Ancestors lost in the crowd?
New to family history research?
Perhaps these articles on our website may help:
Census 1841 - 1911
Birth, Death and Marriage Registration
The London Gazette
Newspaper archives
Trade Directories
History of Hadleigh
Hadleigh, the Castle 1891, Essex
Reproduced courtesy of The Francis Frith Collection.
Welcome to the home page for the History of Hadleigh and its inhabitants.
Below you find links to a range of sources transcribed by History House. Further below under 'more local history sources' you will find to links to other places on the web where you can continue your research.
For other locations in Essex see our alphabetical list of Essex towns and villages.
White's Directory of Essex 1848
HADLEIGH is a small village and parish 2½ miles West North West of the fishing port of Leigh, and 6½ miles >>more.
White's Directory of Essex 1848 - list of inhabitants.
White's Directory of Essex 1863
White's Directory of Essex 1863 - list of inhabitants.
Post Office Directory of Essex 1874
Post Office Directory of Essex 1874 - list of inhabitants.
Hadleigh Criminal Cases
Court cases involving Hadleigh residents - ongoing project >>more.
Places to visit
Hadleigh Castle: ruined castle with fine views of the Thames estuary. >>more
Education in Hadleigh
Reports and returns on schools and education in Hadleigh.
Images and Maps
Images and maps of Hadleigh supplied by Francis Frith.
Hadleigh Poor
Under the Poor Law of 1834, Hadleigh became part of the Rochford Union. See our article on researching your workhouse and pauper ancestors.
Feature articles
A look at a time when the farmers of Hadleigh and nearby parishes were faced with spate of arson attacks on their property. >>more
My Hadleigh Ancestors
Are your ancestors from Hadleigh? Why not tell us their story: My Ancestors.
More local history sources
Ebay is now a great source for old images of Essex towns and villages. If you're looking for pictures to add to your family tree album, then try one of the auctions, or there are several 'Buy It Now' shops offering postcards which have been touched up and improved - so if you're unsure about bidding, try these. Link already formatted for Essex. Browse through or type the name of the location in the Ebay search box. >>
Also on Ebay are legal documents on vellum. This link is formatted for Essex. (Sometimes I think these should be in an archive.) >>
Books featuring Hadleigh from Abebooks. Just click the logo. The search terms are already formatted for Hadleigh.
Search for Hadleigh census returns at ancestry.co.uk.
1841 England Census | 1851 England Census
| 1861 England Census
1871 England Census | 1881 England Census
| 1891 England Census
1901 England Census
Hadleigh
Reproduced courtesy of Footsteps' Shop on Ebay.
Quality reproductions of old photographs.
The Essex Record Office: an excellent starting point for research. The ERO has an online catalogue by the name of SEAX and a database of Parish Records held in the ERO. Access to both via their home page.
1881 Ordnance Survey Map from the British History Online web site (Essex: 077, Ordnance Survey 1:10,560: Epoch 1.0).
Ordnance Survey - type the place name in the gazetteer search box to view detailed map of Hadleigh.
Heritage Gateway. Database of national and local records of England's historic sites and buildings. Includes records and photographs of all listed buildings, and historical and archaeological information on locations throughout England.
Hadleigh Castle
print published 1834