Find your ancestors in Britain, Business Indexes 1892-1987

Each record includes an image of the original index or book and a transcript for the individual entry. The amount of detail in each record can vary but most transcripts will include a combination of the following:

  • Name and alias
  • Business name
  • Index year
  • Business occupation
  • Notes
  • Publication and page number

When available the image will give even more information about your ancestor and the business. The images are from different publications so the information found in each, but many will include:

  • Details about the business
  • Biographical details
  • Education background
  • Associations and hobbies
  • Photograph

Discover more about these records

This project is an index to British shopkeepers, businessmen and women, "captains of industry" and their companies. The initial source material is a series of books published in the 1890s by the London Printing and Engraving Company and the Brighton firm of Robinson, Son and Pike which later became W T Pike.

They seem to have traveled to large towns and cities all over the British Isles, offering the local corporation and businesses the opportunity to appear in a book containing a history of the area, its attractions, major institutions and its commercial life. There are sometimes details of town councillors, often with vignette-sized photographs and one has a picture of the local football team! Shops, businesses and manufacturers probably had to pay for inclusion, the amount depending on the size of the entry. The proprietor or manager seems to have been visited at work and interviewed to provide the copy for the book.

These records were provided by the Society of Genealogists.