EducationGuardian.co.uk | higher news | Ye olde bloggers find plot in cyberspace:

Gazetteers, the age-old precursor to the blogger, have finally found their place on the internet. A new website, launched today, brings together their accounts of Britain through the ages with more than 10m census entries and reproductions of ancient maps.

The gazetteer spent his (for they were mostly men) weekends touring the country and documenting towns, villages and cities. Each would record population, politics and social statistics for posterity.

Now their findings, along with every census finding from the past 200 years, and thousands of centuries-old maps - including the first ever ordinance survey series - have been compiled into a website.

Users can enter a postcode into a search engine and are provided with detailed social history of how the area has changed - the shifting population, where people work, how educated they are and even whether they have an inside loo.

The website also features the observations of travel writing pioneers, including the 12th century cleric, Gerald of Wales, Daniel Defoe, William Cobbett and the intrepid Celia Fiennes. The latter was the 17th century woman who, at the age of 23, decided that a spell touring the country on horseback would be good for her health. She documented her findings and is believed to have inspired the "see a fine lady upon a white horse" nursery rhyme.

It has taken a team of historical geographers at Portsmouth University 10 years and a £1.5m lottery grant to put together the website, www.VisionofBritain.org.uk, which was due to go live at noon today.