England Banking Records, Bankrupts, Gentlemens Clubs, Trade Directories - International Institute

Banking
The Bank of England was established in 1694, and local savings banks developed during the 18th century in most provincial towns. These had to register their rules, names of trustees and officers with the Clerk of the Peace from 1817, and from 1828 banks had to obtain the approval of Justices of the Peace.

In 1861 the Post Office Savings Bank was established for those of limited means. The minimum deposit was one shilling and the maximum £30 a year, with a total including interest of only £200 allowed.

Names, addresses—including all changes as a person moved around, occupation and signatures (or marks) were recorded. PO Bank Books passed down through the family can be most useful to the family historian as Marion Lodey (Family History from a Post Office Savings Bank Book. Genealogists’ Magazine Vol. 19 #3, page 98-99) has illustrated.

At the British Library is a volume entitled The Names and Descriptions of Proprietors of Unclaimed Dividends on Bank Stock and on The Public Funds Transferable at the Bank of England which became due between 31st December 1780 and the 31st December 1788, and remained unpaid on the 21st October 1791... ...Examples of the contents are shown here.

Chart: Unclaimed Bank of England Dividends [digitized on Thomson Gale website]

Bankrupts
A distinction has first to be made between bankrupts and insolvent debtors:


 * Only a trader owing more than £100 could declare bankruptcy until 1841; this sum was reduced to £50 in 1842. The term trader included most skilled craftsmen but not farmers.


 * Traders owing less than the specified amount, and those who were not traders but who could not repay debts of any amount, remained insolvent debtors and subject to indefinite imprisonment until 1869, and after that if fraud was established.

The distinction was abolished in 1861 and anyone could then declare bankruptcy.

TNA contains records of the names, addresses and occupations of those who overstretched themselves and went bankrupt. Records date from 1710, but the coverage is not complete until 1821. From 1842 there will also be records in local archives of cases heard in local bankruptcy courts; local newspapers are likely to record these happenings as well.

Bankruptcy was common—there were 87,000 cases between 1780 and 1842, and in 1811 alone there were over 4,500 bankruptcies listed in The London Gazette, with petitions for winding-up companies and notices relating to meetings of creditors etc. The latter publication does have some notices dating back to 1684, and is indexed from 1790. There is also Perry’s Bankrupt and Insolvent Gazette 1828-1964. Several consolidated lists of bankrupts have been published, (see Camp 1999, and FamilySearch Catalog for details). Shaw-Guisset (An Index of Bankrupts in England, Scotland and Wales in the Year 1851 and Bankrupts in England and Wales in the Year 1861, 2001) has indexed 1851 and 1861 filed petitions from The Jurist, so there are plenty of indexes to unsuccessful tradesmen! An example of insolvency from a will is that of Samuel Remnant of the parish of St. George, Surrey gentleman (probated in PCC (Prerogative Court of Canterbury) in 1801 but unfortunately not stating when it was written), who declared that:

The Times newspaper has details of bankrupts and is now searchable online (Thomson Gale). In the Classified Advertising of 20 May 1825 (page 5, issue 12658, column B) appears a notice:

Then on 15 Feb 1827 (page 3, issue 13203, Column C) is an article:

For a history of debt and debtors see Barty-King, and for historical colour read Dickens’ novelLittle Dorrit. Useful TNA research guides on bankrupts from 1710 are L5 and L6.

Gentlemen’s Clubs
The researcher will see reference to Gentlemen’s Clubs, which are upper-class London clubs for those of similar tastes. They provided forums for discussion of politics, sports, and the arts as well as promoting business contacts. The researcher will see clubs noted in biographical notes, and as references to my club in personal correspondence. The most important, with their founding dates, are:


 * The Guards (1810) for upper-crust conservatives.
 * The Travellers (1819) originally for those having traveled more than 500 miles from London.
 * The United Services for distinguished veterans.
 * The Atheneum (1824) for respectable Anglican intellectuals.
 * The Garrick (1831) for actors and refined gentlemen.
 * The Carlton (1832) for the politically conservative.
 * The Reform (1836) for the politically liberal.
 * The Arts Club (1863) for the arts.
 * The National Liberal (1882) a metropolitan centre for liberals from all over the country.

There were many others with more specific sporting or business aims as well. Gandy (Looking Through Their Eyes: Clubland. Practical Family History #36, page 5) has more information about gentlemen’s clubs.

Trade Directories
Contemporary local trade directories provide information on:


 * What trade he did, in the alphabetical lists by surname.
 * Those involved in a certain trade, under the trade categories.
 * What the major trades in the area were, in the place descriptions.
 * Possible employers in the locality.
 * What institutions were in the locality, where they were situated and what they did, in the place descriptions.
 * Specific companies and traders, in the advertisements, with illustrations often included.
 * The general types of services, supplies and equipment offered by others in the same trade as your ancestor, in the advertisements.
 * Changes in name, address and nature of a business over time, using a run of directories.
 * Possible starting date of a business and ending of it by death, bankruptcy, sale or liquidation, using a run of directories.

The annual Kelly’s Business Directory covers 82,000 businesses.

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Information in this Wiki page is excerpted from the online course English: Taxes, Lists, Business, Electoral and Insurance Records offered by The International Institute of Genealogical Studies. To learn more about this course or other courses available from the Institute, see our website. We can be contacted at [mailto:wiki@genealogicalstudies.com wiki@genealogicalstudies.com]

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