Local history society directory

Local history society directory

Find a local history organisation near you or to support your research project.

Local history resource directory

Local history resource directory

Explore our Resource Directory — a curated collection of archives, maps, publications, and specialist websites to support and inspire your local history research.

Become a member

Become a member

Join a national network of local historians and societies — with publications, support, increased visibility, and member benefits including discounts and dedicated insurance.

Quarterly publications

Quarterly publications

The Local Historian, our academic journal, was first produced in 1952 and is considered one of the foremost local history publications. It is published four times a year in conjunction with Local History News.

Our educational work

Our educational work

BALH aims to encourage interest and enthusiasm for local history amongst learners of all ages and to share and promote best practice, knowledge and skills.

Featured member society

Featured member society

BALH member societies may now add details of their work to our website, which will be highlighted here. Contact us for further details

Why BALH?

Nick Barratt Historian and Author

Where did your ancestors live?

It is impossible to trace the history of one’s family without considering where they lived. Local history societies and one-place study groups have researched and published content that will allow you to place the lives of your ancestors in the context of their local communities, villages, towns and cities as well as some of the key socio-economic factors that lay behind their development. They often use the same sources as family historians, and can help provide an alternative interpretation of a document or suggest new resources to help your research.

Nick Barratt, Historian and Author

Meet the team

Paul Dryburgh  Trustee

Paul Dryburgh

Paul, a proud Lincolnshire Yellerbelly, has spent his career working with archives and bringing pre-modern collections to life. He completed his doctorate on Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March, at Bristol in 2002 and contributed to research projects on medieval Ireland, the wool trade, and Henry III’s Fine Rolls. A dedicated editor and indexer, he is Joint General Editor of the Pipe Roll Society. Now Principal Records Specialist (Medieval) at The National Archives, he leads research, cataloguing, and public engagement. As a BALH Trustee, he aims to connect Britain’s archival treasures with wider audiences in inspiring ways.

Paul Dryburgh , Trustee

From our archives

The Amateur Historian Volume 2 Number 1 August September 1954

Glossary of an old church

Maidbury, Lawrence

pp 15-18

Short glossary of terms relating to the architectural features, furnishings, monuments and decorations which may be found in a medieval or early modern church.

The Amateur Historian Volume 2 Number 1 August September 1954

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