Saturday, August 19, 2023

Chasing down the Elms

We went chasing Robert's Elms ancestors at Tower Hamlets Archive and Bancroft Road library in London today. 



The archive is housed in a beautiful old building which needs an injection of funds for some necessary maintenance. The mish-mash of furniture is at odds with the heritage features of the building. 

The public area of the Archive

The four staff we encountered were most agreeable and took an interest in our quest. There were many local resources available plus PCs with internet access that were loaded with several local and commercial databases. As use of the services and resources at this facility is free we did not quibble about paying the 7 pounds 50 cents fee to use our camera to take images of the resources/.

In addition to the main research area there is an entry foyer that has a selection of new and secondhand resources for sale.

Entry Foyer

While we didn't find as much information as we hoped we confirmed that the Elms were landowners in Poplar in the early 19th century. We were also able to pinpoint the locations of Elms Cottages in Poplar where the family lived for several decades. We have several photos of documents to review once we recover from our holiday.

We thank the local authorities at Tower Hamlets for their commitment to local and family history and preserving these resources for future generations. 

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