East Sussex, England, Electoral Registers, 1705-1963

Source Information

Ancestry.com. East Sussex, England, Electoral Registers, 1705-1963 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2022.
Original data: Electoral Registers. Brighton, East Sussex, England: East Sussex and Brighton and Hove Record Office.

About East Sussex, England, Electoral Registers, 1705-1963

General collection information

This collection includes electoral registers dated between 1705 and 1963 covering the modern county of East Sussex in England. The registers include the names of registered voters in the county and their place of residence, which is stated as a full street address, the name of a house, or sometimes, only the name of the street. Some older registers also include occupations.

Voting rights changed during the 130 years covered by this collection, which is reflected in the registers. Some demographic groups aren't represented in the earlier registers because they didn't yet have the right to vote, including men who didn't own property and women. Universal male suffrage was instituted in 1918 and in that same year, women over the age of 30 and younger women who had attended a university were given the right to vote. In 1928, voting rights were extended to all men and women aged 21 and older and in 1969, the voting age was lowered to age 18. Registers weren't produced in 1916, 1917, or from 1940 to 1944 because of the two world wars.

Using this collection

Records in this collection may include:

  • Name
  • Address
  • Occupation
  • Parish of residence

    • The information in each electoral register, produced annually, provides a snapshot of where your ancestor lived at a specific time. By searching for your ancestor in registers produced over several years, you can establish a timeline of their mobility. Did their address stay the same over a prolonged period, or did they move frequently?

    The original documents were first housed at the East Sussex Record Office, but they currently are held at The Keep, an archive that combines the historical documents of the East Sussex Record Office, the Brighton and Hove City Council, and the University of Sussex.

    Bibliography

    Family Tree Resources. "About Electoral Registers And How To Use Them in Genealogy." Accessed April 22, 2022.https://www.familytreeresources.com/electoral-registers.html.

    The Keep. "About The Keep." Accessed April 22, 2022.https://www.thekeep.info/about_us/.

    ---. "Family History at The Keep." Accessed April 22, 2022.https://www.thekeep.info/collections/doing-family-history/.

    ---. "Using Collections at The Keep." Accessed April 22, 2022.https://www.thekeep.info/collections/.