 While events concerning the immediate families of many colonial immigrants to America were recorded in family Bibles , some of which exist to this day , what William Arnold did was highly unusual among those immigrating to the New World in the 17th century . As the warden of St. Mary 's Church in Ilchester , Arnold had access to the records of baptisms , marriages and burials that were kept in the parish register . As he contemplated immigrating with his family to New England , he recorded all the baptismal entries in the Ilchester parish register pertaining to his children and siblings . He then took the process a step further , crossing the River Ivel to the parish of Northover , where his parents had lived and where his oldest sister was baptized , recording pertinent information from that register as well , thus creating a personal family record . 
