Slough Borough Council

Trace your family history for free using Ancestry.com and Find My Past

Both Ancestry and Find my Past can be accessed on all computers in Slough Libraries and has a wealth of information for researching your family tree.

Ancestry

Go to http://www.ancestrylibrary.com/ for:

• UK censuses 1841-1901
• Birth, marriage and death indexes for England and Wales, 1837-1983
• Some UK telephone books 1880-1984
• Some UK and Irish parish and probate records
• Australian convict transportation registers

New material is added all the time. Ask at the 2nd floor enquiry desk at Slough Library or visit Ancestry Library for more details.

Tip! To see all UK & Ireland records go to Search on the home page, then select UK & Ireland and choose the country of your choice.

Find My Past

Go to Find My Past http://www.findmypast.co.uk for:

• England and Wales censuses 1841-1911
• Births overseas 1761-1994
• Passenger Lists Leaving UK 1890-1960
• Some UK parish records
• British Army Service Records 1760-1913
• Recent electoral register searches from 192.com
  

Where both websites have similar content, for example for births, marriages and deaths and 1841-1901 UK censuses, you may find that find that resources are entered differently, you can search in different ways, or even the quality of images of records varies. Have a look at both resources and see what you think! You may be able to track down that elusive ancestor!

Family History Open House

Slough Library's friendly drop-in sessions are for people who want to use AncestryLibrary.com and other family history resources. Experts are on hand to help solve any problems with tracing those illusive ancestors and to give advice on how to get started.

Come along on the second Wednesday of every month between 2pm - 5pm.

Family history resources at Slough Library

All Slough's libraries have a selection of guides and leaflets on researching your family history, but Slough Library’s family history collection on the 2nd floor has many more resources to help you in your detailed research.

Guides to researching family history

We have a wide range of books to help you, from getting started to finding and using complex records, including books that show you how to track down ancestors from the West Indies, Ireland or mainland Europe.

Censuses

We have microfilm copies of the local census returns from 1841 to 1901. We also have some indexed on CD-Rom and microfiche. Look at our Census records page for more information.

Local newspapers and directories

We have Slough weekly newspapers dating from 1812 to the current day and some indexes to help you use them. We also have a good collection of private and commercial directories from the 1830s onwards. Check Local studies newspapers and Local studies directories for more details.

Parish records and monumental transcriptions

We have copies of baptism, marriage and burial records for most of Slough's local parishes and others throughout Buckinghamshire and Berkshire. We also have graveyard survey's for many churchyards in the area. For more details visit our pages on Parish records and Local monumental transcriptions.

Electoral Registers

We have copies of the annual lists of those within a household who were eligible to vote:

• Slough Borough Council full or edited registers 1980 to date
• South Bucks Council full or edited registers 1982-2001

For the full versions of Slough registers and Slough registers between 1948 and 1979 contact Electoral Services, Slough Borough Council.

Slough registers before 1948 are available at The Centre for Buckinghamshire Studies, Aylesbury.

Other sources

• Transcribed records eg, Land ownership in Berks & Bucks 1873, Criminals of Bucks & Oxfordshire 1805-1816
• Our local studies collection is useful if your ancestors took part in a notable event in the area's history
• 1994 edition of the IGI

Slough's archives

• Most local records before 1974 (except Slough Borough Council's) & all church records are deposited at The Centre for Buckinghamshire Studies, Aylesbury.
• Most local records after 1974 & those from Slough Borough Council are deposited at The Berkshire Record Office, Reading.
  

Ask us for help

Library staff are always happy to help you find the answer to specific questions or suggest sources of information on anything relating to the history of Slough.

Please contact the 2nd floor of Slough Library on 01753 787511, email library@slough.gov.uk or fill in our online information enquiry form.

Please note that we charge for photocopies, microfiche/microfilm prints, digital photographs, computer prints and postage. We are unable to undertake detailed research for you, but a paid research service is available (see library charges).