England Using Gazeteers

England Using Gazeteers
Where Your Ancestor Lived Guide Introduction Once you have identified the name of a place where your ancestor lived, you should learn more about it. Knowing details about a place will help you find records about your ancestor. Sources that provide information about places include: • Gazetteers. • Topographical dictionaries. What You Are Looking For The information you find varies from source to source. In these sources you may find information about: • Location. • Jurisdictions. • Local religions. • Geographical descriptions. • Manors or estates. • Industries and manufacturing. • Land use. • Population. Steps These 5 steps will help you find information about a place in England. Step 1. Choose a place where your ancestor lived. Look at the information you have gathered and choose the name of a town or parish where your ancestor lived. If only the county or country is known, go to How To Find a Place-Name. Step 2. Choose a gazetteer. Choose a gazetteer to search. The following gazetteers are listed in order of the amount and value of the information they give. These gazetteers are available at the Family History Library. Other gazetteers may be available at a library near you. You may want to look at more than one gazetteer to gather details about the place you have chosen. England, How to Find Information About the Place Where Your Ancestor LIved Research Guidance Version of Data: 03/08/01 2 Title Publication Date Features Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales. about 1870 Gives location, jurisdictions, geographical description, local religions, local manors or estates, industries and manufacturing, land use, and population. Lewis' Topographical Dictionary of England. 1831 and later; several editions Gives location, jurisdictions, geographical description, local religions, local manors or estates, industries and manufacturing, land use, and population. Cassell's Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland. 1894-1898 Gives location, jurisdictions, geographical description, local religions, local manors or estates, industries and manufacturing, land use, and population. The Parliamentary Gazetteer of England and Wales 1846 Gives location, jurisdictions, geographical description, local religions, local manors or estates, industries and manufacturing, land use, and population. Bartholomew's Survey Gazetteer of the British Isles. Original, 1904; 9th edition, 1943; reprinted 1966 Gives location and geographical description; also gives jurisdictions, industries and manufacturing, and population for larger cities. Smith's Genealogical Gazetteer of England. 1968 Gives location, jurisdictions, local religions, population, and date of earliest parish registers. Bartholomew's Gazetteer of Places in Britain. 1986 Gives location, geographical description, and includes maps. Gazetteers and topographical dictionaries are not the only sources for information about placenames. For more sources, see Tip 1. Step 3. Obtain a copy of a gazetteer. You can find gazetteers at: • Family History Centers. • The Family History Library. • Other archives and libraries. Step 4. Search the gazetteer for the place-name. Once you have obtained a copy of a gazetteer, look for the name of the place where your ancestor lived. Information in gazetteers is arranged alphabetically by the place-name. If you cannot find the place in a gazetteer or other place-name source, see Tip 2. Step 5. Copy the information and note the source. Copy the information about the place-name onto family group sheets, a pedigree chart, and in your notes. Some of the information may not seem helpful at this time but may be important in future research. You may want to make a photocopy of the information directly from the source. England, How to Find Information About the Place Where Your Ancestor LIved Research Guidance Version of Data: 03/08/01 3 Be sure to write down the source of the information on a research log, including any library call numbers. Be specific when writing down this information. If you should ever need to look at the source again, your documentation will show where to find it. If anyone else should consult your research, they will also see where to find the source. Your research log will serve as a guide to your research. Tips Tip 1. Where else can I find information about a place? Information about places can also be found in: • County histories. • Town or parish histories. • County directories. • Descriptive regional guides. Look for these other types of sources in the FamilySearch Catalog. Go to What to Do Next, select the Catalog, and look for the county, town, or parish, and your topic of choice. Tip 2. What if I cannot find the place-name in any of the suggested sources? You may not find a place-name because it is: • Misspelled. • Known by another name. • Obsolete. • A farm or other property name. The following sources may help you identify and locate your place-name: • The Ordnance Survey Gazetteer of Great Britain. This is a good source for smaller localities if they still exist today. This gazetteer relates to the detailed, large scale Landranger maps published by the Ordnance Survey Office of Great Britain. • English Place Names Society publications. These books discuss the historical use of place names, name changes, disuse, and alternate spellings. This is an ongoing project and not all counties have been published yet. Those that have been are found in the Family History Library Catalog. Go to What to Do Next, select the catalog, and look for your county of interest and the topic of NAMES, GEOGRAPHICAL. Tip 3. How can I find a map showing the place where my ancestor lived? For information on how to find a map, see How To Find Maps. England, How to Find Information About the Place Where Your Ancestor LIved Research Guidance Version of Data: 03/08/01 4 Where to Find It Family History Centers Family History Centers have gazetteers for England on microfiche. Other place-name sources may be available on microfiche or microfilm. Centers can purchase microfiche or borrow microfilm from the Family History Library. There is a small fee to have a microfilm sent on loan to a center. Family History Centers are located throughout the United States and other areas of the world. Find a Family History Center near you. Family History Library The Family History Library has several gazetteers and other place-name sources for England in book form as well as on microfilm or microfiche. There is no fee for using the library's collection in person. You may request photocopies of pages from a gazetteer or other source from the library for a small fee. You will need to fill out a Request for Photocopies form, which is available at all Family History Centers. Complete the form with the book, film, or fiche number you found in your search of the FamilySearch Catalog (see What to Do Next). Send the form and payment to the Family History Library. Other Archives and Libraries Addresses for archives and libraries can be found at The UK National Archives.