Researching your family history in England will inevitably lead to the need to contact or visit an archive. They hold genealogical documentation, most of which is not available online. Archives have online catalogues where most of their holdings are summarised. This means you can see what records they hold before you visit. You can try searching by an ancestor's name, parish or occupation. Some catalogues records will give a result for an ancestor's name, such as a settlement certificate. Others will not give the names of those in the records as they are too vast to describe, such as vestry minutes.
If you find a record in an archive's catalogue which is of interest to you, you can visit them to see the document in person. It is usually required to book in advance, including requesting the documents that you wish to see. Alternatively, if you are unable to visit, you can contact the archive to pay for a copying or research service. This means the archive staff will send you a digitised copy of the document(s) you wish to view.
The most commonly used archives in England are The National Archives in Kew, London and county record offices. A majority of county record office catalogues can also be searched via The National Archives' Discovery catalogue. Be aware this is not complete.
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The National ArchivesThe National Archives
The National Archives (TNA) is the official archive for England and Wales. Their online catalogue is entitled Discovery and holds the listings for their own collections as well as other archives from around England and Wales. You can enter any search term, such as a person's name or parish and filter the results by date or archive. Some records held by TNA have been digitised, with many available to download for free with a registered account. Others have been digitised and are under licence by other websites which you will be redirected to. These usually require a fee to view.
The records held by TNA are vast. Notably TNA holds census returns, nonconformist registers and PCC wills and administrations amongst a wide variety of records. TNA is also home to the Manorial Documents Register which lists where all of the known records for each manor are held, including manorial court records and rentals.
County Record Offices in EnglandCounty Record Offices in England
County Record Offices (CROs) can be found across the country.[1] Each hold historical records relevant to their county, as well as some from other counties if this is where the record happened to be handed in. This is most commonly seen in neighbouring counties or where county boundaries have changed.
You can research to see which county record office is relevant to your ancestor. If your ancestor resided in Nottingham, any documents relevant to them are likely to be held at Nottinghamshire Archives for example.
CROs hold a vast amount of information. These include parish registers, parish records, educational records, maps, correspondence, prison records and photographs amongst many other examples.
MuseumsMuseums
Museums have a great deal of information and objects within their archives. They are often forgotten to be key place to research our genealogy. Many have online catalogues which you can search in the same was as TNA or CROs. There are different types of museum which may be beneficial to genealogical research. Regimental museums have objects ranging from weaponry to kit bags which may be insightful to those of us researching our military ancestors. Local museums can teach us about the area where our ancestor lived. Occupational museums can show us the tools of the trade which our ancestor would have used. As well as the chance to view objects, most museums hold documentation in their archives of genealogical interest. This may include staff registers being held in an occupational museum or lists of local people held in town museums.
Other archives in EnglandOther archives in England
- Libraries- Before the internet was invented, genealogical researchers relied heavily on libraries whereas today they are less frequently used. They should not be forgotten however, as many have useful archives holding historical local newspapers and genealogical journals. Most libraries in England also provide free access to some genealogical subscription websites.
- Universities- Universities can be useful for research in terms of their library holdings and any attached museums they have. You may find a range of genealogical and historical journals as well as copies of census returns and maps. You can frequently find historic newspapers here too.
- Specialist- There are hundreds of specialist archives in England all focused on a particular topic or place. These usually require pre-booking in advance, often with a fee attached to view records. Examples include the Cinema Theatre Association Archive, the Archive of Recorded Church Music, Yorkshire Film Archive and Guildford Cathedral Archives.
- Business- Many businesses hold their own archives including historic staff registers and staff magazines. Examples include Lloyd's Banking Group Archives, Barclays Group Archives and BT Group Archives.
See alsoSee also
Explore more about archives in EnglandExplore more about archives in England
- UK National Archives: Free Family History Podcasts on the MyHeritage blog
- It's Not All Online: Researching in Archives at Legacy Family Tree Webinars
- Using Archives to Fill the Gaps in Your Ancestor's Timeline at Legacy Family Tree Webinars
- Church Records in Archives at Legacy Family Tree Webinars
References
- ↑ What To Expect When You Visit a Record Office. Family Tree Resources