Gwent Family History Resources – encompassing the historic county of Monmouthshire

The Gwent family history page has been created to assist those of you wishing to research ancestors or other individuals who were born, lived, worked or died in the ‘preserved’ county of Gwent in South East Wales, UK.

Up until the late 20th Century, Wales had thirteen historic counties, one of which was the historic (and administrative) county of Monmouthshire. In 1974, Monmouthshire was abolished and the county of Gwent was formed, encompassing both the historic county of Monmouthshire and the county borough of Newport.

Although named after the ancient kingdom of Gwent, the county of Gwent only lasted for just over 20 years. In 1996, it was abolished as a local government county and replaced by the following unitary authorities: Monmouthshire (which comprises around 60% of the historic county of Monmouthshire) plus the County Boroughs of Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly, Torfaen, and the City of Newport.

However, Gwent lived on as a ‘preserved’ county for ceremonial purposes and family historians will note that the word ‘Gwent’ is often synonymous with Monmouthshire.

Gwent Archives

Gwent Archives holds over 10km of archived storage and is located in Ebbw Vale.

Gwent Family History Society

Gwent Family History Society is a registered charity formed in 1981 to offer advice to those tracing lost relatives and ancestors in Gwent region of Wales. The society publishes a regular journal and holds monthly meetings in 5 areas of the county i.e.: Blackwood, Chepstow, Ebbw Vale, Newport and Pontypool.

The Gwent Family History Society holds an extensive range of family history records. You can search these records at Findmypast (subscription required).

Here are the specific pages for birth and marriage records in the Gwent area:

Gwent births and marriages

Births

Gwent Fhs Baptisms
Gwent Fhs Baptisms – Blackwood
Gwent Fhs Baptisms – Blackwood Branch
Gwent Fhs Baptisms – Chepstow
Gwent Fhs Baptisms – Chepstow Branch
Gwent Fhs Baptisms – Ebbvale
Gwent Fhs Baptisms – Pontypool Branch
Gwent Non-Conformist Baptisms

Marriages

Gwent Fhs Marriages
Gwent Fhs Marriages – Blackwood
Gwent Fhs Marriages – Blackwood Branch
Gwent Fhs Marriages – Chepstow Branch
Gwent Fhs Marriage – Ebbvale
Gwent Non-Conformist Marriages

Gwent Newspaper Archives

The subscription website British Newspaper Archives has digitised over 30 million pages of newspaper archives. Here is the link for Monmouthshire newspaper archives. (As mentioned above, the historic county of Monmouthshire roughly equates to the preserved county of Gwent).