History?

[Scarlett]

I'd love to find out about the history of my house but don't know where to start. Are there any websites or other places I could look?

[jackthehat]

Censuses (if it existed before 1911) and the electoral roll will give an idea of who lived there. Also the pre-war 1939 register will do the same.
Your local County Archives may be of some use, too.

[KARL]

I presume your house is not of recent construction. When we bought our house there was a full complement of past deeds/titles in the package (not initially in our hands, see below) and these give the names of owners etc. since about 1878 but there are hints only at precisely how/when it came to be built - I get the impression that the developer ran out of money and he part sold/mortgaged the house but we can't tell if he was already living in it or whether it was unfinished at that point.

If you have a mortgage then the lender may have something like we got in their storage as security, otherwise your solicitor. However, depending on where you live, these papers may have been destroyed by any previous owners as modern records have replaced the old papers. In that case you could try whichever authority would have stored the old titles - they may just have copies in their archives.

[gollob]

try zoopla

[Baldric]

Do Zoopla actually give histories?

[Spungle]

This one will definitely be of interest: www.old-maps.co.uk

This will show your house at various times in history.

[10ClarionSt]

That looks like a good site Spungle but it's asking for postcodes. How do you find a postcode for a property from the mid 19th century?