Electoral registers Dating from 1832 to 2001 for all places now within the Solihull borough, electoral registers list people entitled to vote. Registers up to the 1920s are usually in name order, whilst later registers are arranged by address. Registers pre-1961 at Solihull Central Library are on microfilm—please ask staff. Census returns Census records 1841-1901 for Solihull are available on microfilm or microfiche and are listed by address. Everyone in a household is listed and their names, ages, occupations and places of birth are given. Census returns 1851, 1881 and 1901 are also indexed by surname - please ask staff for details. Telephone directories We have phone books for the Solihull area 1963 to the present day. Parish registers These are on microfilm - check with staff which parishes are available. Other sources to consult Indexes to wills proved after 1858 are available at Birmingham Central Library. Tax records, manorial records and rate books may be available at Warwickshire County Record Office.
Solihull Heritage & Local Studies
Central Library, Homer Road, Solihull B91 3RG 0121 704 6934 infols@solihull.gov.uk
Tracing the history of a house
Step 6: USEFUL ADDRESSES Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council Planning Services developmentcontrol@solihull.gov.uk 0121 704 6373 Land Registry Coventry District Land Registry Leigh Court, Torrington Avenue, Tile Hill, Coventry CV4 9XZ 024 7686 0864 http://www.landreg.gov.uk/ Warwickshire County Record Office Priory Park, Cape Road Warwick CV34 4JS 01926 738959 recordoffice@warwickshire.gov.uk Solihull Local Information Directory For details of local clubs and societies www.solihull.gov.uk/wwwlocalinfo/
BBC History website - your history Tracing the history of your house
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/your_history/ house_01.shtml
Birmingham Central Library Local Studies & History Service, Central Library, Chamberlain Square, Birmingham B3 3HQ 0121 303 4549 or 0121 303 4220
local.studies.library@birmingham.gov.uk
Tracing the history of a house at S t Solihull Heritage & Local Studies
Step 1: TRY TO DATE THE BUILDING Use the house itself as your starting point, or a picture of it. How old is the property e.g. 1960s, 1920s, 1800s? Books in your local library may help and the materials used in the construction of the building and details such as the patterns of the bricks can also help to date the house. If possible, look at the house deeds, which tell the story of the ownership of the property. The deeds are usually held by the owner of the house so, if there is a mortgage on the property, the deeds are likely to be with the mortgage lender, in which case you may need to pay a fee to look at them. Alternatively, deeds may be held by the Land Registry or Warwickshire County Record Office (see Step 6: useful addresses). Legally, house deeds need only show ownership for the past 15 years but some deeds go back centuries. Step 4: SOURCES FOR TRACING A BUILDING Solihull Heritage & Local Studies Card Index Check our Heritage & Local Studies Card Index, which gives details of books, pamphlets, newspaper articles etc. on thousands of local topics. Ordnance Survey Maps We have Ordnance Survey maps for areas within the current borough of Solihull, dating from the 1880s to the present day. Maps were produced at approximately 20-year intervals, although revisions were interrupted in the 1930s/40s owing to war. Tithe maps Usually dating from about 1840, these maps and their accompanying apportionments can tell you who owned land at that time, who occupied it and what it was being used for. We have copies of tithe maps and apportionments for most local parishes. Building plans These may be available for buildings built or altered since the late nineteenth century. We have a list of the surviving early building plans submitted to Solihull Rural District Council. Planning applications since 1948 should be available from Solihull Council’s Planning section (see Step 6: useful addresses) Sale catalogues A number of sale catalogues, notably for larger houses or estates, from the nineteenth century to the present day are available. Check the Solihull Heritage & Local Studies Card Index for individual properties. If the date of sale or auction is known, it can also be worthwhile checking local newspapers. Ask staff for details of newspapers available on microfilm. Step 5: SOURCES FOR TRACING OCCUPANTS Deeds If you can access the deeds to the building, they can give details of previous owners and dates of transfer of the property between owners. The names of the owners can then lead you to other sources such as electoral registers and trade directories.
Step 2: DECIDE HOW TO PROCEED Work out what you are particularly interested in finding out, as this will determine what sources you need to look at. Is it the previous owners or occupiers you are interested in? Do you want to know when the house was actually built? Are you trying to find out what was on the site before the house was built?
Step 3: SETTING THE SCENE Look at the building in the context of its local area. Are neighbouring houses of the same date? Has the building been converted from a previous use? Are there signs that the building has been altered e.g. blocked windows, extensions, new roof? Does the house have a name? Do some background reading on local history. Work out which county and borough or district the property has been in, as this may help locate records. You may find that books have been published that may mention the house or the street or give clues as to why houses may have been built at a particular time, e.g. the arrival of the railway or a new factory being built needing to house its workers locally. Talking to neighbours or people who have lived in the area for a long time can yield interesting stories about the property and its owners, although these may need to be corroborated from other sources! Local history societies (see Step 6: useful addresses) can have a wealth of knowledge and information available amongst their members and may be able to provide useful contacts or suggest further sources to consult.
Trade directories Compiled mostly to aid commercial travellers, these can give details of residents as well as listing facilities available and including classified directories by trade. They were published on a county by county basis and towns and villages are listed alphabetically. We have directories for Warwickshire from 1822-1940 and directories for Solihull up to the 1960s.