Kelly's Directory Of Buckinghamshire 1895

Kelly's Directory of Buckinghamshire 1895 - Digital Download or CD-ROM

Product Description:

Step back into the Victorian era with this high-quality reproduction of Kelly's Directory of Buckinghamshire 1895. An essential resource for genealogists, local historians, and house historians, this directory offers a fascinating snapshot of life in Buckinghamshire at the height of Queen Victoria’s reign.

Whether you are tracing your family tree or researching the history of your local village, this directory provides the details that bring your research to life. Available as a convenient Digital Download or a traditional CD-ROM, this digital book is compatible with Windows, Mac, and Linux systems.

Navigability & Searchability

Please note that this directory consists of scanned images of the original pages. While the text is not embedded (meaning it is not immediately searchable in the traditional sense), the directory is compiled alphabetically by location and trade, making manual navigation intuitive and straightforward. Furthermore, most modern PDF readers (such as Adobe Acrobat, Edge, or Preview) now feature "OCR on the fly." This means you can often use the Ctrl+F (or Command+F) function to search for surnames or place names directly within the viewer, allowing for efficient research.

What’s Inside the Directory?

This comprehensive volume is packed with invaluable data, divided into several distinct sections:

1. County Information: A detailed overview of Buckinghamshire in 1895, including topography, geology, and administrative details such as the County Council, Magistrates, and the Police force.
2. Court Directory (The Private Residents): An alphabetical list of private residents, often referred to as the "gentry." This section is crucial for finding landowners, professionals, and wealthier ancestors who did not run a trade.
3. Town & Village Directories: Street-by-street and house-by-house listings for major towns (such as Aylesbury, High Wycombe, and Buckingham) and thorough coverage of every village in the county. These entries list heads of households, tradespeople, and farmers.
4. Trades Directory: A massive alphabetical index by profession. If your ancestor was a baker, a blacksmith, or a boot maker, you can find them listed here, along with their location.
5. Institutions & Advertisements: Information on churches, schools, and charities, alongside contemporary advertisements that offer a colorful glimpse into the goods and services of the day.

Bridging the Census Gap

This directory is the perfect companion to the 1891 and 1901 Census records. It helps fill the gap between the census years, allowing you to confirm if a family had moved, if a child had left home to start an apprenticeship, or if a tradesman had expanded his business between the 1891 count and the turn of the century.

Famous People & Local Notables (1895)

Buckinghamshire was home to a diverse array of influential figures during this period. While browsing these pages, you may encounter references to:

• The Rothschild Family: By 1895, the Rothschilds were firmly established as the dominant landowners in the county. You will find entries for Nathan Mayer Rothschild, 1st Baron Rothschild of Tring Park, and his brother Alfred de Rothschild at Halton House.
• The Prime Minister: Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, who served as Prime Minister from 1894 to 1895, was a significant resident of Mentmore.
• Eton College: The directory lists the Provost and Fellows of Eton College, one of the most famous schools in the world, which has shaped the history of the county for centuries.

Buckinghamshire in 1895: Facts & Industry

• The Chair Industry: High Wycombe was the undisputed capital of chair making. The directory is filled with turners, "bodgers" (wood-turners who worked in the beech woods), and chair manufacturers, supplying the entire Empire.
• Lacemaking: While in decline, the traditional industry of Buckinghamshire lace was still active in villages like Olney and Newport Pagnell, often noted in the trade descriptions.
• The Chiltern Hills: The directory highlights the geography of the Chilterns, an area already popular for its clean air and rural beauty, attracting wealthy Londoners looking for country retreats connected by the ever-expanding railway network.

Important Disclaimer

Please be advised that the original source volume used for this scan was missing the set of county maps typically found at the beginning of Kelly’s directories. Consequently, this product does not contain the fold-out maps of Buckinghamshire.