Durham County Record Office: the official archive service for County Durham and Darlington
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Exhibitions
- 'Adventurers and Pirates' - Hetton Coal Company, 1820
- Looking back at Consett Steel Works
- Celebrating Gala Day 2020
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County Durham remembers VE Day 1945
- 'We have come through' - Remembering VE Day 1945
- 9th Battalion DLI: From D-Day to Berlin
- 9th Battalion DLI: VE Day
- 9th Battalion DLI: In Berlin, June - September 1945
- Berlin Victory Parade, 7 September 1945
- Victory Parade at Belsen, 8 May 1945
- The Northern Echo, Victory edition, 9 May 1945
- VE Day and Durham Schools
- 2nd Battalion DLI: Burma 1945
- 2nd Battalion DLI: Rangoon Victory Parade, 15 June 1945
- VE Day and the Durham Miners' Association
- County Durham celebrates VE Day
- Haswell Victory Celebrations, 1945
- Soldier: Victory Souvenir edition, 8 May 1945
- Parade: European Victory edition, 26 May 1945
- VE Day not forgotten by one Spennymoor family
- County Durham celebrates VJ Day
- Victory Day, 8 June 1946

Family History
This section of our website contains information about the family history records in Durham County Record Office.
These include Church of England parish registers dating back to the 16th century and nonconformist church registers
There are links to all the main sources used by family historians, such as wills, census and birth, marriage and death records, in the left hand navigator.
Information leaflets
You can download helpful information leaflets from our series to assist you with identifying the material available in the Record Office, but they will not replace a visit.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
You can also see our Frequently asked questions for more information relating to family history.
Records on microfilm
Please note that all the most popular family history sources held in the Record Office have been microfilmed to prevent damage to the original records. We do not produce original documents when there is a microfilm copy available. Some of the parish registers we hold are over 400 years old and it is important to preserve them for future generations.
Which records are on microfilm so I know whether to book a microfilm reader?
- Church of England parish registers
- Nonconformist church registers
- Cemetery and crematorium registers
- Census returns
- Electoral registers
- Hearth tax returns
- Newspapers
- Some Quarter Sessions records
- Some Durham Light Infantry records
"Really impressed with your Quick Search Service. I received the download link for the church register entry I ordered earlier in the space of an hour."
J.W.
July 2019