The aim of the project was to improve access to local and trade directories for the period 1750-1919 by making a substantial collection of English and Welsh directories available online as a Digital Library of Historical Directories. This digital resource comprises in total some 600 directories, covering every English county together with Wales, and ranging widely over the period 1750-1919 (the latter cut-off point chosen for copyright reasons). There is a particular focus on the 1850s, 1890s and 1910s, with at least one directory provided for each county in each of these decades. The digitisation of the volumes involved a two-stage process, in which (1) the hard-copy source was scanned to produce a graphic image of each page, and then (2) those images were processed using OCR software to generate a machine-readable text file.An online version of this resource can be found on the Website of the University of Leicester. This data collection includes the following directories:- Bailey's Western & Midland Directory for ... 1783. [Also 1784. Nottinghamshire only] (1783-84)- Universal British Directory of Trade, Commerce & Manufacture, 1791-98. Nottingham & Newark extracts (1791-98)- The  Leicester  Directory,  describing  the  bankers,  manufacturers, and principal tradesmen with their places of residence, also the professors of law, physic & divinity, the corporation, clergy, militia &c. (1794)- The Leicester Directory, containing a general list of  the  merchants,  tradesmen,  manufacturers,  and  principal  inhabitants  of  Leicester,  arranged  in  alphabetical  order,  separate  alphabetical  lists of each particular trade and profession (1815)- The  Nottingham  Directory,  containing  a  general  list  of  the  merchants,  tradesmen,  and  principal  inhabitants  of  Nottingham, New Radford, and New Snenton (1815)- Pigot's Directory of Leicestershire, 1822, 1828, 1835 (1822-35)- Glover's  Nottingham  Directory,  for  1825,  being  a  general list of the merchants, tradesmen, and principal inhabitants of Nottingham, New Radford and New Snenton (1825)- The   Leicester   Directory;   containing   an   alphabetical  list  of  the  inhabitants,  a  complete  classification  of  trades,  a  new  arrangement  of  coaches  and  carriers,  a  list  of  all  the  civil  officers  of  the  town  and  county,  the  public  institutions,  churches and chapels, &c. (1827)- The  Directory  of  the  county  of  Derby,  containing  upwards of fifteen thousand names ... accurately taken during the years 1827, '8, and '9 (1829)- History,   Gazetteer,   and   Directory   of   Nottinghamshire, and the ... town of Nottingham (1832)- The  Nottingham  Annual  Register;  containing  an  almanack,  useful  tables,  chronicle  of  parliament,  and  remarkable  occurrences,  also  a  new  and  corrected  directory  for  1840 (1840)- A  Guide  to  Leicester,  containing  a  list  of  streets,  lanes,  yards,  &c.,  a  directory  of  the  principal  inhabitants,  classification of trades and professions ... with an almanack for 1843, county information, etc. (1843)- History,   Gazetteer,   and   Directory   of   Leicestershire,  and  the  small  county  of  Rutland;  together  with  the  adjacent towns of Grantham & Stamford (1846)- Lascelles and Hagar's Commercial Directory of the town  and  county  of  the  town  of  Nottingham;  also  the  parishes  of  Basford,  Bridgford,  Carlton,  Lenton,  Radford,  Sneinton,  Wilford,  and  Wollaton (1848)- Slater's Directory of Rutlandshire (1850)- Freebody's  Directory  of  the  Towns  of  Derby,  Chesterfield,   Alfreton,   Buxton,   Bakewell,   Matlock,   Wirksworth,   Ashbourn,  Belper,  Melbourn,  Ripley,  Burtonupon-  Trent,  &c.  &c.  &c. (1852)- Melville  &  Co.'s  Directory  and  Gazetteer  of  Leicestershire,  including  all  the  market  towns,  with  the  adjacent  villages, and containing a descriptive account of each place, followed by the directory (1854)- Post   Office   Directory   of   Derbyshire   and   Nottinghamshire (1855)- Post   Office   Directory   of   Derbyshire,   Leicestershire,  Nottinghamshire  and  Rutlandshire.  [1855.  Leics  &  Rutland only] (1855)- Slater's Directory of Rutlandshire (1858)- Wright's  Nottingham  and  Suburban  Directory  for  1858 (1858)- Commercial Directory of Leicestershire, containing an   alphabetical   list   of   the   gentry,   merchants,   manufacturers,   professions,  trades,  etc.;  and  separate  historical,  statistical,  and  topographical  descriptions  of  the  hundreds,  towns,  parishes (1861)- Gazetteer  and  Directory  of  the  Counties  of  Leicester  &  Rutland;  containing  an  alphabetical  list  of  the  gentry,  merchants,  manufacturers,  professions,  trades,  etc.