Devon

Trace your Devon family history and ancestors from the 1500s onwards with this list of genealogy and local history records, links and resources.

Archives

• Devon Archives

  Arrange a visit or see what's in their catalogue. They offer a research and copy service, and have locations in Exeter and Barnstaple.

Births, Marriages & Deaths

• Devon Parish Records

  Baptisms, marriages and burials from 1538–1900s.

• England BMDs
• Exeter Marriage Licenses 1523–1631

  From the Diocese of Exeter.

• FreeBMD

Burials & Cemeteries

• Appledore Burials 1844–1970
• Billion Graves
• Devon Cemetery Photos
• Devon Headstones Archived
• Exeter Burial Records

  Over 100,000 individuals are interred in the three cemeteries managed by Exeter City Council. Scanned alphabetical index cards are available. Records from Exwick, Higher and Topsham are indexed and available in PDF format.

• Kingswear Cemetery Records

  Alphabetical lists of burials with the date of burial, age and grave number.

• South Hams Memorial Inscriptions

Census Records

• Census 1841–1921

  Search the census records from 1841–1921, plus the 1939 Register all at once.

• FreeCen

  A good, but not complete, selection of free records to search and view.

Criminals & Convicts

• Criminal Ancestor Records
• Devon Calendars of Prisoners 1655–1837

  Include the details of names, crimes and sentences of those convicted at quarter sessions held by the sheriff of the county or his deputy.

• Devon Convicts Transported to Australia 1782–1821
• Devon Prisons Archived
• Plymouth Borough Records 1519–1905

  This collection includes records such as suppliers for the Plymouth alms-house, jury lists, keepers of hogs, orphans in need, and more.

• Plymouth Prison Records 1832–1919

  Details of convicts and their crimes. Also includes prison officers, where they served and their rank.

Electoral Registers

• Electoral Registers 1832–1932
• Plymouth & West Devon Electoral Registers 1780–1973

  With these records you can see where ancestors lived at a certain time. In some cases, you can even see which party they voted for.

Historical Directories

Historical trade directories can give you extra information about your ancestors — their address, occupation, and sometimes more. They're useful for filling in the gaps between censuses.

• Devon Historical Directories

  The University of Leicester has 34 directories online for Devon.

• Devonshire Directory — Pigot's 1830 Archived

  Torquay, Paignton and neighbourhoods.

• White's 1878–9

  The history, gazetteer and directory of Devon, including the city of Exeter.

• Kelly's Directory 1902

  Covers the whole county.

• Devon Freeholders 1711–1799 Archived
• Devon and Exeter Oath Rolls, 1723 Archived
• Ashburton 1822–1823
• Axminster 1822–1823
• Barnstaple 1822–1823
• Barnstaple 1870
• Bideford 1822–1823
• Brixham 1822–1823
• Buckland Monachorum 1870
• Chudleigh 1822–1823
• Crediton 1822–1823
• Cullompton 1822–1823
• Dartmouth 1822–1823
• Devonport 1822–1823
• Exmouth 1822–1823
• Holsworthy 1822–1823
• Honiton 1822–1823
• Ilfracombe 1822–1823
• Kingsbridge 1822–1823
• Modbury 1822–1823
• Moretonhampstead 1822–1823
• Newton Abbot 1822–1823
• Okehampton 1822–1823
• Plymouth 1822–1823
• Sidmouth 1822–1823
• South Molton 1822–1823
• Tavistock 1822–1823
• Teignmouth 1822–1823
• Tiverton 1844
• Topsham 1822–1823
• Torquay 1822–1823
• Totnes 1822–1823

Local History

• A History of Devonshire
• Devon Heritage
• Devonia 1907
• Devonshire Characters and Strange Events
• Domesday Book Devon
• East Devon Tithe Maps 1840
• Exeter Memories
• Genuki Devon
• History of Freemasonry in Devonshire
• North Devon Image Archive
• Old Devon Maps

  Ordnance Survey maps of Devon from the 19th century.

• Torquay History 1920

Migration & Passenger Lists

• North Devon Exodus Database
• Plymouth to New York 1834

Military Records

• British Military Records
• Devonshire Regiment Index
• Devon Roll of Honour
• Devon WWI Roll of Honour
• Plymouth Militia Records 1625–1831
• Plymouth World War II Records 1939–1945
• Torquay War Dead WWII Archived

Occupations

• Devon Apprentices 1710–1808

  Find out your ancestor's trade with these 20,000+ apprentice records.

• Devon Constabulary Roll of Honour
• High Sheriffs of Devon
• Lost Pubs of Devon
• Plymouth & West Devon Apprentices 1570–1910

  Find your ancestor's address, parent's names, master's name and date of indenture.

Societies & Forums

• Devon Family History Society

  A great place for researching your local ancestors. There are many indexes online and members get access.

• RootsChat Devon

Surnames

• Devon Surnames 1881
• Studies on Devon Surnames

Wills & Probate

• Devon Wills Index 1163–1999

  This index contains nearly 300,000 wills of people who were born or died in Devon.

• Devon Wills Project

  An index of wills and where they can be found. There's a consolidated index of names at the bottom of the page where individual names can be browsed — at the moment there are details of about 280,000 wills from almost 500 different sources.

• Devonshire Wills 1546–1800s

Workhouses & Poor Law

• Life in Devon Union Workhouse
• Exeter Workhouse Records
• Plymouth Workhouse Records
• Totnes Workhouse Records

Additional Records

• Devon Lunatic Asylum 1880–1881
• Devon Newspaper Collection 1710–1953
• Devon School Admission Registers 1870–1914

  Search your ancestor's school records and discover their birth date, admission year, parents' names and occupation.

• Visitation of Devon 1620