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Estate Agents Records
Records deposited by an estate agent [also those deposited by solicitors] should include material relating to individual buildings. These will typically include legal deeds, files including information on names of previous owners, dates it changed hands, sale catalogues, old maps and plans. There may also be correspondence with bodies such as turnpike trusts, canal companies or railway companies where land has been bought or sold or records of legal disputes over boundaries.
Location
In an archive repository
Ideas for use
To trace the history of a property. To identify any interesting stories from its past - pupils could be asked to piece together the story of a dispute including trying to reconstruct any letters that are missing from a set of correspondence. They could write a diary recording the arrival of a new road, canal or railway including how they felt about the changes it caused.
See also the section on Find Sources
Follow any of the links below for more information on basic sources and ideas on how to use them Studying Your Locality : Historic Maps : Trade Directories : Newspapers and Magazines : Government Commissions and Reports : Photographs : Census : Official Guides : Plans : Taxes and Rating Records : Probate Inventories : Church Registers

Please note that the inclusion of a listed building on this website does not mean it is open to the public.