This practical and comprehensive guide provides an introduction to everything
family historians need to know in order to trace their ancestors in
Hertfordshire.
Every aspect of our ancestors' lives has been considered, from their both and
baptism to their death and burial. Examples of source material, together with
photographs and drawings illustrate the text.
The book is thematic in approach, the chapters incorporating related material
on subjects as broad as military ancestors and the poor and the sick. In each
chapter a brief background to the subject is followed by a description of the
kinds of records you can expect to find, including their usefulness to family
historian, and details of where those records are held.
The emphasis is on sources available in Hertfordshire, and particularly those
held in the Family History Centre at Hertfordshire Archives and Local
Studies (HALS) in Hertford, but all major sources are covered irrespective of
location and web addresses allow preliminary searching to be done online. A
wealth of experience from family historians and the staff at HALS is passed on
in the form of tips and vital information.
Appendices provide useful addresses and websites, and also list the
availability of essential sources such as parish registers, nonconformist
registers, and the whereabouts of wills before 1858.
This is indispensable reading for anyone researching their Hertfordshire
ancestors.
Contents:
Acknowledgements
Introduction
- Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies (HALS)
- Hertfordshire Libraries and Museums
- Hertfordshire Family History Society
- LDS Family History Centres
1. The Administrative Background
- Hundreds, Liberty of St Albans, Ecclesiastical Administration, Parishes,
Poor Law Unions and Registration Dustricts
- Boundary and Civil Parish Changes
2. Births, Marriages and Deaths
- Civil Registration
- Church of England Parish Registers
- Bishops' Transcripts
- Marriage Licences and Banns
- Nonconformist and Other Non-Anglican Records
- The International Genealogical Index (IGI)
- Hertfordshire Indexes of Marriages and Deaths/Burials
- Monumental Inscriptions
- Cemeteries and Crematoria
- Coroners' Inquests
- Wills, Administrations and Inventories
- Adoption and Children's Homes
3. Household and Property Records
- Census Returns
- Electoral Registers and Poll Books
- Tax Returns
- Parish Rate Assessments
- Manorial Records
- Local Population Lists
4. Professions and Occupations
- Licensed Occupations: Victuallers, Badgers and Higglers, Printers,
Gamekeepers, Teachers, Surgeons and Midwives
- Police Officers
- Parish and Union Officers
- Clergymen
- Estate Workers and Servants
- Brewers and Maltsters
- Apprenticeship
- Company Archives Held at HALS
- Other Hertfordshire Occupations and Industries
5. Crime and Punishment
- Assize Courts
- Quarter Sessions
- Petty Sessions
- Hertfordshire's Gaols
- Transportation
6. The Poor and the Sick
- The Poor Law
- Public Assistance 1930-48
- Hospitals and Asylums
- Gypsies and Travellers
7. Schools and Education
- Local Authority Schools
- Further Education and Training Colleges
- Independent and Other Schools
8. Military Ancestors
- Early Muster Rolls
- Militia Lists 1757-1801
- Volunteer and Territorial Forces in Hertfordshire
- Military Service in the British Army: First and Second World Wars
9. Printed Sources
- Directories
- Newspapers
- Miscellaneous Printed Sources
Appendix 1: Parish List of Holdings at HALS
Appendix 2: Nonconformist Registers Held at HALS
Appendix 3: Cemeteries and Crematoria Within Hertfordshire, with Contact Details
Appendix 4: Where to Look for Wills: Archdeaconry Courts in Hertfordshire to
1858
Appendix 5: Hertfordshire Library Holdings of Filmed Parish Registers, Census
Returns and the IGI
Appendix 6: Useful Addresses
Index
