England Record Finder

This table can help you decide which records to search. It is most helpful for research from 1800 to the present.

• Step 1. Choose an ancestor you would like to know more about. Decide what information you would like to learn about that person. This new information is your research goal.
• Step 2. In column 1 of this table, find the goal you selected.
• Step 3. In column 2 of this table, find the types of records most likely to have the information you need; then read the sections in this outline about those types of records.
• Step 4. Look in the Family History Library Catalog and choose a specific record to search.
• Step 5. Look at the record.
• Step 6. If you do not find the information you need, return to column 3 and search those record types. Note:Records of previous research (Genealogy, Biography, History, Periodicals, and Societies) are useful for most goals, but they are not listed unless they are especially helpful.

1. If You Need	2. Search These Record Types First	3. Search These Record Types Next
Age	Census, Civil Registration, Church Records	Cemeteries, Obituaries, Military Records
Birth date	Civil Registration, Church Records	Obituaries, Newspapers, Military Records, Occupations
Birthplace	Census, Civil Registration, Church Records	Obituaries, Newspapers, Occupations, Military Records
Place of foreign birth (not England)	Church Records, Census	Emigration and Immigration, Military Records
Parish, district, and county boundaries	Gazetteers	Maps, History
Death	Civil Registration, Church Records, Obituaries, Newspapers, Cemeteries	Probate Records, Court Records, Land and Property, Military Records
Historical background	History, Genealogy	Church History
Immigration date	See research outline for country to which ancestor immigrated	Emigration and Immigration, Church Records
Living relatives	Directories, Civil Registration	Societies, Newspapers, Periodicals
Maiden name	Civil Registration, Church Records	Obituaries, Newspapers, Cemeteries
Marriage	Church Records, Civil Registration, Genealogy, Periodicals	Newspapers, Biography, Nobility, Cemeteries
Occupation	Church Records, Census, Directories, Civil Registration, Occupations, Probate Records	Court Records, Obituaries, Officials and Employees, Military Records, Taxation
Parents, children, and other family members	Census, Obituaries, Probate Records	Church Records, Newspapers, Civil Registration
Physical description	Military Records, Court Records	Church Records, Newspapers, Civil Registration
Place-finding aids	Gazetteers, Directories, Maps	History, Taxation, Land and Property, Periodicals
Places of residence	Census, Church Records, Directories	Land and Property, Probate Records, Taxation
Place of residence when you know only the county	Directories, Census, Probate Records, Civil Registration	Church Records, Taxation
Previous research (compiled genealogy)	Biography, Genealogy, Societies	Nobility, Periodicals
Record-finding aids	Archives and Libraries, Genealogy	Societies, Periodicals
Religion	Church Records, Biography, Obituaries, Civil Registration	Cemeteries, Genealogy, History, Probate Records