Genealogy

The National Archives are a non-ministerial department, and the official archive and publisher for the UK Government, and for England and Wales. They are the guardians of over 1,000 years of iconic national documents, and collect and secure the future of the government record, from Shakespeare’s will to tweets from Downing Street, to preserve it for generations to come, making it as accessible and available as possible. https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ The National Archives has a comprehensive research guide section and can help with many types of research. Popular collections include: A good starting point would be their Discovery section: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/

The Institute of Historical Research was founded in 1921 and is one of eight institutes that comprise the University of London’s School of Advanced Study. The IHR is dedicated to training the next generation of historians, and to producing and facilitating ambitious, innovative historical research. https://www.history.ac.uk/ This was quite a new source to me, and while its contents are mainly for students of the institute and only available onsite. there are quite a few links to potentially useful websites. I would recommend starting with the Online Resources page. Well worth bookmarking!: https://www.history.ac.uk/library-digital/collections/online-resources

British History Online is a collection of nearly 1300 volumes of primary and secondary content relating to British and Irish history, and histories of empire and the British world. BHO also provides access to 40,000 images and 10,000 tiles of historic maps of the British Isles. https://www.british-history.ac.uk/ BHO is a fascinating website and a useful resource for genealogists, and history lovers alike. It is is a not-for-profit digital library based at the Institute of Historical Research bringing together material for British history from the collections of libraries, archives, museums and academics. These primary and secondary sources, which range from the medieval to the twentieth century, are easily searchable and browsable online. Much information is freely available, but some records require a paid submission.

In undertaking my own research I have discovered a large number of resources, some of which are free and some for which there is a fee to access some or all of its content. I have broken down the list of websites into categories. Those which are published for family history research, those which are more specialist research websites, and those which contain records of residency, etc. Some of the links may appear rather random, but they are all links which I have found some use for in my family history research while others appear may contain information useful to your own family history research. Family Tree Sites | Other Resources | Transcribed Records | Newspaper Archives | General| Specific Topics | Library & Institute Collections | Official Records | Military Records | Pre-1500 Records | General UK History Family Tree Websites: These websites allow you to create your family tree and receive hints and tips based on the records you add. I list them in each section for their potential usefulness and UK. familysearch.org Free  Ancestry.co.uk findmypast.co.uk myheritage.com Genes Reunited Geneanet Rootsweb Transcribed Records Countless genealogy enthusiasts give up their spare time transcribing historical records in counties across the UK. The most useful of these are organised into databases of Births, Marriages, and Deaths, taken from church records and the like.  Many are available free of charge. FreeREG  FreeFreeREG aims to provide free internet searches of baptism, marriage, and burial records, transcribing records from parish registers, non-conformist records and other relevant sources in the UK. FreeCEN FreeFree access to many of the UK census records for the years 1841 – 1911 FreeBMD  FreeFreeBMD is an ongoing project, the aim of which is to transcribe the Civil Registration index of births, marriages and deaths for England and Wales, and to provide free Internet access to the transcribed records. UK Genealogy Archives Provides access to Parish Records, Marriages, Biographies and Burkes Peerage. General Registry OfficeMaintains the UK national archive of all births, marriages and deaths dating back to 1837. Other Genealogical Research Family History Federation This organisation supports family history groups and family history researchers in general. It lists regional family history societies. Online Genealogical IndexA simple, free and efficient way to find genealogical data online. The Society of Genealogists The Society of Genealogists is a charity with a unique purpose – to help people discover their place in history. It is a hub for finding records of all types (subscription-based), and you can sign up for the free The Genealogy Gazette, a monthly newsletter packed with family history news from around the community, hints, tips, and more.  The Peerage:  A genealogical survey of the peerage of Britain as well as the royal families of Europe. Family History.co.ukThis website has a well-organised list of resources and information. Resources for Victorian ResearchThis is essentially a website for researchers from the USA looking to research the Victorian period.  There are some links which may prove useful to researchers in the UK. Newspaper Archives Newspapers by AncestryAn Ancestry website with access, at a fee, to thousands of newspapers. The British Newspaper ArchiveThis website is a part of the Find My Past family of websites available with a subscription. General The Internet ArchiveAKA the WayBack Machine, the Internet Archive is a non-profit library of millions of free books, movies, software, music, websites, and more. Google Online BooksGoogle Books is a service from Google that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical character recognition, and stored in its digital database. National Archives Palaeography Palaeography is the study of old handwriting. This web tutorial will help you learn to read the handwriting found in documents written in English between 1500 and 1800. ARCHI – Old Maps ARCHI is a unique interactive mapping system and worldwide database of archaeological, historic, and cultural site GPS location data. The revolutionary ARCHI search engine features a variety of visual historical and geographical research aids, including old maps. Specific Topics The Ship’s ListThe ShipsList website will help you find your ancestors on ships’ passenger lists. We also have immigration reports, newspaper records, shipwreck information, ship pictures, ship descriptions, shipping-line fleet lists, as well as hundreds of passenger lists to Canada, USA, Australia and even some for South Africa. The East India Company ShipsRecords of the ships, seafarers and voyages of the Honourable East India Company (HEIC). Three Decks – EIC HEICS Ship’s LogsShip Logs and Journals of some of the Honourable East India Company (HEIC) vessels. UK Institute of Mechanical Engineers:The Institute has a freely accessible archive of records relating to the history of mechanical engineering, including IME membership records. Europeans in East AfricaThe database holds information on people of European origin who lived and worked in East Africa from about 1880 to 1939. Listing of Clergy of Englandfrom the 12th century to 1500. A small selection. The Clergy of the Church of England Database 1540-1835Includes links to other clerical records websites. Grace’s Guide to British Industrial History.Includes several obituaries and information about early engineers. Library and Institution Collections The National Archives: Explore 1,000 years of UK history. It holds more than 37 million descriptions of records held by The National Archives and more than 3,500 archives across the country. Over 9 million records are available for download. JSTOR:Explore millions of high-quality primary sources and images from around the world, including artworks, maps, photographs, and more. FIBIS – Families in British India Society Helps individuals research their ancestors in India. University of Leicester – Special Collections Online:A fascinating collection of historical information including trade and street directories for England and Wales Qatar Digital Library: The Qatar Digital Library (QDL) is a vast archive featuring the cultural and historical heritage of the Gulf and wider region freely available online for the first time. It includes archives, maps, manuscripts, sound recordings, photographs and much more, complete with contextualised explanatory notes and links, in both English and Arabic. UK Government Websites General Register Office England and WalesThe General Register Office holds a central…