Horses and Carriage

Discover Your Familys Story

Start researching your family history today and begin a lifetime of  discovery.

Five easy ways to find your  Ancestors

Our MasterSearch can help you quickly find the infor­mation you’re looking for by narrowing down your search to a part­icular type of data, and further filtering the results to only include certain record sets, years or spellings.

1

Address

Search for a specific address by county and street name, e.g. Park Avenue

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2

Keywords

Search for a person using keywords such as their occupation, e.g. farmer

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3

Family

Search for a family by forename and surname, e.g. John, Emma and Mark Smith

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4

Map
Explorer

Pinpoint your Ancestors’ records using georeferenced historic maps

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5

Related Records

SmartSearch finds related records for you, e.g. children from a marriage record

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family group husband, wife and 3 girls family group on fake boat

Start building your
family tree today

TreeView is our powerful family tree builder. Whether you're an experienced family historian or just starting out, you'll find TreeView easy to use and an essential tool in your research. Record your family's history and view details of your ancestors in a number of different and attractive ways. Create beautiful charts and detailed reports to present your family tree.

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Genealogy’s Best
Mapping Website

Our exclusive Map Explorer adds a rich functionality to our ever-growing collection of map-based records. This great tool uses georeferenced historic maps that overlay several modern background maps including Ordnance Survey, Open Street Map or Bing road and satellite views.

The tools panel allows you to search for Modern and Historic Places, County and Parish Boundary Indicators, and offers the ability to manipulate the map layers, making it easier to pin-point the information you require.

Map Layers

The maps are divided into three types of layer that can be viewed on top of each other like sheets of paper. You can then change the transparency of a layer to view the layers below, allowing you to see how the area changed over time.

The Base Layer

This is the modern layer, which can be used to select a modern OS Map, Open Street Map or a Bing Satellite Image.

The Historic Layer

The historic layer can be used to select a range of Ordnance Survey maps from the 1890s to the 1960s.

The Record Set Layer

This layer provides access to the map-based record sets such as the 1910 Lloyd George Domesday Survey, or our georeferenced Tithe Maps. The map markers link directly to records for the individual prop­erties beneath, so you can see who was living there when the record was taken.


Try The Genealogist free for 14 days to discover what the Map Explorer has to offer and gain
access to millions of records
with our unique brick wall busting tools.

Other Subscription Benefits

Unique, Powerful Search Tools

Find exactly what you’re looking for by refining your search with event filters and keywords.

Records from 1127–2005

Our vast collection spans more than 870 years of record transcripts and images.

Award-winning BMD record and Census transcripts

Researchers were given membership to five genealogy websites for eight weeks. 3/5 rated us as their number 1.

Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial Records

We’re the official site for Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial Records with over 8 Million records available.

Census transcripts and Images 1841 to 1911

Access to all transcripts and images from 1841–1911 for England and Wales and 1841–1901 for Scotland.

Military Records – WW1, WW2, Casualty Lists, PoWs, and more

Ancestors who served in the forces may be hard to find. We have many military lists ranging from 1661–1944.

Extensive Collection of Parish Records

Search parish register transcripts and images from 43 counties, which can take your family back as far as 1538.

Extensive Collection of Trade and TelepPhone Directories

A collection of over 400 Directories provides insights into the lives of ancestors who had their own businesses.


Get started today

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User Feedback and Comments

I just can not express how I feel right now. You have given me something so, so special and brought 15 years of shear frust­ration to an end. I was about to give up on my hobby, thinking I could get no more information and believing the family was not trace­able. How can I ever say thanks for this I can only pro­mise you I will continue to renew my sub­scription for a long time yet. I never ever thought you would offer me so much help. B. Connor – Cheshire

I find the genealogist a very helpful site. I have found many ancestors there that are obvi­ously mis-transcribed by other sites and whom I have not been able to find any­where else. Thank you and please keep up the good work! J. Hedges – New Zealand

Thank you!!! At last I have found my only two outstand­ing great-great grand­parents and the highly elusive great grand­father who I couldn't trace before his marriage – I've been hunting for him for 20 years! L.B. – UK

News and Events

Latest News

The Green, Broadway, Worcestershire from TheGenealogist’s Image Archive

Over 120,000 Worcestershire Parish Records Released

8th March 2024

Over 120,000 individuals recorded in Worcestershire Parish Records have just been released in time for The Family History Show, Midlands on Saturday 16th March 2024.

This welcome addition to our growing collection of parish records brings our total Parish Records for Worcestershire up to 2.65 …

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See where your ancestors lived in 1861 on MapExplorer™

23rd February 2024

For the first time, you can explore 1861 census records for England, Scotland and Wales seamlessly connected to contemporary maps with pins revealing the parish, thoroughfare, or even the very building where your ancestor lived. This enhancement adds a fascinating layer to your research and …

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New Records added to MapExplorer™

9th February 2024

We have just added over 142,000 new individuals to our War Memorial collection, bringing the total number of fully searchable War Memorial Records on TheGenealogist to over 1,688,000. These fully searchable records have been transcribed with their location plotted on Map Explorer? so you can find the names of …

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Over 5 Million Residential and Trade Records Released

26th January 2024

We have just added over 5 million individuals to our Residential and Trade Directories collection, helping you discover your ancestors, their addresses, and their occupations back to 1744.

The new records cover England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland and the Channel Islands, along with some from as far …

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Next Event

Featured Article

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The Family History Show, York!

Saturday 22nd June 2024
10:00–16:00 (GMT)

Put your research questions to an expert, watch a talk, speak to a local society, archive or genealogical supplier.

  • Free talks all day, held in a large lecture hall.
  • Free Experts on hand to help with your queries.
  • Many family history societies, archives and companies will be attending from all over the country.

Special Offer! Buy tickets for £8.00 (£12.00 on the day)

Buy your tickets early and get two for the price of one!

Find Out More Purchase Tickets

Future Events

Unable to make the next show? We also have shows planned for the following locations:

Featured Article

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A long way from Tipperary

15th March 2024

County Tipperary is often referred to as the "Premier County", a description attributed to Thomas Davis, Editor of The Nation newspaper in the 1840s as a tribute to the nationalistic feeling in Tipperary. It is perhaps, in many a person's mind, famous as the place mentioned in the WW1 marching song "It's a Long Way to Tipperary", a piece that was written by Jack Judge, whose grandparents were said to come from the county.

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