There is often a crossover of sources between local and family history, and some of the resources listed under Family History can be just as important for local studies.

• Our free to access Staffordshire Past Track website features over 45,000 images, documents and maps relating to Staffordshire’s past. This wide range of material is drawn from museums, archives, libraries, local history organizations and private donors.

• The Tithe Map collection from the Staffordshire & Stoke on Trent Archive Service can be found on the Past Track website, as can the Enclosure Map collection.

• Tithe Awards have been indexed and are available to access via our free Staffordshire Name Indexes website. Enclosure map awards are too complex to make available in the same way, but queries can be directed to our enquiries service.

• Ordnance Survey (OS) mapping can be accessed free of charge via the National Library of Scotland website. This includes both the 6-inch and larger 25-inch scale ‘County Series’ maps for Staffordshire between c.1880 and 1945.

• The free to access Britain from Above website features over 95,000 historic aerial images of the UK between 1919 and 2006.

• The British History Online website features primary and secondary sources, calendars, data sets and maps, with a number of these resources – including the Victoria County History of Staffordshire and the Calendars of State Papers – accessible free of charge. Other sources on the website can be accessed via subscription.

• Our online catalogue Gateway to the Past allows you to undertake simple and advanced searches for material in our collections. Please note that you will need to contact our enquiries service if you would like to order copies.

• The UK National Archives online catalogue, Discovery, can be useful for locating material held nationally.

• Historical trade directories for Staffordshire and other counties in the UK can be accessed free of charge on the University of Leicester special collections website.