The Manchester Collection

Included in this collection are a wealth of vital records covering baptisms, births, marriages and deaths which are crucial to any family history research. The Manchester Collection also boasts cemetery records, rate books, workhouse registers and school admission registers and log books.

If you had ancestors who lived in Manchester, then this is the perfect place for you to delve in and make exciting new discoveries. The records in this collection give you the opportunity to better understand how your ancestors lived, particularly in the Victorian period, providing more colour to your family history.

Cemetery records are also available in this collection. These records can be a great source of information for you to delve into, with additional details such as religion, next of kin and address often included.

Manchester City Council's Libraries Information and Archives have also contributed to the National School Admission Registers and Log Books records.

Explore school records for the Manchester area to find your ancestor's birth date, admission year and the school they attended. You may also be able to discover their parents’ names, father’s occupation, exam results and any illnesses that led to absence from school.

You can also search the Manchester Electoral Registers to discover more about your Mancunian ancestor. Use our unique browse feature and search by event year or type. The records include Citizens’ Rolls, Burgess Rolls and Parliamentary Registers.

The registers include Ardwick, Bradford, Beswick, Cheetham, Chorlton-Upon Medlock, Harpurhey, Hulme, Newton and Manchester. The collection also includes registers from the townships of Salford and Broughton.

The Manchester Naturalisation Society records allow you to search records of 542 individuals included in a cash book for the society. The Manchester Naturalisation Society was formed in January 1896 and received 123 members in the first year, of whom 16 received naturalisation certificates.

The society raised funds for the certificates by asking members to pay fees of 1s per week. Once sufficient funds had been gathered, a ballot was held and the winners were put forward to receive their naturalisation papers. This valuable and niche set of records allow you to discover the name of your ancestor, the amount they paid to the fund and the date of their payment.