The Sark church registers of baptisms, marriages and burials date back to 1570 when the island got its first minister, five years after people settled in the island.
The first book is dated 1570 to 1603, and the first names inside are from the baptism of twins Jacob and Sarah, whose descendants still live and work in Sark today as its greffier and postie.
Extra paper and binding have been added as well as embossed boxes for safe storage.
‘To have these is so precious,’ said Jane Norwich of La Societe Sercquaise, who was taking the books back to her island.
‘They are precious records that we are able to link with the past of Helier De Carteret.
‘La Societe holds them for safe keeping but they belong to Sark and these are now in much better condition for future generations.’
The conservation work will not only preserve the original register for future generations, it will also enable the Findmypast team to digitise it and add it to records available online.
Last month marked the first anniversary of the Bailiwick’s family history records being made available online.
Since its launch in April 2025, the Guernsey records on Findmypast have received more than 310,000 hits from family historians and other researchers around the world.
With each hit on the website, the Priaulx Library has started receiving regular royalty payments from Findmypast.
One of the highest priorities identified was conservation work required on the earliest Sark church registers.
The earliest register was considered too fragile for handling by the digitalisation team when they visited in 2024.
The library has since been able to upgrade its desk to height-adjustable, or standing, desks and other equipment in the research room.
Other uses of the funds will included promoting the service to descendants of Guernsey families in Australia and North America, and secure back-up facilities for the Bailiwick’s copies of the digitised records.
A number of other Anglican parish registers in the Island Archives have been identified as in need of conservation, and these will be the next ones to be treated.
‘The digitisation of Guernsey’s records was a desirable exercise in itself, allowing people across the world with Guernsey connections to explore their family history,’ said Dean of Guernsey, the Very Rev. Tim Barker, who presented the Sark registers back to Mrs Norwich.
‘However, one of the bonuses has been the income stream that has been generated from searches on the Findmypast website. This allows the partners in the digitisation project to make grants for the conservation of our valuable historical records.
‘As the Sark records were in a particularly fragile state, I am delighted that one of the first grants has enabled the conservation of these records, so that they can remain safely in Sark for the years to come.’
The conservation work was carried out in the UK by Andy Graves of Sycamore Bookbinding, Restoration and Paper Conservation.