25. Plan of row of houses in Middleston Town Street, 1772
/26-27. Request for lease renewal by Bowlby for Town End Farm (with reference to collieries), 1799
/28-29. Index to estate and enclosure etc plans, many as
listed under DCD/E, noting which are held 'here' [? by Church Commissioners], [ca.1830s]
/31. Letters concerning lease renewal for half tenement at Monkton leased by Lacy, 1796
/33-34. Rental of South Hebburn, 1797
/35. Notes on leases of garth in Westoe and two stints in Westoe Deans (Watson, Mounteney, Heath, Blagdon, Smart), 1753-1774
/36-40. Letter and note with sketch plan concerning [pulling down] of old meeting house erected without consent on leasehold of James Wilson and/or Robert Green, 1788
/43. Sketch plan showing ? three houses, unidentified
/44. Note for description of garden at [South Shields], for Fairless/Kent lease
/46-52. Notes on ballast quay/s (Burdon and Cookson) and lease to Fairless, [? South Shields], with reference to brick field and glass house, 1781-1788
/53. Account of rent, taxes and other costs in connection with lease [renewal] at South Shields (Robert Durham), 1787
/55. Request by executors of Thomas Clark(e) to add back premises to lease ('old bad houses'), location not stated (reference to last renewal in 1794)
/56. [Petition] by widow of John Bell concerning limestone quarries at Fulwell leased by Sir Hedworth Williamson to John Bell, and lime kilns on ground leased to John Forster, 1796
/58. Valuation of lease at west end of Monkwearmouth to trustee of estate of James Smithson, 1775
/59-61. Lists (recte copies of Chapter Acts?) of [lease renewal fines], with notes of donation to Society of the Sons of the Clergy, [donation to] a blind man at Heworth Common, repair of Elvet chancel and Russell's [colliery] wayleaves at
Heworth and Washington, 1807
/62-63. Letter from Cooper Abbs of Monkwearmouth, concerning dispute with Mr Rudd (“many false insinuations and charges ... arise from a behaviour in himself incontrovertible in notoriety ...”), 1792
/64. Valuation of land [leased to] Mr Lee at Southwick, with reference to lime kiln, 1786
/65-66. Lands (freehold and leasehold) held by Mr Tempest in Murton and Dalton-le-Dale (including Guild Hall, referencing plan to survey latter (as
DCD/E/AA/6), and copy of 1690 sale to John Duck, 1780
/67-68. Letter from George Colpitts concerning lease renewal for land at Wallsend, 1776
/69-70. Letter concerning lease renewal for land at Cowpen (leased to ? Law, adjoining Griffiths' lease), 1793
/71. Quantities of ballast landed [? South Shields], 1777-1783
/72. Proposal for colliery lease at Hett by Richard Cornforth
/75-76. Letter from Stewart concerning renewal of lease [for quarries], 1772
/77-78. Index to places within Renewals Book 4 (including field names for properties in Durham), torn in two parts
/79-81. List of leases due for renewal (with current lease or habendum dates), 1783
/82-83. Draft marriage settlement in relation to leasehold land at Milburngate, Durham (Thomas Potts as trustee to John Morgan as trustee, marriage of John Robson and Mary Smith), 1754
/84-86. Notes on property in Church Street formerly leased to Christopher Grainger but now due to his daughter (Elizabeth Grainger, dumb) and grandson (infant), [ca.1780s]
/87. Plan of houses belonging to ? Richardson at South Shields (Westpan ward)
/88. Rental of property at Carrs Hill on Heworth Common (with reference to former work house), 1792
/89. Valuation of Hudson's lands at Forrester, Hayning Wood and Hayning Shore, 1783
/91. Letter from Ralph Hewison on leases at Hedworth and Simonside, 1773
/92. Letter from Jonathan Sorsbie about [lease renewal] for water mill [see next], with reference to pipe laid by Newcastle Water Company, 1785
/93-96. Plans of water courses supplying Heworth Mills (1773), land at Bill Quay (showing ballast hills, smelting house and glass house) and four unidentified houses (Liddle and Johnson)
/97-98. Letter from John Warburton of Newcastle about unspecified business, 1786
/99. Lands at Cleatlam (part freehold, part leasehold), ca.1780s
/101. List of claimants on Upper Heworth and Nether Heworth Common, 1766 (see enclosure award and plan at
DCD/E/CA/3)
/102-103. Sketch plans of fields near Sutbourn [Sudburn] Beck, [Staindrop Moor], showing Insterton Hall and Dunn House
/104-110. Norham tithes (letters and rentals), with reference to repairs to Norham chancel, the value of the tithes, 1765-1793
/111. Lamedon estate (Nicholas Fenwick), 1789
/112. [Copy of] entries for lease renewals, 1760s-1780s (1760s lessees George Hartley, Thomas Hogg, Mary Walker, William Dewel and Peter Burrel). The township and appropriate page within either Renewals Book 4 or Renewals Book 3 (or another
volume) has not been established.
/113. Valuation of corn water mill at Aycliffe (James Clements), with reference to damage caused by new Lint mill, 1793
/115. Valuation of land at Billingham, including numbers 142-160 [as plan at
DCD/E/AA/12], 1782
/116-117. Valuation of land at East Rainton (Jonathan White) with plan, including notes on waggonways and routes to colliery and a new pit, 1770
/118-119. Valuation of corn tithes of Ellingham, 1765
/120-121. numbers not used
/122-123. Valuation of four farms, location not stated (Low Farm, Middle Farm, High Moor Farm, Moor Farm), 1777
/124. Rental of South Hebburn land leased to Cuthbert Ellison
/125. Letter from Aubone Surtees about value of Charlton tithes, 1786
/126. Land at Westerton leased to Mrs Shaw, 1790
/127. Note of poor rate of Billingham, 1791
/128. Valuation of Landieu estate, 1775
/129. Note for lease of lead mine in Muggleswick to John Collingwood (see also /12 above), 1790
/130. Expenses for work done through Francis Ellis (chiefly [labourers'] costs, also “the fare of the Fly”), 1766
/131. Agreement for renewal of lease at Hilton in name of Lancelot Sanderson, 1782
/132-133. numbers not used
/134-135. Account of numbers of leases “granted since 1660 down to ... 1783 extracted from my own Great Book” [perhaps
DCD/F/CA/3, or perhaps now lost]
1 volume, vi + 337 folios (f.ii, v and 327-337 blank)
Part of Church Commission deposit, reference CCD 235426. Noted as rebound by Ecclesiastical Commissioners, December 1895
See notes under
DCD/F/C for digital images available on familysearch.
Digital images of Renewals Book 4Digital images of loose papers from Renewals Book 4 DCD/F/CA/5A-B 1775-1778
Lease renewals books 5A-B, being a fair copy of rental information from the leasehold estates for ca.1775 in two volumes, in the order of the Receivers' Books (to which cross-references by page are included, and from which these volumes appear to
have been initially compiled), with occasional lease renewals information up to 1778. The properties are numbered in a single sequence, from 1 to 1788. Additional notes are not included, and these two volumes appear to be a 'false start' for a
replacement renewals book.
2 volumes
These volumes are cathedral items, not part of the Church Commission Deposit.
Notitia booksReference: DCD/F/CBDates of creation: 1790s-ca.1870
Extent: 6 volumes
Binding: All the Notitia Books are noted as having been rebound by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, December 1895
A continuation of the series of Renewals Books (
DCD/F/CA), the Notitia Books record lease renewals property by property. Their main difference from the Renewals Books is that they list the townships
alphabetically instead of the normal geographic order used in the former and in the Receivers' Books. Within each township, the tenements are usually listed in the same order as in the Renewals Books.
The entry for each property normally includes a cross-reference to the entry within
Renewals Book 4 (called 'G[reat] Book'), and sometimes a cross-reference to the page in the Receivers' Books. Most entries are
additionally annotated in red ink (and/or blue pencil) with references to:
- counterpart leases within the Church Commission Deposit (CCD), using the six-figure numbers used within the
CCD catalogue
- volume and page numbers for the enfranchisement registers (DCD/F/DA), for those properties that were sold before 1809
- references to the University Renewals Book (UND/CG1/8/1), for those properties which formed part of the university's endowment in 1832 (chiefly in South
Shields): these properties are also annotated with a cross-reference to the schedule of properties within the University of Durham Act 1832 (copy in search room with DCD lists)
- notes on the enfranchisement or surrender of the lease, for those properties still in lease when church leasehold was abolished ca.1870
Note that many properties, particularly in the industrialised towns, were extensively subdivided or altered during the 19th century. The Notitia Books note these alterations on (initially) the left hand pages. These entries, together with all the
annotations on the right hand pages, should be read carefully if researching the history of a particular piece of property.
Each Notitia Book covers the same period of time, with the first three volumes covering County Durham (excluding South Shields), volume 4 covering Northumberland, mining leases and wayleaves, and rectories (leases of tithes), and volumes 5-6
covering South Shields.
Microfilms of the Notitia Books have been digitised and made
available online on familysearch. See notes under
DCD/F/C
for further notes on access to these digital images.
DCD/F/CB/1 1790s-ca.1870
Notitia book, Durham 1
f.i-ii. Index to townships, and to streets and other places within Durham city
f.1-99. Lease renewals information for Durham city and environs (many properties annotated with reference to the
enfranchisement registers)
f.100. Lease renewals information for a colliery (? at Sacriston Heugh) and entries for corps lands at Bearpark (deanery), Witton Gilbert (4th stall) and Sacriston Heugh (3rd stall)
f.101-288. Lease renewals information for townships in alphabetical order, Aycliffe to Hunwick
f.289-297. Additional lease renewals information for certain properties in Billingham and Ferryhill (continuations from pages earlier in the volume)
1 volume, ii + 298 folios
Part of Church Commission deposit, reference CCD 167098
Digitised microfilm available online: see further notes under
DCD/F/C on access to these images.
Digital images of Notitia Book Durham 1 DCD/F/CB/2 1790s-ca.1870
Notitia book, Durham 2
f.i. Index to townships
f.1-290. Lease renewals information for places in alphabetical order, Iveston to Underside (with some blank pages between places)
f.291-296. Lease renewals information for subdivisions of a property in Merrington (continuation from f.19)
1 volume, ii + 292 folios (followed by blank pages)
Part of Church Commission deposit, reference CCD 167099
Digitised microfilm available online: see further notes under
DCD/F/C on access to these images.
Digital images of Notitia Book Durham 2 DCD/F/CB/3 1790s-ca.1870
Notitia book, Durham 3
f.i. Index of townships
f.1-168. Lease renewals information for places in alphabetical order, Walkerfield to Yorkfield (with Monkwearmouth listed under 'Weremouth', and some blank pages between places)
f.169-177. Additional lease renewals information for Westoe
f.178-200. Blank (followed by unnumbered blank pages)
1 volume, iii + 177 folios (followed by blank pages)
Part of Church Commission deposit, reference CCD 167100
Digitised microfilm available online: see further notes under
DCD/F/C on access to these images.
Digital images of Notitia Book Durham 3 DCD/F/CB/4 1790s-ca.1870
Notitia book, Northumberland, including lease renewals information for properties in Northumberland (Wallsend, Newcastle, Prudhoe, Holy Island and Farne Islands), followed by rectory tithes (County Durham then Northumberland), mining leases and
wayleaves, with index of places at f.i-ii
1 volume, ii + 165 folios (followed by blank pages throughout second half of volume, with some earlier folios also blank)
Part of Church Commission deposit, reference CCD 167101
Digitised microfilm available online: see further notes under
DCD/F/C on access to these images.
Digital images of Notitia Book Northumberland DCD/F/CB/5 1790s-ca.1870
Notitia book, South Shields.1, including lease renewals information for South Shields (part). Entries include cross-references to the Receiver's Book and 'Great' Book (
DCD/F/CA/4), except as indicated.
f.i. Notes on some Paxton and Barras leases, ca.1818
f.1-48. Lease renewals for Shieldheugh (properties on f.2-48 are numbered 1-47, and noted as subdivisions of the main Shieldheugh lease at f.1; each opening generally has entries for a single property on the right hand page, with further
subdivisions noted below and on the left page)
f.49-129. Lease renewals for unidentified properties (properties on f.49-114 are numbered 48-113, so may be a continuation of the above division of Shieldheugh). These properties do not have Receiver's/Great Book cross-references (unlike those
on preceding and following pages)
f.130-186. Lease renewals for Rubbish Hills and Wastes (many annotated with references to the university schedule and renewals book, as noted under
DCD/F/CB)
f.187-229. Lease renewals for unidentified properties (as for f.49-129, these are without Receiver's/Great Book cross-references). Many are annotated with university renewals book references.
f.230-278. Lease renewals for Market Place (houses numbered 1-57, “of which there is an exact Plan” (f.229v) [it no longer survives], most annotated either as sold or referencing the university renewals
book)
f.279. Lease renewals for a property marked as part of the property at
DCD/F/CB/6 p.135
f.280-301. Lease renewals for (mostly) unidentified properties, some at least in Shieldheugh and cross-referenced to f.1 in this book
1 volume, ii + 301 folios
Part of Church Commission deposit, reference CCD 167102
Digitised microfilm available online: see further notes under
DCD/F/C on access to these images.
Digital images of Notitia Book South Shields 1 DCD/F/CB/6 1790s-ca.1870
Notitia book, South Shields.2, including lease renewals information for South Shields (part)
f.1-204. Lease renewals, most annotated with reference to the university schedule and renewals book (see under
DCD/F/CB). These properties include cross-references to the Receiver's Book and 'Great' Book (
DCD/F/CA/4).
f.205-304. Lease renewals, without cross-references to the Receiver's/Great Book. Far fewer of these are annotated as university properties
1 volume, 303 folios
Part of Church Commission deposit, reference CCD 167103
Digitised microfilm available online: see further notes under
DCD/F/C on access to these images.
Digital images of Notitia Book South Shields 2
Registers of deeds relating to properties that were sold between 1805 and 1809, chiefly in and around Durham city and South Shields. For each property (or group of properties enfranchised together), the last lease(s) is/are copied out in full,
followed by the conveyance. The leases are annotated to include Notitia Book references (volume and page number, as series
), and properties are also numbered. These are not house numbers, but correspond
with the numbers in the survey of Durham City properties for enfranchisement at
. Each register includes an index to leaseholders (to whom properties have
been sold) at back of volume, the index also noting the location of the property and the property number. Plans are not included in the enfranchisement registers, but for Durham properties are available within DCD/E/BD, or for South Shields
properties within the notebooks at
.
These registers appear to have been rebound by the University Library in the late 20th century (compare rebound registers within DCD/B/BA). Their original spine titles call them 'Land Tax Book', reflecting the purpose of enfranchisement to
generate money for the redemption of land tax on the Chapter estates (as noted under
).
All these volumes form part of the Church Commission Deposit of Durham Dean and Chapter Estates material (CCD), their CCD reference numbers being noted within the list.
