Brighton History Centre

Upper floor of Brighton Museum & Art Gallery
Royal Pavilion Gardens
Brighton
East Sussex
BN1 1EE
Telephone +44 (0)1273 296972
Email localhistory@brighton-hove.gov.uk

Opening times

Tuesday-Saturday 10am-5pm (closed Sunday and Monday)

Admission FREE

How to get here

On foot Brighton History Centre is located in the heart of the city centre
By bus Buses stop outside the Royal Pavilion on Pavilion Parade or on North Street, which is five minutes walk from the museum
By train 15 minutes walk from Brighton train station

Brighton’s History Centre is located on the first floor of Brighton Museum. It is a unique ‘one stop shop’ for information on all of Brighton & Hove’s Museums’ and Libraries’ collections and is the place to come to research any aspect of the city’s heritage.

Explore Brighton’s local history using a variety of reference materials including newspapers, periodicals, books, pamphlets, photographs, maps, oral histories and film material. Family history enthusiasts can search through electoral rolls, passenger lists and military material. And there is lots of help and advice on hand for those new to family history research. Browse the handlists here.

Many of our local history books form part of the rare books collections. Find out more about how to access our rare books.

How can I access and use the local history and family history resources?

A visit to Brighton History Centre is free and requires no membership.
A lot of pre-research can be done in the comfort of your own home by looking through our local history and family history online pages. These will tell you the kind of resources we hold and will guide you to other helpful online resources such as the Familia website and the Ancestry website.

Can we do the research for you?

Yes. If we can complete your request within 10 minutes it is free. All other requests are chargeable.

What else do we offer at Brighton History Centre?

free internet access for accessing information on museums collections, local and family history.
pre-booking of computers, microfiche and microfilm readers
photocopying facilities
a shop selling books, gifts and souvenirs
image reproduction service

To avoid disappointment you can pre-book our computers and microfiche readers before you arrive, or contact us for any other enquiry.

The Keep

We're working on plans for a new historical resource centre called The Keep. This is a major partnership project between East Sussex County Council, Brighton & Hove City Council and the University of Sussex. Find out more