Find my home in history

I’ve got exactly the opposite. Many years ago, in my late DF’s papers I found the original sale papers for his grandparents house - bought by his grandmother for £64 cash, and secured by a £4odd deposit. I thought it very interesting, but when I approached the current owners (by post) I heard nothing back, so they mustn’t have been interested in the history.

If you have access to Ancestry (as said through your local library) go to the earliest census your house would be in or just choose a date- say 1841. Look for the relevant country in the list of census reports and click on it. There 's a box in the top right hand corner where you can identify the place and the district you are looking for. It's then a matter of looking at each area until you find your street name, then look at the number of your house and you'll know who was living there. Earlier censuses are easier because there aren't than many houses.

Hello Mattsmum2. You should be able to track the occupants of your home from the census's: 1841 to 1911. Our local libraries have free basic access to Ancestry. From home look up Free Cen. If the volunteers who operate this site have covered your area you should be able to track some census information.

Look for online local Records Offices in your area to see what they have. For example if your home is in the North East go to County Durham Records Office online. Click on 'Our Records'. On the next page (left column) is an interactive map link to historic maps through the years; it operates with a toggle feature revealing an up to date map. So you might be able to follow the space from green fields through various developments. You have to zoom in to a certain distance to get it to work and it is a bit fiddly but great once you get the hang of it. Also ask on family history message boards for advice.

There may be a way of tracking down the address via the census’ from 1841 onwards but I have no experience of searching that way. Local directories could also help or even the electoral role.

Try signing up to familytree forum. It’s free and there are experienced researchers there who may be able to help.

The Land Registry will have the information but you have to pay.