Some national sources

This is a selection of national sources for Bedfordshire research.  We welcome suggestions for additional sources.

General history sources

• British Association for Local History (opens in a new window)
  BALH aims to encourage the study of local history both as an academic discipline and as a leisure pursuit. Publishes The Local Historian and quarterly newsletters.

• British History Online (opens in a new window)
  A digital library of key printed primary and secondary sources for the history of Britain and Ireland, with a primary focus on the period between 1300 and 1800.

• The British Library (opens in a new window)
  The UK national library receives a copy of all publications produced in the UK and Ireland.  Holdings also include maps, manuscripts, prints, drawings, patents, sound recordings, a growing collection of modern oral histories and so much more.  There are general and specialist catalogues (opens in a new window).

• The British Museum (opens in a new window)
  Search the Museum’s collections’ catalogue for artefacts and illustrations of items found in and relating to Bedfordshire from the last 2000 years (opens in a new window).

• Canal and River Trust (opens in a new window)
  The Trust provides an online catalogue of archive records and historic images (opens in a new window).

• The London Gazette (opens in a new window)
  Published since 1665, this is far more than merely the official government gazette.  The range of notices it contains includes people, places and events throughout the country, including of course Bedfordshire.

• The National Archives (opens in a new window)
  Holds move than 11 million historical government and public records created during the last 1000 years.  Its catalogue includes records held by 2,500 other archives (opens in a new window).  Its research guides contain helpful and authoritative advice on the administrative procedures that created the records as well as how they are arranged (opens in a new window).

• Railway and Canal Historical Society
  Publishes a Journal and Bulletin. Its Research Resources page has guidance on sources for researching transport history.  (All links open in new windows.)

• Victoria and Albert Museum (opens in a new window)
  Amongst this unrivalled collection of historic art and design are many objects that bring to life the Bedfordshire of the past.  See the description of the collections and catalogues to decide which is suitable for your research (opens in a new window).

Buildings and historic environment

• English Heritage

• Heritage Gateway
  Provides access to a number of sources (including the two below) for information on historic environments, listed buildings, scheduled monuments, National Trust records etc, with images of some items, and historic photographs.

• Historic England Archive
  This is based on the former National Monuments Record. It has entries for photographs, plans and drawings of historic buildings and sites in England.