LOCAL GOVERNMENT RECORDS

The Record Office keeps records (chiefly minute books) of the Isle of Wight Council, as well as borough, district and parish councils of the Island.
Many of these records are held in outstores and it is therefore necessary to contact the Record Office in advance to ensure that the items will be available when you visit.

In the early 19^th century there were 4 boroughs on the Island that had existed since medieval times: Newport, Newtown, Brading and Yarmouth. The Record Office holds records of Newport and Newtown; those of Brading and Yarmouth are still held by their respective Town Trusts. The following catalogues to the records of Newport Borough are available on the Access to Archives database.

^{Click on the name of the catalogue and then scroll down the A2A catalogue to find the relevant section. Please note, if you wish to search this catalogue, you will need to visit the A2A Home Page and use the search facilities.}

Urban and Rural District Councils were set up under the Local Government Act of 1894. Many of these had been preceded by Town Improvement Commissioners or by Local Boards of Health. The Record Office keeps minute books for the following years:-

In 1974 the network of Rural and Urban District Councils was replaced by 2 larger authorities: Medina and South Wight Borough Councils. Medina comprised the former Cowes U.D.C., Newport B.C. and Ryde B.C.; South Wight covered the rest of the Island. Once again, the Record Office retains the minutes of these two authorities.

In 1995 a unitary authority was created, leading to a single council for the whole Island - the I.W. Council. This replaced Medina Borough Council, South Wight B.C. and the I.W. County Council (which had been in existence since 1890). The following catalogues to the records of the I.W. County Council are available on the Access to Archives database.

^{Click on the name of the catalogue and then scroll down the A2A catalogue to find the relevant section. Please note, if you wish to search this catalogue, you will need to visit the A2A Home Page and use the search facilities.}

The Record Office holds the records of many parish councils established by the 1894 Local Government Act. The following list gives the covering dates of the minute books.