I would like to know if there are records concerning the baptisms of the saints in Pontipool, Monmou
A history written by Mary Williams, daughter of John and Elizabeth Says Watkins Williams, states that she was baptized in Wales in 1854 by Uriah Rickets. She was eight at the time. She and her parents and siblings came to America on the ship Underwriter in 1861.
Answers
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I forwarded your question to the Church History Library staff and received this response:
Thank you for your question. The Church History Library is closed, because of the COVID-19 situation. Staff members continue to answer questions on a limited basis, but we are working from home and do not have full access to our collections. We do not currently have a date for the re-opening of the library.
Both the Church History Library and the Family History Library have microfilmed copies of the early Pontypool LDS Branch records of members. The call number at the Church History Library is CR 375/8, reel 1986. The call number for the same records at the Family History Library is film #104,171, items 1 and 2.
If the baptism doesn't appear in the Pontypool records, and the ancestor immigrated to Utah or the intermountain West, the researcher should also check the records of members of the wards in which he/she later lived. Sometimes the original baptism and confirmation dates were recorded, but a complicating factor enters in for early LDS Church members. Many members were rebaptized and reconfirmed subsequently, sometimes once, but sometimes several times. Rebaptisms were a sign of recommittment to the Gospel and were often performed either prior to a member's immigration to "Zion" or shortly after arriving there. Members were also rebaptized when they joined the United Order in their local congregations.
Unfortunately, when a member was rebaptized, the clerk often recorded the subsequent date, and the original date was lost (unless is was recorded in a person's diary or family records).
As mentioned above, the Church History Library is currently closed to the public, so the researcher will have to wait until we reopen in order to access the microfilmed membership records. The Family History Library is also still closed.
I hope this information is helpful.
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Thank you very much for forwarding my question to the Church History staff and then for sending their answer on to me. I appreciate all the detail that went into the answer.
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I have found some amazing answers in the Church History Library. I do not have ancestors that were involved with the church, but I have been lucky to find many good answers for other people. I would definitely suggest that you continue to research through records available in their databases, or in the library after it opens.
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