The London Archives
The London Archives, previously known as the Greater London Record Office and London Metropolitan Archives is the principal local government archive repository for the Greater London area, including the City of London. It is administered and financed by the City of London Corporation, and is the largest county record office in the United Kingdom.
The archive is based at 40 Northampton Road, Clerkenwell, London. It attracts over 30,000 visitors a year and deals with a similar number of written enquiries. The holdings amount to over of records of local, regional and national importance. With the earliest record dating from 1067, the archive charts the development of the capital into a modern-day major world city.
History
The London Archives is an amalgamation of several separate bodies. The London County Record Office, the London County Council Members Library, and the Middlesex County Record Office merged in 1965 to form the Greater London Record Office and History Library. The GLRO was rebranded as the London Metropolitan Archives in 1997, and took over the former Corporation of London Record Office in 2005 and the former Guildhall Library Manuscripts and Prints and Maps sections in 2009. It was rebranded again, becoming The London Archives in August 2024.London County Record Office
Until 1889, London was still the area within the walled city; to the south of the river was Surrey and Kent and to the north of the city's limits was Middlesex. These areas, however, had become densely populated and, given the sphere of influence of the city, traditional boundaries were no longer practical. The County of London was created and controlled by the newly formed London County Council, which took over many of the duties of its predecessor the Metropolitan Board of Works. It was the records of these bodies and similar groups such as the London School Board and Metropolitan Asylums Board that would form the nucleus of the London County Record offices holdings, which were based at County Hall on the south bank of the River Thames.As well as the official records that the council generated, they also began to accept deposits of records fundamental to London's history, such as copies of memorials from the Middlesex Deeds Register, diocesan and parish records and records of charities such as the Foundling Hospital. Under the Public Records Act 1958, the record office became recognised as a place of deposit for public records relating to the London area, including hospitals and courts.
Since the creation of the London County Council there had been a record keeper in the Clerks Department who held custody of the documents. By the 1930s they had established individual departmental record rooms staffed by record assistants working under the general supervision of the Record Keeper. Finally, in 1953 the position of Head Archivist and Librarian was created.
London County Council Members Library
The library was originally that of the members of the London County Council and reflected their interests. Situated in the same building as the London County Record Office, the library was added to with books on the history and topography of London. The library also included a rich collection of maps, prints, drawings and photographs.Middlesex County Record Office
No single act or resolution marked the beginning of the Middlesex County Record Office. Like most other county record offices it developed naturally from the duty of the Clerk of the Peace to preserve certain records from the Quarter Sessions, together with other records such as enclosure awards and plans of public utilities. The first significant period in the formation of the county record office was in the early 1880s when a special committee was appointed by the justices of the peace to consider and report on the accommodation provided for the storage of the "old records" of the county. On behalf of the committee, John Cordy Jeaffreson, an inspector of the Historical Manuscripts Commission, sorted the records covering 1549–1820 into 87 classes comprising more than 10,000 volumes and nearly 5,000 rolls. The more modern records from post-1820 were given a separate room.The formation of the London County Council in 1889 had seen the County of Middlesex much reduced in size. In 1893 when the Middlesex sessions papers were to be moved from the sessions house in Clerkenwell an argument broke out between the two county councils as to who should have responsibility for the material. This protracted dispute lasted some five years, with a high court judge eventually deciding in favour of Middlesex.
Around the same time, a Middlesex County Council act empowered the council to spend money preserving, arranging, indexing, classifying and publishing such records of the county that may be in the public interest. In 1913 the new Middlesex Guildhall at Westminster opened and was equipped with specially constructed muniment rooms, with an assistant to arrange and supervise their transfer from temporary storage. It was not until 1923 that a full-time graduate assistant was placed in charge of dealing with things such as document repair, storage issues, written enquiries, production of documents for public researchers and receipt of any gifts or deposits.
After the Second World War, the work of the county record office expanded steadily, with the appointment of a County Archivist, first in a part-time capacity, then full-time from 1957. By then, the archive had also moved to new premises at 1 Queen Anne's Gate Buildings, Dartmouth Street. In 1960 the record office was appointed an official place of deposit for public records by the Lord Chancellor under section 4 of the Public Records Act 1958. After this, the archive increased its holdings, with significant deposits of petty sessions, coroners, Boards of Guardians and other official material. By this time, the record office had acquired an extensive reference library on the topography of Middlesex, as well as a great number of maps, prints and photographs.
Greater London Record Office
Under the Local London Government Act 1963, which came into effect on 1 April 1965, the administrative counties of London and Middlesex together with their respective county councils were abolished. They were replaced by the Greater London Council which administered a much wider area known as Greater London. The formation of Greater London also meant that some areas that had been previously part of Kent, Surrey, Essex and Hertfordshire, were also now included. However, to minimise confusion, it was agreed that records from these areas should remain within their ancient county.The Greater London Council took over responsibility for the established record offices of the counties of London and Middlesex, as well as the former member's library of the London County Council. Together, these became the Greater London Record Office and Library. Although administratively united, the new archive continued to exist at two separate sites, with Middlesex material still held at Dartmouth Street and London material at County Hall. The two archives finally came together in 1979, when the Dartmouth Street site was sold by the GLC, and both archives were housed at County Hall.
In 1982 the GLRO moved to adapted premises at 40 Northampton Road, Clerkenwell. This site was a former print works, home to the Temple Press. The Press had moved from nearby Rosebery Avenue in August 1939, and continued to use the site until the end of the 1960s.
The Greater London Council was abolished in 1986, and since that date the archives have been administered by the City of London Corporation. In 1992 work was completed on a new repository block adjacent to the site in Northampton Road. This extension conformed to archival storage standards, with mobile shelving and environmental controls.
London Metropolitan Archives
The GLRO was renamed London Metropolitan Archives in 1997.In 2005 the archives of the Corporation of London Records Office were moved to the London Metropolitan Archives to allow for a vast refurbishment programme at Guildhall. The City of London Corporation is the local government authority for the City of London, the area often referred to as the Square Mile and its records office held archives created by the Corporation and the organisations with which it was involved or helped to run. These archives include the earliest material currently held at The London Archives, dating from 1067. The archive contains the official records of how the City was governed and developed, through bodies such as the Court of Aldermen and Court of Common Council and many other official departments like the Chamberlains. It also contains a large number of records of organisations which the City of London Corporation are responsible for such as the City of London Police, a number of courts, open spaces and many of the major London markets.
In 2008 work began on a merger between London Metropolitan Archives and Guildhall Library’s Manuscripts Section and Prints and Maps Section. The Manuscripts Section held deposited records from organisations and institutions within the City of London, including 75 London Livery Companies, schools, parishes, wards and of course many large and small businesses which had their home within the Square Mile, from tiny family businesses to major multi-national banking and insurance firms. The Prints and Maps Section of Guildhall Library held collections which complemented the collections already held by London Metropolitan Archives and added much valuable content relating to the City itself. By 2009 the three record offices run by the City of London – London Metropolitan Archives, the Corporation of London Records Office and the Guildhall Library Manuscripts Section – had become one.