Domesday drop-in
When someone mentions ‘The Domesday Book’ most of us have some hazy thoughts about the 11th century land survey commissioned by William the Conqueror.
But did you know there is a second set of ‘Domesday Books’ from 1910 that can be a useful tool for family, local and house historians alike?
To mark the 100th birthday of the 1910 Domesday Tax Records and to give local people the opportunity to find out more about the place where they live, Warwickshire County Council held a ‘Domesday Drop-in’ event at the County Record Office.
The session helped people interested in family, local or house history learn more about the past from the 1910 Finance Act and the maps, books and catalogues available at the Record Office.
Under the 1910 Finance Act, a valuation was made of all properties in England and Wales. The resulting so-called ‘Domesday Tax’ records give a brief description of each property, the names of its owner and occupier and a note of its value, and can therefore be of interest to family, local and house historians. Many of the records for Warwickshire still exist and are held at Warwickshire County Record Office, in Warwick.
The course tutor, Rosalind Green, Principal Archives Assistant at Warwickshire County Record Office, said: “The 1910 Finance Act provides a really useful snapshot of land usage in early twentieth century Warwickshire. The informal workshop helped people who are interested in family, local and house history to make the most of the information available on their doorstep.”
Warwickshire County Record Office is involved in safeguarding, managing and developing Warwickshire’s archives so that they can be accessed, interpreted and enjoyed by all those with an interest in Warwickshire’s past and its people. We hold records dating from the twelfth century up to the twenty first.
Visit http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/countyrecordoffice for more information on general opening times, directions and other useful information.