Business

We hold records on businesses and companies that are no longer in existence. Files include:

  • names of companies and firms
  • company shareholders
  • dates of registration
  • liquidation details.

Finding business records

Research guides

Research guides give information about the types of records you might find on different topics, and relevant series of records that may help get you started.

Search the indexes

If you know the name and location of the person you are looking for you can view our business records by searching our indexes.

The indexes are collections of information from our most popular records (usually peoples’ names) that link to ArchivesSearch catalogue. Search indexes about businesses below.

Search the catalogue

ArchivesSearch provides access to our collection of records, including documents, letters, land orders, maps, plans and images. For help searching, read the ArchivesSearch help guide.

  • Spelling of names was not as consistent as it is today, so be sure to check alternatives—e.g. Thompson and Thomson.
  • Names may have been incorrectly indexed as the handwriting is sometimes difficult to read or the ink has faded.
    • The capital letters L, T, F and S are often confused as lower-case letters n, m, u and w. This means that Taylor may indexed as Laylor or Brum may be indexed as Bruin.
    • The use of double ‘s’ (ss) often looks like fs, so Ross will be indexed as Ross but may appear in the record as Rofs.
  • Names may have been written in the record phonetically as the clerks wrote the names as they heard them. Think about how it could be spelt as it was heard.
  • Some given names are abbreviated as they appear in the original record
  • Some records are restricted for several years.
  • Some records have not survived.
  • A blank cell indicates that there is no information recorded in the original.
  • Some records have not survived to be transferred to QSA.
  • We only hold the records of companies that are no longer in existence.
  • We don’t hold actual business records of companies, except in a few rare cases of liquidated businesses.

Contact us

Contact us if you need further help.