Heritage and local history
Introduction
Wandsworth Heritage Service holds records for the borough dating back to 1490 and a wide range of books and articles relating to the history of the borough, as well as hundreds of old newspapers, maps, plans, census returns and other documents.
More information about the archives of the borough can be found by searching our new archive catalogue.
You can use our resources to find out about Battersea councillor John Archer, who was one of Britain 's first black mayors, or St Mary's Church in Putney, the headquarters of Oliver Cromwell's Parliamentarians during the English Civil War. The records held by the Heritage Service include:
- World War II air raid reports
- Justice of the Peace minutes
- diaries and letters of local residents such as the poet Edward Thomas
- records of the historic civil parishes that made up the borough: Battersea, Clapham, Putney, Streatham, Tooting and Wandsworth
- records of the Wandsworth District Board of Works
- records of local organisations, from political parties to cricket clubs
We also have access to internet resources such as Ancestry Library.
More information about archives and other resources available for researching the history of the borough can be found in the Guide to Local and Family History Resources for the London Borough of Wandsworth by Dorian Gerhold, which is available from the related downloads section of this web-page.
You can see just a few of the many historic images we have of the borough on our Flickr photostream.
Please contact us in advance if you would like to see original material as it is not always possible to get it out on the day.
Many original records relating to Wandsworth are held by other organisations, particularly the London Metropolitan Archives.
