What Are Poll Books And How Are They Useful For Family History Research?

Poll books are basically books that carry lists of people who voted in either local or general elections. Poll books were started in the middle ages but it is rare to find any still in existence that date from before 1696.

The lists before 1872 list only men (women were not allowed to vote then) but it does give the parish in which they lived and who they voted for. This information was public knowledge as voters had to declare their vote. After 1872, secret ballots were introduced and the Poll Books no longer record this information.

Electoral registers are lists of people eligible to vote and these first start in 1832. The list shows all men in the local vicinity who were eligible to vote in parliamentary elections. Until the late 1800s, only a few men were allowed to vote and this right depended on ownership of land. Ordinary working men were excluded.