Family and Estate Records
Nottinghamshire Archives holds a large number of family and estate collections.
These are the records of landed families and include the papers of
- The Belper (Strutt) family of Kingston on Soar (DD/BK)
- The Edge family of Strelley (DD/E)
- The Foljambe family of Osberton (DD/FJ)
- The Lothian family of Melbourne (DD/LM)
- The Portland (Cavendish-Bentinck) family of Welbeck (DD/P)
- The Savile family of Rufford (DD/SR)
The University of Nottingham also holds a large number of estate collections, including papers for some of the above-named families.
Main groups of documents
Title deeds
Rentals and leases
Surveys and valuations
Maps and plans
Estate and household accounts
Estate correspondence
How to find the document you want
Main groups of documents include:
Title deeds
Coverage: 12th - 20th centuries
Documents produced as the result of the purchase and sale of land, and buildings on it. In family collections, these generally relate to properties subsequently acquired by the estate.
Rentals and leases
Coverage: c 16th - c 19th centuries
Annual lists of tenants, sometimes identifying the property they held, and the rents paid, and copies of the leases to the tenants.
Surveys and valuations
Coverage: 17th - 19th centuries, some earlier
Occasional lists of properties owned, giving the valuation and sometimes the names of the tenants
Maps and plans
Coverage: 16th - 19th centuries
Occasional plans of part or all of the estate. Most date towards the end of the above period.
Estate and household accounts
Coverage: 16th - 19th centuries
Day-to-day financial accounts of the costs of running the house, household and estate. They may include wages paid to staff but lists of estate and household staff are rare.
Correspondence
Coverage: 16th - 20th centuries
Letters by the steward or agent regarding the running of the estate.
How to find the document you want
There is a catalogue for each family or estate collection in the archives search room. There are also personal and place name indexes, and an index of maps and plans, which can help locate references to the family's records.
Many catalogues of family and estate collections are available online on the Access to Archives (A2A) web site.
