RootsChat.Com
England (Counties as in 1851-1901) => England => Wiltshire => Topic started by: benhc123 on Sunday 23 December 18 23:43 GMT (UK)
-
Hi All,
I just wanted to ask whether it was worth visiting the Wiltshire Records Office. Do you think I'll be able to find any interesting records about people in my family tree?
What kind of records are offered which aren't provided on sites like Ancestry and FindMyPast?
Thanks,
Ben
-
If you Google Wiltshire Records Office you can find what type of records they offer.
Whether it is worth you visiting is dependent on exactly what you are looking for that isn't available online
-
Ok thanks. :)
I'm at the end of the research I can realistically do with ancestry. The question really is whether I'll likely find out (anything at all) interesting based on the records they offer?
B.
-
For a start, Parish Records are available.
These are mostly unavailable elsewhere.
I wold say definitely worth a visit, but expect to spend many happy hours there ;D
-
Thanks :)
-
Record Offices have miles of shelving holding masses of information not available elsewhere, you have barely begun to research if you haven't visited a Record Office.
As already advised, take a look at the catalogue but note, only part of it is yet on line.
https://calmview.wiltshire.gov.uk/CalmView/Aboutcatalogue.aspx
-
It all depends on what sort of footprint your ancestors left, the Wiltshire parish registers and Wiltshire Wills are on Ancestry. http://www.wshc.eu/wiltshire-wills-project.html
There are many other records available at Chippenham,
-
I recently deposited the records of our family farming business there. I was able to explore the history of the farm before we moved there including the vast auction sale of the estate on which it stood - the cause being death duties after several members of that family were killed in WW1. There were also records from the 1940s of permission for building works when everything - even a bag of cement - was rationed.
Quarter Sessions records can provide some gems, but you need to trawl through them!
-
Certainly a good idea to pop over to Chippenham for the records they hold. Their microfiche and transcripts helped me to pin down a tricky part of my line linking to the South Newton Henstridge's
-
What must be added to the equation is cost of getting there and cost of overnight accomodation (difficult to find convenient B&B). It might be cheaper to get the WRO to do some paid research. T
-
What must be added to the equation is cost of getting there and cost of overnight accomodation (difficult to find convenient B&B). It might be cheaper to get the WRO to do some paid research. T
I agree with this - to some extent. If you know exactly what you want to be researched, often the experts, whether from the WRO or a researcher, will often do a faster and possibly better job. However there is not the opportunity for further exploration and serendipitous discovery that you get if you do your own searching.
-
http://www.rootschat.com/links/01na8/