2. Different types of businesses and companies

The concept of a business is a very broad one whilst, in legal terms, a company is something more distinct. A company is a legal entity with a separate identity from those who own or run it. All companies are businesses but not all businesses, legally speaking, are companies.

There are numerous different types of companies in the UK and to utilise the records we hold it will help to understand the following concepts and distinctions:

2.1 Incorporation

Incorporation is the process by which a new or existing business registers as a limited company, thus acquiring a specific kind of legal status. Before the Joint Stock Companies Act of 1844 incorporation was only possible by Royal Charter or a private act of Parliament. Since then, registration has been the predominant method.

2.2 Incorporation by registration

Registration, under the various Companies Acts since 1844, has become the most common and the most important form of incorporation. Nearly all commercial companies in the UK nowadays are registered companies, though registration is not required of sole traders.

This image (catalogue reference COPY 1/285) was registered with the Copyright Office of the Stationers’ Company. Formed in 1403, the Stationers’ Company was incorporated by Royal Charter in 1557. Purchase a copy of this image from our Image Library.

The 1844 Act established the UK’s first registrar of companies, known as Companies House.

Today, a company can be registered as one of four different types:

• Public limited company (PLC)
• Private company limited by shares (LTD)
• Private unlimited company (UNLTD)
• Private company limited by guarantee

2.3 Incorporation by Royal Charter

Incorporation by Royal Charter, dating back to the medieval period, is now rare, but was once prevalent. It meant that a company’s status was granted by the monarch or the monarch’s representatives.

Chartered companies and organisations still exist, among them the BBC, the Royal Opera House, the British Red Cross and the British Council.

The 1844 Act did not apply to chartered companies.

2.4 Incorporation by Act of Parliament

Companies can still be incorporated by Act of Parliament now but this is rare. They are known as statutory companies.

Statutory companies still operating today include the Port of London Authority, the Post Office and the Independent Television Commission, incorporated by the Broadcasting Act 1990.

The 1844 Act did not apply to statutory companies.

10. The Register of Business Names, 1917-1982

The Register of Business Names was established in 1916. Its purpose evolved over the years but it was essentially a register of the names of businesses whose trading names differed from that of the business owner or, from 1947, the official company name. This was also the first register in which unincorporated companies such as partnerships and sole traders were listed.

The register was abolished in 1981 but a sample of registration documents for businesses registered in 1916-1917, and every ten years from 1921 until 1981-1982 has been preserved in BT 253.

The nearly 1,300 pieces in the series are arranged in batches of registration numbers and by year. You will need to browse the series to have a hope of finding anything.

11. Records of chartered companies

The only chartered company records held at The National Archives are those of the various colonial chartered companies, such as the British North Borneo Company and the British South Africa Company.

Search for records by company name in our catalogue and use our guides to records of the Foreign Office and Colonial Office for more in-depth research.

Search HO 45 by company name for records of incorporation by Royal Charter. You can also try searches using ‘charter’ and/or ‘incorporation’ as your keywords. The printed version of our catalogue, available only in the reading rooms at Kew, contains a subject heading ‘Charters’ which includes references to the granting of charters to various societies and associations.

Correspondence concerning chartered companies before 1863 is among the records in record series BT 1 (see section 7.4).

12. Records of mutual societies and assurance companies

12.1 Mutual societies

As they were covered by separate legislation, records of mutual societies, which include building societies, friendly societies and industrial and provident societies, are located in a separate record department at The National Archives, whose code is FS.

Browse the several dozen FS series for a sense of what they cover.

You can use the advanced search to search within the whole of the FS department by name of the society. However, the following series require alternative search methods:

For information on the registrations of mutual societies contact the Financial Conduct Authority which operates a Mutual Society Registration.

12.2 Assurance companies

The Board of Trade was also responsible for the regulation of assurance companies.

Use the advanced search to search by assurance company name in BT.

See ACT 1/104 and ACT 1/632 for returns made by assurance companies to the Board of Trade for the period 1912 to 1968.

13. Records of bankruptcy and liquidation

13.1 Official announcements of the bankruptcy and liquidation of companies

Notices of receiverships, liquidations and bankruptcies appear in the London Gazette, available on The Gazette website.

13.2 Bankrupted companies

Among the numerous departments of the Board of Trade and its successors is a Bankruptcy Department.

For Board of Trade records relating to the bankruptcy of firms, search in:

• BT 221 for 1876-1972
• BT 226 for 1891-1994

For more guidance on these and related records see our guide to records of Bankrupts and insolvent debtors.

13.3 Court records of the liquidation and winding-up of companies

For court proceedings leading to the liquidation and winding-up of companies search among the records of the:

• Court of Bankruptcy in B 9 and B 10
• the Bankruptcy Commissions in B 3

Actions for the winding-up of companies, as distinct from bankruptcy action, were heard in the Court of Chancery, then from 1873 in the Chancery Division of the Supreme Court of Judicature and from 1890 in the Companies Court. Records of these proceedings are in C 26 (1849-1910), J 13 (1883-1995), J 137 (1924-1981) and J 14 (1891-1989).

Search BT 34 for liquidators’ accounts for companies dissolved between 1890 and 1932.

Other records of the Companies Court are in J 100, J 107 and J 119.

14. Further reading

The following publications are available at The National Archives’ Library.

Francis Goodall, Bibliography of British Business Histories (Ashgate, 2005)

John Orbell, A Guide to Tracing the History of a Business (Phillimore & Co Ltd, 2009)

2. What is Domesday Book?

Domesday Book is a detailed survey and valuation of landed property in England at the end of the 11th century. The survey was ordered by William the Conqueror at Christmas 1085 and undertaken the following year. It records who held the land and how it was used, and also includes information on how this had changed since the Norman Conquest in 1066. It is not a census of the population, and the individuals named in it are almost exclusively land-holders. Domesday is written in Latin, although excellent translations are available (see below).

Domesday is not usually an appropriate source if you are looking for a Norman ancestor. Consult instead A J Camp’s My ancestors came with the Conqueror (Society of Genealogists, 1990) and Katharine Rohan’s Domesday people: A prosopography of persons occurring in English documents 1066-1166 (Vol 1) (Woodbridge, 1999).

Watch our Spotlight On: Domesday video for a brief introduction to Domesday Book.

3. Great Domesday, Little Domesday and the areas covered

The survey does not cover London (city), Winchester, Northumberland and Durham or much of north-west England; the only parts of Wales included are certain border areas.

Most of the returns were entered into Great Domesday. Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex are in a separate volume, known as Little Domesday because of its smaller size. Little Domesday seems to be a survival of part of an earlier and fuller draft compiled from the original returns. For further information, see E 31 in Discovery, our catalogue.

4. The information recorded in Domesday

The Domesday survey was carried out by commissioners holding sworn inquests in local courts, where they asked fixed questions of local men. For each property, each question was asked three times, to cover changes over time. The commissioners asked how land had been held:

• as it had been on the last day of the reign of Edward the Confessor (5 January 1066) – this is abbreviated in Domesday as TRE
• as it had been when it was granted by King William
• as it was in 1086 (when the survey was taken)

The questions included:

Note that not every piece of information is recorded for every entry in Domesday. There is a glossary of Domesday terms in our online Domesday exhibition.

5. How the original Domesday Book is arranged

Both Great and Little Domesday are arranged by county, and within each county, by landholder. Each new landholder is given a number, written in red in roman numerals at the start of their entry. There is a table of contents at the beginning of each county, which lists the landholders with their numbers, starting with the king, but no index. However, later editors have produced excellent indexes to the online and printed editions which make finding particular entries straightforward.

Please note that modern place names may cover land that belonged to more than one 11th-century manor, and where these manors were held by different people they may appear in more than one Domesday entry. Similarly, if the same person held different manors in different areas, they will appear in more than one Domesday entry.

6. Accessing Domesday online

6.1 The Editions Alecto edition on The National Archives catalogue

Use the box below to search and download (£) colour facsimiles of Domesday, published by Editions Alecto, from our catalogue. Search by name, modern place name, Domesday place name or folio number, using the formula ‘[your keyword] AND Domesday’. For example, search for ‘Elthorne AND Domesday’ or ‘Folio 254r AND Domesday’.

Alternatively, using the same search criteria, try a slightly broader search from the homepage of our catalogue.

You can download both a colour facsimile of the folio on which your entry appears and a translation of all the text on that folio (not just the text of the entry for which you searched). This method of consulting Domesday is ideal if you are looking for a particular person or a specific settlement. Please note that the image and translation will be of either the recto (front) or the verso (back) of the folio, depending on where your entry appears.

As noted above, individual people and places frequently appear in more than one Domesday entry. As there are lots of different entries on each folio, your search results may return multiple entries which are actually on the same folio. Before you download your search results, please make sure that they are on different folios, otherwise you could end up downloading the same folio more than once. The folio number is displayed clearly on the catalogue page for each entry. If your results appear on the same folio, you only need to download it once.

6.2 Open Domesday

Search for images of Domesday by town or postcode on Open Domesday.

6.3 The Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England database

Search the Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England (PASE) database. It provides structured information on individual landholders in Domesday, and can be manipulated to provide statistical and geographical information.

7. Accessing printed editions of Domesday

Printed editions of Domesday can provide a convenient way of browsing quickly through the survey.

7.1 The Phillimore editions

The Phillimore editions (Chichester 1975-1992) are arranged by county and have a transcript of the original abbreviated Latin on the left page, facing an English translation on the right page. These volumes do not have page numbers, because as far as possible they use the reference systems found within Domesday itself. To find an entry:

• Select the appropriate county volume
• Find the person or place in the indexes at the back
• Note the last column of entries. This will give you a pair of numbers, for example 12,3; if there is more than one entry for that person or place within that county it will be listed, for example 12,3. 37,16.
• The first number of each pair is the red chapter number for a particular landholder (marked in bold in the top right corner of the translation page). The second number is the section number (found in the left hand margin of the translation – note that these section numbers are not original and are only found in the Phillimore editions).
• Using the numbers, find the correct page in the Phillimore edition. If you wish also to consult a facsimile of the entry, note the county, red chapter number, and the folio number (given at the bottom of the page in the Phillimore editions).

Note that there are separate composite index volumes or persons, places and subjects covering all the counties.

7.2 The Editions Alecto translation and edition

Alternatively, you can use the Alecto translation in Domesday Book: A Complete Translation (Penguin Books, 1992), which is indexed by place; or the printed transcript and translations produced by Alecto in 1986. Both are available in The National Archives’ library.

Editions Alecto has also produced a facsimile edition of Domesday which can be seen in printed form at The National Archives at Kew. This is purely a facsimile, not a translation. To find an entry within it consult the Phillimore volume for the relevant county (or the composite indexes of persons, subjects and places) or the (place) index in Domesday Book: A Complete Translation, and note the folio. Then simply turn to this folio in the facsimile. Note that each folio has two sides – the front (recto) and back (verso).

7.3 Digital images from The National Archives

You can buy colour images of Domesday folios from The National Archives’ image library. To do so, identify the folio numbers that you need (including whether you want the verso or recto of the folio) and contact the image library (image-library@nationalarchives.gov.uk) who will provide you with a quote. The place name, as spelled in the books, can help to confirm the correct page.

8. Citing references from Domesday

If you are citing entries in Domesday from our catalogue you will need to follow these steps:

• Look up the relevant Domesday folio on our catalogue
• From the search results page note the catalogue reference, the folio number and whether the entry appears on the front (recto – marked by an r) or back (verso – marked by a v) of the folio. For example, E 31/2/1/139 is the full catalogue reference for Northgate in Canterbury. The relevant folio is 5r.

For further information on the cataloguing of Domesday, see the series description for E 31.

For further information on citing documents from The National Archives, please see our page on citing records.

9. Related documents held elsewhere

Some early drafts of the questions that were asked by the Domesday commissioners as well as some Domesday returns survive and are held in other archives and libraries. They are:

• the Liber Exoniensis, covering Somerset, Cornwall and most of Devon, held in the library of Exeter Cathedral
• the Inquisitio Eliensis, covering Ely Abbey estates, held in Trinity College, Cambridge
• the Inquistio Comitatus Cantabrigiensis, covering parts of Cambridgeshire, held in the British Library under reference Cotton MS Tiberius A VI
• a survey known as the Boldon Book records the estates of the Bishop of Durham in Durham and Northumberland in 1183 (this was published as part of the Phillimore editions of Domesday – see above)

Extracts are printed in English Historical Documents, Volume II, c.1042-1189, ed. D C Douglas (London, 1953). The returns themselves were written up into Domesday Book.

10. Further reading

There is an enormous amount of secondary material on Domesday, and the list below is not exhaustive.

Some or all of the recommended publications below may be available to buy from The National Archives’ shop. Alternatively, search The National Archives’ Library to see what is available to consult at Kew.

A J Camp, My Ancestors came with the Conqueror (Society of Genealogists, 1990)

H C Darby and G R Versey, Domesday Gazetteer (Cambridge, 1975)

H C Darby, Domesday England (Cambridge, 1977, 1986)

Domesday Re-Bound, Public Record Office Handbook (HMSO, 1954)

R W H Erskine and A Williams (eds), Story of the Domesday Book (Phillimore, 2003)

E M Hallam, Domesday Book through Nine Centuries (London, 1986)

E M Hallam and D Bates (eds.), Domesday Book (The History Press, 2001)

S Harvey, Domesday: Book of Judgement (Oxford, 2014)

J Morris (general ed.), Domesday Book (Chichester, 1975-1992) – the ‘Phillimore editions’

D Roffe, Domesday the Inquest and the Book (Oxford, 2000)

D Roffe, Decoding Domesday (Boydell, 2007)

A Williams and G H Martin (eds), Domesday Book: A Complete Translation (Penguin, 2003)

2. Some key terms

The following key terms are used in this guide:

• Admiralty – the body in charge of Royal Navy operations
• Admiralty in-letters – letters received by the Admiralty
• Admiralty out-letters – letters sent by the Admiralty
• cases – related letters and other papers on a particular subject collected together to form a single file (also referred to as case files)
• indexes – a basic alphabetical key to correspondence linking to the correspondence itself or to a digest entry
• digests – summaries of information in documents that can also be used as indexes to those documents

The ADM 12 indexes and digests are sometimes referred to in our catalogue as the Index and the Digest, respectively.

3. ADM 12: the basics

ADM 12 consists, predominantly, of large bound volumes of indexes and digests but they do not all refer to the same record series.

The indexes and digests are used predominantly as a means of accessing documents in:

• ADM 1 (Admiralty correspondence 1660-1976), the principal record series for letters received by the Admiralty. Many of these letters were sent by officers on ships, at naval stations and elsewhere but any letter received and retained by the Admiralty, whoever sent it, is included. The letters cover every aspect of Admiralty business.

The largest section of ADM 12 (ADM 12/56-1518) indexes Admiralty in-letters received between 1793 and 1913, filed in ADM 1.

However, some ADM 12 indexes can be used to access documents in:

• ADM 2 (Admiralty out-letters)
• ADM 3 (Admiralty minutes 1657-1881)
• ADM 7 (Admiralty miscellanea, amongst which are case files indexed in ADM 12)
• ADM 13 (Supplementary Admiralty records 1803-1917)
• ADM 116 (Admiralty Record Office cases 1852-1965)
• ADM 137 (records used to compile the official history of the First World War)

The indexes and digests in ADM 12 should not be confused with those in ADM 106 which refer to in-letters kept by the Navy Board, as opposed to the Admiralty. The Navy Board was responsible for the dock yards and issues of supply, unlike the Admiralty which was responsible for the fleet and naval operations.

4. ADM 1: the basics

The records in ADM 1 are split into a number of groups, each one covering a different range of years. Within these year ranges, letters and reports are grouped together according to various other criteria, including the following:

• the rank of the author
• first letter of the surname of the author (often in letter ranges, for example, A-F)
• part of the world the letter sent from
• naval station letter sent from

These groupings do not remain consistent and vary according to different periods.

Searching ADM 1 using ADM 12 is not always straightforward, because document descriptions in our catalogue vary so much. You may sometimes find it easier to browse through the year ranges.

5. ADM 12 indexes and digests for 1793-1913: content and arrangement

The correspondence in ADM 1 from 1793 to 1913 is indexed and digested in ADM 12/56-1518. There are indexes and digests for each year. The indexes are arranged alphabetically and the digests are arranged by subject.

5.1 What do the indexes contain?

The indexes list the following:

• authors of letters to the Admiralty
• people referred to in the content of letters and reports
• ships (naval and merchant vessels, and foreign ships as well as British – the names of Royal Navy ships are generally shown in red ink and merchant vessels in black ink)

These authors and the people referred to in the letters and reports could be:

• naval officers, warrant officers or ratings
• marine officers
• ‘persons of distinction’
• anyone writing to the Admiralty

5.2 How are the indexes arranged and what do they look like?

Each index volume in ADM 12 covers a range of letters (for example, A to F or O to Z).

Each index page is divided into three or four main columns:

• until the end of 1859 there are four main columns, none of which have headings but which list, from left to right: ‘Marines’; ‘Ships’; ‘Naval Officers and Ratings’; and ‘Promiscuous’ (that is, miscellaneous)
• from 1860 three main columns, with the headings now shown as ‘Naval and Marine Officers’; ‘Ships and Persons of Distinction’; and ‘Promiscuous’
• a few years later the third column sometimes shows the heading ‘Paymasters’ or ‘Warrant Officers’ and there are sometimes whole pages with the one heading ‘Promiscuous’

These main columns are each split into three smaller columns. The headings in these three smaller columns were altered periodically but on the whole they are:

• date column, headed ‘Date of the letter from or concerning the party’ (the date of the origin of the correspondence)
• ADM 1 reference column, headed ‘How and where to be found’ (a reference to the search terms needed for a search in ADM 1)
• subject column, headed ‘Subject – but in case the letter is marked for the digest, insert only the figures thereon’ (this will either be a short, often one-word description, or a digest number/s. The key to the digest numbers is the Alphabetical Index to Admiralty Digest Headings – see section 5.4, below. Sometimes, there are several numbers, indicating that a letter appears in the digests under several headings)

From about 1840 the practice grew of building up files of correspondence, which included drafts or copies of out-letters kept with the in-letters.

From 1860, an extra column was included in the pages of the ADM 12 index volumes to show the date of execution of correspondence generated by in-coming letters and reports. This column also gives the code-letter of the Admiralty branch taking such action, and these references can be a help in indicating that there could be copies of out-letters surviving in ADM 13 or ADM 1.

5.3 What do the digests contain?

A digest entry consists of a summary of the contents of a letter or report.

Because a considerable amount of the original correspondence in ADM 1 has been destroyed, these summaries can often be the only surviving record.

5.4 How are the digests arranged and what do they look like?

The digest volumes are arranged by subject. Each subject has been assigned a number code. The key to these codes is the Alphabetical Index to Admiralty Digest Headings, a set of tables available in the reading rooms at The National Archives at Kew.

The codes were revised several times over the years and there are separate tables for 1800, 1843, 1909, 1935 and 1963.

The number codes are shown cut into the right hand edge of the pages of each digest volume and thus each such numerical section is known as a ‘cut’. The subject heads are given at the top of each page.

6. How to use the ADM 12 indexes for 1793-1913 to find an ADM 1 document

To use the index you will need to know the name of a ship or the name of a crew member on a ship, usually one of the senior officers.

Watch this video which shows how to search for letters sent from HMS Dee in 1835.

Example: A search for letters sent from HMS Dee in 1835

Step 1: Browse through ADM 12/56-1518 in our catalogue to the appropriate index for the year/s and person or ship in question.

Example: Appropriate index for letters sent from HMS Dee in 1835 is Index D-G, 1835, reference ADM 12/303

Step 2: Order and view the original ADM 12 document at The National Archives at Kew.

Example: Order and view ADM 12/303

Step 3: Find the entry or entries in the index for the person or ship in question.

Example: Find entry for HMS Dee in the index

Step 4: Note the abbreviation/s (sometimes just a single letter), usually followed by a number, in the ‘How and where to be found’ column.

Example: Under HMS Dee, the codes in the ‘How and where to be found’ column include ‘Cap R6’

Step 5: Use the Table of Abbreviations in this guide to interpret the abbreviation. This will be your keyword or phrase for Step 6.

Example: The Table of Abbreviations tells us that Cap R6 is the 6th captain’s letter from 1835 and that the captain’s surname begins with R

Step 6: Use the search box contained within ADM 1, searching by the keyword or phrase established in Step 5 (often including the first letter of the surname of the author) and restricting your search to the relevant years. You may need to experiment with your keywords, often by shortening them to a single word (for example, search for “Commander-in-Chief Jamaica” by using “Jamaica”).

Example: Search within ADM 1 using the terms “captain” and “R”, restricting search to 1835; this returns the reference ADM 1/2435

Step 7: Order and consult the original ADM 1 document if it survives.

Example: Order and consult ADM 1/2435

7. How to use the ADM 12 indexes for 1793-1913 to find an entry in the digests

The ADM 12 index volumes contain cross-references to the digest volumes, where you can usually find a summary of the correspondence in question. There is often enough information in the digest volumes to make a consultation of the actual correspondence in ADM 1 unnecessary.

Follow Steps 1-3 in section 6, above.

Step 4: Note the number or numbers found in the subject column.

Step 5: Browse through ADM 12/56-1738 in our catalogue to find the digest volumes for the relevant year. The volumes are arranged in ranges of numbers. Find the range that includes the number established in Step 4.

Step 6: Order and view the original ADM 12 digest volume at The National Archives at Kew.

Step 7: Find the entry (sometimes referred to as a ‘cut’) in the volume which corresponds with the number established in Step 4.

Step 8: There can be a number of digest entries within each cut. You can identify the precise digest entry by matching the dates and the ADM 1 reference that you will have found at Step 3.

8. How to use the ADM 12 digests for 1793-1913 to find an ADM 1 document

You can use the digest volumes as a subject index to ADM 1, allowing you to bypass the indexes altogether. There is no guarantee, however, that the ADM 1 document to which the digest refers actually survives.

Sometimes the summary of the ADM 1 document found in the digest may provide enough information to make consulting ADM 1 unnecessary.

Step 1: Look up a subject in the Alphabetical Index to Admiralty Digest Headings (see section 5.4, ensuring you use the codes revised closest to the year in question) and make a note of the number code.

Step 2: Browse ADM 12 in our catalogue to find the appropriate digest volumes for the number code established in Step 1 and the years you are interested in.

Step 3: Order and view the original ADM 12 digest volume at The National Archives at Kew.

Step 4: Find the entry (sometimes referred to as a ‘cut’) in the volume which corresponds with the number established in Step 1.

Step 5: There can be a number of digest entries within each cut. You can identify the precise digest entry by matching the dates and the ADM 1 reference that you will have found at Step 3.

9. How to use the ADM 12 indexes and digests to find First World War letters and papers

9.1 How are the records for this period arranged?

The index and digest volumes for the years 1914-1919 are found within the reference range ADM 12/1519-1624B. From 1915 onwards there are two sets of every index and digest, with catalogue references ending in A and B. These begin at ADM 12/1531A. You will need to consult each of these to be sure of gaining maximum information on a particular name or subject.

For this period, many ADM 12 references refer to documents in record series ADM 137. ADM 137 consists of records originally compiled by the Admiralty Historical Section, a branch of the Admiralty charged with writing the official history of the First World War. The volumes now in ADM 137 were accorded HS (Historical Section) numbers by the Admiralty record office.

9.2 How to find letters and papers

Before consulting ADM 12, search for ADM 1 and ADM 137 documents from this period by keyword in our catalogue. An increasing proportion of ADM 137 can be searched in considerabe detail by keyword thanks to an ongoing project.

If you cannot find the person or subject you are looking for with a keyword search, you will have to consult ADM 12. Follow these steps:

Step 1: Browse through ADM 12/1519-1624B in our catalogue to the appropriate index or digest for the year/s and person or ship in question. You will need to consult the Alphabetical Index to Admiralty Digest Headings (see section 5.4) to decide on the appropriate digest code.

Step 2: Order and view the original ADM 12 document at The National Archives at Kew.

Step 3: Find the entry or entries in the index for the person or ship in question.

Step 4: Note the appropriate reference. References found in ADM 12 during this period take one of three forms:

• references to ‘Admiralty titled papers’, usually a letter and number code, for example Sa 208
• case numbers, many of which will be found in ADM 116
• Admiralty date references where the date is given in full, for example ‘Admiralty 4 July 1916’

Step 5: What to do at this stage depends on the type of reference you have found:

• for ‘Admiralty titled papers’ references, go to Step 6
• for case numbers, go to section 11.3
• for Admiralty date references, go to ADM 1

Step 6: Look for your ADM 12 reference (our example is Sa 208 in 1917) in the ADM 137 Key to find the equivalent HS volume number. The ADM 137 Key is found with the printed version of the catalogue in the reading rooms at The National Archives at Kew (it is headed ‘Titled papers bound in H.S. volumes’). The key is divided by year, with the ADM 12 references for each year in alphanumeric sequence (our example, Sa 208 in 1917, provides us with HS volume number 1426).

Step 7: Using the advanced search in our catalogue, search by HS number in the ‘Any of these references’ field (in the format “HS 1426”). This should return the correct ADM 137 piece number, usually the same as the HS volume number (for example, HS volume 1426 returns piece number ADM 137/1426).

Step 8: Order the ADM 137 piece to consult the original document.

10. How to find Admiralty correspondence and other papers after 1919

The ADM 12 index and digest volumes continue until 1974. However, from 1922, when the system of providing references to Admiralty papers in ADM 12 was changed, the indexes becomes less useful as finding aids.

From 1922:

• use the ADM 12 indexes, from reference ADM 12/1657 onwards, to find case numbers for case files kept in ADM 116 (see section 11.3 for more guidance on case files)

Until around 1938:

• search ADM 1 by keyword in our catalogue (towards the end of this period the series is rather muddled and includes some late nineteenth and early twentieth century documents as well)

For the Second World War period:

Consult documents in ADM 199 by:

• finding War History (WH) case numbers in the ADM 12 indexes and digests for this period and using the key in the printed version of ADM 199 (available only in the reading rooms at The National Archives at Kew) to locate the appropriate ADM 199 piece number (there are other references to ADM 199 in ADM 12 but as the original references have not been translated into National Archives references, locating the appropriate ADM 199 piece number is almost impossible)
• consulting the subject indexes in the printed version of ADM 199 (available only in the reading rooms at The National Archives at Kew) to locate an ADM 199 piece number

Consult documents in ADM 1 by:

• searching by keyword in our catalogue
• using the subject indexes found with the printed version of ADM 1 (available only in the reading rooms at The National Archives at Kew)
• finding Admiralty code numbers in ADM 12 for the years 1938-1945 and searching within ADM 1 in our catalogue, using the code number as your keyword
• finding piece numbers by using the keys in the printed version of ADM 1 for these years (this will not always work)

After 1938, and until 1952, ADM 1 documents are arranged into Series I and Series II. Series 1 uses the 1963 Alphabetical Index to Admiralty Digest Headings and Series II the 1935 version (see section 5.4). Copies of these indexes are with the printed version of ADM 1.

ADM 116 for this period is also arranged by the same system of Codes using the 1935 and 1963 Digest Tables.

From 1952:

• ADM 1 is arranged chronologically in yearly batches in accordance with the Admiralty Branch registry designations. A key to the Admiralty Branches, and the registry codes used, is given at the front of the appropriate volume of the printed version of ADM 1.

11. How to find other records referenced in the ADM 12 indexes and digests

11.1 Minutes

For entries in the ADM 12 index volumes with the reference ‘Minutes’, search ADM 3 within the appropriate dates.

11.2 Out-Letters

Consult ADM 2 and ADM 13/1-69 for out-letters, which were often in response to the in-letters in ADM 1.

From 1869 the out-letters (often the originals returned to the Admiralty Record Office) are included with the ADM 1 files.

11.3 Cases

In about 1847 the practice began of collecting together and binding up all the papers (in-letters, out-letters, minutes and so on) on a particular subject, thereby creating what was known as a ‘case’. Each case was given a number.

Case numbers are usually shown in the ADM 12 index volumes (for example, “Case 491”), though this was rarely done for the 1840s and 1850s.

A case often contains documents that extend over a considerable number of years but there may be only one year in index entries that provides the case number.

There is often no digest entry for papers made up into cases.

Most case files are kept in the following record series:

• ADM 116 (Admiralty cases 1852-1965)

To find a case file, you will need to find the case number in the “Key to Admiralty cases”, found with the printed version of ADM 116, only available in the reading rooms in The National Archives at Kew, which will provide you with the appropriate piece number.

If you cannot find a case number reference from ADM 12 in ADM 116, the papers might have been placed in one of the following series or part series:

• ADM 7/597-629 (Admiralty miscellanea)
• ADM 7/765-766 (Admiralty miscellanea)
• ADM 137 (Admiralty Historical Section records 1860-1937)

A “Key to Admiralty cases” is also kept with the printed version of ADM 7, only available in the reading rooms in The National Archives at Kew.

For ADM 137 the key is kept in a separate folder. Alternatively, you can search by subject using the subject indexes filed with the printed version of the series.

However, an increasing proportion of ADM 137 can be searched in considerable detail by keyword in our catalogue thanks to an ongoing project.

Note: from 1911 all Courts Martial records are held in record series ADM 156, Naval Courts Martial records. These records are closed for 75 years.

12. Further reading

The following publication, available in The National Archives library, includes example searches using ADM 12:

Bruno Pappalardo, Tracing Your Naval Ancestors (2003, Public Record Office) – this title is also available from our shop

13. Appendix 1: Table of abbreviations

Numbers

Numbers were used to indicate where in a sequence of letters a particular letter belongs. Sequences were reset at the end of each year. For example, B32 in an index for 1835 indicates letter number 32 in the correspondence with the Commander-in-Chief for Plymouth sent in 1835.

Letters

14. Appendix 2: Further indexes and other means of reference to ADM 1

14.1 Miscellaneous indexes and registers of the Admiralty and Secretariat Papers

Many of these indexes, found in ADM 12/1-55, refer to documents dating earlier than 1793 when the Admiralty and Secretariat Index and Digest begins.

Some of these indexes were experimental, compiled in the search to develop the best possible Index and Digest. The references they provide cannot, therefore, now be related directly to the arrangement of the documents in ADM 1.

14.2 Name index to the writers of captains’ letters 1693-1792

This index volume in ADM 10/8 has at the front a key to the location of the captains’ letters found in ADM 1/1435-2733.

14.3 Indexes to captains’ letters 1793-1815

The index to captains’ letters is continued for the period 1793-1815 in four volumes, only available in the reading rooms at The National Archives at Kew. However, the index extends only to the letter P and, for that letter, only to 1812. It provides full references to the original documents in ADM 1.

14.4 Miss E H B Fairbrother’s Indexes and Lists

These unpublished lists and indexes compiled by E H B Fairbrother in 1928, which include some officers’ names, are only available at The National Archives library at Kew. They are a little haphazard but consist of indexes to:

• admirals’ despatches from the Leeward Islands (1779-1787) in ADM 1/312
• letters from unemployed admirals (1693-1804) in ADM 1/577-580
• letters from officers of marines (1804-1839) in ADM 1/3246-3357
• letters from the Custom House (1694-1839) in ADM 1/3863-3877
• letters from the Transport Department (1704-1839) in ADM 1/3729-3774
• letters Relating to Ireland (1691-1806) in ADM 1/3988-3991
• letters from the Register Office of Merchant Seamen (1696-1715) in ADM 1/3997
• letters from Secretaries of State (1689-1694) in ADM 1/4080
• letters from the College of Surgeons (1718-1816) in ADM 1/4280-4281
• letters from the Treasury (1698-1744) in ADM 1/4283-4285
• miscellaneous letters and reports (1686-1839) in ADM 1/5114-5124
• petitions (1793-1839) in ADM 1/5125-5137
• Orders in Council (1673-1805) in ADM 1/5138-5168, ADM 1/5170-5181, ADM 1/5189-5190, ADM 1/5198 and ADM 1/5201
• copies of Orders in Council (1660-1805) in ADM 1/5246-5252

14.5 Various indexes in the printed version of The National Archives’ catalogue

These indexes, found in the printed version of the National Archives’s catalogue at Kew, include:

• letters from the College of Surgeons (1718-1816), indexing names of officers and warrant officers appearing in the correspondence

2. Online newspaper collections

It is always best to start online if you are looking for newspapers. A growing number of websites provide access to digitised newspapers.

Search British and overseas newspapers online, for example:

• London, Belfast and Edinburgh Gazettes on The Gazette website
• The Times Digital Archive (£), provided by Gale Cengage
• British Newspaper Archive (£)
• 17th and 18th century Burney Collection newspapers (£) and 19th century British Library newspapers, provided by Gale Cengage (£)
• Internet Library of Early Journals
• Australian newspapers on the National Library of Australia’s Trove website
• Chronicling America
• ProQuest Historical Newspapers (£)
• Time Magazine Archive
• Welsh Newspapers Online

Some of the sites are free, but many are subscription-based (£) and offer subscriptions only to institutions, not to individual people.

You can access some of the sites in research libraries. Contact a library such as the British Library or The National Archives’ Library to ask whether they have an institutional subscription.

3. Where can I find newspaper collections that aren’t online?

Some libraries and archives have newspaper collections.

Find regional newspaper collections in:

• British Library Newspapers – the main British copyright collection
• The National Library of Wales
• National Library of Scotland
• Belfast Central Library
• National Library of Ireland

Use the Find an archive tool to find the contact details of other libraries and local archives that hold newspaper collections.

4. Does The National Archives have newspapers?

The National Archives is not the best place to start if you’re looking for newspapers, but we do have some newspaper collections.

4.1 Government gazettes

The National Archives has government gazettes – the official newspapers of former British colonies and British dominions.

To find colonial or dominion government gazettes, search Discovery, our catalogue, using the name of the territory and the phrase ‘government gazettes’.

Examples include:

• Jamaica (1794-1968) in record series CO 141
• Kenya (1908-1975) in CO 542
• Canada (1926-1978) in DO 29

They have not been digitised, but the originals are held at The National Archives at Kew. They all have the letter codes CO (Colonial Office) or DO (Dominions Office).

Mandy Banton, Administering the Empire 1801-1968: a guide to the records of the Colonial Office in the National Archives of the UK (Institute of Historical Research 2008) lists newspapers and Gazettes within the Colonial Office correspondence.

If you want to search the London Gazette it’s always best to look on The Gazette website first, but The National Archives also holds an archived copy (1665-1986) in ZJ 1.

4.2 Transport-related newspapers

The National Archives also has a large number of transport-related newspapers, magazines and journals. Try searching for the title in our catalogue, within the following departments:

• AN
• RAIL
• ZLIB
• ZSPC
• ZPER

There is also a card index compiled by British Transport Historical records (BTHR) in the reading rooms at The National Archives at Kew. Use the index to find references to all original documents and publications (including some references to overseas railways) up to 1972.

5. Researching the history of the press

Always start with published histories. Useful books and directories include:

• Encyclopedia of the British press by Dennis Griffiths (Macmillan, 1992)
• Read all about it! A history of the British newspaper by Kevin Williams (Routledge, 2009)
• Benn’s media (1975-present)
• Willing’s press guide (1928-present)
• Mitchell’s newspaper press directory (1846-1907)

You can use The National Archives’ library catalogue to find more histories of the press. Many books have been published on individual newspapers, journals and publishers.

Search the Scoop! database (£) to find out about British and Irish journalists, 1800-1960.

6. Archival records relating to press history

The Parliamentary Archives collections include the papers of the press magnate Lord Beaverbrook. For advice on accessing these records, consultant guide to Beaverbrook Papers.

Search Discovery, our catalogue, to find records from The National Archives and over 2,500 archives across the UK. You can search for a journalist, business or other keyword and your search results will display details from a range of archives. You can then refine your results.

Where the keywords you searched for appear in the description of a record, the search results are displayed under the ‘Records’ tab.

Where the keywords you searched for appear in the name of the institution or person that originally created the record (often not the same as the institution or person that currently holds the record), the search results are displayed under the ‘Record creators’ tab.

Archives holding relevant records include:

• The Stationers’ Company
• British Cartoon Archive
• Scottish Archive of Print and Publishing History Records (SAPPHIRE)

The National Archives may also hold records relevant to your research – try searching for keywords such as ‘newspaper’. You can also find whole newspapers, newspaper articles and cuttings which have been inserted into The National Archives’ records. These have not always been catalogued, but it is possible to discover them by accident.

For further tips on searching see our Discovery help pages.

2. The patenting process and the records it produced

Inventors can get an exclusive right to manufacture their own inventions for a limited period. The state issues ‘letters patent of invention’ and enrols them to record this right. Initially, the inventions were enrolled but not described in much detail. Later, they came to be described in increasing detail until this became routine. From 1617, specifications (providing full working details of the invention) began to be enrolled in a different place, after the issue of the patent. By 1734, patentees were obligated to submit a specification but this could be up to several months after a patent was granted. Patents could be enrolled by any of a number of officials of Chancery but were recorded on Patent Rolls (C 66). Specifications were submitted to one of three Chancery offices and were enrolled in Chancery Close Rolls (C54), Rolls Chapel Specification Rolls (C 73) or Petty Bag Office Specification Rolls (C 210).

2.1 Patents of inventions

The patent itself contains the formulaic text for the application of patents of invention. Typically this records:

• Name of inventor
• Monarch granting the letters patent
• A short description of the invention
• A declaration that it is unique
• Where the patent applies
• How long it is valid for (14 years)
• An assurance that the Patent protects the grantee

The National Archives holds the original enrolments on parchment. For instructions on finding them, see section 3.

The National Archives does not hold the parchments given to English patentees at grant.

2.2 Specifications of inventions

The specifications contain manuscript descriptions of the invention and sometimes illustrations engraved on vellum. They were also enrolled, but separately to letters patent. The illustrations are often detailed, with shading and colour.

Drawing from a patent specification submitted by Aaron Garlick for a machine for spinning and roving cotton (1797). Catalogue reference: C 210/54

3. Finding patents of invention 1449-October 1852

Step 1: Find an entry in the published indexes

To identify records, you will need to find the patent’s number (called ‘progressive number’ in the Bennet Woodcroft index) and year in printed indexes held at The National Archives, the British Library and in several reference libraries. These indexes were first published in 1854 by Bennet Woodcroft, the first clerk to the commissioners of patents, as a six-volume work called Patents of Invention: from March 2, 1617 (14 James I) to October 1, 1852 (16 Victoriae).

Bennet Woodcroft’s printed indexes to patents of invention in The National Archives Reading Room.

The indexes are arranged in four sequences:

• Index of patentees
• Subject-matter index (in two volumes)
• Chronological index (in two volumes)
• Reference index

Having found the patent number and the year (for example, ‘Electric batteries’, patent number: 12,697, year: 1849), you can search for the original documents held at The National Archives or a printed version at the (for advice on this you will need to contact the British Library itself).

Step 2: Move from the published indexes to the printed indexes (in C 274)

Consult the printed annual calendars (arranged by regnal years) held in the reading rooms at The National Archives. They are identified by the series reference C 274.

Search for the year you found in the published indexes at Step 1 (you may need to convert the year and month to a regnal year) and then, in the respective year, search for the inventor’s name. The calendars usually have a kind of index at the back, or the entries are arranged by initial letter of surname.

Step 3: Convert the printed index reference (in C 274) to a patent roll reference (in C 66)

Patents of invention are enrolled, along with many other types of letters patent, in the patent rolls in C 66.

Most of the entries in the printed indexes in C 274 have been marked up with the modern C 66 reference. If not, you will need to search in C 66 in our online catalogue for the ‘part number’ noted in C 274. This will provide the C 66 reference with which you can order the respective patent roll.

4. Finding specifications for patents granted up to October 1852

Specifications were enrolled separately to letters patent and could be enrolled some months after the patent. They continued to be enrolled in Chancery records up to October 1852 when the Patent Office took over. The Enrolment Office continued to enrol specifications on close rolls up to 1853, for patents registered before October 1852.

Until 1734, there was no obligation for patentees to submit a technical description or drawing to accompany their application. From this date onwards, specifications were required and patentees had several months to submit these after the patent was sealed. They could be enrolled in any one of three Chancery offices:

• Enrolment Office
• Petty Bag Office
• Rolls Chapel

Each office has its own separate finding aids and search instructions. To search for a specification, you will need to consult the Bennet Woodcroft indexes (detailed in section 3.1) and indexes and calendars in the reading rooms at The National Archives.

Start by consulting the Bennett Woodcroft ‘Index of Patentees’ (Alphabetical Index). This has been marked up with the modern references for some specifications. If so, you can search for these references in our catalogue.

Specifications listed in index labelled ‘Refers to C 54, vol 161’, Specifications 1848-1853, Enrolment Office, Chancery (C 275/207)

4.1 Specifications, 1617-1852

If you do not find a reference annotated in the ‘Index of Patentees’, take the number in bold print from the ‘Index of patentees’.

Look for this number in the Woodcroft ‘Reference Index’. This will give you the name of the office of Chancery the specification was enrolled in.

Use the instructions for each office below, which refer to indexes and calendars in the reading rooms.

• 4.2 Enrolment Office
• 4.3 Petty Bag office
• 4.4 Rolls Chapel

You will also see other publications listed alongside the name of Chancery Office. Specifications were circulated in various technical magazines and periodicals, often in an abridged form. These publications are not stored at The National Archives. They can be found at reference libraries and sometimes online. It is also noted where specifications were not enrolled.

4.2 Enrolment Office, 1617-1853

Specifications continued to be enrolled in the Enrolment Office until 1853, they are found on the Close Rolls in record series C 54.

On the open shelves in the reading rooms, consult the three indexes labelled C 275/209-211 which list specifications with the year, type number and division letter of the Close Roll on which they were enrolled. They are arranged in three volumes:

• C 275/209 – 1617-1826
• C 275/210 – 1826-1845
• C 275/211 – 1846-1853

Each volume is arranged chronologically by year and alphabetically by first letter of the surname of patentee within each year. Specifications were enrolled after the patent, so you may need to look at entries under later years. Depending on the date of the specification, search in Discovery in series C 54 and in the relevant year, using the details from the relevant entry:

• From 1617-c.1675 – search for the part number (P)
• From c.1675-1842 – search for the number (type number) and division letter
• From 1842-1849 – search using ‘specification’ and the ‘P’ number (corresponds to ‘type number’ in Discovery)

For example, the entry in the image below for Fred A Glover, has the type number 12, division E and year 1840, a search gives this result, the Close Roll reference is C 54/12315.

For more information about the letter codes in the C 275 index and in C 54, see appendix 1.

Specifications listed in C 275/210, Enrolment Office index (1826-1845). Some entries in the indexes have the progressive number marked up in pencil. The letters in the penultimate column denote geographical divisions that applied to the enrolment of Close Rolls.

4.3 Petty Bag Office, 1709-1852

Specifications enrolled in the Petty Bag Office are found in record series C 210.

The alphabetical index has been marked up with all the modern references to C 210.

Specifications are also listed by date in two volumes labelled ‘Refers to C 210, vols 1-2’. Volume 2 contains an index of names (alphabetical, by first letter only) in three sequences to match the three sections (‘calendars’) of the lists. Put C 210 in front of the ‘part’ number to get a modern reference.

4.4 Rolls Chapel

The ‘Reference Index’ lists ‘Rolls Chapel’ for specifications enrolled in the Rolls Chapel but also for some that were enrolled on the Close Rolls (because these were housed in the Rolls Chapel).

Specifications listed as ‘Rolls Chapel’ in the index are therefore found in records of the Master of the Rolls and Rolls Chapel, in C 73, and records of the Enrolment Office, in C 54. Follow the procedure under Indexed as “Rolls Chapel”.

If you see ‘Rolls Chapel Reports’ listed, note the number of the report and page number and follow the procedure under the heading Roll’s Chapel reports.

Indexed as “Rolls Chapel”

If you find ‘Rolls Chapel’ listed next to a patent in the ‘Reference Index’, consult the volume in C 275 labelled ‘Refers to C 54 etc., vol 160’. The volume is divided into two parts and you may need to look within both:

• Pages 2-77 refer to specifications on the Specification Rolls (C 73)
• Pages 78-259 to specifications on the Close Rolls (C 54)

If you find the entry in the Specification Rolls section, put C 73 in front of the part number to get the modern reference, e.g. C 73/127 . The number in the first column indicates the order of the specification on the roll.

If you find the entry in the Close Rolls section, search in C 54 using the part and date to find the reference.  Again, the number in the first column shows where the specification appears on the roll.

Some drawings have been extracted from C 73 – see references: C 73/81/1 and C 73/81/2

Specifications listed in index labelled ‘Refers to C 54, vol 160’, Specification and Close Rolls: Rolls of Chapel 1635-1848, Vol 1(IND 1/29432)

Indexed as “Roll’s Chapel reports”

For 1712-1802, lists of specifications in C 73 and C 54 were printed in the appendices of the Deputy Keeper’s reports, VI-VIII (1844-1846). The ‘Reference Index’ refers to the lists as ‘Roll’s Chapel Reports’.

A volume of lists compiled from the Deputy Keeper’s reports is on the open shelves in the reading room, labelled ‘Refers to C 54 etc., vol 163’ (red cover). Look for the relevant report number and page number within the volume.

Specifications printed in appendix II of the Deputy Keeper’s report VIII and reproduced in the volume ‘Refers to C 54 etc., volume 163’

The volume has been arranged in two parts according to whether the specification appears in series C 73 or C 54. Specifications in C 73 have the modern reference written in red. C 54 entries must be converted, using the following steps:

• Note the old reference from the end of the description of the specification. It will look like this: ‘53. Geo. III, p.10, No.1’
• Note the date (including day and month) the specification was enrolled which is the second date in the margin
• Search in C 54 using the part number (p) and the year (you may need to convert from the regnal year)
• In your search results, check the date of the specification falls within the date range in your results
• The last number in the old reference format refers to the order of the specification on the roll

5. Other patent records

You can find other types of records relating to patents before October 1852 at The National Archives. Search our catalogue with keywords such as ‘patent’ or ‘invention’, restricted to departments BT, HO and SP.

Records include:

• Petitions for patents before 1782, with law officers’ reports, in State Papers Domestic. Search State Papers Online or use the entry books in SP 44
• Petitions for patents from 1782 onwards in HO 42, HO 44 and HO 45, with entry books in HO 43
• Warrants to law officers to draft patents of invention for 1783-1834 in HO 89
• Some reports by law officers, applications by patent agents and disputed cases, 1839-1885, in LO 1

6. Early patents of invention, with no specification

Most early patents give few details about the precise nature of the invention.

Try SO 7 from 1661. These bills, which authorised the issue of letters patent, sometimes include drawings of inventions.

Use the reference index (see section 3), which has an appendix giving abstracts from some early (1617-1745) applications for patents, where no separate specification was enrolled.

7. Records after October 1852

The National Archives generally does not hold patents or specifications after 1852. However, we hold many records relating to patents which include:

• Registered designs and trademarks
• Patent policy (BT 209)
• Some disputed patents (LO 4, J 99, J 105)
• Patents of interest to government departments such as the Admiralty (ADM 245) and the National Physical Laboratory (DSIR 10, DSIR 17)
• Disclaimers of specifications for 1857-1867 (C 54)

You can search these records in our catalogue using keywords. Most Patent Office records have the Board of Trade (BT) department code.

You can also browse the Patent Office division in our catalogue.

8. Scottish patents up to October 1852

Scotland had its own separate registration system for patents before 1853. Go to the National Records of Scotland for the records. However, we do hold some records of Scottish inventions in:

• HO 105, relating to Scottish inventions, 1840-1855
• HO 106, which can refer to inventions, 1774-1847

9. Irish patents up to October 1852

Ireland had its own separate registration system for patents before 1853, but the records no longer survive. However, you can find some records at The National Archives which refer to Irish patents in:

• HO 101 1776-1915
• SO 1-2
• HO 42/218 for lists of Irish patents of invention up to 1826

10. Further reading

‘British Patents of Invention, 1617-1977: A Guide for Researchers’ (British Library, 1999) by Stephen Van Dulken

Neil Davenport, ‘The United Kingdom Patent System: A Brief History’ (Kenneth Mason, 1979)

Sean Bottomley, ‘The British Patent System during the Industrial Revolution 1700-1852: From Privilege to Property’ (Cambridge, 2014)

Christine MacLeod, ‘Inventing the Industrial Revolution: The English Patent System, 1660-1800′ (Cambridge, 1988)

Appendix 1: Division codes in C 54

From the reign of Elizabeth I, the close rolls were divided into four, on a geographical basis, the B, Y, E and N divisions. The origins of this were probably related to the division of fees. The divisions were:

• B – Anglesey, Brecon, Cornwall, Carmarthen, Caernarvon, Devon, Glamorgan, Middlesex, Somerset, Surrey and the City of London.
• Y – Bedford, Chester, Derby, Dorset, Hertford, Lincoln, Nottingham, Northumberland, Oxford, Rutland, Stafford, Suffolk, Sussex, Warwick, Westmorland and Berwick upon Tweed.
• E – Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Cardigan, Denbigh, Essex, Hampshire, Hereford, Kent, Monmouth, Pembroke, Wiltshire and Haverfordwest.
• N – Cambridge, Cumberland, Durham, Flint, Gloucester, Huntingdon, Lancaster, Leicester, Merioneth, Montgomery, Norfolk, Northampton, Radnor, Shropshire, Worcester and Yorkshire.

Appendix 2: Finding aid locations in the Map and Large Document Reading Room

The table lists the various finding aids with their National Archives’ references; the label on their spine, which gives the reference of the records they refer to; and the number of the shelf on which they can be found.