TNA podcast: Tithe tales

This presentation by Rose Mitchell, originally given 16 Feb 2012, is Tithe tales: what the Tithe Survey records tell us about early Victorian place and society

TNA's description is: The maps and textual records of this vast tax survey date from around 1840, and are a detailed and unique resource for social, local and family historians. They hold information on the use and value of property and owners throughout England and Wales, as they were around the time of the earliest surviving census returns, and before Ordnance Survey maps came into widespread use. Rose Mitchell, a map archivist at The National Archives and author on using maps for local and family history, explains how the Survey was undertaken and the records made. Rose shows how Survey maps and records can reveal a wealth of information about people and place in Victorian society, from Wordsworth and the Brontës to humbler folk, and from farmsteads to areas already showing the changes brought by the Industrial Revolution. She also looks at the range of other related records in the archives, such as those of legal disputes. The talk includes an update on access improvements to these records by The National Archives and around the country.

The audio is of refreshingly good quality. The survey is from the 1840s so there can be no copyright issues. The lack of any of the many visuals used to illustrate the talk can only be ascribed to low priority given to podcasts.