Evidence & Sources
Evidence & Sources
Different questions about the historic counties need different kinds of evidence. This is the gateway to the official statements, legislation, census records, maps and standards used across RealCounties.
The central distinction is simple: geographic counties, council areas and lieutenancy areas are separate geographical layers. The job of the evidence is to show which layer a source is actually describing.
Start with the question
Different claims need different evidence
A source can be authoritative for one question and irrelevant to another. A local-government Act tells us about local government; it does not, by itself, establish the course of a geographic county boundary.
01 · Legal claim
What did legislation actually create or change?
Use the original Act or statutory instrument and read it for the function and area it actually defines.
02 · Boundary claim
Where does the geographic county boundary run?
Use the Historic Counties Standard, authoritative mapping and county-specific historical evidence rather than inferring geography from a council or lieutenancy area.
03 · Official position
How does government describe the counties?
Use current official statements, guidance and published data, paying close attention to the geographical scope of each source.
04 · Historical use
How were counties recorded and understood?
Use census material, gazetteers, maps, local records and other contemporary sources for evidence of actual public usage.
Evidence families
Choose the evidence you need
These four routes cover most questions about county identity, public recognition, legislation and boundaries. Each leads to the more detailed pages and original sources.
Official recognition & guidance
How public bodies describe and recognise the counties
Official statements, government guidance and ONS material show how historic counties are distinguished from council areas and other official geographies.
Official Statements · Government Guidance · ONS and the Historic Counties
Legislation
What Acts of Parliament actually establish
Legislation is essential for legal claims, but its purpose matters. Local-government legislation describes local-government structures; lieutenancy legislation describes lieutenancy arrangements.
Records & statistics
How county geography was recorded in practice
Census material, place-name data, gazetteers and local records show counties being used as real geographical reference points across time.
Boundaries & standards
Where the geographic counties actually lie
The Historic Counties Standard provides the formal county geography used by HCI and RealCounties. Mapping and historical evidence are then used to apply and verify those boundaries.
Evidence principle
Do not ask one source to answer a different question.
- Administration A council boundary shows the area administered by a council. It does not define the geographic county.
- Lieutenancy A lieutenancy area shows the territory of a Lord-Lieutenant’s appointment. It does not define the geographic county.
- Mapping A map is useful only if the layer being mapped is correctly identified and the boundary source is appropriate.
- Terminology Similar names do not make different geographical systems the same thing.
ONS reference
Historic counties as stable place-name geography
The ONS Index of Place Names records historic counties separately from council areas and other official classifications, making it an important reference for the distinction between geographical layers.
Boundary standard
The Historic Counties Standard
The Standard defines the names, extents and boundaries of the historic counties used by HCI and RealCounties. Boundary claims should be checked against that geography rather than inferred from administrative arrangements.
How HCI uses sources
From claim to evidence
The aim is not to collect the largest number of sources. It is to use the strongest source for the specific claim being made.
Identify the claim
Is it about a boundary, legislation, official recognition, historical usage or something else?
Choose the right source type
Use primary legislation for legal claims, standards and maps for boundaries, and official statements for official positions.
Check scope
England-only guidance, Great Britain data and local historical records do not all answer the same geographical question.
Verify difficult cases
Detached parts, separated portions and disputed or changing administrative terminology need particular care.
Source library
Useful links by evidence type
This is the practical reference list: the dedicated RealCounties pages and original sources most often used to investigate county questions.
Official recognition
Statements, guidance and data
Legislation
Acts and legal geography
Records
Census and place-name evidence
Boundaries
Standards and mapping
Historic Counties Standard