Sources

Kentish records and primary sources

Here a small fraction of the documentary heritage of Kent is being made available by the independant researchers and the Society's Library & Archive, Records and Transcriptions Groups.

 

 

Textus Roffensis

1123 CE

Actually two books in one, Textus is a compilation of early English laws dating as far back as the year 600, and a collection of charters relating to the Cathedral Priory of St Andrew, Rochester. rochestercathedral.org/textus→

 

Hundred Rolls

Mid-12th to 19th centuries CE

Exchequer pipe rolls contain accounts of royal income, arranged by county, for each financial year. The rolls represent the earliest surviving series of public records, and are essentially continuous from the mid-12th until the 19th centuries. Open

 

Customaries

Mid-12th to 16th centuries CE

Customs books were kept by churches and manors recording income from various estates, providing invaluable insight into the medieval economy. Open

 

 

 

 

Feet of fines

c.1195 to 1833 CE

Court copies of agreements following property disputes, although as The National Archives warns 'mostly fictitious and were simply a way of having the transfer of ownership of land recorded officially by the king's court'. Open

 

 

Baptism, marriage and burial registers

16th to 20th centuries CE

For many centuries baptism, marriage and burial registers were one of the few written traces left by large portions of the population, although statutory requirement only came about in the Early Modern period. Today they are indispensible for family history research and many historic church registers are available online and at Medway and Kent County Archives.

 

 

 

Wills

15th to 19th centuries CE

An index of Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PCC) and Consistory Court of Canterbury (CCC) wills prior to 1858 is maintained by Kent Archives and Local History Center. Open

 

 

Tithe Commutation Surveys

1830s to 1840s CE

Carried out from the 1830s to 1840s, The Surveys provide a great deal of information about land ownership, tenancy and land use at the time. The KAS has transcribed and published the records for most Kent parishes. Open