Tracing English Immigrants From Abroad: Difference between revisions

It will take effort to search through all of the records and prove places of birth. The challenge of researching in England’s large cities is in dealing with the large task of searching in huge population bases. Along with large populations comes the challenge of searching through extensive databases with many different record types and names. The sheer number of inhabitants in Greater London and other large cities in England causes many challenges for the researcher. Thus, the availability of searchable databases or indexes is incredibly helpful to finding the right record or information and connecting generations. If there are no searchable databases or indexes, researchers must search collections page by page, which is very time-consuming. Indexes often exist for the large cities and towns of England.

Remember that searching for indexes should never be limited to online sites only, but should be extended to archives, record offices, academic libraries/archives, or even local and public libraries. Most of these locations may have both computerized indexes and databases available to in-house patrons, as well as manual-form (i.e. published books, microform, and manuscripts) indexes for you to search.  

Big city research in England is greatly facilitated when you know or learn what available quick-finding resources (i.e. indexes) there are for England and its large cities. Locate and then search all indexes and searchable databases for large cities in which you need to conduct research. If the record or information cannot be located, search through the databases that do not have indexes. This requires a page by page search. If this does not produce the record, visit or hire someone to search the various archives that may house other record collections.

====England's Key Genealogical Records====

The key genealogical records and databases for big city research in England are different that other areas of the world. The key records and the information that can be found in them will be presented below. Most of these records will be available online, but some can only be found in archives or other repositories. After these lists, the useful indexes, databases, calendars, and other resources where these records can be found will be provided. These resources should help you more quickly find the desired records or information. If searching in an index, always check the original record in order to validate that everything in the index is correct.

*Civil registration of births, marriages and deaths: July 1837-present. Located at the General Register Office in London (the national level) or at the local or registration district level throughout the country. Birth certificates give the birth date and place, child's name and sex, father's name and occupation, and mother's maiden name. Marriage certificates give the marriage date and place; names of the bride and groom and their ages, marital conditions, professions, and residences; and the names and occupations of the bride and groom's fathers. Death certificates give the death date and place and the deceased's full name, sex, age, occupation, parent (if a child), and cause of death.

*Census records: 1841-1911. All are available online and at the National Archives in Kew, Surrey England. Many also are available at county record offices. Censuses list the residence of the family and the name of each member of the household and their relationship to the head (after 1841), sex, age, marital condition, occupation, and birth place.

*Church registers: 1538-present. Most are available online or at the Family History Library. Church of England church records, which include parish registers and bishop's transcripts, include christenings, marriages, and burials. Christenings usually list the child, christening date and place, parents, and father's occupation and residence (after 1812). Marriages usually list the marriage date and place and the bride and groom's names, residences, and marital statuses. After 1837, marriage records also list the bride and groom's ages and fathers. Burials list the name of the deceased, the burial date and place, and a relation (the father if the deceased was a child or the husband if the deceased was married. After 1812, the age, residence, and occupation of the deceased was also listed. The majority of these church records are available online. Nonconformist church registers also provide vital information and usually available online. If not online, church records can be found at county record offices or the local parish church.

**You can (and should) also Google the following three (or more) terms in order to find names of ancestors in church registers:

::Google: city or borough or regional place-names, or name of record type, i.e. for baptisms or marriages or burials, census, military, and other records; also can add such terms as “index” or, in quotation marks, “surname index"