Durham County Record Office
The Durham County Record Office holds the archives for County Durham and the Borough of Darlington. The service is run by Durham County Council. The archives were held at County Hall, Durham until 2024 when the service moved to a new building which is part of at Mount Oswald, South Road, Durham.
The archives were established with the building of Durham County Hall in 1962, and the service has also been known as Durham Record Office and County Durham Archives.
Further details are in the national register of Archives: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/a/A13530570
Collection Policy
The Record Office is the approved local repository of The National Archives so holds official records relating to the County Durham area, potentially covering the pre-1974 county area plus those parts of the North Riding of Yorkshire incorporated into the 1974 county. Modern archives relevant to Sunderland, South Tyneside and Gateshead are held by the Tyne and Wear Archives, and archives relevant to Hartlepool and Stockton are held by the Teesside Archives.Access Policy
The archives are freely open to the public except for those records subject to statutory closures or data protection restrictions. Charges are made only for copies or for research services. Opening hours are found on the website.Major Collections
All archive holdings are described in an online catalogue database and, more broadly, in the National Archives' Discovery database.Local Authority Records
Durham County Council, including records related to Social Services, and Electoral RegistersPredecessor District Councils, including Planning records
Civil Parish Councils
Darlington Borough Council
Durham City
Durham Constabulary
Other Official Public Records
Quarter Sessions inc. indictment rolls, order books, deposited plans, enclosure awardsDurham Prison
Petty Sessions and Magistrates Courts
County Coroner - inquests
Inland Revenue 1910 land valuation
Motor Taxation
Local Authority Schools and Colleges
Poor Law Unions, including surviving workhouse records
Winterton Hospital and some other local hospitals
National Coal Board in County Durham, including records of predecessor coal owners and mining companies
Charity Commission
Newton Aycliffe and Peterlee new towns
Church Records
Ecclesiastical parishes in the Diocese of Durham, including parish registers, minute books and tithe plansAlso records of many non-conformist churches including Baptist, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Society of Friends and United Reform Church
Other Deposited Records
Durham Miners' Association, and other Trade UnionsLocal businesses, including Consett Iron Company, Weardale Lead Mining Company, Harrison and Harrison Organs, Vaux Brewery, Castle Eden Brewery, and many others
The Co-operative movement, local political parties
Solicitors' practices
Large estates in County Durham, such as: the Londonderry Estate, Brancepeth Castle and Estate, Strathmore Estate, Salvin of Croxdale Hall, Adamson of Gainford, Edleston of Gainford, Eldon Estate, Sherburn Hospital and Greatham Hospital. .
Other families' records, including Pease, Backhouse, Mounsey and other Darlington Quaker families, Watson of Barnard Castle
Antiquarian collections such as the Bowes Museum collection and the Greenwell Deeds
A comprehensive collection of Ordnance Survey plans and other maps
The Durham Light Infantry regimental archives
Local newspapers
Women's Institute branches, and other clubs and societies such as Durham Dramatic Society
Sports clubs such as Bishop Auckland Football Club and Durham City Cricket Club
County Archivists
Allan Seaman 1962–1974Keith Bishop 1974–1976
Kenneth Hall 1976–1979
David Butler 1979–1989
Jennifer Gill 1989–2008
Liz Bregazzi 2008–2022
Carolyn Ball 2022–