The resources in this section will help you to find out about the history of the times in which your ancestors lived. Where possible, they have been grouped together in separate articles. A miscellany of resources can be found on this page.
The Family Tree Forum Timeline will help you to put the personal life of your ancestors in context with the social and political situation of the time.
Also see this section: FTF Research Guides
Pathé News Online
Until 1970 cinemas all over Britain showed Pathé newsreels. Now you can view the entire collection, over 3500 hours, online at: It is necessary to register, but whilst there is a charge for high-resolution copies of the films you can view low resolution versions free of charge. Almost all are in black and white, and the very earliest footage is silent.
The earliest films date from 1896! Pathé display a Top Twenty on their site - the most popular when we checked was a film of the Titanic, but an early favourite of ours is the funeral of Queen Victoria in 1901.
- FTF Guide: Maps includes links to historical maps.
Museums, Galleries & Film Archives
- The Rifles (Berkshire and Wiltshire) Museum - The Story of the Infantry of Berkshire and Wiltshire
- Beamish Open Air Museum, County Durham. Northern Life in The 1800s & Early 1900s.
- Eden Camp Theme Museum Malton, North Yorkshire. Centred on The History of WW2.
- Saltaire, Bradford. Factory & Village Built by Millowner & Philanthropist Sir Titus Salt
- Salts Mill - Home to The David Hockney Exhibition.
- History of Woollen Cloth in Trowbridge
- The British Postal Museum & Archive (BPMA)
- See How Your Ancestors Lived
- Old and interesting - History of Domestic Paraphernalia
- East Anglian Film Archive
Industry and Manufacturing
Political Parties and Movements
Charitable Organisations
Freemasons
- History of Freemasonry
- Background for the Study on Freemasonry
- The Centre for Research Into Freemasonry
- The Freemasons Library & Museum
- United Grand Lodge of England Freemason Membership Registers, 1751-1921 £££
- Grand Lodge of Freemasons of Ireland Membership Registers, 1733-1923 £££
- Information on The Principles, History, Lodges and Services of The United Grand Lodge of England
- The Masonic Trowel
- Masonic Periodicals Online
Others
- Royal Humane Society Awards recognising bravery
- An Introduction to British Charity History
- The Primrose League
- The Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes, Grand Lodge of England
- The Oddfellows
- MANCHESTER UNITY OF ODD FELLOWS DIRECTORY: Deaths and burials throughout the UK
Architecture and Old Buildings
- Church Plans Online
- Letchworth, The First Garden City
- Bournville Village (Founded by Richard and George Cadbury)
- Port Sunlight founded by William Lever
- New Earswick Village built by Joseph Rowntree
- British Castles, Stately Homes and Houses
- Victorian Architecture, (mostly American)
- Researching Historic Buildings in The British Isles
- Explore Victorian London
- Lost Heritage - a memorial to the lost country houses of England
The British Monarchy
- The Offical Website of The British Monarchy
- Royal and Noble Genealogical Data on the Web
- Times Past - Royal Events
- Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee Scrapbook
The Landed Gentry
- Sledmere House, Home of Sir Tatton Sykes
- Papers of Sykes Family- Held at Brynmor-Jones Library, The University of Hull.
- The Sledmere Stud, Driffield, East Yorkshire
- A Database of Country Houses in England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and Some of The Surrounding Islands, With Brief Histories
- Leigh Rayment's Peerage Page - a database of MPs
- Sir Mark Sykes Bart
The Celts
Slavery
- International Slavery Museum
- The Transantlantic Slave Trade Database
- The Slave Trade - 1700-1930
- The Atlantic Slave Trade and Slave Life in the Americas
- North American Slave Narratives
- The Transatlantic Slave Trade, Abolition Movement Time Line of Key Events
- Slavery, Emancipation, and Abolition
- Abolition of The Slave Trade
- Timeline: The Atlantic Slave Trade 1502 - 1841
- Bristol and the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade
- Recovered Histories- Reawakening The Narratives of Enslavement, Resistance and the Fight For Freedom
- Revealing History - Remembering Slavery
- Abolition 200 The Bicentenary of the Abolition of The Slave Trade Act
- Slave Compensation Claims
Uncategorised
- London Local Studies Libraries and Archives
- Are We Related? (A Forum)
- Weddings Past and Present
- A Brief History of Contraception
- Hypertext Medieval Glossary
- Tales from Youth Organisations
- The WATCH File: Writers, Artists and Their Copyright Holders
- Victorian Money - How much did things cost?
- Transcripts of Various Acts of Parliament of Interest to the Genealogist
Back to General History Section
Menu