Our vision is a world in which everyone has convenient, affordable access to records, finding aids, knowledge and skills necessary to conduct authoritative research into family history.
Donated family histories have long formed an integral part of our unique collections, from surname studies to heraldic pedigree trees. We welcome deposits which accord with our Acquisition Policy.
On this page you’ll find a full guide on how to deposit your research with us.
The purpose is to collect:
Priorities to be observed in descending order as follows:
Acquisitions should take account of the following:
Periodicals
In exchange for the Society’s Genealogists Magazine or by subscription where appropriate, the Society should acquire:
Digital subscription is preferable, and a concerted review of which journals are available digitally and online and the potential costs and availability of subscription services should be undertaken as a separate project, in accordance with priorities outlined below. Cancellation of any subscriptions should only be considered when ownership of the electronic version or perpetual access for library users is available, or deemed no longer needed, after analysis and review.
Please complete the Collection Deposit Application form.
Our team of expert genealogists, archivists and librarians can support you with the identification of which materials are appropriate to deposit. We may ask you to provide a brief inventory of the items you wish to donate or to photograph your collection. This helps us to determine whether your materials fall within our Acquisition Policy. Please note, we do not accept collections on loan or permanent loan.
If you have previously deposited a collection and would now like to add further material to it, this is regarded as a separate donation, requiring a new Collection Deposit Application form and Collection Deposit Agreement form.
You may prefer to leave your research to us in your will. In this case, copyright is assumed to accompany the gift of the original research. You can ask your solicitor to insert a paragraph to this effect in your will or use the sample codicil shown below.
Please discuss this with your family and make it clear what your wishes are.
I give to the Society of Genealogists of 40 Wharf Road, London, N1 7GS (a charity incorporated with limited liability) absolutely and free of all taxes and duties payable by reason of my death
a) the sum of ..................................pounds (£......................) or a sum to be agreed with my trustees as suitable financial contribution to the processing and storage of that donation
b) all those of my genealogical and family history books, papers and other like records, including any that may be in electronic or digital form, together with all my property and intellectual rights therein and the right for the said Society (either itself or in association with any other body or person) to record or reproduce the material in any form whatsoever including forms not yet invented whether for archival or commercial purposes and with full power to transfer all or any thereof to other libraries or repositories or to otherwise dispose of any which are in the unfettered opinion of the said Society already represented in its collections, adequately recorded elsewhere or otherwise unsuitable for retention by the said Society or for study by its members
c) the copyright in all my genealogical writings
Executors dealing with research collections not wanted by beneficiaries and not specifically willed to the Society are asked to sign a Collection Deposit Agreement assigning copyright to the Society. See a copy of this form here.
Few collections arrive ready to go straight on the shelves. Our volunteers work tirelessly to ensure documents are preserved, stored, organised, described and catalogued. We’re dedicated to ensuring that your donations can be found and understood by generations of future researchers!
You can help us by preparing your research materials in advance of their arrival at the Society by using the guidance below.
Our Review Panel will meet and assess your application. We might respond to your application with further questions.
We will always let you know the results of our review.
Successful applicants will be asked to sign a Collection Deposit Agreement transferring ownership of the collection to the Society. A sample collection agreement is shown below.
The …………………. Collection
Name of depositor:
Address:
Description of content and size………..
We are grateful to you for offering to donate your collection of genealogical research material to its Library. This agreement is to clarify the basis on which we accept it.
It should be on the basis that all property and intellectual rights (including copyright) in the material pass unconditionally to the Society. We also need your assurance that, to the best of your knowledge, no rights in the material belong to any other body or person.
The Society needs to have full power (either itself or in association with any other body or person) to record or reproduce the material in any form whatsoever, including forms not yet invented.
The Society must have full power to transfer any material to other libraries or repositories or to otherwise dispose of any items which are, in the unfettered opinion of the Society, already represented in its collections, adequately recorded elsewhere or otherwise unsuitable for retention by the Society or study by its members and visitors.
Transfer of the collection/Item concurs with the Society of Genealogists current collection acquisition policy and is accompanied by an agreed commensurate financial contribution of ….
Please confirm that the material is being offered to (and accepted by) the Society on the above terms by signing and returning the attached copy of this letter.
Signed by way of agreement and confirmation:
Name (BLOCK CAPITALS):......................................................................................
Signature:...............................................................
Depositor/Depositor’s agent (delete as appropriate)
Date:.......................................................................
The Society’s collection is not a forgotten dusty repository but a very active resource, supporting and inspiring people doing genealogical research both now and across future generations. It ensures research already undertaken continues to have a relevance, value and impact in perpetuity.
Maintaining, conserving, cataloguing and curating this unique collection to the right standards is an important but costly objective. Current costs are over £100,000 a year.
To help fund this, the Society has created The Collection Fund, a restricted fund entirely focused on supporting the care and development of what is widely recognised as the finest collection of its type in the country.
A single box of material will likely cost in the region of £350 to conserve and catalogue and then a further £5 a year to store. A donation of £500 would cover all these costs in perpetuity.
We would therefore ask those who believe in the importance of the Society’s collection and are seeking to deposit genealogical material or their research notes to also consider making a donation to the Collection Fund to help support this work.
To donate to our Collections Fund, please contact our CEO: ceo@sog.org.uk
We also ask that applicants undertake to arrange the transfer and delivery of deposited collections and cover the associated costs.
Our archive collections are kept in a secure and environmentally controlled offsite store. SoG staff retrieve them to our library, where they are supervised while in use by researchers.
Collection materials are transferred to acid-free folders and boxes and sometimes receive more specialised treatment from professionally trained conservators. They are cleared of material outside our collection policy and described in finding aids, lists and online catalogue records.
We aim to provide full access to our collections for members and the public during library opening times and within the framework of our library policies and procedures. In some cases, we will restrict access to specific parts of a collection for a limited period, for example, for legal reasons and/or to protect privacy.
Please email all enquiries to: archive@sog.org.uk
