Kelly's Post Office Directory Of London County Suburbs 1918

Kelly's Post Office Directory of London County Suburbs 1918 (Digital Download or CD-ROM)

Product Description:

Unlock the secrets of your London ancestors with this fascinating piece of history! Kelly's Post Office Directory of London County Suburbs 1918 is an essential resource for genealogists and local historians. Published at the very end of the First World War, this directory is presented in Kelly's innovative "new format," conveniently combining both South and North London suburbs into a single, comprehensive volume—saving you the hassle of tracking down two separate books.

Bridging the 1911-1921 Census Gap

For genealogists, 1918 is a notoriously difficult year. With the 1911 census being the last publicly available record and the 1921 census remaining locked behind a paywall, this directory serves as a crucial bridge. It allows you to pinpoint exactly where your ancestors were living, what trades they were practicing, and who their neighbors were as the Great War came to a close. You will even notice many women listed in traditional male occupations during this period of immense social shift.

What’s Inside? (Directory Sections)

This beautifully preserved volume contains high-quality scanned images of the original book and is divided into highly useful sections:

• Court & Borough Information: Detailed historical, municipal, and institutional information for the various metropolitan boroughs.
• Commercial & Trades Directory: An alphabetical list of trades and professions, perfect for finding shopkeepers, builders, and local business owners.
• Private Residents Directory: The genealogical goldmine. An alphabetical list of private households, typically including the head of the house and their street address.
• Street Directory: An alphabetical listing of streets, house numbers, and the names of the current occupants—ideal for tracing who lived next door to your ancestors.

Navigability & Technical Details

Please note that because this is a reproduction of a historical book, the text consists of scanned images and is not inherently searchable by typing a name into a search box. However, do not let this deter you! Because Kelly's directories are meticulously arranged alphabetically by surname, street, and trade, navigating to your desired entry is incredibly fast and intuitive.

Bonus Tech Tip: If you use a modern PDF reader (such as Adobe Acrobat Reader DC), the software will actually perform OCR (Optical Character Recognition) on the fly. This means you can often use the "Find" (Ctrl+F / Cmd+F) function to search for surnames or street names directly within the PDF, combining the charm of a scanned historical document with modern convenience!

A Glimpse into 1918 Suburban London

The London suburbs in 1918 were a melting pot of shifting industries, burgeoning sports, and notable residents. As you browse these pages, you are walking the same streets as:

• Famous Residents: Sir Edward Elgar, the legendary composer, was living in Hampstead (North London) during this exact period, deeply involved in wartime musical efforts. In the South London suburbs, the shadow of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (who spent much of his life in South Norwood and Crowborough) still loomed large over the area.
• Sports Teams: The suburbs were home to legendary football clubs. You'll find the streets surrounding Tottenham Hotspur's ground in North London, and in the South, the streets near Charlton Athletic and Millwall, clubs that were heavily intertwined with local dock and munitions workers.
• Industry: The North London suburbs (like Hendon and Edgware) were rapidly becoming hubs for early aviation and motor manufacturing, while South London suburbs like Woolwich and Croydon were dominated by massive munitions factories, railway works, and the burgeoning aerospace industry.

Important Disclaimer Regarding Maps

Please Note: Original copies of this specific 1918 edition were often issued without the standard folding street maps, as paper conservation was heavily enforced during WWI. Therefore, the original maps may be missing from this scan. However, if the maps are present in the original we scanned, consider it a wonderful bonus!

Format Options: Choose exactly how you want to access this data. This product is available as an Instant Digital Download (high-resolution PDF files) or on a CD-ROM mailed directly to your door.