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There are a large number of internet sites and places where you can find relevant information to support your research in the Midlands, and we have listed some of them below. We have also provided a short list of the key national resources.
Please note that most of our titles can be purchased via the well-known premier family history, genealogy and online bookstore The Parish Chest.
We are lucky in the Midlands in having some excellent web-sites which provide a considerable amount of information free of charge. Where I know of these I have listed them below. I have also included references to family history and local history societies where I know of them.
Also, there are a number of archives and repositories in the area which have some excellent material, to which you can obtain free access if you can travel there. Of course, not everyone can travel, and the purpose of the Midlands Historical Data project is to provide access to some material at reasonable prices.
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Birmingham web-ring |
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A community focussed on the history of Birmingham, many of whom provide free information and photographs |
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History of Brum |
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Andrew Spencer has produced a simply excellent site which provides a lot of information about the industrial development of Birmingham |
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Made in Birmingham |
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A magnificent web-site created by Jon Price on the Industrial History of Birmingham which features brief histories of many Birmingham companies, with contributions from people who worked for them or were connected in some way. |
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The John Morris Jones Collection |
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A series of 30 local histories of areas of Birmingham written between 1960 and 1980 by a headmaster - a simply excellent summary of Birmingham's local history |
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Railway & Industrial History of the South West Black Country |
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Another excellent site which contains information on the industrial history of the South West Black Country |
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Railways in Worcestershire |
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Excellent site constructed by the Malvern Industrial Archaeology Circle documenting railways in Worcestershire |
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Rowley Regis On-line |
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Yet another excellent site covering Rowley Regis, Blackheath and Cradley Heath with an increasing local history content |
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Ancient manor of Sedgley |
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Yet another excellent site on the ancient manor of Sedgley |
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Digital Midlands |
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To quote from the home page ... "Seven projects from across the Midlands have joined forces to create a unique digital record of the region. Some of the finest cultural, heritage, natural history and community collections have been digitised and made accessible over the Internet through a searchable database." |
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1861 census online |
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Index to the 1861 census for Stourbridge, and parts pof Halesowen, Cradley, Dudley & Kingswinford |
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1861 census - Shifnal, Staffs |
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Transcription of 1861 census around Shifnal, Staffs |
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UK census on-line |
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UK-wide census extracts, with links to international census extracts |
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Birmingham Pals |
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A personal site run by the grand-daughter of one of the first men to enlist for the new battalion that was to become known as the Birmingham Pals (also known as the 14th, 15th and 16th Royal Warwicks). |
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Black Country |
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Another useful site providing background material on the Black Country |
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Virtual Brum |
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Everything you ever wanted to know about Birmingham with links to genealogy and local history resources |
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Birmingham Heritage Web-site |
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Web-site of the Birmingham Heritage Forum, a voluntary association of public and private groups interested in the heritage of Birmingham |
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Birmingham Conservation Trust |
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Web-site of the Birmingham Conservation Trust, which is doing excellent work in conserving Birmingham's heritage. Responsible for the Back-to-Backs and Newman Bros. (shortly). If you visit Birmingham, you really should go to see the Back-to-backs project - fascinating. |
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Friends of New Hall Mill |
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Web-site of the Friends of New Hall Mill, which contains interesting information on this and other local mills |
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Historic Coventry |
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Excellent site covering the history of Coventry - includes illustrations, photographs, maps (animated to show the growth of the City) and much, much more. |
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thepotteries.org |
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Excellent local history site for Stoke-on-Trent, containing many photographs and much useful information |
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Staffordshire History |
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Outstanding site maintained by Julian Bielewicz on behalf of the Community Council of Staffordshire (a voluntary and charitable organisation over 50 years old) |
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Midlands Pubs - past & present |
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Wonderful site giving history of Midlands Pubs, with a lot of previousdly unpublished photographs |
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On-line English Names Registry |
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Free register of surnames being researched by family historians. Covers all English counties, with a particularly good entry for Staffordshire. |
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| Societies |
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BMSGH |
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Web-site of the Birmingham and Midlands Society for Genealogy & Heraldry. Covers the counties of Warwickshire, Worcestershire & Staffordshire. If you are serious about genealogy in this area you should join. |
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Amblecote History Society |
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Excellent and informative site of the Amblecote History Society |
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BDLHA |
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Web-site of the Birmingham and District Local History Society, an umbrella group for the growing number of local history societies in and around the city. |
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A page from the BDLHA site which provides the most comprehensive list of for Local History Socieities and Groups in and around Birmingham |
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Wolverhampton History & Heritage Society |
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An excellent site covering the history of Wolverhampton |
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Bromsgrove Society |
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Society dedicated to the built environment in and around Bromsgrove |
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Dugdale Society |
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Society founded, in association with the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, to publish original documents relating to the history of Warwickshire. |
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Other family & local history groups |
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Another page of useful links to local societies and groups |
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| Other |
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Alton Douglas |
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Well known local author who has published 37 local history books since 1981. This site lists them all and gives you the opportunity to buy copies signed by the author. |
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There are a number of archives and repositories in the region which have excellent material. Most require you to have some form of identification, and many participate in the CARN scheme. However, I suggest you always take some form of identification (e.g. driving licence, utility bill or passport) so that you can register and access material. Below are their web-sites which provide information on their holdings, location and hours of access.
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National Archives |
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Home page of the National Archives, which now includes the Historic Manuscripts Commission. This has a national catalogue of holdings. |
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Familysearch |
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Site of the Church of Latter Day Saints, which provides free lookups for baptisms, marriages and a few deaths |
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GENUKI
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GENUKI is the genealogical information service for the UK and Ireland, containing a lot of information on resources. The pages listed at left are likely to be of specific interest to local researchers, but the site covers the whole of the UK. There are also some great pages of general advice, like Getting Started |
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FreeBMD |
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Free look-up for civil registrations of burths, deaths and marriages in the UK. Not yet a complete index, but the best that's available free of charge. |
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Family Records Centre |
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UK Government site which aims to help you find governemt records relevant to your family history research. |
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British History on-line |
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Useful collection of on-line resources, including extracts from Victoria County history, mediaeval rolls, etc. |
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Miscellaneous links |
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Miscellany of links on another page ... |
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