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Your Family Background?
David Kravitz's article - click here

                                    A view of the Thames River in London

Jews first came to Britain in 1066, at the invitation of William the Conqueror, but were expelled in 1290 by Edward I.  This coincided with the Norman Conquest in 1066.  England, unlike America, had a large influx of Western European Jews (especially Dutch) going back before 1800.  This site offers background information that could be useful in your research 
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~sherry/
areas_of_settlement.htm 

England, Scotland and Wales Genealogy
http://www.bigenealogy.com

  Books    

There are many books and CDs offering information and help on researching your Jewish roots.  I have teamed up with Amazon.com.uk to make it easy to find these sources.  All you need do is click here > Jewish Genealogy etc.

"A History of the Jews of England" - authored by Cecil Roth

"Anglo-Jewish Notabilities: Their Arms and Testamentary Dispositions"  authored by Jewish Historical Society of England and published in London by Union College in 1949
www.pantera-designs.com/pnec/personaemicon.htm 

"Building Jerusalem - Jewish Architecture in Britain" - authored by Sharman Kadish and published in 1996 by Vallentine Mitchell in London.  It's more than an architectural book since it intertwines Jewish history with the buildings that were produced for the Jewish community and has chapters on cemeteries, mikvot and other subject that could be of genealogical interest.  It lists the names of many families.  Posted on JewishGen by Joel Ives in 1996

"Children of the Ghetto" - authored by Israel Zangwill - a picture of the Jewish Ghetto life in London in the late 19th century.

"The Earl of Petticoat Lane" - authored by Andrew Miller and published by Random House in the UK.  The story is about the author's grandparents, Jewish immigration to London and assimilation among British Jews in the first half of the twentieth century and about his visit to the family homes in Poland and Galicia.

"Essays and Portraits in Anglo-Jewish History" - authored by Cecil Roth and published in Philadelphia by the Jewish Publication Society of America in 1962
www.pantera-designs.com/pnec/personaemicon.htm 

"Expulsion: England's Jewish Solution" - authored by British historian Richard Huscroft and published by Tempus looks at the period of 1066 to 1290.

"From Here to Obscurity" - the story of London's East End Yiddish speaking community from 1933-45 - authored by Yoel Sheridan and published by Tenterbooks
http://www.tenterbooks.com

"Harfield's Commercial Directory of the Jews of the United Kingdom" - published in 1804Jewish Genealogy etc.

"Hebrew Deeds of English Jews Before 1290" - authored by Myer David Davis and published in London

"The History of the Jews in Great Britain" - authored by Moses Epstein Margoliut and published in 1857

"History of the Great Synagogue" (London)
http://www.jewishgen.org/jcr-uk/susser/roth/

"In our Own Hands: The Hidden Story of the Jewish
Brigade in World War II" - a wonderful documentary about the Jewish Brigade, the all-Jewish fighting unit in the British Army in the Second World War, and about its activities immediately after the war

"Internment, the Diaries of Harry Seidler May 1940 - October 1941" - authored by Harry Seidler and edited by Janis Wilton.  Published by Allen & Unwin in 1986., provides a very personal and detailed account of the daily happenings during his internment by the Canadians (July 1940 to October 1941 as well as by the British from May 1940.
ISBN 0 86861 915 9

"The Jewish Communities of North-East England" authored by Lewis Olsover.  The author's definition of northeast England included Newcastle, Tyneside, Teesside, and Wearside. Jewish Genealogy etc.

"Jewish Immigrant in England 1870 - 1914" - authored by Lloyd P Gartner in 1973.

"The Jewish Victorian" - Genealogical Information from the Jewish Newspapers 1871-80 Names in books
http://www.jgsgb.org.uk/nibs01.shtml

"Jews of Angevin England" - authored by Joseph Jacobs and published in London by David Nutt Publisher, 1893
www.pantera-designs.com/pnec/personaemicon.htm 

"The Jews of Britain, 1656 to 2000". by Todd M. Endelman, University of
California Press, 2002.

"The Jews of Georgian England, 1714-1830" by Todd M. Engelman, University of Michigan Press, 1999.  Jewish Genealogy etc.

"Jews of Medieval Oxford" - authored by Cecil Roth and published in Oxford by Clarendon Press in 1951
www.pantera-designs.com/pnec/personaemicon.htm 

"The Jews of the Restoration"  authored by Lucien Wolf. A facsimile of this document was published in the Transactions of the Jewish Historical Society of England.  It does not have many names.  British Museum manuscripts dated 1660 are probably more useful. Jewish Genealogy etc.

"King of the Schnorrers" - authored by Israel Zangwill of Jewish life in the 18th century.

"The London Jewry" - authored by Joseph Jacobs
www.pantera-designs.com/pnec/personaemicon.htm 

"No Job For A Woman" - links re Pre-1914 to Post 1945 about women in Britain
http://www.iwm.org.uk/upload/package/30/women/sitemap.htm

"Shakespeare and the Jews" - an interesting book about the Jews in England, who were allowed in England in the 1600s.  Catholics were also not appreciated, so Sephardim often posed as Huguenots, who, as Protestant refugees from the continent, were allowed to be 'non-Anglican'.

"Sketches of Anglo-Jewish History" - authored by James Picciotto and published in 1877.  Jewish Genealogy etc.

"Uniting the Tailors" authored by A. J. Kershen and published by Frank Cass & Co., in 1995  Jewish Genealogy etc.

"Well-suited - A History of the Leeds Clothing Industry" authored by Katrina Honeyman and published by Oxford University Press, in 2000) Jewish Genealogy etc.

  Book Resources

Five Leaves Publications - a small UK publisher with an interest in Jewish secular culture, and many other subjects   
http://www.fiveleaves.co.uk/ 

General  
United Kingdom  
Genealogy Information   

1649 Petition to Oliver Cromwell - "In Volume 19 of TJHSE there is an article about the first Sephardic "Resettlement Cemetery" with a diagram of the people buried there and the dates  of burial. I would imagine that a number of them may have been around during 1649!"

"I have to admit that this is one of many topics I am interested in as I'm sure many other people are. The often quoted number of Jews living in England during the Readmission was around 150 (see Charles Roth: "A History of the Jews in England", page 173 and notes)."

"I currently have a total of some 103 names collated from two sources: the Resettlement Cemetery article and the list of 16 Jews who signed the Escamot in 1664." From a posting by Jeremy G. Frankel on British Jewry Forum

      
All UK Database
http://www.jewishgen.org/databases/UK/

Alien Registration

There was registration in both WW I and WW II as a result of legislation passed in 1914 which included provisions for alien restriction and internment as well.  Records from all localities in Great Britain are not always available as some have been destroyed, i.e. the city of Salford is available, but not the City of Manchester.  The Home Office and the Public Record Office (PRO) have what records that are available.  Some records may be found in the local constabularies. A book on this topic is "The Internment of Aliens in Twentieth Century Britain" - edited by David Cesarani and Tony Kushner.

Archives -

National Digital Archive of Datasets (NDAD) - archive of electronic data and related documents created by UK government departments; operated by the University of London on behalf of the UK Public Record Office  
http://ndad.ulcc.ac.uk/ 

Note: "Holland" has been wrongly designated as a "parish or place" not a country, county or island -- presumably this is because there is a Holland in Lincolnshire, England.  From a posting by Celia Male

UK Passenger Lists at the PRO (UK Public Record Office) website. The list of people arriving in the UK by sea are kept by the Board of Trade's Commercial and Statistical Department and its successors.  The information includes age, occupation, address in the United Kingdom and the date of entering the country.
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/

http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/TOO_TUM/TRADE_BOARD_OF.html

http://catalogue.pro.gov.uk/ExternalRequest.asp?
RequestReference=ri2163
Unfortunately, they have not been indexed or microfilmed.

"There is no wonderful online resource for immigration to England in the same way that there is for Ellis Island. If only there were!!!! The nearest we get is thousands of cardboard boxes of incoming & outgoing manifests at the Public Records Office in London, none of which are indexed within themselves, & none of which are online."

"Immigration records weren't kept for ships arriving from European ports either, so you won't find ancestors arriving from the Baltic or northern European ports, apart from a very select handful."  "It's possible to use the PRO's online catalogue, the PROCAT
www.pro.gov.uk 

to identify which box you'd need to request. Each box contains loads of manifests for various ports & ships for your chosen time period. If you don't know the ship or the port of entry/departure, you have to just check each & every one!"  From a posting by Saul Marks saulmarks@hotmail.com

David Kravitz, published an Article giving details of how to, where, at what cost etc. of searching for ancestors in the UK.  He recently updated this article.  From it you can learn about the Public Record Office at Kew, the Family Research Enter in Islington, Immigration and Emigration, Wills, Ports, Cemeteries, etc. in the UK, along with many internet links.  David is offering a free copy, which is in Word97 format, by just sending a request to David at
david_kravitz@hotmail.com

Beth Din

Does not in any way hold all the records for Jewish events in the U.K. 
http://www.theus.org.uk/the_united_synagogue/the_london_beth_din/divorce/

Birth Certificates

To obtain birth certificates from the Family Records Center in London, once you know the borough in which the birth was registered (this appears in the birth listings)  you can obtain a copy of the certificate, on the spot, at the Office of Registration in the borough itself i.e. a 20 minute wait by presenting your request, in person, at the Registration Office itself, rather than a 4 day wait at the Family Records Center).  This step saving tip, would probably apply throughout England, and possibly also to other types of registration certificates.  The cost of the copy is the same in both places.

Another tip - by enquiring at one of the local libraries in the East End of London, one of the group of libraries in that area actually has a Family History Department which is open to the public and holds many local records, including census information, electoral registers and the entire London Jewish Chronicle  on microfiche. The previous information was offered by Sylvia Kaye in the JewishGen Digest of 12/13/00
http://www.jchron.co.uk/  

Locate and obtain UK (England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) birth, marriage or death certificates. This is a commercial site.
http://www.bmd-certificates.co.uk

Birth, Death and Marriage Certificate - Recording - Jews did (and still do) have to register births and deaths with the local Registrar.  Marriages are registered twice with the local Jewish marriage secretary and also with the Registrar.

British users of this site should be aware that correspondents from the USA are wise to ask what information is contained on British certificates.  Birth, marriage and death registrations in the USA (depending on State) give more information than English/Welsh certificates and often provide information about the place of birth of parents. USA censuses similarly contain more information than censuses in UK and may show the place of birth and language spoken by parents of those listed. Evelyn Wilcock (London)

English and Welsh also do not disclose the final resting place of the deceased, as US death certificates do.

On this site you will find an entire copy of the indexes of Births, Marriages and Deaths for England and Wales from 1837 to 2001 
www.1837online.com
where you can order certificates. It costs 10 pence to search for one item and there's a minimum payment of UK Pound 5.00 which is valid for 45 days.

Follow the link to "ordering a certificate" and then the link to "ordering from the GRO" (General Register Office) - this service is available to overseas customers. As for the content of death certificates, see this link
http://www.familyrecords.gov.uk/topics/bmd%5F2.htm

Birth Records for the years 1791 - 1795 and 1801-1813 are available in rough and unchecked form
http://www.eclipse.co.uk/exeshul/susser/gsbirths/index.htm

The Board of Deputies of British Jews

The representative body of Anglo-Jewry to the Government.  It still operates to this day - Eleanor Lind is a deputy and a past chairman of its former Law and Parliamentary Committee and currently Vice Chairman of its Defence Division.  It is cross communal/across the various religious groupings and does much good work in protecting the rights of Jews through out the UK and abroad.  From a posting by Eleanor Lind kbx62@dial.pipex.com

British Company Information

Plenty of information here at  
http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/ 

British Emigration

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk

http://www.findmypast.com/HomeServlet

British-Jewry

An interesting discussion group dealing with Jews of Britain. British Jewry
www.british-jewry.org.uk 

The name probably speaks for itself. It's a forum for anyone researching British Jewry. Whether your ancestors were "passing through" or permanent members of British society, this is a place for you. Posts relating to all aspects of life for British Jews as well as research methods, success stories and genealogy will be welcomed.  To sign up, send an e-mail to
BRITISH-JEWRY-L@rootsweb.com 

Archives of British-Jewry
http://listsearches.rootsweb.com/
Type in 'British-Jewry' and then you can search the archive pages

You can join RootsWeb using my quick link above.

British Jewry - great link site
http://www.british-jewry.org.uk/New%20Member%20Area/dbhome2.htm

British Library Direct

Though it may not have much in the way of genealogy information, it does offer nine million articles from 20,000 international research journals and goes back 5 years.  About 150,000 new entries are added each month.  You can search for free but there is a pay-as-you-go charge should you find something of interest.
http://catalogue.bl.uk/F/?func=file&file_name=login-bl-list

British Newspaper Library Catalogue

Offers over 50,000 newspaper and periodical title holdings.  They have copies of every paper published.  It is in Colindale in North London and easily accessible by Tube. The catalogue includes all UK national daily and Sunday newspapers from 1810 to the present; most UK and Irish provincial newspapers, some from the early 18th century upwards; selected newspapers from around the world in western and Slavonic languages dating from the 17th century upwards, including extensive holdings from Commonwealth countries and many other nations, and a wide range of UK and Irish popular periodicals coverall subjects from fashion, pop music, and cinema, to sports, hobbies and trades.  
http://www.bl.uk/collections/newspaper/  

For further information or for the site itself  
www.bl.uk/collections/newspaper/newscal.html

http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/newspapers.html

The British Library - Newspaper Library - Colindale Avenue, London, NW9 5HE, United Kingdom - Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7412 7353  Fax: +44 (0) 20 7412 7379 
E-mail: newspaper@bl.uk

Exhibition Information
http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/whatson/exhibitions/topical.html

Most London borough libraries have a Family History Department.  There is one in Bancroft Road in Tower Hamlets, the Borough which covers the old Jewish East End.  These borough libraries hold many local records, including census information, electoral registers, and the entire Jewish Chronicle on microfiche.

British Telecom

        http://www.bt.com/phonenetuk/

Cemetery Information

International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies - Cemetery Project
england.html

Cambridge Jewish Cemetery
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Edmonton Cemetery - The records are kept in hand-written ledgers and in order to find the plots you need to know the dates of death as there is no facility (yet, but I believe that this is in the process of being remedied) to do a search on the names. Victor Brilliant, Hendon, London, England vicbrill@btinternet.com 

Elswick Cemetery Records - online if you join the JGSGB    
http://www.jgsgb.org.uk/ 

United Synagogue Burial Service - A useful list of agencies and organizations within the Jewish Community which offer help, advice and support on a wide range of subjects. Bereavement Counseling Service does not handle inquiries regarding cemeteries, burials or funerals. Contact the United Synagogue burial office.  See also "Cemeteries" above.
http://www.unitedsynagogue.org.uk/burial.html

Change of Name Records

 See "Name Change" below on this page. Records can be found on the top floor of the Public Record Office of the National Archives at Kew in London.  They contain a small amount of useful information but not all name changes can be found there.

Chief Rabbi Records

One option, if you run into a stumbling block, is to obtain an authorization from the Chief Rabbi.  You can apply to London Beth Din for this.  They will check that they have a copy and then will tell you how much exactly and who to make the check out to.  This will provide you with the Hebrew name including the patronymic of both parties, an address (possibly also "native of" if they were recently arrived) plus the groom's brothers, if any.  From a posting by Jocelyn Keene
http://www.theus.org.uk/the_united_synagogue/the_london_beth_din/
about_us/

Cities and Towns   

                                              1915 - Tailor Shop of J. B. Calmus in London's Est End

The Jewish community of England, in 2006, numbers about 290,000. There have been eight Jewish Lord Mayors of London.

Bath -

Jewish Cemeteries in West of England
www.eclipse.co.uk/exeshul/susser/jewcemwest.htm 

Birmingham (W. Midlands)

The Jewish community dates from 1730, if not earlier.  Brandwood end Cemetery of Birmingham Phone: 0121 643 0884
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Bishop Auckland: see Newcastle Upon Tyne

Blackburn -

GB/NNAF/O104465 Blackburn Hebrew Congregation Blackburn, Lancashire

Birth, Marriage, Death Records: Scope c1896-1997: copy records, including entries from register of marriages Repository Lancashire Record Office
http://www.lancashirebmd.org.uk/marrcov-BN.html

http://www.nra.nationalarchives.gov.uk/nra/searches/sidocs.asp?SIR=O104465

The Jewish Telegraph has a page where you can post enquiries. The Jewish Telegraph, printed in Manchester, UK, circulates all the the towns where there is a Jewish population such as Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool, London, Glasgow & Edinburgh etc and every few weeks they have a page devoted to genealogy called The Roots Column. The copy that you submit a and any photograph is at *no charge*.
http://www.jewishtelegraph.com/roots_72.html

Bobey Tracey:  Devon

Has at least one Jewish burial in 1933
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Bournemouth -

Kinson & Boscombe Cemetery: Phone: 01202 557 433
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Brighton: Sussex -

Jewish Cemetery
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Bristol -

Jewish Community Links
http://www.bwpjc.org/links.html

www.jewishgen.org/jcr-uk/Community/Bristol.htm

Hebrew Congregation
http://bristol.great-british-pages.co.uk/Detailed/1229.html

Cemetery Database - one of the oldest provincial Jewish communities in Britain.  Records exist of the Jewish community back to the 12th and 13th centuries.  There were at least three Jewish cemeteries St. Philips; Temple (Rose Street) and Fishponds.  The complete story exists at this site:
http://www.british-genealogy.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-8167.html

Burton -

There was a small Jewish Community here in 1887 which is about 15 miles from Derby.  A meeting was held on March 4th, 1887 with the Derby  Jewish Community to form a joint congregation, but the attempt failed.
http://www.jewishgen.org/jcr-uk/Community/derby/history.htm

Bush: Watford, Hertfordshire -

Jewish cemetery
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Cambridge

Jewish Cemetery
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Wittgenstein - a photo of Ludwig Wittgenstein's gravestone at St. Giles Cemetery in Cambridge, UK is at
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Wittgenstein_Graveston

Camp Kitchener

A 'refugee' camp outside of London, near the towns of Ramsgate and Sandwich, where refugees remained until they were able to emigrate to the United States or other locations outside of England.  At one time it had been a military installation then known as Richborough Camp.  It was transformed into an emergency home for 300 refugees from Germany in February 1939. 

The camp population reached 3,500 men, mostly young German and Austrian Jews who were granted temporary sanctuary.  They reconstructed the camp, for their food, lodging and sixpence a week for pocket money.  Fifty huts with thirty-six double bunks each were the sleeping quarters.  

There were classes in English after work which was from 8:30 a.m., to 5:30 p.m.  They could also leave the camp after work, but had to return before the 10 p.m. roll call.  Only two men were cited for misdemeanors, both for overstaying their leave.   The camp was run on a self-sufficient basis.  Of the sixty doctors in the camp, all but two performed ordinary camp tasks.  Artists decorate the camp with pictures and mottoes.  A former member of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra organized a camp orchestra, and professional and amateur actors and singers provided the entertainment.

Canterbury: Kent -

Jewish Cemeteries
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Chatham: Kent -

Jewish cemetery
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Cheltenham -

Jewish cemetery
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Cornwall -

"The Lost Jews of Cornwall"
ISBN 1 900178 27 3

Darlington: see Newcastle Upon Tyne

http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Derby -

Derby Hebrew Congregation
http://www.jewishgen.org/jcr-uk/Community/derby/history.htm

Dorset -

The Dorset Local Studies Collection is being integrated with the Archives Service and its main stock of books and maps will be available on open access in current Record Office building when it re-opens as the Dorset History Centre. Contact details are:

Telephone:   01305-250550
Fax:            01305-257184
Email:          archives@dorsetcc.gov.uk

Durham: -

Jewish cemetery - see Newcastle Upon Tyne
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Essex

Essex Jewish News
http://www.totallyjewish.com/news/

Exeter: Devon

In pre-Expulsion times, it was an important Jewish center>
http://exetersynagogue.org.uk

http://susserarchive.org.uk

http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Exeter Synagogue and Susser Archives - large collection of Jewish records for England in 18th and 19th centuries: Circumcision registers, marriage records, Burial records, Monumental Inscriptions and many others
http://www.eclipse.co.uk/exeshul/exeshul/index.html 

Susser Archives - There is a lot of information about Jews living in southwest England.
http://www.eclipse.co.uk/exeshul/susser/

Falmouth -

Jewish Cemetery
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Gateshead Jewish Community -

Gateshead is the home to a small community of ultra-orthodox Jews, which is known worldwide for its educational institutions. Talmudic students from many countries come to Gateshead to attend its Yeshivas and Kollels, and girls come to study at its teacher training college. 
http://www.vision.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/pictures/
jewish_community/ 

http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Gloucester -

Jewish cemetery
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Graveshead: see Newcastle Upon Tyne

http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Great Yarmouth:

Norfolk Jewish cemetery
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/england.html

Grimsby -

There are Regional Special Interest Groups that have British information and links.  The site includes links to Bohemia-Moravia SIG, Denmark SIG, German-Jewish SIG, Hungary SIG and Stammbaum - German SIG at  
http://www.jewishgen.org/Shtetlinks/W_Europe.html

"To Be Buried In Grimsby" authored by Avrom Saltman
http://www.zah.ndirect.co.uk/To_Be_Buried_In_Grimsby.htm

The North East Lincolnshire Archives in Grimsby Town Hall -  visitors must make appointments to visit.  John Wilson is the Archivist.  North East Lincolnshire Archives, Town Hall, Town Hall Square, Grimsby, DN31 1HX, Tel: (01472) 32 3581  Fax: (01472) 32 3582 Email: John.Wilson@nelincs.gov.uk

Guildford Jewish Community

This site offers guidance on times of services, kosher facilities, social and cultural activities and a history of both the Medieval and modern community.
http://www.guildfordjewish.com/

Hampshire and Isle of Wright Villages -

History of the area includes a guest book where you can put the name of the people you are researching and there are more than 150 entries.
http://southernlife.org.uk

Hull -

Ships from European ports would embark their passengers at this port city and then the passengers could make their connection via trains to Liverpool.  See my  Emigration page - 'Ships' for further information.  If you write directly to the Hull registrar, and ask them to look up an entry for you, they will normally oblige.

Delhi Street Cemetery
http://www.jewishgen.org/jcr-uk/Community/HullSixJewishCemeteries.htm

A batch of marriages from Hull has been added to the Yorkshire BMD web site, adding another 3,834 index entries.  Full details on the site as usual.
http://www.YorkshireBMD.org.uk

Leeds -

The Register Offices in the county of Yorkshire, England, hold records of Local births, marriages and deaths back to the start of civil registration in 1837. List of Marriages which took place in Leeds Synagogues can also be found here
www.YorkshireBMD.org.uk

Leeds - for Jewish information, try this Jewish Telegraph newspaper site with direct links to their roots directory.   The Jewish Telegraph has a page where you can post enquiries. The Jewish Telegraph, printed in Manchester, UK, circulates all the the towns where there is a Jewish population such as Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool, London, Glasgow & Edinburgh etc and every few weeks they have a page devoted to genealogy called The Roots Column. The copy that you submit a and any photograph is at *no charge*.  or you can email Mike Cohen at  roots@jewishtelegraph.com 
http://www.jewishtelegraph.com/roots_72.html

http://www.jewish-telegraph.com   

Leeds Jewish Cemetery: 0113 269 7520. "Murray Freedman wrote a paper (Shemot Journal of JGS of Great Britain, Spring 1993, Vol 1 no 2, p. 11-13) on the history of the Leeds Jewish community and local genealogical resources. Also see 'Deciphering an Old Gravestone in Leeds' (in Shemot , Oct 1994, Vol 2: No 4, p7) He has a database, totaling more than 12,000, made up from surviving burial records from 1840's to 1990. He has also produced a booklet of the 8,000 Jewish listings in the 1891 census. He can provide disks of this and the previous five censuses (1841 to 1891). He has a database of some 4,500 marriages made up from the surviving marriage registers from 1842 to the 1950's available on disks."  Source and contact: Murray Freedman: mpfreed@bigfoot.com

Letchworth (the Garden City) and Hitchin -

During WWII (1939), a Jewish community was established there, however according to an article in the Jewish Chronicle archive, there were a few Jews living there since at least 1909.  The Jewish Community was formed by Jewish families relocating from London to escape the German air raids.  It was almost exclusively orthodox. There was also a Jewish community there during the first World War.
http://www.jewishgen.org/JCR-UK/Community/letchworth.htm

http://www.letchworthgc.com/placestovisit/history/ww2_homefront.htm

Lincoln

Located in eastern England, has an interesting Jewish history.  A Jewish community was established there in 1159.  During Crusader riots, the Sheriff of Lincoln saved the Jews by giving them official protection.  St. Hugh, the great Bishop of Lincoln, taught love of Jews to his parishioners.  His death was marked by an official period of mourning among Lincoln's Jews.

Rabbi Joseph of Lincoln was a scholar mentioned in the Talmud; Aaron of Lincoln was a financier whose operations extended all over the country.  In 1255, Lincoln's Jews were accused of ritual murder.  Ninety-one Lincoln Jews were sent to London for trial and 18 were executed.  Notwithstanding, the Lincoln Jewish community flourished until 1290, when they were forcibly expelled by edict.

Liverpool

The city was the first organized Jewish community in the north of England and the largest provincial one outside London, until the mid-19th century. From this city hundreds of thousands of Jews sailed on the ships of the Cunard, Inman, National and White Star lines for the United States, Canada and Australia.

Louis Samuel Cohen was chosen as the city's first Jewish lord mayor in 1899 and international financier Samuel Montague was elected to Parliament in 1885.

By 1914 the city's Jewish population was estimated to exceed 11,000.  In 2005, it was fewer than 2,700.  There are now five synagogues of which four are Orthodox; the Liverpool Reform Synagogue (28 Church Road); 151 7335871 and was founded in 1928 as Liberal/Progressive.  The Greenbank Drive Hebrew Congregation is located in the Sefton Park area; 151 733 1417.  The Merseyside Jewish Representative Council at 433 Smithdown Road; 151 733 2292
www.liverpooljewish.com

In 1856 Jewish businessman David Lewis founded the Lewis's Department store in this seaport city for Jewish information, try this Jewish Telegraph newspaper site with direct links to their roots directory  
http://www.jewish-telegraph.com  
or you can email Mike Cohen at roots@jewishtelegraph.com 
http://www.liverpooljewish.com/

The first Jew to settle in the city was Leon Villareal, a Portuguese Jew who came from Demera in Guyana in 1740 according to an article written by Lois Gilman in the August/September issue of Hadassah Magazine.  In the 1750s, more German Jews from Germany settled near the present Canning Place, then the site of the Old Dock and Custom House in the docklands.  By 825 there were nearly 1,000 Jews and in 1808 the first synagogue was built on Seel Street.  It was known as the Liverpool Old Hebrew Congregation and is located on Princes Road in Toxteh near the edge of downtown.

 
Interior of Princes Road Synagogue

The Princes Road Synagogue; 151 709 3431
www.princesroadsynagogue.org

Deane Road Cemetery - Saul Marks is project manager for the Deane Road Cemetery restoration

Huyton Internment Camp - was located near Liverpool during WW II and held some Jewish refugees in 1940.

Liverpool Jewish Genealogy Service 
http://www.ljgs.org/ 

Liverpool Record Office in the Central Library
www.liverpool.gov.uk

Merseyside Maritime Museum - offers  "The Emigrants to the New World" showing a dockside street, and the sights and sounds of the emigrants heard before and during their departure.
www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime

London

            Brick Lane - East London Late 1800s
 

http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/

1870 Ordnance Survey
http://www.ph.ucla.edu/epi/snow/1859map/broadst_areacholera_a2.html

‘From Here to Obscurity’ tells the story of the now lost Jewish East End of London (1933-45)  through the eyes of the author Yoel Shulem, an immigrant from Poland, his wife Rivka, and Yulus, their English born youngest son. The opening half introduces us to the family, the thriving Yiddish-speaking community that inhabited the East End, its customs, landmarks and characters, and its turbulent history including the poverty and fascist incursions.   
http://www.tenterbooks.com/    
ISBN 0-9540811-0-2 £10.99 plus P & P Jewish Genealogy etc. 

Addresses - Locating them.

From a posting in JewishGen  1-5-03
"As you say, Kevin, many people still add the county in their postal address, and I'm one of them!  But the reason I mentioned Middlesex was that telling someone Wembley is part of the London Borough of Brent, though true, would not help locate it for postal purposes, though it might be useful for recent records (maybe some other Genner will know where to find the old old Middlesex records?)  To check the full postcode you need to know the house number. (and to further confuse matters some parts of Wembley (the old borough before it merged with Willesden to form Brent)  have London postcodes, e.g. NW9 ----,, although others, including, as it happens Wembley proper and Wembley Park Drive has codes starting HA (presumably from Harrow). 

If you think this is complicated, some London boroughs stretch over wide areas and maybe three or more postcode prefixes. (Ealing has W3, UB and HA codes!)  Hounslow was once a town in Middlesex, so was Brentford, but the London borough of Hounslow which takes in both also includes Chiswick which is just west London.  People in the outer parts of the borough still talk about "going into London".

And if you posted a letter to someone in Chiswick, but didn't know the W4 postcode, so put "Hounslow", it might take some time to reach them.  So the bit to leave out is the borough!" Charlie Pottins

Bryanston Street Synagogue -

This synagogue was located on the South side of Upper Bryanston Street, about halfway between Edgware Road and Gt Cumberland Street (now Place).  It is at least 150 yards from the West London Synagogue situated on the North side of Upper Berkely Street.
http://www.aboutbritain.com/maps/marylebone-map.asp

London Birth Certificates

Usually show the name and surname of father and the name, surname and maiden name of the mother.

The Office of National Statistics - can provide an application forms that can be used to request a Birth, Death or Marriage Certificate, and also a form listing all the fees.  The Office of National Statistics (ONS) web site:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/
To request certificates via e-mail send your e-mail to::
certificate.services@ons.gov.uk

Fax: +44-1704 550 013
Mail: General Register Office
         P.O. Box 2
         Southport, Merseyside
         United Kingdom PR8 2JD

Residents of England, Wales will be able to register births and deaths on-line, by phone, as well as in person according to the National Statistics office new plan they intend to implement.  Some restrictions on privacy matters are of concern.  The government will use the 100-year rule.  Records of persons born more than 100 years ago, will have full public access.  For those born within the last 100 years, there will be public access but certain information will be confidential, namely, address, occupation and cause of death. 
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/registration/whitepaper/default.asp

Dutch Ashkenazi Community -

Research and information on the immigrant Dutch Ashkenazi community in mid nineteenth century London, including Downloads of Census extracts (Spitalfields) and library of relevant archival documents There is a Jewish cemetery in existence for the past 200 years.  More information about the cemetery can be obtained from William Fern Whfern@aol.com

History of the Anglo-Dutch Ashkenazim in London
http://www.zen28027.zen.co.uk

"Tenterground"  -  was heavily populated by Dutch Jewish immigrants after 1850. A large area was demolished by the London County Council in a slum clearance - well before WW1.   Detail of the Victorian living conditions in the " Tenterground"  can be found in my  website.  From a posting by Aubrey Jacobus Aubrey@Jacobus.org  on 
on 7/25/03 on British-Jewry 
www.zen28027.zen.co.uk

The whole East End area has been a first home to many poor new arrivals in the UK.  The Huguenot weavers were mainly tent makers who originally settled this area.  An area was set aside for them to erect and assemble their tents and marquees as they made each part.  This area became known as the Tenterground. Today it is inhabited by Indian and Bangladesh immigrants.

Cemeteries
within London area

Cemeteries in London run by the United Synagogue has computerized their database of names from 1920.  Write or fax : Leonard Shear, Willesden Jewish Cemetery, Beaconsfield Road, Willesden, London NW 10  Fax: 0181 451 0478.

Adath Yisroel Burial Society - Enfield Cemetery Burial Listings - there are two sites you can search alphabetically by surname.  For surnames from A to L  
www.jgsgb.org.uk/bury02al.htm 

http://www.jgsgb.org.uk/bury02al.htm   
and for surnames from M to Z  
www.jgsgb.org.uk/bury02mz.htm     
What you are presented with is listings of names.  If you wish to receive data about the deceased, you have to provide dates of death and the surname to the Adath Yisrael burial Society to find the burial ledgers. The on-line indexes for  Enfield and Cheshunt are at   
www.jgsgb.org.uk/bury00.htm  

Hoop Lane Cemetery - (Hoop Lane Cemetery East (Spanish & Portuguese) and Hoop Lane Cemetery West (Reform Synagogues).  Reform & Sephardic) located on Hoop Lane, London NW11 Golders Green. Phone: 0208 455 2569.  Founded in 1895 or 1897, by West London synagogue which owns the 16.5 acres.  On the eastern side are the stones of the Sephardic Jews and apart from the old, closed Sephardic cemeteries off the Mile End Road.  Only Sephardic cemetery left in London. This information obtained from the book  "London Cemeteries" - authored by  Hugh Meller.   
http://www.gendocs.demon.co.uk/cem.html

Ilford, East Ham and Whitechapel are all in East London, but Dulwich is a long way away.  It is in the south of London - due south (about 7 miles) of central city.

Masorti and Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations didn't exist in 1884.

Plashet Cemetery - a huge Jewish cemetery located in the east end of London, covering families who died in Ilford, East Ham, Whitechapel, Dulwich, etc. A database covering Plashet, West Ham, East Ham and  Willesden is accessible by calling United Synagogue Ilford Burial Society at +44 208 518 2868 (Fax:+44 208 451 0478)  or  +44 208 343 8989.  The cemetery is open M - F & Sunday from 9 to 4 pm. Classed as being in Metropolitan Essex, although the cemetery is considered in Greater London - about 7 miles south of the center.   East London Cemeteries of Plashet Grove (High Street North), East Ham (Marlow Road) or West Ham (Buckingham Road). East Ham is open; West Ham can only be visited by prior arrangement and Plashet may also be by arrangement.  Check first.

Preston Hebrew Cemetery, Preston, Lancs (in the North of England) also a Military cemetery.

United Synagogue Burial Society arranges funerals and runs 
the cemeteries.  They are not staffed for general queries.  Various office 
addresses and hone number can be found at  
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/london.html

London Cemetery List
http://www.jewishgen.org/Cemetery/brit/london.html

If you are interested in almost every Jewish Cemetery in the United Kingdom, which includes Channel Islands, all of England, Ireland, Isle of Man, Scotland and Wales can be found at the web site of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Great Britain  
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/

For details of all Jewish cemeteries in London
http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/london.html

"The district of Mile End Old Town is now part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, while Canning Town comes under the jurisdiction of the London Borough of Newham. They will have lists of cemeteries in their areas, but you will probably have to contact individual cemeteries for the details you are looking for.

Cemeteries are not noted on death certificates as this is not a requirement of the death registration procedures.

Depending upon when the people you are seeking died, there would be a number of cemeteries to  choose from. This would also depend upon which burial societies they may have belonged to. Assuming that these people were Jewish, I suggest you contact the Federation of Synagogues and/or the United Synagogue, addresses and contact details for both can be found via Google.

Indeed, it was only yesterday that I managed to find the grave of my wife's grandmother in the Federation cemetery in Rainham, Essex. All I had to work on was the name (wrongly spelled as it happened), her date of death and her last home address. All of these details should be on the certificates you hold. The official I spoke to on the phone could not have been more helpful. He had all the burial records in front of him and was able to give me full details of the grave's location. PS. If you get stuck,. by all means get back to me. "  From a posting by David Nathan, London, England. d.nathan1@ntlworld.com

http://www.federationofsynagogues.com/

http://www.unitedsynagogue.org.uk/

United Synagogue's Eastern Office in Ilford, as they are responsible for all East London cemeteries under the their jurisdiction. The address to write to is:

United Synagogue Burial Society
North East London Local Office: Ground Floor,
Schaller House,
22 Beehive Lane,
Ilford, Essex, IG1 3RT
England

(This is the preferred office for Waltham Abbey, East and West Ham, and Plashet Cemeteries). Additionally, if you have the name and date of death, you could also look at the Jewish Chronicle newspaper Archives (search is free) and see if, under "Tombstone Consecration" notices the family placed an announcement of the impending service. The consecration was traditionally a year after burial, but it could have been any time afterwards. From a posting by Jeremy G. Grankel

Death Records

Whitechapel North - death records from 1850 to 1870 are held in Tower Hamlets Registry Office.  In 1900, this was the heartland of London Jews.

Early History of the Jews of London -

 http://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/brit/london.html

East London Around 1898 - maps, descriptions, synagogues, etc.
http://www.mernick.co.uk/thhol/easlon02.html

Family History Center -

The Mormons have microfilmed English/Welsh BMD indices up to 1980. The London office is closed.
http://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/

http://www.familyrecords.gov.uk/

http://www.hydeparkfhc.org/

Family Records Centre -  Death Indexes are available in their holdings.  Each year is divided into quarterly volumes,.  Also check the first quarter of the following year in case the death occurred late in the year and was recorded afterwards.  If you find a record you can order a death certificate while you are there.  This will give you date, place and cause of death and the name, address and relationship of the person reporting it. Unfortunately, it does not give place of burial, but addresses may give you lead.  This information offered by David Fielker of London, UK

Four Percent Industrial Dwelling Co. Ltd.  founded in 1885 by Anglo-Jewish philanthropists.  This is the story behind the mysterious arch in Wentworth Street whose inscription states: "Erected by the Four Per Cent Industrial Dwellings Company Ltd, 1886".  It is a story of slum dwellings, poverty and overcrowding in the Jewish East End of London, and the efforts of 19th century Anglo-Jewish philanthropists to do something about it.
http://www.olamgadol.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/fourpercentdwellings.html

Great Synagogue Marriage Records -

Records have been translated and published for the years 1791-1850 by Angela Shire and Frank Gent
http://www.eclipse.co.uk/exeshul/susser/

http://www.isragen.org.il/NROS/BIB/BksMembers.html

Harold Lewin has these marriage records, but they are only on his computer at this time.   harmir@bezeqint.net

Hackney District of London - once a highly populated Jewish area - it still is - with a community of mostly 18,000 charedim 
www.hackney.gov.uk 

Harrods Department Store - though not of interest to the Jewish genealogist, it may be interesting to know that this infamous store, owned by Mohamed al Fayed, has opened a Jewish style deli in his store called Harrods Salt Beef Bar.  I understand the great pastrami, but that the salt beef (corned beef) doesn't make it.

Imperial War Museum - located at Lambeth Road, London, SE1 and open daily 10 - 6; wheelchair access; not recommended for children under 14.  Phone: 011-44-020-7416-5320 E-mail: mail@iwm.org.uk Admission is free to the Museum.  Nearest underground - Lambeth North, Southwark, Elephant & Castle or Waterloo Web Site. If you want to find out more about the wartime experiences, in military or civilian service, of your twentieth century ancestors, the Imperial War Museum is a good place to start.  Specialist will be on hand to talk to you about digging out the facts, interpreting information and using the archives. From a posting by Rosemary Wenzerul.
www.iwm.org.uk

http://www.iwm.org.uk/

There is a permanent exhibit devoted to the Holocaust in the new, five floor wind, that occupies about 13,000 square feet of space on two floors. The exhibit represents England's first permanent Holocaust exhibition.

Jewish East End
http://www.jewisheastend.com/purim06.html

Jews Free School of London - the school was build in 1821. A book has been written about this school by Dr. Gerry Black and was printed by Redwood Books, Trowbridge, ISBN 0 95311104 00 

Jews of London Database - authored by Jeffrey Maynard  
http://www.jewishgen.org/databases/londweb.htm 

List of Jewish Bakers and Passover Cake Bakers in London from 1800 to 1901 - the address may represent either the bakery or a residential address of the baker.  This database was created by Laurence Harris laurence_harris@csi.com

Lodzers - emigrants from Lodz Poland in London late 19th century  
http://www.karliner.org/Webpage 

London (East End) - There are Regional Special Interest Groups that have London information and links.  The site includes links to Bohemia-Moravia SIG, Denmark SIG,  German-Jewish SIG, Hungary SIG and Stammbaum - German SIG at  
http://www.jewishgen.org/Shtetlinks/W_Europe.html

Take a tour of London's East End -  
http://www.virtual-london.co.uk/index.asp 

The Original London Walks
http://www.walks.com

London Jewish Genealogy Pages - research and information on the immigrant Dutch Ashkenazi community in mid nineteenth century London including Downloads of Census extracts (Spitalfields) and library of relevant archival documents and quite a bit more developed by Aubrey Jacobus aubrey@Jacobus.org
http://www.karliner.org/Webpage  

London Map of John Snow's London - a historical detailed map with sites of Victorian London (1813-1858)  
http://www.ph.ucla.edu/epi/snow/1859map/map1859.html

London Metropolitan Archives
http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/corporation

London - Movietone picture in 1896 & 1968, London Parks and London Traffic
http://www.movietone-portraits.com/

London - take a virtual tour and get familiar with this beautiful city  
http://www.virtual-london.com

Marylebone - this area grew out of the East End of London

Marylebone map
http://www.aboutbritain.com/maps/marylebone-map.asp

Marriage Registers - (See also "Marriages" category below) computerizing the marriage registers of London's Great, Prince's St., Sandy's Row, Hambro, etc., synagogues for the period 1791-1885 is complete.  Further information is available from Harold Lewin har_mir@bezeqint.net North London Synagogue in John Street, Barnsbury,  London N1 was later renamed Lofting Road.  The Synagogue was part of United Synagogue.
http://www.jewishgen.org/jcr-uk/Community/islington/

There is an interesting paragraph about this synagogue at
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=5284

Obituaries Published in British Newspapers - change to British Empire
http://www.ancestry.com/search/obit/browse.aspx?tp=3257&p=3251

Origins.net - a pay per view site that contains some of the collections of the Society of Genealogists (England)
http://origins.net/

Petticoat Lane Market "(back then)

This area was centered on Wentworth Street and Sandy's Row to the north. It was only in recent years that the market expanded (in terms of what it sold) as well as geographically expanding southwards. The majority of the maps I have seen show Middlesex Street, with the Petticoat Lane subsidiary only applicable to the northern half of the street."

"According to some web sites, The Petticoat Lane name originated with the Huguenot immigration into the east end the introduction of clothes making which included petticoats. However, Victorian attitudes demanded a change in the name and so it would appear that the Middlesex Street appellation was extended northwards. From a posting by Jeremy G Frankel 10/11/04

"According to 'The London Encyclopedia' edited by Ben Weinreb & Christopher Hibbert, Middlesex Street was in the middle ages a tree lined country road called Hog's lane or Hogge Lane. In 1608 Ryther's map shows it as Peticote lane. In 1665 the great plague drove out the well-to-do and a few years later Huguenot weavers and Jewish traders moved in. By the 1750's it was well established as a trading centre and a market had grown up. It was renamed Middlesex Street in about 1830 though it clung to the old name which was appropriate to the thriving business in old clothes." This is slightly abridged Gaby Laws from a posting on 10/11/04

Parish Registers - are mostly kept at the London Metropolitan Archives

Probate Registry is located in High Holborn, London 

Public Records Office - Kew, Richmond - The Public records Office (PRO) have made available, on-line, an index to the Wills that they are holding for the period 1850 to 1858, and also on-line access to the images of these Wills.  The date refers to the date of probate, not the date of death.  The site also offers an on-line image download of the Will at a flat rate per Will   The index can be searched by surname, first name, occupation, parish or county (Hint: when looking for persons in London, try both London and Middlesex - but not at the same time).  You will get some false hits (e.g. a search on Baker give persons with a surname of Baker; persons living on Baker Street; and persons whose occupation was as a baker)
http://www.pro.gov.uk/ 

Poor Jews' Temporary Shelter

The shelter was located on Leman Street, Whitechapel in London.  A database created by Professor Aubrey Newman and Dr. Graham Smith of the Dept. of History, University of Leicester, spans the period of May 19, 1896 to August, 1914 and contains some 43,000 names.  The shelter was set up to house immigrants on their short stay over in London, before embarking on their cross continental journey. The records for the Jewish Shelter are held at the London Metropolitan Archives, there are two films.  However to view these you must have written permission.
www.jgsgb.org.uk/

http://chrysalis.its.uct.ac.za/shelter/shelter.htm

http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/conMediaFile.
6298/In-the-Poor-Jews-Temporary-Shelter.html

http://www.kuijsten.de/navigator/israel                                                

The Temporary Shelter, as it is now known, still functions and provides a service for refugees and other disadvantaged people.  To increase funds, they are happy to provide good quality accommodations for London visitors in a Kosher environment.  If interested  contact Saul Issroff, saul@wico.demon.co.uk

Spiro Institute
Kidderpore Gardens
Hampstead
London, NW3
Telephone: 0171 431 0345

Stamford Hill, in north London, is home to 56 synagogues and 21 
Hebrew schools

London Street Directory
of 1859

Wilson Street, Finsbury Square, (E.C.) East Side: The following excerpt from the London street Directory of 1859, will suggest the flavor of the area:
Lazarus Lewis, fruiterer; 4 Pepper Edwin coffee rooms; 6 Red Lion, George Flawn; 7 Stokely William, coach maker; 7 Salter William, shoemaker; 8 Nash Charles, carpenter; 9 Hudson Richard & Wm. tailors & drapers; 10 & 11 Lyons Jacob & Sons, wholesale clothiers.

Princes Square - 13 May Ferdinand, private hotel;14 Walters Dan & Sons, silk & velvet manufacturers;

Horseshoe alley - 15 Walters Stephen & sons, silk & velvet & umbrella silk manufactures; 16 Levy Reuben & Co., wholesale watch manufactures. From a posting by Richard W. May

Petticoat Lane Market "(back then) was centered on Wentworth Street and Sandy's Row to the north. It was only in recent years that the market expanded (in terms of what it sold) as well as geographically expanding southwards. The majority of the maps I have seen show Middlesex Street, with the Petticoat Lane subsidiary only applicable to the northern half of the street."

"According to some web sites, The Petticoat Lane name originated with the Huguenot immigration into the east end the introduction of clothes making which included petticoats. However, Victorian attitudes demanded a change in the name and so it would appear that the Middlesex Street appellation was extended northwards. From a posting by Jeremy G Frankel

"According to 'The London Encyclopedia' edited by Ben Weinreb & Christopher Hibbert, Middlesex Street was in the middle ages a tree lined country road called Hog's lane or Hogge Lane. In 1608 Ryther's map shows it as Peticote lane. In 1665 the great plague drove out the well-to-do and a few years later Huguenot weavers and Jewish traders moved in. By the 1750's it was well established as a trading centre and a market had grown up. It was renamed Middlesex Street in about 1830 though it clung to the old name which was appropriate to the thriving business in old clothes." This is slightly abridged Gaby Laws fro