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Home | Learning | Libraries | Portsmouth History Centre | Family history

Family history

Last updated: 19 October 2011 10:43 UK

The Genealogical Collection provides resources for anyone wishing to trace a family tree and guidance on records and information held elsewhere.

It can be found within the Portsmouth History Centre on the second floor of the Central Library.

Portsmouth Library card holders can use computers in the Portsmouth History Centre to access family history websites, including Ancestry and Findmypast, free of charge. These include indexes to births, marriages and deaths (England & Wales, 1837-2006), census returns (England and Wales, 1841-1911) and many other records.

The indexes to births, marriages and deaths are also available on microfiches, 1837-2000, along with the IGI (index to baptisms and marriages, 1538 onwards), the National Probate Calendars, (wills) 1858-1943 , and Portsmouth and South East Hampshire census returns, 1841-1901 (earlier years on microfilm).

The book collection is extensive and includes guides to using records and constructing a family tree, Army, Navy and Air Force Lists, Clergy Lists, books about the Census, Domesday Book, Genealogical periodicals, place and personal names, heraldry, peerages, Coats of Arms, Commonwealth War Graves Commission Lists.

Visitors to the Collection are asked to show one of the following to staff when they arrive:

• Portsmouth Library card
• County Archive Research Network Card (CARN)
• Current Student card
• Armed Forces ID Card
• Driving Licence
• Other official proof of name and address

Please contact Portsmouth History Centre staff for further help or information.

Postal research service

While staff will check resources in the Portsmouth History Centre free of charge for up to half-an-hour, we also offer a comprehensive research service.  For a fee, payable in advance, we can undertake up to three hours research in the many sources held in the History Centre, including:

• Births, marriages and deaths indexes
• Wills indexes
• International Genealogical Index
• Directories
• Electoral registers
• Census returns
• Newspapers
• Army/Navy/Air Force lists
• Illustrations
• Maps
• and books about places and subjects in Hampshire, West Sussex and the Isle of Wight

Many requests for searches are from family historians, but the same service is available to those requesting research in local history.

For further details or to download an application form to request this research service, please see the Postal Research Service for Genealogy and Local History page.

Family History Drop In Sessions

Central Library is now offering you the chance to sample some of the important family history websites now available. Experienced staff will be available to help you with any questions.

Sessions take place in the IT Learning Zone the Third Floor every Wednesday morning from 10am to 12 noon.

For further information call Tel: (023) 9268 8046