Do you have British ancestors who lived in very small towns or villages? All of my English ancestors were here by 1675 and I have a list of over 100 mostly villages and small towns that are difficult to find on a map.

The Gazetteer of British Place Names is a free online resource to find all those tiny towns where our ancestors lived.

Use the “Find a Place” query box. I entered Tring, a town from which several of my ancestors emigrated.

One result came up under Settlement, so I clicked on that.

Next, I chose “Gazetteer Map” from the choices on the left and entered Tring in the search box.

I can enlarge or back out of the map area for more detailed or general overviews. I cropped the view below, but I can pin this map, which would be really fun to do with all my known villages.

Notice, it does allow use of the maps with attributions:

It’s very easy to use! Notice in the first image that there is a Menu on the left. There are very detailed bits of information accessible along with a printable map. I’m mostly interested in where the place is located and names of towns and villages around it, but this gazetteer does provide latitude & longitude along with local details.

Did I mention it’s free???

If you have British ancestors and you’re wondering where their home was across the pond, this gazetteer is an excellent resource to check out.