Local studies and archives

Search our online catalogue

Online catalogue is out of service
To see our archival materials, you can book an appointment with us.

The local studies and archives online catalogue holds over 22,000 records. This includes more than 500 digitised images.

Use the catalogue to find historical material about Kensington and Chelsea.

To search the catalogue:

select Kensington and Chelsea Local Studies and Archives from the drop-down menu in the Repository field
enter key words into the ‘any text’ search field

Book an appointment to view our records

The archive collection is based at Kensington Central Library.

You must book an appointment to view archive records.

Spaces are limited. Browsing is not available when the service is closed.

Before you contact us:

note the reference numbers of the items you want to see
email the reference numbers to book an appointment, this helps us prepare materials in advance
do not make travel plans until we confirm your booking

Opening hours

We are open by appointment only on:

Tuesday, 1pm to 5pm
Wednesday, 10am to 5pm

Closed on Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday

Available materials

The Local Studies collection covers all the borough's material on the history of both Kensington and Chelsea.

It includes:

books
newspapers
prints, photographs, paintings and drawings
maps including Ordnance Survey, parish and general maps of London
census returns
electoral registers
manuscripts
ephemera and other archive material

Read more about council archives, including family history.

Local newspapers collection

We hold local newspapers on microfilm for:

Kensington from 1855 to 2004
Chelsea from 1865 to 1999

View microfilm copies

If you want to view microfilm copies, call us to make a booking.

Printed copies cost 25p each.

We also hold some recent back copies of local newspapers including:

Kensington and Chelsea Chronicle
Kensington and Chelsea Gazette

Local studies blog

The Library Time Machine blog explores the past lives and history of Kensington and Chelsea.

Read The Library Time Machine.

Kensington and Chelsea's Great War website

This website shares material about the First World War and local experiences including:

recruitment posters
photos
old documents
family memories of local people

Read more about Kensington and Chelsea's Great War.

Digital images and reproduction fees

Our price list for 2026 to 2027 includes:

Self-service photography:

non-commercial research: £6 per day
Commercial research: £16 per day

Digital files:

low resolution (online use, typical size 500kB): £10.50
medium resolution (standard reproduction, typical size 10MB): £16
high resolution (highest quality reproduction, typical size 50 MB): £21

Digital files can be emailed or file transferred.

Prices include VAT.

Charges do not include extra staff research time. Staff my charge extra for additional work.

If you need specific assistance, speak with a member of the staff.

Reproducing images for publications or commercial use

Images are for personal use only. Publications or commercial use may require a reproduction fee.

If you want to reproduce an image in a publication or other products, we offer competitive reproduction charges.

Please ask a member of staff about this.

To order a digital image or request reproduction, contact us for a form.

Paid research services

We offers paid research using selected sources.

These include:

census records
Kensington and Chelsea Electoral Register (gaps 1915 to 1917 and 1940 to 1944)
local newspapers
street and trade directories including part of Early London, Kensington Directories, Post Office London directories
St Mary Abbots provide a transcript of Parish Registers: christenings, marriage, burials
rate books, valuation books
rateable values

Contact us

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 020 7361 3038

Last updated: 1 May 2026

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