Family and local history

For licensing reasons, some of our resources are only accessible from computers in particular libraries.

 

Subscriptions

 

Ancestry logoAncestry Library Edition

(all libraries, no remote access)

Provides access to the 1841 to 1901 UK censuses and contains more than 4 billion names. A simple search using an ancestor's Christian and surname can produce some interesting results, which can be viewed, printed or emailed.


British Newspaper Archive logoNEW! British Newspaper Archive - Community Edition

(all libraries, no remote access)

A partnership between the British Library and Brightsolid online publishing to digitise up to 40 million newspaper pages from the British Library's vast collection over the next 10 years.

So far it includes the following archives for Kent newspapers:

  • Dover Express - 7 August 1858 to 30 December 1949
  • Kentish Gazette - 28 May 1768 to 25 December 1883
  • Whitstable Times & Herne Bay Herald - 5 January 1867 to 31 December 1904
  • Kentish Chronicle - 9 July 1859 to 28 December 1867

 

See the up-to-date titles list.

Please note: Free access is restricted to library computers and you will need to register for an individual account. We have a limited number of concurrent licences across the county; to enable a maximum of people to benefit, the product will log you out following 10 minutes of inactivity.


Credo logoCredo Reference

Gives access to 150 top reference books from some of the world's biggest publishers including Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage, Debrett's People of Today.

 


Dictionary of National Biography logoDictionary of National Biography

Tells the stories of over 50,000 people who shaped the history of the British Isles and beyond. It also includes over 10,000 portrait illustrations, and the complete text of the 33-volumes of the first edition of the Dictionary of National Biography.


Find my past logoFind my Past - Community Edition

(all libraries, no remote access)

View around 750 million records including birth, marriage and death records, the complete UK census collection (including the official 1911 census), millions of parish records dating back as far as 1538, a vast military records collection spanning 1656-1994, migration records etc.

Please note: Our subscription excludes memorial scrolls and the Living Relatives database. Our license states that usage is for research into a user’s own family history only, and not for any commercial or other purpose whatsoever and that accessing records on behalf of 3rd parties is not permitted.


Gale news Vault

Use the link to the News Vault to search the following resources individually or all in one go.

  • 19th century newspapers logo19th Century British Library newspapers

A comprehensive range of national, regional and local newspapers published in 19th century Britain, which reflects the social, political and cultural events of the times. Users can search across a large range of titles, perform full-text searches and view specific article types.

  • Illustrated london news logoIllustrated London News

The world's first fully illustrated weekly newspaper, it allowed readers to not only read about British and world events but to actually see them. From war and disasters to politics and the arts, it provided a vivid view of the people, places and events that, until then, most of its readers could only imagine.

  • Times Digital iconTimes Digital Archives

Search through the digital edition of The Times (London) 1785 - 2007 using keyword or date searches to retrieve full facsimile images of either a specific article or a complete page. The entire newspaper is captured, with all notices, obituaries, advertisements and illustrations/photos divided into categories to facilitate searching.


Kent History Source

(Kent History and Library Centre only)

In partnership with Rochester Diocese and Family Search many of the parish records for the Rochester Diocese area have been digitised and are available online. This will eventually be made available in all libraries in Kent.


Origins logoOrigins UK 

(Kent History and Library Centre only)

Produced in partnership with Origins, this provides access to indexes for over 40,000 records of West Kent wills, 1440-1857, and probate inventories for the whole of Kent, 1571-1842. These records are a wonderful source for family and local history. At the Kent History & Library Centre only, ask at the desk  for access.


John Johnson collection logoThe John Johnson Collection

Access thousands of items selected from the John Johnson Collection of Printed Ephemera at the Bodleian Library, offering unique insights into the changing nature of everyday life in Britain in the eighteenth, nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Categories include Nineteenth-Century Entertainment, the Booktrade, Popular Prints, Crimes, Murders and Executions, and Advertising.


UK Press Online logoUK Press Online

Access digitised copies of the South Eastern Gazette 1852 - 1912.

As well as the following:

  • Daily Mirror 1903 - 1980
  • Daily Mirror Academic 1903 - current
  • Daily Express 1900 - current
  • Sunday Express 2000 - current
  • Church Times 1863 - 1889; 1939 - 1945; 2000 - current
  • The Watchman 1835 - 1884
  • Daily Worker 1930 - 1945
  • Morning Star 2000 - current
  • World War Two 1933 - 1945 (comprised of wartime editions of the Daily Mirror, Daily Express, Fascist Week, Action!, Blackshirt, Yorkshire Post and Daily Worker) 


whos who logoWho's Who with Who was Who Online

Who's Who is the essential directory of the noteworthy and influential in the UK and worldwide. Who Was Who includes over 100,000 entries from the archives of Who's Who dating back to 1898.


 

More specialised biographical resources can also be found in the Arts and humanities section.

 

Free websites

 

Kent-specific

 

Cityark

"CityArk is the online catalogue of the Medway Council Archives Service which is based at the Medway Archives and Local Studies Centre, in Strood. We preserve and make available for research the archives of the Medway area of Kent and also the parish records of north-west Kent.


Explore Kent's past

'Explore England's Past' provides free access to 1000s of local history resources including images, transcribed wills and documents and town trails. The Kent section includes transcribed wills and a history of the papermaking industry and a history of people and work in the Lower Medway Valley is being prepared.


Hasted's 'History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent'

Search the volumes of the second edition (text and maps) of this major work on Kent history published between 1797 and 1801.


Here’s History Kent

This site is run by Kent Archaeological Society and includes information on towns and villages across Kent including articles, maps and photographs. There are also articles on subjects relating to the history of the County


Kent Archaeological Society

Information includes images, transcriptions of tithe apportionments and wills, inscriptions from graves, indexes to and some articles from Archaeologica Cantiana and the Victoria County History of Kent, tithe awards, index of wills and the Wotton Surveys 1557-1560.


Kent birth, marriage and death

Allows users to search the registration indexes for births (1992 - 2002), marriages (1837 - 2002) and deaths (1992 - 2002).


Kent Family History Society

Provides a keyword search for family names and some further information in the `Members Interest’ section.


Kent History Forum

A popular discussion forum for people interested in all aspects of Kent history. Posts and questions on the forum relate to a wide range of topics place and the forum also provides a place to swap information and find out about history-based activities and events in the county.


North West Kent Family History Society

The society can carry out research on your behalf – their website also contains articles on Kentish families, some searchable indexes and information on surnames being researched.


Screen Archives South East

Provides an enhanced online catalogue of over 2000 selected films from the Screen Archive South East collection. A separate catalogue allows access to films from archives across the UK.

 

National

 

1911 census

Search the index and see transcribed details of original census entries for free. Viewing the original full records requires the purchase of credits.


a2a logoA2A (Access to Archives)

This database contains catalogues describing archives held locally in England and Wales and dating from the eighth century to the present day.


BBC People's war

An archive of World War 2 memories submitted to and compiled by the BBC.


cwgc logoCommonwealth War Graves Commission

The "Debt of Honour Register" database lists the 1.7 million men and women of the Commonwealth forces who died during the 2 world wars and the 23,000 cemeteries, memorials and other locations worldwide where they are commemorated. You can also search the register for details of the 67,000 Commonwealth civilians who died as a result of enemy action in the Second World War.


Family search

FamilySearch.org is a non-profit service sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.The site provides access to "the largest collection of free family history, family tree and genealogy records in the world".


FreeBMD

Access to partial indexes for 1837 to 1915 civil records of births, marriages and deaths.


genuki logoGenealogy in the UK and Ireland (Genuki)

Search tool listing a wide range of British sources.

 


goons logoGuild of One Name Studies (GOONS)

"The Guild brings together those with an interest in one-name studies and other forms of surname study".

 


London Gazette logoLondon Gazette

The modern London Gazette is a broad range of official, regulatory and legal information notices. The website also offers a huge archive of historically important information published since the London Gazette was first published in 1665 when King Charles II was on the throne.


National Archives logoNational Archives

Search the catalogue and access research guides.


Old Bailey Online

A fully searchable version of the Proceedings of the Old Bailey 1674-1913, "the largest body of texts detailing the lives of non-elite people ever published, containing 197,745 criminal trials held at London's central criminal court".

View other relevant pages on this website for more details about the resources held in Kent libraries and archive centres to aid your research.

 

 

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Contact us

Information Services Team

Kent History and Library Centre
James Whatman Way
Maidstone
ME14 1LQ

01622 696438
Fax: 01622 696445

AKL@kent.gov.uk