The archives for the county of Durham are located inside the Durham county hall, a short walk from Durham railway station in Durham city. There is actually no need to carry a map with directions while you are travelling on foot as the location is well signposted as you leave the train station from the main entrance. The visitor has to register with the front desk to receive a badge, which has your name attached and is returned before you leave the building at the end of the day or when your business is concluded. The most important requirement for the researcher is to make a booking online or by calling the records office at least two weeks in advance. The booking ensures the vacancy of a microfilm reader and the archivists are ready for your visit.
I did not know about the booking procedure, before I had left for my trip abroad from Australia. When I did check the website the night before flying to the UK, the website was actually unavailable. The booking procedure was actually noticed the night before visiting the county hall, while checking the directions. I thought I would turn up in person and see if I was able to gain access. The gamble did pay off as I was allowed to enter the archives for my family history research as it was a quiet day. The requirements for the research room are as follows, Pencils only, loose sheets of paper, no pens, no notepads and no folders are allowed in the room. Lockers are provided for the researcher just outside the research room.
The archivists were extremely helpful and did explain about what records are available and where they are located amongst the filing cabinets. The records held are the usual BDM’s records (Birth, Death and Marriages) for the registration districts. These do include baptisms and burials, along with the records for those who were non conformists. Books located in the microfilm reading room provide the numbers to the microfilm, which are located in the draws with numbers on the front. Inside the draws are the microfilms with numbers written on the box. After choosing the correct one the researcher then places bookmark, so they can replace when finished with the record. The records go up to the mid 1900s and county newspapers on microfilm are also held like the Durham Examiner. These are explained as being weeklies and do not hold BDM records, but insights into what life would have been like during the time periods. Census records up to 1901 and list of cemeteries within the county were also available. Other records held did include information about the collieries throughout Durham County with specific dates they were in use like the Heworth Colliery.
The county of Durham’s registration districts were larger than I had expected while visiting the research room. The people I was researching couldn’t be found, although I might not have the actual registration districts correctly specified as they maybe in another district altogether or even county. The thought did occur, the family members might be non conformists. I have not given up with my research into Durham County, but will do more research into the registration districts. Most of the records I have are from civil registrations, so the locations may hold answers in future research.
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