The 1939 Register takes the lead with this week's release

5-6 minute read

By Jessie Ohara | December 23, 2022

The 1939 Register takes the lead with this week's release

With 71,000 records and 600,000 newspaper pages, there's so much to explore.

It's that time again - the fourth annual rolling release of 1939 Register records has arrived. But that's not all we have in store for you. Read on for a full rundown of everything that's new.

1939 Register

One of the most crucial resources for any family historian, we've opened up the 65,000 new records for the 1939 Register that have passed the 100-year rule within the last three months.

Findmypast are the official home of the 1939 Register, meaning we release these records before any other family history website.

A snippet from the 1939 Register.

A snippet from the 1939 Register. View this record here.

We're sure you've all come across these pages in your research, but just in case you haven't - the 1939 Register was taken in order for the British government to issue national identity cards to all citizens just before the Second World War. Later, the information gathered was also used to create ration books and order conscription.

It's an incredible resource for discovering information like your ancestor's address and occupation, or even for looking into the history of your home.

Ireland, Licences to Keep Arms 1832-1836

This focused and fascinating collection details the licences granted to over 6,300 Irish people, allowing them to keep arms in the early 19th century.

ireland licences to keep arms

A snippet from this collection. View this record here.

You'll not only find details on your ancestor's residence - which, as anyone researching Irish genealogy will tell you, is irrefutably valuable - but you'll also discover the arms they kept and often the magistrate who granted the licence.

The wonderfully-named Neptune Blood, for example, owned one brace of pistols, a double-barreled gun, and a blunderbuss.

Neptune Blood in the Ireland, Licences to Keep Arms collection.

Neptune Blood in the Ireland, Licences to Keep Arms collection.

If you have Irish roots, this is definitely one to get stuck into.

600,000 pages to explore

It's a mammoth week this week at our newspaper archive, with 19 brand-new titles and 152 updated titles.

Amongst them, you'll find news from all across England, Ireland, Wales and Scotland, including two titles from 19th century Dublin and specialist title, Jewish World.

Read on for a full list of everything that's new.

New titles:

Updated titles:

Our lovely teams here at Findmypast will be enjoying the Christmas break, and so this will be the last release of 2022. We wish you the happiest of seasons, and we can't wait to show you what we have in store for 2023.

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