On Monday, November 2nd, 2015 Find My Past launches the National Register.  It will be free to search for housholds but cost £6.95 per household or £25 for 5 households to unlock the actual data.  It will not include people born after 1915 unless they are known to be dead.

This is the most comprehensive listing of information on citizens in the United Kingdom since the release of the 1921 census.   Of course I had to find a bit more information on the Act, so you are also having a bit of a history lesson in this e-mail as well for those of you who, like me, always appreciate a bit more information.

The National Registration Act 1939 was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom The initial National Registration Bill was introduced to Parliament as an emergency measure at the start of World War II. Royal assent given on 5 September 1939.

The Act established a National Register which began operating on 29 September 1939 (National Registration Day), a system of identity cards, and a requirement that they must be produced on demand or presented to a police station within 48 hours.

Every man, woman and child had to carry an identity (ID) card at all times and the cards would include the following information:

• Name
• Sex
• Age
• Occupation, profession, trade or employment
• Address; Marital status
• Membership of Naval, Military or Air Force Reserves or Auxiliary Forces or of Civil Defence Services or Reserves.

65,000 enumerators across the country delivered forms ahead of the chosen day. On 29 September 1939, householders were required to record details on the registration forms. On the following Sunday and Monday the enumerators visited every householder, checked the form and there and then issued a completed identity card for each of the residents. All cards at this time were the same brown/buff colour.

Three main reasons for their introduction:

• The major dislocation of the population caused by mobilization and mass evacuation and also the wartime need for complete manpower control and planning in order to maximize the efficiency of the war economy.
• The likelihood of rationing (introduced from January 1940 onwards).
• Population statistics. As the last census had been held in 1931, there was little accurate data on which to base vital planning decisions. The National Register was in fact an instant census and the National Registration Act closely resembles the 1920 Census Act in many ways.

There is a very helpful page at Find My Past that provides more information on searching the 1939 registers.

Happy Hunting!