Stella Colwell

Stella Colwell's book was published in 1991, before the recent explosion of interest in family history and the proliferation of genealogical information on the internet.

So Stella's London-based Probate Literary Department, General Register Office and Public Record Office have all either moved on-line themselves or been subsumed into other, larger on-line organisations, and joined a multiplicity of other sources of information there, for which today's family historian needs a newer, more up-to-date guide.

Having said that, the purpose of Stella's book - to point the genealogist in new directions by highlighting little-used records and explaining their derivation, their significance and how to use them - remains both worthwhile and relevant.

The 4 categories of records she chooses are:

1)Legal
2)Land
3)Taxation
4)Migration

Each is described comprehensively and put into context for us. For example, Stella says of Land records:

"The succession of land in a family and its length of stay within it, what was done with it to expand it, increase its income, enclose it, mortgage it or raise annuities from it, exchange it or gift it to others than the next heir, and the final alienation or partition of it can add greatly to our knowledge of our ancestors' lives."

and shows how each of the changes described appeared in the corresponding records.

Additionally, a very useful diagram on pg. 10 shows the structure of the Courts of Common Law, the source of the majority of legal documents, and a remarkable table on pg. 50 lists the 100-plus instances of one kind of taxation (Lay subsidies) imposed by or on behalf of the Crown or the Commonwealth between 1197 and 1699.

One omission from Stella's otherwise comprehensive list of taxes, in my view, is records of Customs' and Excise duties, which are plentiful, and which also provide insights into our ancestors' lives.

This small reservation apart, I think that Stella's book has a place in the Genealogists' Library. It is mostly thorough, well-described and illustrated by example. In fact, the second part of the book is a description of the sources at work, as Stella introduces us to historical records whch show in context the lives of sixteen families, including Gainsborough, Wordsworth, Garrick and Marx - each one a fascinating read.… (more)