| ESFH Research Centre, Chelmsford, Essex | ||
| General Seat Reservations Members Non-Members Facilities Microfiche Computer Applications |
 The Research Centre Our Research Centre is situated at the Essex Record Office in Wharf Road, Chelmsford.. It is open to both members of the Society and to the public from 1 pm to 4 pm on Wednesdays, from 10 am to 1 pm on Thursdays and from 6.00 pm to 8.00 pm on the second Monday of each month. There are two sessions of 1½ hours each on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and a single session of 2 hours on Monday evening. The Centre is also open from 10.30am until 2.00pm on the Saturday in each month (normally the third) when we hold our monthly meetings in the ERO Lecture Theatre. Seats can be reserved by telephoning 01245 244670 but
they need to be booked during the times detailed above so you will need to plan
your visit or take the chance that a place is available when you turn up. Only one session can be booked on any
particular day but if you book the first session and there are places available
at the end of that session then you can remain for the second session. Reserved places may be reallocated if they
are not taken up within 30 minutes of the beginning of the session booked. Only three separate bookings for different
days can be made at any one time. When calling, you will need to give your name,
membership number and specify whether you want the first or second session, a
computer or a fiche reader. Non members
using our facilities you will need to hold a CARN card, which is available from
the ERO reception (proof of residence is needed for this). ESFH members will need to
quote their
membership number if wishing to benefit from the lower printing and internet
costs available to members. The Centre is equipped with four computers which provide access to the 1881 census, Vital Records for Great Britain, Australia and North America, and give access to the internet. We also have on line indexes to the Essex 1851 and 1861 censuses and to the Brightlingsea 1851 and 1891 censuses as well as the Essex Burial Index (compiled as part of the National Burial Index) and we are continuing to add other genealogical aids and indexes . The computers have a menu from which you can select the records you want and gain access at the click of a button so if you do not consider yourself computer literate, do not despair – a little help from our volunteers will soon put you on the right track. In addition there are 7 fiche readers that can be booked and a reader/printer that is accessible to all visitors. We hold the microfiche for the GRO birth, marriage, death and miscellaneous indexes from 1837 to 2001, and much more The Research Centre also holds our library and our bookshop. |