Writing a VCH Parish History

VCH parish histories are works of reference which do not exceed 15,000 words in length. They record what is known, but do not go into great detail – they provide the infrastructure on which local historians may be able to write a full history of their parish, but the infrastructure we provide means that every parish is researched to a standard which makes comparison possible within counties and between counties across the country.

The VCH works to two guiding principles.

The text should be based as far as possible on primary evidence, published or unpublished, rather than on existing secondary sources although these should always be consulted. The VCH has always sought to work from primary sources to try to prevent the recycling of misleading information.
The evidence on which every statement in the text is based should be supported by a footnote citing the source from which the information has been taken. This is because, as a work of reference it does not cover topics in detail but provides information which will enable future researchers to cover the subject in more depth.

Parish histories are published in different formats:

As part of a collection of parishes in a ‘big red book’. The VCH is famous for its big red books, but these are published only when a group of 10-15 adjacent parishes have been edited and can appear together between hard covers. The publisher is Boydell & Brewer.
As individual studies published on the county website
As a separate booklet, possibly sponsored and published locally.

Learn more about writing a parish history in the VCH style:

Chapter	PDF
Introduction
Manors and Other Estates	coming soon...
Economic History
Social History
Religious History
Local Government
Buildings	coming soon...

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