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Search Tips

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General Tips

~ You must use either Surname or Location in your search.

~ Any combination of Surname, Forename & Location may be used EXCEPT Forename alone.

~ Surname & Forename require at least 3 letters.

~ If you enter 2 names they will be searched for separately

~ Choose Location from the drop-down list. Type the first letter of a location to jump down the list. For an explanation of locations please see Helpful Resources

~ To clear a location choose the 'dashes' at the top of the list.

~ When you enter a Year you can adjust it using the arrows to the right.

~ Don't forget to choose how you would like to Match the surname/forename.

. Similarity - Matches names with similar components eg Brown and Browne

. Exact - Matches names precisely with what you have entered

. Regular Expression - Picks up patterns in names

~ Reset will clear ALL fields

Wildcards

Wildcards increase the chance of results where the exact spelling or length of a name is not known.

~ Both name fields accept wildcards.

~ Wildcards are symbols that replace single or multiple unknown letters

eg. Franc?s = Francis or Frances

eg, Fran* = Francis, Frances, Frank, Francesca

Use combinations for multiple differences eg W*lv?n = Wolvin, Wollvin, Woolvin, Woollvin, Woolven, Woollven etc.

IMPORTANT: Choose Match Type EXACT MATCHES for Wildcards to work

Pattern-based Search

This is a sequence of characters that specifies a match pattern in text.

Choose Match Type REGULAR EXPRESSION

eg. ^Will = names starting with "Will" ie Williams, Willis, Willett, Willard, Willmar, Willson

eg. son$ = Hanson, Johnson, Parson, Robertson, Thompson

eg. Sm[iy]th = Smith or Smyth