Essex

Essex has some of the richest parish records in England, with registers surviving from as early as 1503 and a strong tradition of transcription and digitisation by local societies and volunteers. This page brings together the best free and subscription resources for researching Essex ancestors online, including parish records, wills, monumental inscriptions, directories, military records and local archives.

Births, Marriages, Deaths & Parish Records

Links to online Essex church parish registers, including baptisms, marriages, banns and burials.

• Essex Baptisms 1538–1920

  There are over 2.5 million records in this index.

• Essex Marriages and Banns 1537–1935
• Essex Burials 1530–1994
• Essex Parish Registers 1503–1997

  Free to search on FamilySearch.

• SEAX – Essex Archives Online

  Essex Archives Online has some free parish registers. The number of images of church registers is constantly growing and will soon cover all those that survive.

• FreeReg

  Search free transcribed parish registers.

Individual Parish Registers

• Bocking, St. Mary's, Parish Registers 1558–1639
• Borley Burials 1656–1812
• Castle Hedingham Baptisms, Marriages & Burials
• Coggeshall Parish Registers Archived
• Colchester All Saints

  Baptisms 1609–1845, Marriages 1609–1843, Burials 1609–1845.

• Farnham Registers

  Baptisms 1558–1812, Marriages 1558–1812 and Burials 1558–1812.

• Great Bromley Baptisms, Marriages & Burials
• Newport Baptisms 1558–1915
• Newport Marriages 1558–1991
• Newport Deaths & Burials 1558–1991
• Ongar Parish Registers
• Pentlow Baptisms 1539–1814
• Pentlow Marriages 1539–1836
• Pentlow Burials 1539–1852
• Steeple Bumpstead Baptisms 1676–1907 Archived
• Steeple Bumpstead Marriages Archived
• Stifford Parish Registers
• Toppesfield Parish Registers 1559–1650

Monumental Inscriptions

• Essex Monumental Inscriptions

  Over 200,000 records from engravings found on tombstones and other memorials in the churches and churchyards of Essex.

• Essex Gravestone Photos

  Thousands of gravestone photographs from 60 locations around Essex.

Directories

• Essex Directories

  A selection of historical directories from the 1800s and 1900s.

• Essex Historical Directories (White's)

  White's directories contain a history and gazetteer of the county alongside trades and residents listings.

  • White's Directory of Essex 1848
  • White's Directory of Essex 1863

Archives & Societies

• Essex Record Office

  Holds records about the county, its people and buildings. A useful resource for family, house and local history research.

• Essex Society for Family History

  Promotes the study of family history, genealogy, heraldry and local history with particular reference to Essex.

• Essex Surnames Interests

  A database of ESFH members' surname interests, open to all visitors. Useful for making contact with others researching the same Essex families.

Additional Records

• Essex Wills Beneficiaries Index 1675–1858
• Essex Regiment

  Covers the Essex Military from 1415 to 1958, when the Essex Regiment was amalgamated into the Royal Anglian Regiment. Includes the Essex Yeomanry and predecessors; the 44th East Essex Regiment and 56th West Essex Regiment, plus various Militia Groups back to the English Civil War. No data is displayed after 1920 unless the person is known to have died.

• History of Essex Archived

  A wide-ranging history of Essex covering its towns, villages, parishes and people, from the salt marshes to its oldest recorded town. Includes local and social history useful for placing ancestors in context.