how do I find out the year my victorian house was built?

Question

and no it hasn't got the date on the outside wall. If it had I wouldn't need to ask the question.

Answer 1

There are a lot of ways to uncover this information, but it will take some detective work. You do not indicate the area in which the house is located. If it is in a small town, your job might be a lot easier than if it is located in a big city. If you are in a small town, ask some of the "old timers" for information. They might not know the exact year, but they can usually tell you the approximate decade and that is a good starting point.

Your local Historical Society may be the quickest source of further information. You would be amazed at the photo archives many of these societies have. Chances are good they might have old photos of your house. Local newspaper archives (expecially small town weekly newspaper archives) can also be a good source of information. Many local libraries also have resources that will help you.

Another way to determine the year your house was built will cost you some money if you hire it done. A title or deed search will uncover the ownership history of the property. Depending on where you are located, chances are that the recorded history of your property began with a land grant, homestead, or large acerage purchase from a state or federal government. Over time, these parcels of land were divided over and over. Examination of the deeds in succession can uncover the original land owner who had the house built. From there, you can usually examine the property tax records for that period of time and determine when the valuation jumped due to the construction of the house. It is possible for you to do the research yourself at your county courthouse, but it is more commonly done by a title search company and can cost up to a couple hundred dollars.

I hope this information helps.

Good luck with your search for information.

Answer 2

It's very difficult to get the exact year that a victorian house was built, I've got the original deeds for my house (also victorian) but it only tells me when the land was leased to the builder. However, I have narrowed it down by checking back through the old census records. My house isn't mentioned in the 1881 census, but is in the 1891 census, so I've narrowed it down to a 10 year window. The best way is to go to your local library and look through the local history section, if you're really lucky they will also keep the victorian newspapers on microfilm, hell of a lot of 'sifting' though! Good luck

Answer 3

Usually when the Solicitor does the searches he will be able to tell you what the age of the house is. The council should also be able to tell you. You could also go and look at the County records, which I think are kept at the Council Offices or at Somerset House in London.

Answer 4

hasn't it got the date on the front outside wall.

Answer 5

Call your local title company or Public records. Even if you don't own it, all titles are public record and it has to list hte date of build on the title.

Answer 6

Get the deeds to your house .It should have the date the house was first sold

Answer 7

Get in touch with Land Registry

Answer 8

The town hall sometimes keeps records of older buildings in the area. Ordinance survey and that kind of thing.

Answer 9

You should be able to find out at the tax assessor's office in your local community.

Answer 10

Have a look at the deeds. They should give you that sort of information.