Local and family history

Apart from printed works etc., there are many resources available to assist users in these increasingly popular areas of research. Some examples are -

Newspapers and periodicals
Local newspapers are an invaluable and heavily-used resource for both academic and non-academic research into subjects such as local and family history, social and political history, crime, shipping, advertising, sport etc.  Swansea Central Library maintains large collections of microfilm of local newspapers, the earliest dating back to the first issue of The Cambrian in 1804.

Library holdings include full coverage of The Cambrian newspaper, the first English-language newspaper to be published in Wales, produced at Swansea from 1804 to 1930. There is a partial computerised index for this title.

Other important local newspaper files include The South Wales Daily / Evening Post from 1893 to date and The Western Mail from 1869 to date. There is also a run of The Times from 1785. All are available on microfilm, from which photocopies can be taken, although pre-booking of a microfilm reader/printer is recommended. Swansea Central Library also maintains files of over 60,000 newspaper cuttings on a wide variety of local topics.

The Cambrian Online Index
The online index to The Cambrian newspaper is an important finding aid for those researching the history of South Wales and for family historians, students etc. The period covered by the Index currently is from January 1804 (when the newspaper started), to 1876, apart from birth, marriage and death entries which extend to 1914.

The area covered is primarily that of the former county of West Glamorgan.  The online database is organised into a wide range of subject headings and contains almost 400,000 entries.  The Cambrian Index Online, with details of how to use it, can be found by using the link at the right of this page. 

Maps and plans
These cover the period c. 1835 (tithe map and apportionment copies) to date. Included are the current and previous editions of 1:1250 and 1:2500 Ordnance Survey maps, the 6" Glamorgan series (mainly pre-war), and the 25" series (c.1878 and subsequent editions). We also have County maps, Harbour, Town and Street plans. The maps are mainly of Swansea and Gower.

Illustrations
These consist of prints, old and modern photographs and postcards on a variety of subjects, such as buildings, streets, events and personalities.

Census returns
Swansea Central Library currently holds filmed Census returns from the years 1841,1851,1861,1871, 1881, 1891 and 1901 for all of the City and County of Swansea area. The films can be viewed and photocopied using one of our microfilm reader/printers, and, although not essential, pre-booking of a reader/printer is recommended.

Indexed Census returns for Glamorgan for 1841, 1851 and 1861, produced by the Glamorgan Family History Society, are available on CD-ROM. The indexed 1851 and 1881 British Census returns, compiled by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints are also available on CD-ROM.

It is advisable to pre-book a computer for the use of these resources.

Trade directories
Local trade and commercial directories were published from the late 18th Century onwards. The earliest held in the Reference Library is dated 1816. They vary in content - some list only professional and trades-people, others include private residents and a few contain a street index. 

Many of the Library's Trade Directories were supplied on loan for digitisation, in a co-operative initiative, to a Lottery-funded Project organised by the University of Leicester.  These may be freely viewed online at www.historicaldirectories.org

Please see the link to the right to see what we hold

Electoral registers
Inclusion in early Electoral Registers or Burgess Lists was dependent on property ownership and women were totally excluded until 1918 (even then they had to be over 30). Fortunately, later Electoral Registers were less exclusive. The earliest Register in the Reference Library dates from 1836. There is an incomplete run until 1939 and a fuller set after the Second World War, up to 2002.

These Registers cover the Swansea West, Swansea East and Gower areas. Changes under the Representation of the People (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2002 dictate that the full electoral registers can no longer be held by the Library. The full register may now be viewed by calling at the Electoral Registration Office or at the West Glamorgan Archive Service, both at the Civic Centre, Swansea.

Please see the link to the right to see what we hold

Swansea Central Library has a run of Swansea telephone directories from 1904 to date and holds classified directories (Yellow Pages) from 1940 onwards for the local area. Current "White Pages" directories are held in book form for Wales and for the UK as a whole on the BT Phone Disc CD-ROM.