Local historians will find here a guide to the main archival sources available to them in England and Wales, covering the period from the Domesday Book right up to the structural reforms of the Conservative government of 1970-74. Particular stress is laid on centrally preserved sources as well as on the value of very recent records for 20th century local history, with the description of such material based on examination of unpublished search-room handlists rather than existing guides. Throughout, treatment of the archives is related to the history of the central and local government institutions that created them. An introductory chapter gives a general view of records and record-keeping, both today and in the past. The rest of the book is written as a chronological survey of the growth and development of the archives of central and local government, the church, and other institutions. References are given concerning the whereabouts of material, its usefulness for local studies, and the range of finding aids which can be used to exploit it. The author has also written "Local History: a Handbook for Beginners".
- ISBN10 0713447265
- ISBN13 9780713447262
- Publish Date 26 March 1987
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 14 May 1992
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher Pavilion Books
- Imprint Batsford Ltd
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 256
- Language English