How to .... Research your House History: a few basic steps
Before visiting the Archive Service you should:
Look at current title deeds, if possible, to establish the immediate descent of ownership.
Contact the Land Registry:
Land Registry, Coventry Office, Leigh Court
Torrington Avenue, Tile Hill, Coventry
CV4 9XZ
Tel: 024 7686 0860
Web address:
www.landreg.gov.uk/regional/office Read a manual on house history for local historians, so that you know what is available.
Look at architectural evidence such as dating stones, but be wary, things are not always as they seem!
Check if your building is listed
Contact your local record office to find out details of opening hours, sources held and booking procedures.
As always: start with the present and work backwards, step by step.
Visiting your record office: Initial steps
Remember to bring your notes with you.
Check the available printed sources such as the
Victoria County History or Pevsner’s Buildings of England series. Particularly useful for notable old buildings.
Consider
Tithe, Enclosure, Parish or Estate maps, if they survive. These early manuscript maps sometimes have books of reference providing details of the owners and occupiers, which could lead to other sources.
Check for Title Deeds. These are usually found among solicitors or estate papers. They survive for only very few properties.
Surviving Sale Catalogues may contain maps, plans, photographs and drawings.
Newspapers may contain sale notices.
To compile a list of former inhabitants, look at census returns, 1841 – 1901; electoral registers and rate books, but remember, voting was restricted until relatively recent times.
If you know that the property was part of a manor, then check records such as court rolls or books, surveys and rentals.
Useful information can sometimes be found in wills and inventories.
If the house formerly had another use, such as a school, almshouse, pub or chapel, other sources may be available.
Remember to record all the information you find and note its source thoroughly.
A word of advice:
Records were not created for the purposes of research and any such venture is unlikely to be straightforward. Please bear in mind that:
Not all classes of record have survived for all areas.
It is usually easier to find out about the people who lived in a property rather than the history of the building itself.
Only rarely is it possible to find the precise date a house was built or detailed information about previous owners.
Researching the history of your house takes time and patience, but can be immensely rewarding. House history can be very sociable: clues can be found through chatting with previous owners, estate agents, neighbours and local newspapers can all be very informative and may even turn up a picture or two. As with all good mysteries, the joy is in the hunt, so why not try it now and become your own detective; you never know where you next clue might take you.
