Tips for potential house historians!
The best place to start is with the deeds to the property. If they are not in your possession they may be in the care of your bank, building society or solicitor. It is very unlikely that the deeds will be held by an Archive Service. If you are able to locate the deeds there may not be a full series dating back to the date that the property was built. There may be an abstract of title – a document that summarises the various transactions on the property. This may refer to earlier transactions where the deeds don’t survive.
Old maps can help date the property and date any substantive changes to it. A good starting point is the various editions of Ordnance Survey maps – these can be found online at https://maps.nls.uk/ and www.old-maps.co.uk. Northumberland Archives holds copies of many historic Ordnance Survey maps. Other maps sources particularly tithe maps (circa 1840) and the 1910 Land Valuation can provide information about land ownership and occupancy. This information may lead you to estate records. Northumberland Archives holds records of many Northumberland estates.
We hold historic planning records dating back to 1856 and it may be possible to locate an original building plan for your property. This involves looking through a planning register to locate a plan reference.
If you find evidence that your property formed part of a manor you should look for records of that manor. A good place to start is the Manorial Documents register- https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/manor-search. This will tell you what records survive and their location. The records themselves are not available online.
Census returns, 1841-1911, can help you locate who lived in your property. These are available online via two commercial sites – www.ancestry.co.uk and www.findmypast.co.uk. The same sites include a digital copy of the 1939 register for England and Wales – a list of all civilians. This can also be useful in tracing occupancy of properties.
Another useful occupancy source is electoral registers – lists of voters. Electoral registers for Newcastle. 1741-1974, can be found on www.ancestry.co.uk. Northumberland electoral registers are not online but can be consulted in our searchrooms.
Copies of almost any items in our care can be provided for a charge. Staff are happy to provide guidance around sources and research strategies but are unable to undertake research for you. If you are unable to undertake personal research we have a charged for Research Service – see https://northumberlandarchives.com/test/services/research/
