Yorkshire Registry of Deeds

Through the years, English law has been unable to make up its mind about the registration of land ownership, whether by deed, title or any other method. The accounts that exist concerning land in the early English records came about because of court appeals, such as feet of fines which was a result of the judgment of ownership by the Court of Common Pleas, or other government acts such as royal grants of land as found in the Chancery Court Rolls. The Chancery Court also investigated existing record of land dealings and in 1536 the first bill to register land was sent to Parliament but the bill was rejected. During the next 300 years, at least 25 land bills were introduced in Parliament but were never passed. There was no national compulsory registering of deeds or titles or any compulsory registration of land until 1925.

As Yorkshire grew into the center for the manufacturing of cloth, traders and factory owners, who were mostly freeholders, would borrow on their freehold to expand their business. It became increasingly difficult to satisfy the money-lenders as to their security. This led to a demand for some sort of registration of deeds or title to their property. An Act of Parliament in 1704 provided for a public registry of deeds, conveyances, wills, etc. to be established in Yorkshire and Middlesex. It was to be an experimental local system and it was to register any document dealing with a legal estate. In 1875, parliament provided for a voluntary registration of title, and in 1985 it was made compulsory in the London County Council area. In 1925, compulsory registration of title became law but the law was applied sparingly at first in Middlesex, Surrey, Eastbourne, Hastings, Oxford, Oldham, Leicester and parts of Kent.

The Registry of Deeds was opened on 29 September 1704 in Wakefield in the West Riding of Yorkshire because Wakefield was nearest to the center to the trading district. The Registrar was subject to election by the freeholders of West Riding. The Registry of Deeds in the East Riding of Yorkshire dates from 1712 and the North Riding of Yorkshire Registry dates from 1736. The Registry is not a register of deeds as such, nor was the registration of deeds compulsory. Any document dealing with the legal estate could be entered in the registry. Memorials of deeds or wills (in some cases) as well as some original deeds are to be found in the registry. Depending on the memorial or deed, it is possible to find details about relatives and their land. It is also possible to construct family relationships by looking at all references to a particular surname.

You can find the film numbers for the Yorkshire Registry of Deeds in the Family History Library Catalog by looking under Great Britain – Registry of Deeds (North Riding, East Riding, West Riding) or in the locality section under Yorkshire – Land and Property.

The following terms are used in the Registry of Deeds:

Memorials: An abstract of the particulars of a deed serving for registration. The term is also used for abstracts of wills.

Conveyancing (by deed): Transference of property from one person to another by any lawful act. The written instrument of a document by which transference is made.

Demise: To give, grant, convey or transfer (an estate) by will or lease.

Assign: Transference of personal property such as a leasehold, as distinguished from real property.

Mortgage: The conveyance of real or personal property by a debtor (mortgagor) to a creditor (mortgagee) as security for a money debt, with the provision that the property shall be reconveyed upon payment of the mortgagee of the debt.

Indenture (of lease or release): Originally a document cut into two jagged pieces, the authenticity of one piece being proved when matched with the other. The contents of the document were written twice, and it was usual to add the word “Cyrographum” where the jagged cut was made.

Deed Poll: Deed made by one party. Because it needed no duplicate, it was cut clean (poll) rather than indent (jagged). For more details about deeds visit | Deeds in Depth.