NEWS, NEW BOOKS and
NEWLY ADDED RECORDS

NEW BOOKS - JUNE 2016

NATIONAL COLLECTIONS
Major Datasets

NATIONAL GOVERNMENT COLLECTIONS

GENERAL REGISTER OFFICE (GRO)

BIRTHS MARRIAGES AND DEATHS - ENGLAND AND WALES

[Scotland's birth, marriage and death - Records here]

• General Register Office (GRO) - Records here
  The General Register Office holds records of births, deaths, marriages, civil partnerships, stillbirths and adoptions in England and Wales. Indexes are available online but a charge is made for each certificate.

• FamilySearch.org (Free birth, marriage and death) - Records here
  Civil Registration index information (the GRO index). (Click on 'Show All Collections' to see records)

• Freebmd (Free birth, marriage and death) - Records here
  The FreeBMD Project is placing the Civil Registration index information (the GRO index) on the internet. The project data starts in 1837 until 1983 - but not yet complete.

BIRTHS [Main List here ]

• Subscription site indexes of the birth (records for England and Wales 1837-2006) - Records at Findmypast and Ancestry and The Genealogist
  Full indexes of records with images of the index pages. Certificates can only be purchased through General Register Office.

MARRIAGES [Main List here ]

• FamilySearch.org (Free marriage dataset) - Records here
  Civil Registration index marriage information (the GRO index).

• Subscription site indexes of the marriage (records for England and Wales 1837-2006) - Records at Findmypast and Ancestry and The Genealogist
  Full indexes of records with images of the index pages. Certificates can only be purchased through General Register Office.

DEATHS [Main List here ]

• Subscription site indexes of the death (records for England and Wales 1837-2006) - Records at Findmypast and Ancestry and The Genealogist
  Full indexes of records with images of the index pages. Certificates can only be purchased through General Register Office.

THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES (TNA)

• The National Archives here
  Main archives for the UK located at Kew, London. Has millions of records and an excellent search facility. Many records have been digitised by subscription websites, but all records can be seen for free at Kew. Free site.

ADM SERIES - ADMIRALTY RECORDS
[Other Navy Records (incl Navy Lists): main list here ]
[Merchant Navy records: main list here ]

• The National Archives selected Admiralty crime records 1770-1934 (selected from series: ADM 6, CRIM 9, HO 17, HO 140, MEPO 6, PCOM 2 – Records at Findmypast
  Registers of convicts in prison hulks - 17,644 prisoners for the period 1818-1831 held in prison hulks Cumberland, Dolphin and Ganymede

• A collection of Admiralty wills at the National Archives - Records here
  Wills of the Royal Navy and Royal Marines personnel 1786-1882 (ADM 48 Series)

• The National Archives dataset of Maritime Deaths at Sea 1794 – 1966 – Records at Findmypast
  The Admiralty record set (TNA series in brackets) includes:
  • Naval officers who were killed between 1914 and 1920, including some Royal Marines and Naval Reserve officers, and some officers of theCanadian and Australian navies. It also includes list of ships lost from 1914 to 1919; a war graves roll of those same dates, and statistical casualty books 1914-1933. (Adm242)
  • Royal Greenwich Hospital ‘s autopsy reports and register of dead men's wages 1787 - 1809. The deceased are from the Royal Navy or merchant navy seamen on vessels travelling to and from the West Indies (Adm80)

• The National Archives dataset of Births at Sea 1854 - 1960 - Records at Findmypast
  Births from the Chatham Division of the Royal Marines 1830 – 1913 (Adm 183)

• Royal Navy Officers' Service Records (TNA Series ADM 196) 1756-1931 - Records here
  the dataset includes commissioned officers joining the Navy up to 1917 and warrant officers joining up to 1931, as well as records of Royal Marines officers commissioned between 1793 and 1925.

AIR SERIES - RAF RECORD SETS
[Other RAF Records: main list here ]

• RAF Officers records between 1918-1936 (from AIR 76 series) and Airmen's records (from AIR 79 series) - Records here

[ARMY Records here]

BT SERIES - BOARD OF TRADE RECORDS
Shoes and Ships and Sealing-wax: Illustrated History of the Board of Trade, 1786-1986

• Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878 - 1888 and 1890 – 1960 (TNA Series BT 26) – Records at Ancestry
  1,472 pieces in the collection

• Passenger Lists Leaving UK 1890-1960 (TNA Series BT 27) – Records at Findmypast
  Passengers leaving and Great Britain and Ireland between 1890 and 1960. Number of records not given.

• The National Archives Board of Trade crew lists - 1861-1939 (BT 99 series) - Records here
  Over 27,800 searchable records of crew lists

• The National Archives Board of Trade 'celebrated ships' crew lists - (BT 100 series) - Records here
  Over 13,800 searchable records of crew lists. Although the document itself is not online many of the entires have transcription details of the serving crew

• The National Archives dataset of Maritime Marriage at Sea 1794 – 1966 – Records at Findmypast
  A small dataset comprising 666 records (TNA series in brackets), including
  • Marriages of passengers 1854 – 1890 (Bt 158)
  • A single register for marriages 1891 – 1972 (Bt 334)

• The National Archives dataset of Maritime Deaths at Sea 1794 – 1966 – Records at Findmypast
  The BT record set (TNA series in brackets) includes:
  • Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen’s Registers of Wages and Effects of Deceased Seamen, 1852-1889 (Bt153)
  • Monthly Lists of Deaths of Seamen, 1886-1890 from the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen. (Bt156)
  • Registers of Seamen's Deaths, Classified by Cause, 1882-1888 from the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen. (Bt157)
  • Registers of Births, Deaths and Marriages of Passengers at Sea, 1854-1890 compiled from ships' official logs of births, deaths and marriages of passengers at sea by the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen and its predecessor. (Bt158)
  • Registers and indexes of births, deaths and marriages at sea 1891 – 1972 . The registers include both British and foreign subjects, passengers and seamen. The registers also contain some entries related to the deaths of seamen ashore. (Bt334)

• The National Archives dataset of Births at Sea 1854 - 1960 - Records at Findmypast
  The Board of Trade records include:
  • Births of British and foreign passengers and seamen between 1891 and 1972. (Bt334)
  • Births of passengers between 1854 and 1890 (Bt 158)

• The Genealogist's collection of BT Series records - Records at The Genealogist
  
  • Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Registers of Births, Deaths and Marriages of Passengers at Sea 1854-1908 (BT 158).
  • Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Registers of Deaths at Sea of British Nationals 1875-1888 (BT 159)
  • Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Registers of Births at Sea of British Nationals 1875-1891 (BT 160)

CAB SERIES - RECORDS OF THE CABINET OFFICE

• List of the recipients of the Victoria Cross from the institution of the distinction in 1856 to 1946 (Series CAB 106/320) - Records at The National Archives
  The alphabetical typed List of Recipients can be seen for free on the webpage using the image viewer

CO SERIES - COLONIAL OFFICE RECORDS

• The National Archives dataset of Maritime Deaths at Sea 1794 – 1966 – Records at Findmypast
  The Colonial Office record set of the Register of births and deaths of emigrants at sea, 1847-1854 and Registers of deaths of emigrants at Sea, 1854-1869 from the Colonial Office: Land and Emigration Commission. (Co386)

CRIM SERIES - CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT RECORDS

• The National Archives selected crime records 1770-1934 (selected from series: ADM 6, CRIM 9, HO 17, HO 140, MEPO 6, PCOM 2 – Records at Findmypast
  
• Central Criminal Court: after-trial calendars of prisoners 1855-1931 - 175,835 prisoners

CUST SERIES - CUSTOMS OFFICE

• The National Archives Alien Arrivals 1810-1811, 1826-1869 (Series HO 2, HO 3, CUST 102/393-396, FO 83/21-22 series) – Records at Ancestry
  CUST 102/393-396 Accounts of aliens arriving at London (July-November 1826) and Gravesend (October 1826-August 1837); arranged by certificate of arrival number

• The National Archives dataset of Maritime Deaths at Sea 1794 – 1966 – Records at Findmypast
  The Customs Office records include the Register of deaths and births at sea, Falmouth, 1892 to 1918 (Cust67)

• The National Archives dataset of Births at Sea 1854 - 1960 - Records at Findmypast
  Births at sea, Falmouth 1892 - 1918 (Cust67)

FO SERIES - FOREIGN OFFICE

• The National Archives Alien Arrivals 1810-1811, 1826-1869 (Series HO 2, HO 3, CUST 102/393-396, FO 83/21-22 series) – Records at Ancestry
  FO 83/21-22: Lists of aliens arriving at English ports, August 1810-May 1811 - 2 volumes

HO SERIES - HOME OFFICE

• The National Archives Alien Arrivals 1810-1811, 1826-1869 (Series HO 2, HO 3, CUST 102/393-396, FO 83/21-22 series) – Records at Ancestry
  Datasets contains lists of aliens (non-British citizens) arriving in England between 1810 and 1869.
  • HO 2: Certificates of alien arrivals, 1836-1852; 236 volumes of original certificates arranged by port of arrival
  • HO 3: Returns of alien passengers, July 1836-December 1869 (with a gap from January 1861 to December 1866)

• The National Archives Aliens Office and Home Office: Aliens' Entry Books 1794 - 1921 (Series HO 5) – Records at Ancestry
  Datasets contains lists of aliens (non-British citizens) arriving in England - 2,131 rolls of information

• The National Archives selected crime records 1770-1934 (selected from series: ADM 6, CRIM 9, HO 17, HO 140, MEPO 6, PCOM 2) – Records at Findmypast
  Dataset contains:
  • Home Office: calendar of prisoners 1868-1929 - 301,359 people
  • Home Office: criminal petitions 1817 – 1858 - petitions for 16,309 people

IR SERIES - BOARDS OF STAMPS, TAXES, EXCISE, STAMPS AND TAXES AND INLAND REVENUE

• A collection of wills at the National Archives (IR 26 Series) - Records here
  Country court death duty registers between 1796 and 1811. They form part of series IR 26 and contain over 66,000 personal names. A 'country court' was any church court apart from the Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PCC). We have digitised the country court registers, not the PCC registers. In the period 1796-1811 only personal estates valued at £20 or more were liable to death duty - leases, freeholds and real estate were not liable and so will not appear in the registers.

MEPO SERIES - METROPOLITAN POLICE - MEPO SERIES

• The National Archives selected crime records 1770-1934 (selected from series: ADM 6, CRIM 9, HO 17, HO 140, MEPO 6, PCOM 2 – Records at Findmypast
  Metropolitan Police: Criminal Record Office: habitual criminals' registers and miscellaneous papers 1903 – 1914 - 5,824 habitual drunkards (including photographs)

MH SERIES - MINISTRY OF HEALTH

• Middlesex Appeal Tribunal, 1916 to 1919 (from MH 47 series) - Records here
  Middlesex Appeal Tribunal, 1916 to 1919, totally 8,000 appeals in total.
Other WWI casualty sites - Records here

• 51st Field Ambulance records (from MH106 series) - Records at Forces at War
  Transcriptions of 30,000 records created by the 51st Field Ambulance between 1915-1918 about men treated on the front line and their injuries.
Other WWI casualty sites - Records here

PRIS SERIES - RECORDS OF THE KING'S BENCH, FLEET AND MARSHALSEA PRISONS

• Marshalsea Prison Commitment and Discharge Books, 1811-1842 (Series PRIS 11) - Records at Ancestry

PROB SERIES - PROBATE RECORDS

• A collection of wills at the National Archives - Records here
  Collection covers
  • Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PROB 11 Series)
  • Famous wills 1552-1854 (PROB 1/1-28 Series)

[RAF Records here]

RG - REGISTER GENERAL SERIES

• The Genealogist's collection of RG Series records - Records at The Genealogist
  
  • RG4 – Early Registers (authenticated by the Non-Parochial Registers Commissioners) of births, baptisms, deaths, burials and marriages 1567 - 1858.
  
  
  • RG5 – Early Birth Certificates from the Presbyterian, Independent and Baptist Registry and from the Wesleyan Methodist Metropolitan Registry 1742 - 1840.
  
  
  • RG6 - The Society of Friends' (Quakers) Registers, Notes and Certificates of Births, Marriages and Burials 1578-1841.
  
  
  • RG7 – Fleet Marriages. The collection of registers and notebooks of Clandestine Marriages and Baptisms in the Fleet Prison, King's Bench Prison, the Mint and the May Fair Chapel ranging from 1667-c1777.
  
  
  • RG8 – Early GRO Registers of Births, Marriages and Deaths surrendered to the Non Parochial Registers Commission of 1857. Includes:
  - British Lying-in Hospital, Holborn, (births and baptisms) 1749 - 1868
  - Burial records, registers of the Chapels Royal
  - Archive of the Russian Orthodox Church in London.
  
  
  • RG32: Registers Abroad and on British & Foreign Ships 1831-1969. Includes:
  - General Register Office: Overseas Births, Baptisms, Marriages, Deaths and Burials Abroad and on British & Foreign ships, of British subjects, nationals of the colonies, the Commonwealth and countries under British jurisdiction.
  - Lundy Island Devon and Channel Island records.
  - Certificates issued by foreign registration authorities, which are in local languages
  - Overseas English churches and missions, British embassies and legations (original registers, notebooks and registers)
  
  
  • RG33 - GRO:Overseas Birth, Marriage, death and Burial of British Subjects including those onboard ships 1627 - 1960
  - Lundy Island Devon.
  - Overseas English churches and missions, British embassies and legations (original registers, notebooks and registers)
  
  
  • RG34 - General Register Office: Worldwide Foreign Marriage Returns - 38,000 individuals. Includes:
  - Marriage registers of British churches abroad.
  - British soldiers in France, Flanders and Holland during and after the First World War, including many who had been prisoners of war.
  - 1861 - 1921 Registers kept by British embassies and marriages of servicemen during service abroad
  
  
  
  • RG36 Registers and Returns of Births, Marriages and Deaths in the Protectorates etc of Africa and Asia Covering dates 1895-1965.
    (Notifications of birth, marriage and death forwarded by officials responsible for civil registration under administrative ordinances in Nyasaland, Kenya, Somaliland, Uganda, Sudan, Palestine, Sarawak, Malaya, including Johore and Selangor, and British North Borneo.)
  
  
  • BT158 Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Registers of Births, Deaths and Marriages of Passengers at Sea 1854-1908.
  
  
  • BT159 Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Registers of Deaths at Sea of British Nationals 1875-1888
  
  
  • BT160 Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Registers of Births at Sea of British Nationals 1875-1891

WO SERIES - ARMY RECORD SETS
[Other Army Records (incl Army Lists): main list here ]
[Other Army and Military WWI Records: main list here ]

• British Army Service Records 1760-1915 - Records at Findmypast
  The dataset comprises soldiers' attestation and discharge papers and form part of the WO (War Office) series. The collection includes:
  • Militia service records 1806-1915 (WO96)
  • Chelsea Pensioners British Army service records 1760-1913 (WO97)
  • Royal Hospital, Chelsea: pensioners' discharge documents 1760-1887 (WO121)
  • Royal Hospital, Chelsea: pensioners' discharge documents, foreign regiments 1816-1817 (WO122)
  • War Office: Imperial Yeomanry, soldiers' documents, South African War 1899-1902 (WO128)
  • Royal Hospital, Chelsea: documents of soldiers awarded deferred pensions 1838-1896 (WO131)

• British Army WWI Service Records (from WO 363 service records and WO 364 pension records), 1914-1920 - Records at Findmypast
  Major collection of 140,000 records from the National Archives. If a soldier died or had no dependents he would not be included.
Other WWI Army Service sites - Records here

• Household Cavalry (Horse Guards and Life Guards) (WO 400 series) - Records here
  Dataset as part of The National Archives Discovery website, containing 12,000 entries and covering 121 years
  All the Queen's Men: Household Cavalry and the Brigade of Guards

• Durham Home Guard Records (WO 409 series) - Records here
  The records consist of enrolment forms which were completed when the men joined the Durham Home Guard.
[Durham main list here ]

WO SERIES - MEDAL RECORD SETS
[Other Military Medal Records: main list here ]

• Victoria Cross registers 1856-1944 (Series WO 98)- Records at The National Archives
  

• Military Campaign Medal and Award Rolls, 1793-1949 (from TNA WO 100 series) - Records at Ancestry
  
  More than 2.3 million officers, enlisted personnel and other individuals entitled to medals and awards commemorating their service in campaigns and battles for the British Army between 1793 and 1949. The rolls include medals awarded for British campaigns in Europe, India, Egypt, Sudan, South Africa, West and Central Africa, China, the Middle East, and elsewhere during the height of the British Empire. The collection does not include WWI or WWII medal and award rolls.

• The National Archives British Army medal index cards (WO 372 series) 1914-1920 - Records here
  Search facility by name, unit and rank. Free search, but payment for individual records. Over 5,000,000 records of serving soldiers.

• The National Archives Indian Army Medal Index Cards (WO 372/25-29 series) 1914-1918 - Records here
  Grouping of cards are split by letter surname groups (A-E etc). Free search, but payment for individual records

WO ARMY UNITS

• 2 DIVISION 5 Infantry Brigade Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry 2nd Battalion : 4 August 1914 - 30 March 1919 (First World War, War Diary, WO95/1348)
  


• 14 DIVISION 42 Infantry Brigade Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry 5th Battalion : 18 May 1915 - 20 June 1918 (First World War, War Diary, WO95/1900/4)
  


• 48 DIVISION 145 Infantry Brigade Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry 1st Battalion : 30 March 1915 - 31 October 1917 (First World War, War Diary, WO95/2763/2)
  

[Other Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry records here ]

WILL AND PROBATE SETS
Wills and Other Probate Records: A Practical Guide to Researching Your Ancestors' Last Documents (Readers Guides)

• A collection of wills at the National Archives - Records here
  Collection covers
  • Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PROB 11 Series)
  • Wills of the Royal Navy and Royal Marines personnel 1786-1882 (ADM 48 Series)
  • Country court death duty registers 1796-1881 (IR 26 Series)
  • Famous wills 1552-1854 (PROB 1/1-28 Series)

[Wills: main list here ]

THE BRITISH LIBRARY

[Irish Newspaper collection here]

• British Newspaper Archives here also at Findmypast
  Scanned newspapers from 18th century onwards, though majority are Victorian and early 20th century. Large numbers of regional newspapers, but the collection does not cover the national newspapers (for example The Times).
[Other online newspaper collections - Records here]

THE GAZETTE

• The Gazette here
  Official Government Gazette giving announcements of bankruptcies, service commissions and Government announcements. Starts in 17th Century and continues to today. Powerful, if not easy, search facility.

ENGLISH, WELSH, CHANNEL ISLANDS and ISLE OF MAN CENSUSES

[Scottish Censuses here] [Irish Censuses here]

• 1841 Census - 6 June 1841.
  Free England and Wales records at FamilySearch and Freecen. Freecen is an on-going project, not yet complete.

Subscription for UK - Records at Findmypast and Ancestry.
Subscription for England and Wales - Records at The Genealogist and Family Relatives and My Heritage and UK Census Online
First census which has names recorded and preserved. Previous censuses (back to 1801) only give numbers in a parish. Unfortunately the 'place of birth' is only given as a 'yes/no' within the same county.

• 1851 Census - 30 March 1851.
  Free England and Wales records at FamilySearch andwww.freecen.org.uk. On-going project, not yet complete.

Subscription for UK - Records at Findmypast and Ancestry.

Subscription for England and Wales - Records at The Genealogist and Family Relatives and My Heritage and UK Census Online
A detail of great importance to family historians is that it gives, for the first time, a person's place of birth.

• 1861 Census - 7 April 1861.
  Free England and Wales records at FamilySearch and www.freecen.org.uk. On-going project, not yet complete.

Subscription for UK - Records at Findmypast and Ancestry.
Subscription for England and Wales - Records at The Genealogist and Family Relatives and My Heritage and UK Census Online

• 1871 Census - 2 April 1871.
  Free England and Wales records at FamilySearch and www.freecen.org.uk. On-going project, not yet complete.

Subscription for UK - Records at Findmypast and Ancestry.
Subscription for England and Wales - Records at The Genealogist and Family Relatives and My Heritage and UK Census Online

• 1881 Census - 3 April 1881.
  Free England and Wales records at FamilySearch andwww.freecen.org.uk. On-going project, not yet complete.

Subscription for UK - Records at Findmypast and Ancestry.
Subscription for England and Wales - Records at The Genealogist and Family Relatives and My Heritage and UK Census Online

• 1891 Census - 5 April 1891.
  Free England and Wales records at FamilySearch andwww.freecen.org.uk. On-going project, not yet complete.

Subscription for UK - Records at Findmypast and Ancestry.
Subscription for England and Wales - Records at The Genealogist and Family Relatives and My Heritage and UK Census Online

• 1901 Census - 31 March 1901.
  Free England and Wales records at FamilySearch
  Subscription for UK - Records at Findmypast and Ancestry.
  Subscription for England and Wales - Records at The Genealogist and Family Relatives and My Heritage and UK Census Online

• 1911 Census - 2 April 1911.
  Free England and Wales records at FamilySearch
  Subscription for England and Wales - Records at Findmypast and Ancestry and The Genealogist and My Heritage and UK Census Online

PROBATE OFFICE (Wills, Probate and Administration)

• Probate Office Search Page here
  Online index searches available for 1858-1996, 1996-Present and soldiers wills. All searchable online, but must have at least surname and date of death.

[Wills: main list here ]

SCOTTISH RECORDS - here

WELSH RECORDS - here

NORTHEN IRISH AND IRISH RECORDS here

ISLE OF MAN GOVERNMENT

The Manx Family Tree; a Guide to Records in the Isle of Man

• Isle of Man - Records here The IMuseum site is the major site for Isle of Man records. Major sections on:
  • Family History
  • People
  • Places
  • Newspapers
  • World War I
  [Newspaper main list - Records here]

HERALDRY, PEERAGES AND NATIONAL BIOGRAPHIES

UK

Burkes Peerage - Records here
A sample of Burke's Peerage volumes, three free to view volumes
• Burke's Peerage Family Index
• Burke's Peerage General Armory
• Burke's Peerage Colonial Gentry
Other volumes require a login
• Burke's Peerage New and Revised Families
• Burke's Peerage 107th Edition
• Burke's Peerage Great War Edition
• Burke's Peerage Second World War Edition
• Burke's Landed Gentry Irish Family Records
• Burke's Landed Gentry Scotland
• Burke's Landed York
• Burke's Landed Gentry Wales and North West
• Burke's Royal Families of the World Volume 1
• Burke's Guide to the Royal Family
• Burke's World Orders of Knighthood and Merit
• Burke's American Presidential Families
• Burke's Peerage War Gazette 1940
• Burke's Dormant and Extinct Peerages

• The British Herald, in 3 Volumes - Record of Volume 2 here Vol 3 here
  List of families with crests and the description of the heraldry. Volume 1 missing. Appendix contains heraldic terms, family mottoes and extensive corrections. Glossary and Appendix

OXFORD DICTIONARY OF NATIONAL BIOGRAPHY

• The Oxford Dictionary of Biography - Record here
  Detailed biographies of over 60,000 people who have shaped Britain. Subscription site but often free at local libraries.

SCOTLAND HERALDRY, CLANS AND PEERAGES here

Why Donate?

• I started this list in the summer 2014 as I frequently came across a lot of on-line information.
• However, it is too easy to lose a crucial link (as I can testify by personal experience!)
• Alternatively it can be difficult to know what is on the web, either on free or subscription websites.
• For these reasons I am building up the site to cover all on-line family history records.
• The site has no financial support - and has web-associated costs to maintain it - but will always be free to use.
• Your donations will help the site to grow and expand. This will make searching your family history much easier, quicker and more productive.
• Thank You very much for any support you can give.

Chris
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