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Places and Ethnicities England

Researching Your Norfolk Ancestors

Nicholas Dixon
Nov 14, 2025
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Free through November 21, 2025
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About this webinar

Situated on the east coast of England, Norfolk is its fifth largest county and contains over 700 ancient parishes. Historically, it was a largely agricultural region, with some manufacturing in the county town of Norwich and significant seaports at King’s Lynn and Great Yarmouth. The resources available for tracing ancestors who lived in Norfolk are vast and varied. While many of the most useful records (such as parish registers) are available online, there remains a wealth of material that can only be accessed at the archives in Norwich and King’s Lynn. In this webinar, the lives of Norfolk ancestors will be placed in context and the sources of use to genealogists will be explained. The session will cover probate records, borough records, quarter sessions records, estate papers, maritime records, newspapers and other relevant resources. Some difficulties that can be encountered when investigating Norfolk ancestors will also be discussed, as well as methods of overcoming such challenges. Additionally, the printed and online publications of relevance to Norfolk research will be considered in detail.

About the speaker

About the speaker

Nicholas Dixon
Dr. Nicholas Dixon is a professional genealogist and historical researcher in London, UK. He studied history at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, and was awarded a PhD degree in 2019 for a thesis concerning the Church of England in the ear
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