For guidance, we list here some of the sources available to us for Devon. Many of these are also available for other counties. However, each Record Office or Local Studies Library has its own indexes and special collections, the scope and contents of which vary from one repository to another. 

 ** Census returns for 1841, 1851, 1861, 1871, 1881, 1891 and 1901. Returns for 1851, 1881 and 1901 are indexed. There are partial surname indexes for North Devon in other years as well as a basic surname index for Devonport in 1871. The Devon Family History Society is currently working hard to produce an index to the Devon 1861 census. 

** Parish registers. Transcripts of some registers exist, including those for a number of Cornish parishes. 

** Bishops Transcripts. 

** Marriage Bonds and Allegations. 

** Other parish and overseers' documents, including land tax returns, apprenticeship papers, poor law documents and churchwardens accounts. 

** Estate Duty Office Wills, 1812-1857 and wills contained in family and other collections. Unfortunately, the majority of Devon wills were destroyed in the Exeter blitz of May 1942, but copies or transcripts of some documents have survived. 

** Trade and street directories (from 1783 onwards). 

** Local newspapers (a few date from the 1730s, but more exist from the 1760s). The Exeter Flying Post is partially indexed for surnames, 1763-1835. 

** Quarter Sessions records. 

** Nonconformist registers (the survival rate varies depending on denomination, location and date). 

** Electoral registers and poll books of voters. 

** Maps, deeds and rate books. 

** Indexes to personal names, place names and subjects, including references in historical journals. 

** Family and estate papers of the major county families. 

** Transcripts of lists of inhabitants in early sources such as the Muster Rolls, Protestation Returns and Hearth Tax records. 

** Abtracts of Consistory Court records, c. 1557-1850. 

** Clergy lists. 

** Phillimore's Marriage Index for Cornwall, Dorset and Somerset. 

** Boyd's Marriage Index (samples of Devon and Cornwall parishes in which various surnames occurred). 

** Family cuttings files and family collections compiled by earlier researchers. 

** Monumental Inscriptions.

In addition, we have access to other national sources, including: 

** IGI (the International Genealogical Index) covering the whole of England. 

** GRO (General Registry Office) Indexes of births, marriages and deaths (references to civil certificates from 1837 onwards). For details of searches carried out by our London associate please visit our Research work, GEDCOMS and charts page.

** Burke's Peerage, Commoners, Landed Gentry, and similar publications.

** Alumni Oxonienses and Alumni Cantabrigienses (lists and brief career details of those who attended the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge).