The University of Leicester in England has valuable online collections for genealogy and family history research including:

Special Collections

Historical Directories of England and Wales – online city, town, county, and trade directories from England and Wales ranging from the late 1760s to the early 1910s.

Historical Directories of Leicestershire – 50 trade and street directories for Leicester and Leicestershire from the 1790s to 1910s-published more frequently than censuses.

Oral History Archive – 447 recordings including stories of rationing, the Zeppelin raid in 1916, home remedies, midwifery, games, factory work, World War II, post-war resettlement, and more.

My Leicestershire History – “this is a free and fully searchable online resource containing photographs, films, sound recordings, and books about the history of Leicester and Leicestershire. It forms part of the University’s Special Collections Online.”

Miscellaneous Collections – including Loughborough Parish Library catalogue, books about the history of Leicester and images of Leicester

Many historic photographs, maps, book collections, manufacturing history collections related to Leicester’s past.