The Wakefield & District Family History Society was formed in 1997 by a small group of people in order to further their interest in family history. We have since grown to a membership of around 500 from around the world.
The objective of the Society is to advance public education in Family History and Genealogy for the benefit of anyone living in the area of the Wakefield Metropolitan District Council or with interests or family in that area.
To fulfil this aim we organise regular monthly meetings with speakers on a variety of topics, training courses and visits to places of interest to family historians. All members receive a quarterly journal, “The Wakefield Kinsman”.
We also transcribe and publish a wide range of records from parishes, censuses, trade directories, newspapers and other sources which provide invaluable information for those researching their family.
Click here to view a map of the area covered.
Society Monthly Meeting
The meeting to be held 7th August with a talk by David Annal and ‘The Enumerator Strikes Back.’ David has been involved with family history for more than 30 years and is a former principal family history specialist at the National Archives. He has written a number of family history books. He now runs his own family history research business, Lifelines Research. David will trace the history of census returns from 1841-1911.The first detailed census in the UK 1841 was confronted by hostile householders and at the mercy of the decisions made by the authorities; this story will shed a fascinating light on one of the most important set of records used by family historians today.
The meeting will start at 10.30am by Zoom.
NB Members of Wakefield Libraries can access for free Ancestry Library Edition which has been extended until 31 December 2021. Log on to Wakefield Library; enter your card number and pin number then click on Digital library to access the relevant websites. Good luck!