St Mary's Parish, Coventry? Does this exist?

[CircuitW1zard]

Hi All,
I'm currently trying to trace an ancestors origin and have a few leads but keep hitting a brick wall.

The ancestors name is Charles Fisher (born about 1776)

I have various facts that back this up. 1841 census shows him as a watchmaker in Well Street, Birmingham.
He also has a Chelsea Pensioner record that shows him discharged from the 16th Dragoons in 1800 and what leads me to believe he is from Coventry is the below from that record:-

"These are to certify that Charles Fisher private in Major B.... troop of the aforesaid regiment, born in the parish of St Marys in or near the Market Town of Coventry in the county of Warwick aged 25 and by trade a Watchmaker hath served honestly and faithfully in the said regiment seven years"

However I can find no trace of a St Mary's parish in Coventry.

Any help would be appreciated. He married an Elizabeth who I am also trying to find the maiden name of. I've been on this for around 6 months now and got nowhere.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Rob

[jim1]

The only one I can think of is St. Mary Magdelan in Wyken Cov.

[kateblogs]

"born in the parish of St Marys in or near the Market Town of Coventry in the county of Warwick"

Just a thought but could the fact it says 'or near' mean it's not actually in Coventry, but somewhere close by?

[Keitht]

Coventry’s earliest cathedral, dedicated to St Mary, was founded as a Benedictine community by Leofric, Earl of Mercia, and his wife Godiva in 1043.  Built on the site of a former religious house for nuns, its sheer size is some indication of the wealth which Coventry acquired in the middle ages.

If memory serves, it was excavated by Channel 4's Time Team a couple of years ago.

[KGarrad]

The Cathedral dedicated to St Mary fell into decay after the Reformation - so it's not the parish we are looking for!

Within the Coventry & District Parish Registers held at Coventry Archives are:

Fillongley, St Mary & All Saints
Stoneleigh, St Mary
Walsgrave On Sowe, St Mary
Wyken, St Mary Magdalene

[CircuitW1zard]

Hmmm, thanks for the responses all.

I'm currently going through each of these registers that are held online manually. So far I have found a few Fishers in Stoneleigh around that time but no Charles as of yet.

Are there more versions of the registry than the ones I'm seeing on Ancestry?

[KGarrad]

Have you tried FamilySearch?
Or maybe the Society of Genealogists.

Also available on microfilm at Coventry Archives (www.theherbert.org)

[CircuitW1zard]

I've searched FamilySearch and got nothing.

Just did a search on SOG for Charles Fisher with his birth range plus a few years (1775 - 1779) and got 2 results.

1 was a Boyds Marriage Index and the other an Apprentices of Great Britain record.

The problem I have now is do I spend £60 joining that site to look at those records when there is a high chance neither relate. I would pay it if I had a high confidence rate but a lot of money so far has been spent on dead ends.

[iluleah]

http://www.churches-uk-ireland.org/warks.html