1 – Herefordshire Record Office
Hereford and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust
Geological Records Centre,
University of Worcester,
Henwick Grove,
Worcester,
WR2 6AJ
Tel: 01905 542014
building.stones@worc.ac.uk
www.EarthHeritageTrust.org
What is at Hereford Record Office?
Hereford Record Office is currently completely closed to the public for preparation of
the collections for relocation to new premises. This is likely to be late spring 2015.
Archive collections
Hereford Record Office holds approximately 7800 archive collections, occupying over
two miles of shelving. Our archives date back to the 12th century, and can help you
research almost any aspect of Herefordshire's past.
Access to the records we hold is granted in compliance with the Freedom of
Information Act, Data Protection Act and the Environmental Information Regulations.
Contact details: https://www.herefordshire.gov.uk/archives
 Telephone: +44 (0)1432 260750
 Email: archives@herefordshire.gov.uk
Hereford Archives do not have an online archive catalogue. However, many of the
catalogues are included on the Access to Archives (A2A) website
(http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/). Also, the Forest of Dean Family History
Society (http://www.forest-of-dean.org.uk/) have added entries from South
Herefordshire parishes to their records.
The Building Stones Project has photocopies of all the catalogue cards listed under
the cluster names for Herefordshire. If you would like to view these please ask Beth
for more details, as we only have one copy of this information.
Summaries of the main classes of holdings at Hereford Record Office are:
Diocesan
The Diocese of Hereford covers parishes in Herefordshire, South Shropshire, and
parts of Worcestershire, Monmouthshire and Powys. These documents date from the
thirteenth century onwards and cover a wide range of the Diocese's functions through
to the present day. Latin was the preferred language of many of these documents until
1732.
Main groups of Diocesan documents:
 Bishop's registers, 1275-1992
 Bishop's transcripts, c. 1650-1850
 Court books (instance) 1491-1636, 1662-1829. Instance cases were those
brought by one lay person against another
Registered Charity No. 1144354
Company Limited by Guarantee No. 7586089
Registered in England and Wales
2 – Herefordshire Record Office

Court books (office), 1407-1639, 1662-1882. Office cases were brought by the
church authorities against an individual (lay or clergy)
 Faculties
 Glebe terriers, c.1589-1636
 Marriage bonds and allegations for Hereford Diocese (commonly known as
marriage licences), 1661-1982
 Tithe maps and apportionments, 1836-1850s
 Wills, pre-1858
Bishop's transcripts, court books, marriage bonds and allegations, tithe maps and
apportionments, and wills are available on microfilm.
Parish
We hold the parish registers and records of Church of England parishes within the
county of Herefordshire, as well as those of several parishes outside the county: Old
Radnor (Powys), Presteigne (Powys), Discoed (Powys), Dixton (Monmouthshire), and
Wyesham (Monmouthshire).
Many churches have deposited their pre-1900 registers of baptisms, marriages, burials
and banns, which are mainly made available to the public in microfilm format.
Parochial records can also include churchwardens' accounts, overseers' accounts,
vestry minutes, records of settlement and bastardy, as well as a wide variety of other
sorts of records.
View the list of all Herefordshire Parish Register and Bishop's Transcripts holdings
The following parishes have not yet deposited any of their records with us:
 Bosbury (registers available on microfilm)
 Donnington (deposited at Gloucestershire Record Office)
 Hereford St John the Baptist (deposited at Hereford Cathedral Archives)
 Tupsley (non-register material only)
The archive services of Shropshire and Worcestershire hold each county's respective
records of Shropshire and Worcestershire parishes within the Diocese of Hereford.
Local government
We keep the historic records of Herefordshire Council, and its predecessors, also
Hereford City and Leominster Borough, as well as district and parish councils. Records
of pre-1889 county government are within Herefordshire Quarter Sessions (part of the
public records collection). School and Board of Guardians (workhouse) records, where
they have survived, are also deposited as part of the local government collections.
Private
Private deposits form a large portion of our holdings. These records relate to all
aspects of the history and development of the geographical county of Herefordshire,
and its inhabitants. Collections include the archives of non-conformist ecclesiastical
bodies, businesses, estates and manors, private individuals, and a wide range of
societies.
Public
The National Archives has designated Herefordshire Record Office as a place of
deposit for public records. Generally, public records are created by a central
government department or their predecessor.
Registered Charity No. 1144354
Company Limited by Guarantee No. 7586089
Registered in England and Wales
3 – Herefordshire Record Office
Many of these records are exempt from the Freedom of Information Act and access to
them is restricted under the Data Protection Act. However, permission to view records
can be sought from the relevant authorising body.
Main groups of public records:
 Church Commissioners records
 Coroners' records
 Constabulary records
 Drainage Board records
 Fishery Board records
 Hereford City Quarter sessions
 Hereford City Petty sessions
 Hereford County Quarter sessions
 Hereford County Petty sessions
 Hospitals and health authorities:
Hereford General Hospital; Hereford County and City Asylum; Herefordshire
General Hospital; Kington Victoria Cottage Hospital; Leominster Cottage
Hospital; Ross Cottage Hospital; Victoria Eye Cottage Hospital
 Inland Revenue: Finance Act 1911
 Inland Revenue: Land Tax
 Inland Revenue: District Valuation
 Lieutenancy papers
 Magistrates Court records
Registered Charity No. 1144354
Company Limited by Guarantee No. 7586089
Registered in England and Wales