Archives

The Archives of the Worshipful Company of Ironmongers date from the 13th century with most records surviving from 1454 onwards. Older archives are stored on behalf of the Company by the Guildhall Library in the City of London and may be consulted there and via their online catalogue.

Please note that this resource is a work in progress and may not yet contain all the more recently transferred items. To consult the Ironmongers’ records in the Guildhall Library reading room you will need to use the relevant Guildhall Library manuscript reference (MS) number at the end of the CLC/L/IB reference. So for the reference CLC/L/IB/A/002/MS16965/001 you will only need to put MS16965/001 on your order form.

These Ironmongers’ records mainly cover the period from 1454 up to 1979, but also include deeds dating from 1273. Registers of freedom admissions from 1555 and of apprentice bindings from 1511, as well as records relating to the Company’s Irish estates, can also be found. A summary of the Ironmongers’ archives at the Guildhall Library (as well as those of other livery companies) can also be found in the printed handbook City of London Livery Companies and Related Organisations: A Guide to their Archives in Guildhall Library (City of London, 2010 [fourth edition]).

The Company’s original charters, a list of Apprentices and Members of the Company from 1511 and more recent Court Minutes (from 1973) and other modern records are still held by the Company at Ironmongers’ Hall and may be consulted at the discretion of the Archivist.

Apprentices and Members of the Ironmongers' Company from 1511

Digitised apprenticeship and freedom registers for the Company from 1511 until 1923 are available on Findmypast. Abstracts of Ironmongers' Company apprenticeships from 1655 - 1800 are also available. The original apprenticeship books and freedom registers, as well as a typescript index to members from 1555- 1977 (ref: MS 16978) can be consulted at the Guildhall Library.
Histories of the Ironmongers' Company

One Hundred Treasures of the Worshipful Company of Ironmongers A book celebrating the Ironmongers’ Company was the late Leslie Weller’s brainchild with an aim of widening the knowledge of Company members and others interested in its treasured objects. Items in the collection at the Hall today have, in the main, been gathered since the fifteenth century and range in date from the thirteenth to the twenty-first century. This book’s selection of one hundred of these Company treasures has been divided into sections covering Furniture, Silver, Sculptures, Paintings, Miscellaneous Items and Archives & Books. To purchase a copy, at the subsidised price of £45 (plus postage & packing), please email the Assistant Clerk. Some Account of the Worshipful Company of Ironmongers J. Nicholl (London: Ironmongers' Company, 1866 [2nd edition]) The main history up to 1866 (containing some genealogical information) is online via Google Books. A History of the Ironmongers' Company E. Glover (London: Ironmongers' Company, 1991) A more recent, briefer, history - this may be purchased from the Company on request. Other Useful Sources Report on the Charities of the Ironmongers' Company City of London Livery Companies Commission. Report Volume 4 (1884) pp. 517-538) Charitable Accounts of the Ironmongers' Company City of London Livery Companies Commission. Report Volume 4 (1884) pp. 539-552) Other useful sources on the history of the City of London and its livery companies can also be found at the Guildhall Library.
Members of other livery companies: online resources

Apprenticeship abstracts for a number of other livery companies up to 1850 can be found via FindMyPast. The Records of Livery Companies Online , maintained by the Centre for Metropolitan History, provides access to free transcriptions of freedom and apprenticeship registers for a number of livery companies between 1400 to 1900. London Lives also provides free access to records about the lives on Londons from 1690-1800, mainly concerning crime, social policy and poverty across the City of London and what is now Greater London.