Devon Record Office

The Devon Record Office exists to collect and preserve the historical records of Devon and to make them available to all who wish to study them. There are three record offices which share this task.

The Devon Record Office at Exeter houses all types of historical records relating to the county of Devon, the city of Exeter, and east, mid and south Devon, including Torbay.  These include the records of the parishes, and of innumerable individuals, families, estates, businesses, societies, chapels and schools.   

It also holds the ecclesiastical records of the Diocese of Exeter, and administers the Exeter Cathedral (Dean and Chapter) Archives in the Cloister Library.

Since 1998 the Devon Record Office has provided an archives service for both Devon County Council and Torbay Council under a joint arrangement between the two authorities.   Records relating to the Torbay area are generally deposited at the Exeter office.

The Plymouth and West Devon Record Office holds records of the old borough and modern city of Plymouth, as well as the west Devon area.  From the 1st April 1998, it has been run as an independent archive service by Plymouth City Council.

Microfiche or microfilm of some records, in particular parish records relating to the whole of Devon, are available in the search-rooms of all three record offices.