Family Records Centre
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The Family Records Centre provides access to family history research sources for England and Wales. It is administered jointly by The National Archives and the General Register Office.
It is at 1 Myddelton Street, Clerkenwell, London, close to the London Metropolitan Archives. Its main resources are indexes to the civil registration of births, marriages and deaths from 1837 onwards (provided by the GRO, on the ground floor), and the Victorian censuses (provided by The National Archives, on the first floor).
The birth, marriage and death indexes are in large, heavy books arranged in date order. Using these indexes, you may order copies of the corresponding birth, marriage and death certificates. Other indexes held are to certain births, deaths and marriages of British nationals and British armed forces which took place abroad, and to legal adoptions from 1927 onwards.
The 1841 to 1901 censuses are mainly accessed online to search for individuals by name. The 1841 - 1891 censuses are also available on microfilm; the 1901 census is on microfiche. A selection of street indexes and other finding aids is available. Other microfilm resources available include wills and administrations from the Prerogative Court of Canterbury up to 1858, which can also be searched online, death duty registers 1796 - 1858, and non-conformist registers (mainly pre-1837). There is free access to a wide range of family history websites and databases.
Staff provide help and advice on family history research and regular one-to-one family history surgeries and computer skills tutorials. Talks on family history topics take place every week and other events including exhibitions and conferences are organised. There are good facilities for customers with special needs, a refreshment area with vending machines, and a bookshop.
On 21 June 2006, it was announced that the Family Records Centre would relocate to the the National Archives in Kew by the end of 2008. [1]
