Record Offices and Repositories – Standard Abbreviations for VCH text
Note that these abbreviations are believed correct, or at least, in common use at the time of compilation. Where reference
has been made to records held outside the boundaries of the county being written about, an editorial decision must be made
as to what form these references should take. Where multiple references are made then these should be abbreviated in the
appropriate form given below and glossed in the volume abbreviations.
In a Norfolk volume, for example, a document from the Norfolk Record Office might appear as NRO BOL 3/69, 741X3.
The same document in a volume for any other county should use the form: Norf. RO BOL 3/69, 741X3.
For one off or occasional references, it is suggested that a shortened form of the County be provided and the remainder
abbreviated, as shown in the accompanying table.
For repeated uses – such as an instance where a parish has passed between counties and its records can be found in the
neighbouring county’s archive, and for routine use within an individual county series – the most heavily abbreviated form is
preferable.
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© University of London - Standard Abbreviations for Record Offices, updated Sept. 2015
County
Abbreviation
Full Title
Local Authority/Record Agency
Beds.
BLARS
Berks.
Bucks.
Cambs.
Ches.
Cornw.
Cumbria
Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and Records
Service
The Berkshire Record Office
Buckinghamshire County Council
Cambridgeshire County Council
Cheshire Archives and Local Studies Service
Cornwall County Council
Cumbria Archives Service
Derb.
Devon
Berks. RO
CBS
Cambs. Arch.
Ches. RO
Cornw. RO
Cumb. Arch.
(Branch Name)
Derb. RO
Devon HC
Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and
Records Service
Berkshire Record Office
Centre for Buckinghamshire Studies
Cambridgeshire Archives
Cheshire Record Office
Cornwall Record Office
Cumbria Archives (Kendal, Carlisle,
Whitehaven, etc.)
Derbyshire Record Office
Devon Heritage Centre
N. Devon
W. Devon
Dors.
Co. Dur.
Essex
Gloucs.
N. Devon RO
PWDRO
Dors. HC
Dur. CRO
Essex RO
Gloucs. Arch.
North Devon Record Office
Plymouth and West Devon Record Office
Dorset History Centre
Durham County Record Office
Essex Record Office
Gloucestershire Archives
Hants.
Herefs.
Herts.
Hunts.
Kent
Kent (Medway)
Hants. RO
Herefs. AS
Herts. ALS
Hunts. LA
Kent HLC
MALSC
Hampshire Record Office
Herefordshire Archive Service
Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Huntingdonshire Library and Archives
Kent History and Library Centre
Medway Archives and Local Studies Centre
Derbyshire County Council
South West Heritage Trust (Devon County
Council)
Devon County Council
Plymouth City Council
Durham County Council
Essex County Council
Gloucestershire County Council and South
Gloucestershire Council
Hampshire County Council
Herefordshire Archives and Records Centre
Hertfordshire County Council
Cambridgeshire County Council
Kent County Council
Medway Council
© University of London - Standard Abbreviations for Record Offices, updated Sept. 2015
Lancs.
Leics.
Lancs. Arch.
ROLLR
Lincs.
London
Middx.
Norf.
Northants.
Northumb.
Notts.
Oxon.
Rutl.
Lincs. Arch.
LMA
See London (LMA)
Norf. RO
Northants. RO
Northumb. Arch.
Notts. Arch.
Oxon. HS
ROLLR
Shrop.
Shrops. Arch.
Som.1
Som. HC
S. Gloucs.
Staffs.
Suff.
Records held in either Gloucestershire Archives or Bristol Archives
Staffs. RO
Staffordshire Record Office
Suff. RO (Branch
Suffolk Record Office (note, offices at
Name)
Ipswich, Bury St Edmunds and Lowestoft –
add branch at which the document(s) are
held)
Surr. HC
Surrey History Centre
E. Suss. RO
East Syussex Record Office
W. Suss. RO
West Sussex Record Office
Warws. RO
Warwickshire Record Office
See Cumbria
Surr.
E. Suss.
W. Suss.
Warws.
Westmorland
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Lancashire Archives
Record Office for Leicester, Leicestershire
and Rutland
Lincolnshire Archives
London Metropolitan Archives
Norfolk Record Office
Northamptonshire Record Office
Northumberland Archives
Nottinghamshire Archives
Oxfordshire History Centre
Record Office for Leicester, Leicestershire
and Rutland
Shropshire Archives (in 1995 amalgamated
with Shrewsbury Public Library to form
Shropshire Records and Research Centre).
Somerset Heritage Centre
Lancashire County Council
Leicestershire County Council
Nottinghamshire County Council
Shropshire County Council
South West Heritage Trust (formerly Somerset
County Council)
Staffordshire County Council
Surrey County Council
East Sussex County Concil
West Sussex County Council
Warwickshire County Council
Note that most Somerset records relating to the pre-1974 county, including those areas now covered by the unitary authorities of Bath and NE Somerset and N. Somerset,
are housed in the Somerset Heritage Centre in Taunton or in the Bristol Archives.
© University of London - Standard Abbreviations for Record Offices, updated Sept. 2015
West Yorks.
West Yorkshire Archives Service (Leeds,
Calderdale, etc.)
Wiltshire and Swindon Archives
Worcestershire Archives
West Yorkshire Joint Services
Wilts.
Worcs.
W. Yorks. AS
(Branch Name)
WSA
Worcs. Arch.
Yorks. E. R.
Yorks. W. R.
Yorks. N. R.
ERA
See West Yorks.
NYCRO
North Yorkshire County Record Office
North Yorkshire County Council
Wiltshire County Council
Worcestershire Archives and Archaeology
Service
East Riding archives and local studies service East Riding Council