Trade and telephone directories
Old trade directories are a fascinating source of all kinds of local information. Some, like the well known Kelly's Directories cover the whole county. Others are for a single town; for example Norman's Buxton and District Directory 1932. You can use them to find out about both local and family history.
They were published less regularly in Derbyshire than in more urban areas. The earliest was published in the 1790s. The last directory giving whole county coverage was published by Kelly in 1941. Within this limited time-span they give us much useful information about local government, and the growth and development of communities. For each place you will find details of public buildings and institutions, industries, churches, major landowners, and methods of communication.
Many directories include alphabetical lists of private residents and trades people. They often have classified trades lists, either for each individual place or county-wide. For the major towns there may be alphabetical street directories listing the occupier of each house or business. Thus a sequence of directory entries can be used to trace, for example, the career of a person or family, the occupants of particular houses (where these are clearly distinguished by name or number) or the growth and decline of local industries and trades.
As the trade directories cease to be published, telephone directories start to take their place as a means of tracing individuals and companies. There is a comprehensive set of these on microfilm at County Hall for the whole country from 1880 to 1912. From 1920 to 1970 they cover Britain excluding London. Good sets of local telephone directories from the 1970s onward are also kept.
The list below shows the main set of Derbyshire Trade Directories on microfiche. You can see these in most larger libraries. Additional directories for both Derbyshire and neighbouring counties may also be available in some libraries.
Download your copy from the More information section below to read all about it.
Related documents
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