Family Historian User Group

I've been searching Dorset Parish records for burials around the 1790's (on Ancestry) and keep coming across the phrase 'buried affidavit made' (or 'aft made') in the images of the actual handwritten records. Sometimes it's also accompanied by the terms 'visitation' eg:





Can anyone explain what this means please? (tried Google, lots of hits but no explanation).

Thanks.

ID:7033

I presume this is related to the Burial in Wool act.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burying_in_Woollen_Acts

'Made up from Visitation' is part of the incumbent of the parish indicating the period for which the records relate. The 'visitation' was when the bishop turned up (annually, usually) essentially to check that the parish was being properly run.

Further to Jane's reply, see also this article for more about being 'buried in wool':
http://www.historyhouse.co.uk/articles/ ... _wool.html

The 'afft made' recorded after each burial probably relates to this. Sometimes the entries are very much more detailed, for example in the parish of Brailes, Warwickshire: 'Edward the son of Thomas & Ann Shaw was buried May 15th in a shroud of sheeps wool only certified and sworn before Thomas Hope Rector of Barton'.

The 'Made up from visitation...' paragraph is a separate entry confirming that the records have been made up and are complete for the period between the two visitations by the bishop.

Thank you all, very enlightening, I'd never heard of the Burying in Woollen act before, so at least one new thing learned today!

David