Main categories of records
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| You can search our online catalogue, featuring collection-level descriptions of all our records, by visiting Warwickshire's Past Unlocked
Follow the links below to find out more about the types of records that we hold.
Local Government
Church of England Parish Records
Nonconformist Records
Courts of Law, Coroners, Criminal and Police Records
School and Education Records
Business Collections
Estate and Family Papers
Solicitors' Archives
Hospital and Health Records
Other Sources
We are always seeking to expand our collection of documents relating to Warwickshire's history. How to deposit records with us.
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| Local Government |  | |
Records of the County Council from 1889 and of its predecessor (the court of Quarter Sessions in its administrative role) from 1625; records of District Councils from 1894 to 1974; records of Parish Councils from 1894 and of their predecessors (within the records of individual Church of England parishes where they survive: see below) from the 17th century.
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| Church of England Parish Records | | |
The old records of practically every parish in the county have been deposited (including those in Coventry but excluding parishes within Birmingham's pre 1974 borders). As well as registers of baptisms, marriages and burials dating from (in most cases) the 16th or 17th centuries, they may include records about the fabric of the church, the support of the poor, the maintenance of law and order, and the repair of highways.
Parish registers and census returns held at the record office
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| Nonconformist Records | | |
Records of Nonconformist churches and chapels are usually less well preserved than those of Church of England parishes, but records of several Nonconformist congregations are available in the Record Office. Records of Roman Catholic parishes have not been deposited here, but copies of pre 20th century registers are available for a few churches.
Nonconformist church registers held at the record office
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| Courts of Law, Coroners, Criminal and Police Records | | |
The Court of Quarter Sessions heard civil and criminal cases within Warwickshire, and its records date from 1625. However, major cases were heard by the royal courts, either at Assizes held locally or in London, and surviving records for these courts are held by the Public Record Office. Other courts whose records are available here included Magistrates' and County Courts (from the mid 19th century), and manorial courts (for a relatively small number of places only, some with records dating from the Middle Ages).
Records of Coroners' inquests have been deposited, but do not in general survive before 1900.
The records of the Warwickshire Constabulary dating from 1840 have been deposited: they contain much information about the administration of the Police Service and the careers of individual police officers, but very little about criminals.
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| School and Education Records | | |
Many primary schools have deposited their logbooks and admission records, in some cases dating back to the beginning of a national school system in the 1860s or 1870s. A very small number of secondary schools have also deposited their records. Information about schools and the education system can also be found amongst the records of town councils and parishes.
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| Business Collections | | |
Although relatively few collections of business records have been deposited, there are substantial records for Eagle Engineering of Warwick (builders of sanitary vehicles, with a large collection of photographs of their products from the 1920s to the 1950s), Stanley Brothers of Nuneaton (brick and tile manufacturers, colliery owners, and engineers, mostly dating from the late 19th century), and Needle Industries Ltd (an amalgamation of several old-established needle manufacturers, with records mostly dating from the late 19th century).
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| Estate and Family Papers | | |
Records of landed estates can give a wealth of information not only about the particular family and its lands, but also about their involvement in local and national affairs and about the people who lived on their estates. Major collections deposited here include Feilding of Newbold Revel (Earls of Denbigh), Greville of Warwick Castle (Earls of Warwick), Mordaunt of Walton, Newdigate of Arbury, Seymour of Ragley (Marquises of Hertford), Shirley of Ettington, Shuckburgh of Upper Shuckburgh, and Throckmorton of Coughton. We have recently acquired the Willes collection and purchased the Waller of Woodcote collection
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| Solicitors' Archives | | |
Many solicitors have deposited the records of their firms and clients in the Record Office. These records often supplement records deposited by institutions or individuals.
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| Hospital and Health Records | | |
Two major Health Service institutions have deposited their records here: the Central Hospital at Hatton (formerly the County Lunatic Asylum, opened in 1852), and the Warneford Hospital in Leamington Spa (founded in 1827). Other information about health and sanitation can be found in parish records, town records and District Council records.
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| Other Sources | | |
Newspapers | | |
The Record Office holds back files of the main Warwick and Leamington Spa papers (the Warwick Advertiser from 1806, the Leamington Courier from 1832, and the Leamington Morning News from 1896). There are also incomplete series of back files of Alcester, Atherstone, Bedworth, Nuneaton and Rugby newspapers. | |  |
Maps and Plans |
The office holds an extensive series of printed maps, including county maps from the 16th century and Ordnance Survey large scale maps (1:10,000 and 1:2,500 scale) from the 1880s to the 1970s. There are also many manuscript maps, including Tithe Apportionment maps dating from the 1830s for most parishes in the county, and maps of a large number of estates and farms dating from about 1600 (but mostly from the 18th and 19th centuries). |
Photographs and Prints and Views | | |
The office has an extensive collection of prints, drawings and water-colours of buildings and places within the county. It also has a large (over 200,000 items) and growing collection of photographs of Warwickshire places and people. A selection of these images can be seen on Windows on Warwickshire.
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