Griffith’s Valuation 1848-1864, indexed with images in this database, is one of Ireland’s premier genealogical resources, referencing approximately one million individuals who occupied property in Ireland between 1848 and 1864. Also known as Primary Valuation of Ireland, it was executed under the direction of Sir Richard Griffith to provide a basis for determining taxes. This Read More
The Dictionary of National Biography began in 1882 as an ambitious project spearheaded by George Murray Smith to produce a biographical dictionary of prominent British and Irish figures from the earliest of times up to 1900. The efforts of hundreds of contributors resulted in a 22 volume alphabetical series containing thousands of biographies. This collection Read More
On this Valentine’s Day, we revisit the Gretna Green Marriage Registers 1795-1895, a fascinating collection which details the weddings of more than half of all Brits who crossed the Scottish border to marry without their parents’ consent. The collection, also referred to as the ‘Lang Registers’ , contains the marriage records of Gretna Green’s most Read More
Now available on Ancestry.com.au, the London Land Tax Valuations 1910 reveals the historic values of some of the city’s most famous streets and landmarks from just over a century ago. These valuations were originally compiled in 1910 from across the UK as part of David Lloyd George’s 1910 Finance Act, later known as the ‘Domesday Read More
Ever wondered where your hairy legs come from? Or perhaps it’s your ruddy complexion, flaxen hair or so-called frugal nature… We often boast about the crimes of our convict ancestors, but with the List of Convicts with Particulars 1788-1842, Australians can now also get a picture of what they looked like. This collection contains information Read More
The New South Wales Registers of Convicts’ Applications to Marry 1826-1851 contains more than 40,000 convict applications to wed, including numerous multiple applications made by those whose initial applications were refused. In the early years of the Australian Colony, most marriages followed the publication of banns in a church on three successive Sundays. Convicts did Read More
In his Report of the Commissioner of inquiry into the state of the colony of New South Wales, Commissioner John Thomas Bigge made the recommendation that any money belonging to and brought by the convicts should be taken and deposited into a savings bank account. Prior to this, convicts had been able to retain any Read More
New South Wales was first settled in 1788 as a penal colony and, as a result, a large percentage of the population in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries was comprised of convicts and ex-convicts. A person could be emancipated by receiving a certificate of freedom, a ticket of leave, or by being granted Read More
The England & Wales Criminal Registers 1791-1892 contain records for all 1.4 million criminal trials reported to the Home Office that took place in England and Wales from the late 18th to the late 19th centuries, painting a detailed picture of Britain’s early legal system1. The collection – taken from 279 original paper volumes held Read More
The Convict Transportation Registers 1788-1868 include records for most of the 163,021 convicts transported to Australia. The collection – the originals for which are held at The National Archives of England and Wales – includes the four transportation registers spanning the 80 years of convict transportation. Australian Convict Transportation Registers – First Fleet, 1787-1788 Australian Read More