This is a brief guide to researching records of villages and the countryside. This guide will help you to identify some key sources of information which will help you with your research.
-
What do I need to know before I start?
-
Try to find out:
- the name of the local parish
- if the village you are researching has been known by any other name
- if there have been any changes to county names and boundaries in the area you are researching
-
-
What records can I see online?
-
Historical Directories (1750-1919)
Search the University of Leicester's Historical Directories website for local and trade directories describing rural communities and their principal inhabitants.
-
-
What records can I find at The National Archives at Kew?
-
Tithe maps and apportionments from 1836
Search Discovery, our cataloguea search tool with descriptions of tens of millions of documents from the UK central government, law courts, and other national bodies for tithe mapstithe map - a parish map detailing the owner and inhabitants of a piece of land (IR30) and apportionmentsapportionment - an audit or survey of a piece of land (IR 29) by place name.
-
National Farm Survey (1941-1943)
Search our catalogue by parish name for records of individual farms (MAF 32). Associated maps are in MAF 73.
-
Records of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food from 1386
Browse our catalogue for records created or inherited by the Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food in MAF.
-
Records of the Rural Development, National Parks, Countryside and Forestry Commissions from 1910
Browse our catalogue for records of the Rural Development Commission in D, the National Parks and Countryside Commissions in COU and the Forestry Commission in F.
-
To access these records you will either need to visit us, pay for research (£there will be a charge) or, where you can identify a specific record referencea unique set of letters and numbers identifying a document in The National Archives, order a copy (£there will be a charge).
-
-
What records can I find in other archives and organisations?
-
Local authority records
Consult records of local authorities and parishes in local archives and libraries. Use the ARCHON directory to find their contact details.
Search the Access to Archives (A2A) catalogue for information about records held in local archives in England and Wales, dating from the eighth century to the present day.
-
-
What other resources will help me find information?
-
Websites
Visit A Vision of Britain Through Time for maps, statistical trends and historical descriptions of places in Britain between 1801 and 2001.
-
Landed estates
Houses
Towns and cities