Scotland's History Festival returns from November 13th-30th 2012. For more details on developments, keep an eye on www.historyfest.co.uk.
(With thanks to @prevhistfest)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Sunday, 30 September 2012
Scottish Genealogy Network meeting in Edinburgh
We had yet another great meeting of the Scottish Genealogy Network yesterday in Edinburgh, with I think the largest number of attendees yet. I did not arrive at the venue personally until just after 5pm, as I had an earlier commitment in Coatbridge, but I had hoped to at least catch the last hour or so - in fact, many of our band of merry men and women continued on to just after 9pm, which I think is a great testimony to just how useful we're all finding our monthly meets. It was great to catch up with several new members, including Graham and Emma Maxwell who travelled all the way from Dumfriesshire, and Penny Lewis from Perthshire, and I know there were a few others there for the first time that I unfortunately missed, who left before I was able to arrive, but who I hope to meet at future events!
As ever, the range of discussion was incredibly varied, with all sorts up for grabs, from rules surrounding various groups of record sets that can and cannot be photographed at the NRS, the best ways to get datasets online for eejits like me who view HTML as a cousin language to Klingon, and a great story from Chris Halliday who recently made the papers in Peebleshire over a spectacular find connected to the gates of Traquair House (which will remain closed until a Stuart king returns to the throne!). Steve McLeish commented on his success exhibiting at the National Family History Fair a few weeks ago, and our good chum Ali McDonald discussed our DNA haplogroups (I'm as common as muck apparently! lol) - and those are just some of the chats I got involved in!
One of the great things about the group is the sheer variety of areas that we cover in our work, and I think it is fair to say that each new member brings something a little new to the party, so please do consider coming along to future meets if you work within the Scottish genealogical scene - be that as a researcher, tutor, archivist, running an FHS, ancestral tour group, or something else associated. We'd love to meet you! Next month the venue looks set to be a little closer to home for me personally here in Largs, Ayrshire - more news on that soon. In the meantime, if you do work professionally within the Scottish genealogical scene, and would like to be added to our mailing list for future meetings please drop me a note at christopherpaton @ tiscali.co.uk or to Kirsty Wilkinson at enquiries @ myainfolk.com. There are no fees to join, it is simply an opportunity to meet up and chat, and to enjoy a good bit of craic at the same time!
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
As ever, the range of discussion was incredibly varied, with all sorts up for grabs, from rules surrounding various groups of record sets that can and cannot be photographed at the NRS, the best ways to get datasets online for eejits like me who view HTML as a cousin language to Klingon, and a great story from Chris Halliday who recently made the papers in Peebleshire over a spectacular find connected to the gates of Traquair House (which will remain closed until a Stuart king returns to the throne!). Steve McLeish commented on his success exhibiting at the National Family History Fair a few weeks ago, and our good chum Ali McDonald discussed our DNA haplogroups (I'm as common as muck apparently! lol) - and those are just some of the chats I got involved in!
One of the great things about the group is the sheer variety of areas that we cover in our work, and I think it is fair to say that each new member brings something a little new to the party, so please do consider coming along to future meets if you work within the Scottish genealogical scene - be that as a researcher, tutor, archivist, running an FHS, ancestral tour group, or something else associated. We'd love to meet you! Next month the venue looks set to be a little closer to home for me personally here in Largs, Ayrshire - more news on that soon. In the meantime, if you do work professionally within the Scottish genealogical scene, and would like to be added to our mailing list for future meetings please drop me a note at christopherpaton @ tiscali.co.uk or to Kirsty Wilkinson at enquiries @ myainfolk.com. There are no fees to join, it is simply an opportunity to meet up and chat, and to enjoy a good bit of craic at the same time!
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Durham Records Online update
What's New at Durham Records Online (www.durhamrecordsonline.com):
Shotley Bridge Primitive Methodist Circuit baptisms 1863-1878
2,856 baptisms on the Shotley Bridge Primitive Methodist Circuit, covering 1863-1878, plus a few from January 1879.
Methodist preachers traveled around a circuit of villages, baptizing children at each meeting location, making notes of each baptism and later entering the baptisms into the register. The entries are not in chronological order, and several years of entries may be mixed together.
Newcastle All Saints baptisms 1822-1826
3,587 baptisms at Newcastle All Saints in Northumberland, from the Bishop’s Transcript.
Hartlepool Old Cemetery (Spion Kop) burials 1931-1997
2,230 burials at Hartlepool Old Cemetery, also known as Borough Cemetery, Hart Warren, and Spion Kop, covering 1931-1997.
This concludes our coverage of the burial registers of Hartlepool Old Cemetery. We have transcribed 26,367 burials from the opening of this cemetery in 1856 to the last known interment in 1997, to aid the research of people with Hartlepool ancestry. Shortly we hope to add the registers of West Hartlepool North Cemetery, the tiny Jewish cemetery adjacent to Spion Kop, West View Cemetery, and later, Stranton Grange Cemetery.
Chester-le-Street baptism index updated with full details for 1744-1789
Replaced the Chester-le-Street baptism index for 1744-1789 with full entries so those 9,794 baptisms are now instantly available, including 9 new records we missed the first time around.
Witnesses added to marriages 1813-1837 at Billingham, Bishop Middleham, Bishopton, Brancepeth, and Egglescliffe
Added 2,145 witnesses to 776 existing marriages in the period 1813-1837 at Billingham, Bishop Middleham, Bishopton, Brancepeth, and Egglescliffe. Also added all missing details: whether the marriages were by banns or licence, a few occupations and marital statuses, and corrected a few minor spelling errors in names and place names.
Coming soon:
Newcastle All Saints burials 1828-1836 and marriages 1830-1836
Burials at Hartlepool West View Cemetery 1911-1929
Marriage witnesses at Bishopwearmouth 1813-1816
Heworth marriages 1896-1908
South Shields St Hilda burials 1798-1812
Further down the road: records from Tynemouth, Earsdon, Hexham, Etherley, Sacriston, Lumley
Come find those elusive ancestors !
(With thanks to Holly Cochran)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Shotley Bridge Primitive Methodist Circuit baptisms 1863-1878
2,856 baptisms on the Shotley Bridge Primitive Methodist Circuit, covering 1863-1878, plus a few from January 1879.
Methodist preachers traveled around a circuit of villages, baptizing children at each meeting location, making notes of each baptism and later entering the baptisms into the register. The entries are not in chronological order, and several years of entries may be mixed together.
Newcastle All Saints baptisms 1822-1826
3,587 baptisms at Newcastle All Saints in Northumberland, from the Bishop’s Transcript.
Hartlepool Old Cemetery (Spion Kop) burials 1931-1997
2,230 burials at Hartlepool Old Cemetery, also known as Borough Cemetery, Hart Warren, and Spion Kop, covering 1931-1997.
This concludes our coverage of the burial registers of Hartlepool Old Cemetery. We have transcribed 26,367 burials from the opening of this cemetery in 1856 to the last known interment in 1997, to aid the research of people with Hartlepool ancestry. Shortly we hope to add the registers of West Hartlepool North Cemetery, the tiny Jewish cemetery adjacent to Spion Kop, West View Cemetery, and later, Stranton Grange Cemetery.
Chester-le-Street baptism index updated with full details for 1744-1789
Replaced the Chester-le-Street baptism index for 1744-1789 with full entries so those 9,794 baptisms are now instantly available, including 9 new records we missed the first time around.
Witnesses added to marriages 1813-1837 at Billingham, Bishop Middleham, Bishopton, Brancepeth, and Egglescliffe
Added 2,145 witnesses to 776 existing marriages in the period 1813-1837 at Billingham, Bishop Middleham, Bishopton, Brancepeth, and Egglescliffe. Also added all missing details: whether the marriages were by banns or licence, a few occupations and marital statuses, and corrected a few minor spelling errors in names and place names.
Coming soon:
Newcastle All Saints burials 1828-1836 and marriages 1830-1836
Burials at Hartlepool West View Cemetery 1911-1929
Marriage witnesses at Bishopwearmouth 1813-1816
Heworth marriages 1896-1908
South Shields St Hilda burials 1798-1812
Further down the road: records from Tynemouth, Earsdon, Hexham, Etherley, Sacriston, Lumley
Come find those elusive ancestors !
(With thanks to Holly Cochran)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
The future of Plymouth's heritage
From Devon FHS (www.devonfhs.org.uk):
The Future of our Heritage - Plymouth
An invitation to all to the Consortium Conference The Future of our Heritage, to be held in Plymouth Guildhall on Monday 29th October 2012.
We hope you will attend and show your support for the Plymouth and West Devon Record Office.
Details on www.devonfhs.org.uk/future-heritage29102012.pdf
Booking is essential, as detailed in the above link, but there is no charge to attend unless you wish to order lunch.
The latest news regarding the relocation of the Plymouth and West Devon Record Office may be found on www.saveplymouthshistory.org.uk
(With thanks to Maureen Selley, Chairman Devon FHS)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
The Future of our Heritage - Plymouth
An invitation to all to the Consortium Conference The Future of our Heritage, to be held in Plymouth Guildhall on Monday 29th October 2012.
We hope you will attend and show your support for the Plymouth and West Devon Record Office.
Details on www.devonfhs.org.uk/future-heritage29102012.pdf
Booking is essential, as detailed in the above link, but there is no charge to attend unless you wish to order lunch.
The latest news regarding the relocation of the Plymouth and West Devon Record Office may be found on www.saveplymouthshistory.org.uk
(With thanks to Maureen Selley, Chairman Devon FHS)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Saturday, 29 September 2012
ScotlandsPeople 10 year gallery
With this month being the tenth year of the ScotlandsPeople website (www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk), the team has placed online images showing previous versions of the website and various snaps of the old search facilities at New Register House, where the GROS (now part of the National Records of Scotland) is based. For a quick reminder of just how revolutionary the website was for Scotland and genealogy, take a wee gander at http://scotlandspeople.gov.uk/Content/Help/index.aspx?r=546&2182 down memory lane!
Wha's like us? Damn few - and they're a' deid! :)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Wha's like us? Damn few - and they're a' deid! :)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Friday, 28 September 2012
New York Naturalisations
Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) has released a major US database, in the form of New York Naturalisation Records from 1897-1944. If your ancestors crossed the pond, this new project indexed through the World Archives Project, may well be of interest - to search the database visit http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=2499
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
TNA podcast: British Malaya
The latest podcast from the National Archives at Kew is entitled British Malaya, by Diplomatic and Colonial Records Specialist Dr Dan Gilfoyle, and concerns images from the archive's Asia Through a Lens project. This one's quite short, at just eleven minutes in length, and although no images are shown alongside, it is still fairly easy to follow, being more about the history of the region.
You can listen to the podcast at http://media.nationalarchives.gov.uk/index.php/british-malaya-2/ or download from iTunes. The photographic project is online at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/asia/.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
You can listen to the podcast at http://media.nationalarchives.gov.uk/index.php/british-malaya-2/ or download from iTunes. The photographic project is online at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/asia/.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Stevenage FHS: research trip to Kew
Stevenage Family History Society (www.stevenagefhs.webspace.virginmedia.com), in liaison with Letchworth & District Family History Society (www.ldfhg.org.uk), is planning a coach trip to the National Archives at Kew on Saturday, 20th October 2012. The fee for members of a Family History Society or Group is £13.00, for non-members £14.00.
Departure points: Letchworth GC, Hitchin and Stevenage. A pick-up at Knebworth can be arranged if required.
To apply to participate, visit http://ldfhg.org.uk/prints/TNAKew.pdf for the application form.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Departure points: Letchworth GC, Hitchin and Stevenage. A pick-up at Knebworth can be arranged if required.
To apply to participate, visit http://ldfhg.org.uk/prints/TNAKew.pdf for the application form.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Family history talk in Downpatrick
Forthcoming talk event in Downpatrick:
Event: Family History for Beginners
Venue: Downpatrick Library
Date: 18/10/2012
Time: 7:30 pm
Admission: FREE - Booking Advisable
Description: A talk by Sandra Ardis from the North of Ireland Family History Society. The talk will look at family history materials available, including Ancestry Library Edition, and will direct participants towards archives and online resources.
Contact: Margaret J McCardle
Telephone: 028 4461 2895
Email: downpatrick.library@librariesni.org.uk
(With thanks to Libraries NI)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Event: Family History for Beginners
Venue: Downpatrick Library
Date: 18/10/2012
Time: 7:30 pm
Admission: FREE - Booking Advisable
Description: A talk by Sandra Ardis from the North of Ireland Family History Society. The talk will look at family history materials available, including Ancestry Library Edition, and will direct participants towards archives and online resources.
Contact: Margaret J McCardle
Telephone: 028 4461 2895
Email: downpatrick.library@librariesni.org.uk
(With thanks to Libraries NI)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Ancestry adds Ireland, Find a Grave index
Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) has added a searchable index to the holdings of the Find a Grave website collections for Ireland (www.findagrave.com). Ancestry's index gives you fields for name, date of death and place of burial, with an option to then click through to the Find a Grave website page holding the record, where you will find a photo of the relevant stone. The collection covers 1750-2011.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
ScotlandsPeople indexes updated to 2011
The ScotlandsPeople website at www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk has extended its online birth, marriage and death indexes up to 2011 - previously they went as far as 2009.
Images for 2010 and 2011 are not online though, just the indexes, keeping in line with the site's closure periods for access to historic record images - 100 years old and more for births, 75 for marriages, and 50 for deaths. Records more recent than these need to be ordered as official extracts at £10 per copy (if ordered through the site - otherwise they are £12)
(With thanks to Sheena Tait @sheentait)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Images for 2010 and 2011 are not online though, just the indexes, keeping in line with the site's closure periods for access to historic record images - 100 years old and more for births, 75 for marriages, and 50 for deaths. Records more recent than these need to be ordered as official extracts at £10 per copy (if ordered through the site - otherwise they are £12)
(With thanks to Sheena Tait @sheentait)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
PRONI: Urban History lecture series
From PRONI (www.proni.gov.uk):
Starting in October, the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland will begin hosting a lecture series entitled Exploring Urban History in Ulster. The lecture series will run until March 2013 and has been developed by Open University Ireland and PRONI.
The series is comprised of 5 lectures to be given at 6:30pm during the Thursday late night openings at PRONI's new building in the Titanic Quarter.
25 October 2012
400 Years of Urban History
Janice Holmes
6 December 2012
Creating an Urban Environment: 1612-13
Brian Gurrin
31 January 2013
Law, Order and Violence
Barry Sheehan
28 February 2013
The Poor Law and Public Health
Olwyn Purdue
21 March 2013
Urban Landscape –
Round Table panel
WHEN: October 2012 - March 2013. Thursday late night openings 6:30pm
WHERE: PRONI
HOW MUCH: Free
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Starting in October, the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland will begin hosting a lecture series entitled Exploring Urban History in Ulster. The lecture series will run until March 2013 and has been developed by Open University Ireland and PRONI.
The series is comprised of 5 lectures to be given at 6:30pm during the Thursday late night openings at PRONI's new building in the Titanic Quarter.
25 October 2012
400 Years of Urban History
Janice Holmes
6 December 2012
Creating an Urban Environment: 1612-13
Brian Gurrin
31 January 2013
Law, Order and Violence
Barry Sheehan
28 February 2013
The Poor Law and Public Health
Olwyn Purdue
21 March 2013
Urban Landscape –
Round Table panel
WHEN: October 2012 - March 2013. Thursday late night openings 6:30pm
WHERE: PRONI
HOW MUCH: Free
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
George MacKenzie steps down as the real Big Yin
George MacKenzie, Registrar General and Keeper of the Records for Scotland, is stepping down today from both positions after 37 years of service. He has been Keeper since 2001, and Registrar General from last year, following the merger of both the GROS and the NAS to form the National Records of Scotland.
Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop has posted a picture on Twitter from his leaving do last night at https://twitter.com/FionaHyslop/status/251589801806020608/photo/1 in which she also expressed her thanks to George for his service. A recent Scottish Government announcement on George's plans to retire is available at www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2012/09/keeper-of-records14092012.
The very best of luck for the future George!
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop has posted a picture on Twitter from his leaving do last night at https://twitter.com/FionaHyslop/status/251589801806020608/photo/1 in which she also expressed her thanks to George for his service. A recent Scottish Government announcement on George's plans to retire is available at www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2012/09/keeper-of-records14092012.
The very best of luck for the future George!
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
East India Company at Home Project podcasts
Podcasts from the recent East India Company at Home Project conference held in London can now be found online at http://historyspot.org.uk/podcasts/histories-home/domestic-subjects-east-india-company-home-1757-1857
(With thanks to Borders Family History Society)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
(With thanks to Borders Family History Society)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
FMP Merchant Navy and Military indexes on FamilySearch
FamilySearch has added more indexes to FindmyPast collections on its site at www.familysearch.org. The new collections are for FindmyPast's Merchant Navy records from 1835-1941, as well as the Chelsea Pension and Militia records found at www.findmypast.co.uk.
I've been researching a particular merchant naval man called Fleming Bishop, and a quick search found three entries. I've already seen the records on FMP, but here is how FamilySearch portrays the result:
Name: Fleming Bishop
Event type: Military Service
Event year range: 1845-1854
Event place: United Kingdom
Birthplace: Fife
Birth year: 1825
Film number: 1482506
Digital folder number: 004584960
Military service? The collection states "This collection includes Merchant Navy Seamen records held at The National Archives. The contents of the records vary, but they usually include name, age, place of birth, register ticket, ship names, and dates of voyages. These records come from The National Archives' record series BT112, BT113, BT114, BT115, BT116, BT119 and BT120." In fact, the recent addition of records to Ancestry on merchant seamen provides considerable detail on his movements, including a handwritten account of a vessel in his care as master which sank near the United States, from which he had to be rescued. No mention of any shots fired in anger at any point!
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
I've been researching a particular merchant naval man called Fleming Bishop, and a quick search found three entries. I've already seen the records on FMP, but here is how FamilySearch portrays the result:
Name: Fleming Bishop
Event type: Military Service
Event year range: 1845-1854
Event place: United Kingdom
Birthplace: Fife
Birth year: 1825
Film number: 1482506
Digital folder number: 004584960
Military service? The collection states "This collection includes Merchant Navy Seamen records held at The National Archives. The contents of the records vary, but they usually include name, age, place of birth, register ticket, ship names, and dates of voyages. These records come from The National Archives' record series BT112, BT113, BT114, BT115, BT116, BT119 and BT120." In fact, the recent addition of records to Ancestry on merchant seamen provides considerable detail on his movements, including a handwritten account of a vessel in his care as master which sank near the United States, from which he had to be rescued. No mention of any shots fired in anger at any point!
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
The Ulster Covenant - and the Counter Covenant
The Belfast Telegraph has an interesting story about the Ulster Covenant, with Ivan Little taking a look for the signatures of his grandfathers in the document. The story is not so much about the politics of the event, but his genealogical experience, and includes an interview with genealogy good guy Stephen Scarth of PRONI, discussing how valuable a research resource the document is for family historians.
But the bit that really fascinated me was towards the end of the piece. One of my greatest frustrations when living in Northern Ireland was the seemingly never-ending sheep mentality of both communities, neither of which I ever could relate to, having spent my childhood in Scotland and England until the age of 8. One person in Ulster would shout "no!", to be followed by an echo. I'm actually married to an Irish Catholic from the Republic, and have two sons in Scotland, both being raised kicking with the wrong foot (!) even though I was raised a Presbyterian. In our house I shout out No Surrender and my wife then throws holy water on me to shut me up, as I run screaming into my study with second degree burns (scalds?!).
So I was astonished to read about another covenant signed on the same day as the Ulster Covenant in 1912 - the Counter Covenant. Apparently a Ballymoney based Protestant minister in my home county of Antrim led a movement against Sir Edward Carson's claims of Ulster unionism, and encouraged some 3,000 people to sign an alternative document which stated the following:
“We desire to live upon terms of friendship and equality with our Roman Catholic fellow countrymen and in the event of Home Rule becoming law we are prepared to take our turn with them in in working for the good of our common country.”
I was also wondering when the first instance of a Catholic signing the Covenant would pop up, and you'll find it here too. Fascinating stuff - the article is at www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/news-analysis/ulster-covenant-irsquod-never-known-my-grandfathers-yet-suddenly-i-was-looking-at-their-mark-on-history-16216826.html
For more on the Covenant see my post at http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/was-ulster-covenant-signed-in-blood.html
UPDATE: The Irish Times has reprinted its editorial from September 28th 1912 at www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2012/0928/1224324531295.html#.UGVnsv3Efh0.twitter
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
But the bit that really fascinated me was towards the end of the piece. One of my greatest frustrations when living in Northern Ireland was the seemingly never-ending sheep mentality of both communities, neither of which I ever could relate to, having spent my childhood in Scotland and England until the age of 8. One person in Ulster would shout "no!", to be followed by an echo. I'm actually married to an Irish Catholic from the Republic, and have two sons in Scotland, both being raised kicking with the wrong foot (!) even though I was raised a Presbyterian. In our house I shout out No Surrender and my wife then throws holy water on me to shut me up, as I run screaming into my study with second degree burns (scalds?!).
So I was astonished to read about another covenant signed on the same day as the Ulster Covenant in 1912 - the Counter Covenant. Apparently a Ballymoney based Protestant minister in my home county of Antrim led a movement against Sir Edward Carson's claims of Ulster unionism, and encouraged some 3,000 people to sign an alternative document which stated the following:
“We desire to live upon terms of friendship and equality with our Roman Catholic fellow countrymen and in the event of Home Rule becoming law we are prepared to take our turn with them in in working for the good of our common country.”
I was also wondering when the first instance of a Catholic signing the Covenant would pop up, and you'll find it here too. Fascinating stuff - the article is at www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/news-analysis/ulster-covenant-irsquod-never-known-my-grandfathers-yet-suddenly-i-was-looking-at-their-mark-on-history-16216826.html
For more on the Covenant see my post at http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/was-ulster-covenant-signed-in-blood.html
UPDATE: The Irish Times has reprinted its editorial from September 28th 1912 at www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2012/0928/1224324531295.html#.UGVnsv3Efh0.twitter
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Scottish Commemorative Plaques nominations - 2 weeks left
From Historic Scotland:
TWO WEEKS TO CLOSE OF COMMEMORATIVE PLAQUE NOMINATIONS
Historic Scotland is urging people to submit their nominations for the Commemorative Plaque Scheme as the closing date is fast approaching.
The Scheme, which was launched in August by Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs, celebrates the life and achievements of significant historic figures in Scotland. Submissions for the inaugural plaques will close on 12th October 2012.
The chosen historic figures will be celebrated with the erection of a Commemorative Plaques either on their home where they lived, or the building that was particularly synonymous with their achievements.
An annual theme will be formally announced each year which will guide people to consider nominations within specific industries. This year’s theme is the Year of Creative.
People are invited to submit their nominations for the historic figures they would like to put forward by filling in an application form on Historic Scotland’s website - www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/commemorativeplaques - with up to 1,000 words on two questions explaining why their chosen person is appropriate for a Commemorative Plaque.
There will be a maximum of 12 plaques awarded each year. These will be decided by an independent academic panel which is still to be announced.
Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs said: “This is an excellent and very visual way of honouring historic figures who have made a great contribution to Scotland’s history and heritage.”
In addition to the call for nominations, students at all of Scotland’s art schools have been invited to create a design for the plaque, in a competition which will see the winning entry used as the official plaque and the student receiving £500. The closing date for the competition is 31 October 2012.
For information:
Historic Scotland recommends that any prospective nominations are made now so that initial checks can be undertaken. This will then allow the applicant sufficient time to carry out the second stage of the process.
Should you require further information about the scheme please contact the Investments and Projects Team on 0131 668 8801 or email at hs.grants@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
TWO WEEKS TO CLOSE OF COMMEMORATIVE PLAQUE NOMINATIONS
Historic Scotland is urging people to submit their nominations for the Commemorative Plaque Scheme as the closing date is fast approaching.
The Scheme, which was launched in August by Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs, celebrates the life and achievements of significant historic figures in Scotland. Submissions for the inaugural plaques will close on 12th October 2012.
The chosen historic figures will be celebrated with the erection of a Commemorative Plaques either on their home where they lived, or the building that was particularly synonymous with their achievements.
An annual theme will be formally announced each year which will guide people to consider nominations within specific industries. This year’s theme is the Year of Creative.
People are invited to submit their nominations for the historic figures they would like to put forward by filling in an application form on Historic Scotland’s website - www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/commemorativeplaques - with up to 1,000 words on two questions explaining why their chosen person is appropriate for a Commemorative Plaque.
There will be a maximum of 12 plaques awarded each year. These will be decided by an independent academic panel which is still to be announced.
Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs said: “This is an excellent and very visual way of honouring historic figures who have made a great contribution to Scotland’s history and heritage.”
In addition to the call for nominations, students at all of Scotland’s art schools have been invited to create a design for the plaque, in a competition which will see the winning entry used as the official plaque and the student receiving £500. The closing date for the competition is 31 October 2012.
For information:
Historic Scotland recommends that any prospective nominations are made now so that initial checks can be undertaken. This will then allow the applicant sufficient time to carry out the second stage of the process.
Should you require further information about the scheme please contact the Investments and Projects Team on 0131 668 8801 or email at hs.grants@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Thursday, 27 September 2012
Was the Ulster Covenant signed in blood?
Tomorrow sees the one hundredth anniversary of the signing of the Ulster Covenant, signed around the world by half a million folk on September 28th 1912 against the prospect of a Dublin based Home Rule parliament for all of Ireland. BBC Northern Ireland has an interesting piece at www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-politics-19746073 about one piece of Covenant lore, namely that prominent Unionist Major Fred Crawford signed the document in his blood.
A forensic test determined to recognise the iron content of blood has now returned a 90% confidence that the signature was not in fact made in blood - though some Unionists are still holding onto the 10% uncertainty factor!
Whatever the politics of it all, the Covenant is still an important genealogical resource, particularly if your ancestor signed it outside of Ireland, for in many cases the address column was actually filled with the place of origin in Ireland - my own great grandfather Robert Currie, for example, signed the document in Glasgow, and gave Knockloughrim in County Londonderry as his place of origin. The census from the previous year, and in previous decades, simply listed him as from "Ireland".
To view the original signatures of the Ulster Covenant, now held at PRONI, and digitised and made available online, visit www.proni.gov.uk/index/search_the_archives/ulster_covenant.htm.
And if you are wondering, nine men who signed it in China were not part of a Chinese Orange lodge, but members of a Royal Naval vessel! :)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
A forensic test determined to recognise the iron content of blood has now returned a 90% confidence that the signature was not in fact made in blood - though some Unionists are still holding onto the 10% uncertainty factor!
Whatever the politics of it all, the Covenant is still an important genealogical resource, particularly if your ancestor signed it outside of Ireland, for in many cases the address column was actually filled with the place of origin in Ireland - my own great grandfather Robert Currie, for example, signed the document in Glasgow, and gave Knockloughrim in County Londonderry as his place of origin. The census from the previous year, and in previous decades, simply listed him as from "Ireland".
To view the original signatures of the Ulster Covenant, now held at PRONI, and digitised and made available online, visit www.proni.gov.uk/index/search_the_archives/ulster_covenant.htm.
And if you are wondering, nine men who signed it in China were not part of a Chinese Orange lodge, but members of a Royal Naval vessel! :)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
National Library of Scotland - Special Collections Reading Room
The National Library of Scotland (www.nls.uk) has this week opened a new Special Collections Reading Room at George IV Bridge.
To see what is now available, visit http://blogs.nls.uk/rarebooks/?m=20120921
Shiny! New! Yay!
(With thanks to @natlibscot)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
To see what is now available, visit http://blogs.nls.uk/rarebooks/?m=20120921
Shiny! New! Yay!
(With thanks to @natlibscot)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Plumstead Cemetery records on Deceased Online
From Deceased Online:
VCs, Royal Arsenal workers and mayors among 56,000 burial records
All records for Plumstead Cemetery in South East London are immediately available on www.deceasedonline.com
Opened in 1890, Plumstead is the third cemetery in the Royal Borough of Greenwich to be included on the Deceased Online database.
Located on a hillside, the cemetery has fine vistas across London. It features many interesting graves and memorials including two former Mayors of Woolwich and two recipients of the Victoria Cross; Private Thomas Flawn and Gunner Alfred Smith.
There is also a memorial to victims of accidental explosions at the Royal Arsenal, (opened in the late 17th Century) which was located in nearby Woolwich.
You can read more details about this cemetery and many others within the 'database coverage' section on www.deceasedonline.com
The data for Plumstead Cemetery comprise:
Find out more about the cemeteries and the famous and infamous featured on Deceased Online. Read our new blog by historian and genealogist Emma Jolly.
See: http://deceasedonlineblog.blogspot.co.uk
(With thanks to Richard Gray)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
VCs, Royal Arsenal workers and mayors among 56,000 burial records
All records for Plumstead Cemetery in South East London are immediately available on www.deceasedonline.com
Opened in 1890, Plumstead is the third cemetery in the Royal Borough of Greenwich to be included on the Deceased Online database.
Located on a hillside, the cemetery has fine vistas across London. It features many interesting graves and memorials including two former Mayors of Woolwich and two recipients of the Victoria Cross; Private Thomas Flawn and Gunner Alfred Smith.
There is also a memorial to victims of accidental explosions at the Royal Arsenal, (opened in the late 17th Century) which was located in nearby Woolwich.
You can read more details about this cemetery and many others within the 'database coverage' section on www.deceasedonline.com
The data for Plumstead Cemetery comprise:
- Computerised records
- Grave details indicating those buried in each grave
- Scans of burial registers
- Cemetery maps indicating grave locations
- Some photographs of memorials and headstones
Find out more about the cemeteries and the famous and infamous featured on Deceased Online. Read our new blog by historian and genealogist Emma Jolly.
See: http://deceasedonlineblog.blogspot.co.uk
(With thanks to Richard Gray)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
FamilySearch adds Welsh parish register indexes
A couple of days ago, in a post about this blog's first anniversary, I asked for a bit more Welsh news. Since then I've been on something of a run with it...!
FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org) has just added free to access indexes for several collections of Welsh parish registers, each of which links to the images of the same collections on FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk). They are located in the United Kingdom and Ireland category of Historical Records.
The counties catered for are Brecknockshire, Carenarvonshire, Cardiganshire, Carmarthenshire, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Glamorganshire, Merionethshire, Monmouthshire, Pembrokeshire, Radnorshire. All apparently cover the period from 1538 to 1912.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org) has just added free to access indexes for several collections of Welsh parish registers, each of which links to the images of the same collections on FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk). They are located in the United Kingdom and Ireland category of Historical Records.
The counties catered for are Brecknockshire, Carenarvonshire, Cardiganshire, Carmarthenshire, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Glamorganshire, Merionethshire, Monmouthshire, Pembrokeshire, Radnorshire. All apparently cover the period from 1538 to 1912.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Pembrokeshire Record Office Move
From the Federation of Family History Societies (www.ffhs.org.uk):
Pembrokeshire Record Office Move
The public search room is no longer available to visitors.
The Pembrokeshire Record Office is on track to move in to its new home on the former site of Prendergast Junior School in Haverfordwest at the end of this year.
Work preparing for the move has been going on for several months in the background at the Record Office - based in Haverfordwest Castle - while maintaining a public service for historical research.
The relocation itself is a major project and includes the transfer of the County Archive which fills over two and a half kilometres of shelves in the repository of the current building.
To facilitate the move it will be necessary to close the public search room to visitors temporarily from the early autumn.
It will be ready to open again to the public at the new site early in 2013.
The new building - which reflects significant investment by Pembrokeshire County Council - will offer an increased level of service.
Significantly improved facilities including a larger, better equipped visitor space, rest area, better reprography facilities, archive conservation studio and meeting/education room.
During closure the office will respond to written and telephone enquiries in line with the County Council's policy on dealing with external communications.
Any questions concerning the service and, in particular, the temporary closure of the public search room may be directed to:
The Pembrokeshire Record Office,
The Castle,
Haverfordwest,
SA61 2EF.
Tel. 01437 763707; fax 01437 768539; E-mail record.office@pembrokeshire.gov.uk
(With thanks to Beryl Evans)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Pembrokeshire Record Office Move
The public search room is no longer available to visitors.
The Pembrokeshire Record Office is on track to move in to its new home on the former site of Prendergast Junior School in Haverfordwest at the end of this year.
Work preparing for the move has been going on for several months in the background at the Record Office - based in Haverfordwest Castle - while maintaining a public service for historical research.
The relocation itself is a major project and includes the transfer of the County Archive which fills over two and a half kilometres of shelves in the repository of the current building.
To facilitate the move it will be necessary to close the public search room to visitors temporarily from the early autumn.
It will be ready to open again to the public at the new site early in 2013.
The new building - which reflects significant investment by Pembrokeshire County Council - will offer an increased level of service.
Significantly improved facilities including a larger, better equipped visitor space, rest area, better reprography facilities, archive conservation studio and meeting/education room.
During closure the office will respond to written and telephone enquiries in line with the County Council's policy on dealing with external communications.
Any questions concerning the service and, in particular, the temporary closure of the public search room may be directed to:
The Pembrokeshire Record Office,
The Castle,
Haverfordwest,
SA61 2EF.
Tel. 01437 763707; fax 01437 768539; E-mail record.office@pembrokeshire.gov.uk
(With thanks to Beryl Evans)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Streets of Inspiration talk in London
News of a forthcoming talk in London:
Streets of Inspiration - Dickens and Holborn, Camden and St Pancras
A Free Talk by Tudor Allen, Archivist
Tuesday 2nd October 2012 at 7.15 pm (doors open at 6.45 pm)
At Camden Local Studies and Archives Centre, 2nd Floor, Holborn Library, 32-38 Theobalds Road
London WC1X 8PA
(With thanks to Emma Jolly)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Streets of Inspiration - Dickens and Holborn, Camden and St Pancras
A Free Talk by Tudor Allen, Archivist
Tuesday 2nd October 2012 at 7.15 pm (doors open at 6.45 pm)
At Camden Local Studies and Archives Centre, 2nd Floor, Holborn Library, 32-38 Theobalds Road
London WC1X 8PA
(With thanks to Emma Jolly)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Genealogists for Families - first anniversary
The Genealogists for Families initiative, initially set up in Australia but now with worldwide participation, is one year old today. The project is a micro-loan scheme run through Kiva which allows family historians to help people around the world with start-ups in various business ventures. So far 215 genealogists have participated, with over a thousand loans already made to the tune of some $28,500. I've made a few loans myself, and once they are repaid I re-loan the money to other start-ups. If interested in joining in - and you don't have to be a professional genealogist to do so! - please take a look at the page on this site entitled Kiva (see top menu bar), where all the relevant details can be found.
Happy Birthday Genealogists for Families! And do check out the project's own blog post at http://genfamilies.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/year-1-genealogy-benefits-and-team.html
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Happy Birthday Genealogists for Families! And do check out the project's own blog post at http://genfamilies.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/year-1-genealogy-benefits-and-team.html
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Ainon Chapel memorial unveiled
A new memorial has been unveiled at Ainon Chapel grounds to replace the 40 headstones knocked down during redevelopment last year in a memorial garden owned by Tonyrefail Working Men's Club, causing immense upset to many of those whose relatives had been buried within the grounds. The new memorial, funded by Rhondda Cynon Taf Council, has been produced with help from Glamorgan Family History Society, and also includes many additional names of those buried in the grounds with no headstone.
The BBC has the story at www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-19702996
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
The BBC has the story at www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-19702996
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Wednesday, 26 September 2012
Glamorgan and Anglesey archives closures
The following archives in Wales will be temporarily closed on the following dates:
Gwynedd Archives Service, Caernarfon RO (www.gwynedd.gov.uk/gwy_doc.asp?cat=3693&doc=12971&Language=1&p=1&c=1) - closed 8th to the 15th October. Reopens Tuesday 16th.
Anglesey Archives, Llangefni R.O (www.anglesey.gov.uk/leisure/records-and-archives/) - closed 5th to the 9th November. Reopens Monday 12th.
(With thanks to Keith Morris)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Gwynedd Archives Service, Caernarfon RO (www.gwynedd.gov.uk/gwy_doc.asp?cat=3693&doc=12971&Language=1&p=1&c=1) - closed 8th to the 15th October. Reopens Tuesday 16th.
Anglesey Archives, Llangefni R.O (www.anglesey.gov.uk/leisure/records-and-archives/) - closed 5th to the 9th November. Reopens Monday 12th.
(With thanks to Keith Morris)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Scottish Genealogy Society workshops
From the Scottish Genealogy Society (www.scotsgenealogy.com):
Family History Classes
Following on the success of our Taster Sessions, the Society has put together a programme of workshops to assist members/non-members to delve deeper into their Scottish family history. Apart from the Beginners classes, these modules go beyond the usual birth, marriage and death information. The classes will be held, mostly on a monthly basis, at our Family History Centre at 15 Victoria Terrace and will cost £10 each. The schedule is as follows (all dates are Saturdays from 10am-12pm):
6 October
Beginners: This module is just what it says - for beginners. Ken Nisbet, who has many years of experience in researching family history will take this class.
3 November
Maritime: John Stevenson, our resident expert on all things maritime, can help if you have a query on anything regarding the Royal or Merchant Navy.
1 December
Emigrants: With so many ancestors emigrating to the far flung corners of the British Commonwealth and beyond, this is an important part of Scottish family history. Ken Nisbet can help you find the best sources of information to help you trace their whereabouts.
Other classes are planned for next year but have still to be confirmed. For further information or to book a class, please call 0131 220 3677 or e-mail: scotsgenpublicity@scotsgenealogy.com
(With thanks to Ken Nisbet)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Family History Classes
Following on the success of our Taster Sessions, the Society has put together a programme of workshops to assist members/non-members to delve deeper into their Scottish family history. Apart from the Beginners classes, these modules go beyond the usual birth, marriage and death information. The classes will be held, mostly on a monthly basis, at our Family History Centre at 15 Victoria Terrace and will cost £10 each. The schedule is as follows (all dates are Saturdays from 10am-12pm):
6 October
Beginners: This module is just what it says - for beginners. Ken Nisbet, who has many years of experience in researching family history will take this class.
3 November
Maritime: John Stevenson, our resident expert on all things maritime, can help if you have a query on anything regarding the Royal or Merchant Navy.
1 December
Emigrants: With so many ancestors emigrating to the far flung corners of the British Commonwealth and beyond, this is an important part of Scottish family history. Ken Nisbet can help you find the best sources of information to help you trace their whereabouts.
Other classes are planned for next year but have still to be confirmed. For further information or to book a class, please call 0131 220 3677 or e-mail: scotsgenpublicity@scotsgenealogy.com
(With thanks to Ken Nisbet)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
William Roache's WDYTYA episode - review
A quick review of tonight's episode of Who Do You Think You Are, featuring actor William Roache from Coronation Street - spoilers ahead if you haven't seen it yet!
It was really mind-numbingly dull.
Essentially we got to see an interesting photograph collection at the start, a trip to Alton Towers where his gran once ran a restaurant, a street corner in Blackpool where his great great grandfather once worked at electrocuting people for medical reasons, another street corner with something else I completely missed as I was drifting at that point, and then a quick mystery at the end about his gran and her two sisters not being raised together. A fleeting mention of the Married Women's Property Act was about as far as it went in terms of bringing something new to the party in the series.
This was definitely the episode that was buried in the middle of the run for a reason - a real pity, because the last few weeks have produced a cracking run of episodes.
Onwards and upwards!
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
It was really mind-numbingly dull.
Essentially we got to see an interesting photograph collection at the start, a trip to Alton Towers where his gran once ran a restaurant, a street corner in Blackpool where his great great grandfather once worked at electrocuting people for medical reasons, another street corner with something else I completely missed as I was drifting at that point, and then a quick mystery at the end about his gran and her two sisters not being raised together. A fleeting mention of the Married Women's Property Act was about as far as it went in terms of bringing something new to the party in the series.
This was definitely the episode that was buried in the middle of the run for a reason - a real pity, because the last few weeks have produced a cracking run of episodes.
Onwards and upwards!
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
More old Asian colonial photos placed online
The National Archives at Kew (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk) has placed hundreds of early photographs of Asia dating back to the 19th century online as part of its Asia Through a Lens project. The images have been sourced from the Colonial Office's Photographic Collection. For further details, visit http://nationalarchives.gov.uk/news/768.htm
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Who writes this crap?
Seriously - the wording of FindmyPast US's latest press release:
Are you related to the Queen?
Having dreams of carriage rides, crown jewels or dining with heads of state? Do you yearn for noblesse oblige, waving to crowds, or having three unflinchingly rigid tea times per day?
According to genealogical research, millions of Americans are directly related to the English royal family and have no idea. Simple facts about your family background can easily predict the odds that you are related to the Queen herself.
Take our short seven question quiz, Are You Related to the Queen?, on the findmypast US Facebook page and find out your chances for royal lineage.
Who knows, you might be invited to the next garden party or Royal Variety Performance.
Maybe it's because I'm a dyed in the wool republican (you know - like Americans!), but I strongly suspect that if you do find a simply whizzer blue-blooded connection to old Blighty's finest via an online record set, the Queen is not going to bring you along to Buck House for champagne and strawberries, or take you to the Royal Variety Performance. Call me old fashioned, but honest, I really, really doubt it.
Who writes this crap? What next - free corgi with every subscription?
Jeez...
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Are you related to the Queen?
Having dreams of carriage rides, crown jewels or dining with heads of state? Do you yearn for noblesse oblige, waving to crowds, or having three unflinchingly rigid tea times per day?
According to genealogical research, millions of Americans are directly related to the English royal family and have no idea. Simple facts about your family background can easily predict the odds that you are related to the Queen herself.
Take our short seven question quiz, Are You Related to the Queen?, on the findmypast US Facebook page and find out your chances for royal lineage.
Who knows, you might be invited to the next garden party or Royal Variety Performance.
Maybe it's because I'm a dyed in the wool republican (you know - like Americans!), but I strongly suspect that if you do find a simply whizzer blue-blooded connection to old Blighty's finest via an online record set, the Queen is not going to bring you along to Buck House for champagne and strawberries, or take you to the Royal Variety Performance. Call me old fashioned, but honest, I really, really doubt it.
Who writes this crap? What next - free corgi with every subscription?
Jeez...
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Buckinghamshire FHS October talks
The Rootschat forum has details of forthcoming talks in October organised by Buckinghamshire FHS. Talks include Leave No Stone Unturned (3rd), and From Scribble To Script (10th), both given by Meryl Catty and Audrey Gillett. An untitled talk on October 20th is also to be given by a member of The Centre For Buckinghamshire Studies.
For full details on locations and more, visit www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=617041.msg4657428;topicseen
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
For full details on locations and more, visit www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=617041.msg4657428;topicseen
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Irish Famine museum to open in Connecticut
Irish Central has an article online about the new Ireland's Great Hunger Museum (http://ighm.nfshost.com) to be opened in Hamden, Connecticut, next month, which will tell the story of the Irish Famine. The piece includes an interview with Quinnipiac University President Dr. John Lahey, and is online at www.irishcentral.com/news/First-ever-Great-Hunger-museum-opens-next-month-in-the-US-171316181.html.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Did Hitler plan to invade Ireland?
Did Hitler plan to invade Ireland? The Daily Mail certainly thinks so... The newspaper has an article concerning some documents on sale at Ludlow Race Course tomorrow (Thurs) which it claims show that had the Germans conquered Britain, neutral Ireland may well have been next.
The full story, with images of many of the documents, is at www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2208860/Top-secret-dossier-uncovered-containing-detailed-maps-postcards-Hitlers-plan-invade-neutral-Ireland.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
The full story, with images of many of the documents, is at www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2208860/Top-secret-dossier-uncovered-containing-detailed-maps-postcards-Hitlers-plan-invade-neutral-Ireland.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Kent records on FamilySearch
FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org) has added two new collections for Kent, as sourced from Kent History and Library Centre in Maidstone.
The collections are:
The unfortunate news is that the collections can only be browsed at a family history centre, and not from home. For details of local centres visit https://familysearch.org/locations
John Reid on the Anglo-Celtic Connections blog has posted details of another resource for Kent, at http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mrawson/, with various free to access resources.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
The collections are:
- England, Kent, Workhouse Records, 1777-1911
- England, Kent, Register of Electors, 1570-1907
The unfortunate news is that the collections can only be browsed at a family history centre, and not from home. For details of local centres visit https://familysearch.org/locations
John Reid on the Anglo-Celtic Connections blog has posted details of another resource for Kent, at http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mrawson/, with various free to access resources.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
FindmyPast adds Middlesex baptisms and burials
FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk) has added 95,545 baptismal records from 1538-1882 and 79,541 burial records from 1538-1890 for Middlesex to its site. A fuller breakdown of parishes covered is available at www.findmypast.co.uk/content/news/middlesex-sept12
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Forthcoming London history and genealogy events
Forthcoming London based genealogy and history based events, mainly at London Metropolitan Archives (www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/archives-and-city-history/london-metropolitan-archives/visitor-information/Pages/default.aspx):
Exhibition: Workhouse
Charles Dickens created the popular contemporary view of the nineteenth century workhouse system in his novel Oliver Twist. It’s a bleak picture of punishment, cruelty and neglect. But what do the archives from this period tell us about life in the workhouses after 1834 and the passing of the Poor Law (Amendment) Act?
The act sought to abolish out-relief and ensure that any relief provided by the new Poor Law Guardians was given within the confines of a workhouse. The records provide insights into the ways in which the Poor Law Guardians sought to run their workhouses and deal with the variety of people who had fallen on hard times.
The records at London Metropolitan Archives are a rich source for the social and architectural history of the period as well as for tracing the history of people admitted to the workhouses. Inspired by Dickens and his desire to reveal the horrors of nineteenth century poverty, we’ve searched the records for the stories of real Londoners in the workhouse, from Master to the inmate, to uncover what the archives tell us about their lives.
This exhibition held at London Metropolitan Archives from 24 September 2012 - 10 January 2013 is FREE. Visitor information is available here.
Workhouse: Dickens and Philanthropy
A morning of talks, document discovery and an introduction to the new exhibition on life in the workhouse. In the afternoon a guided walk around Clerkenwell will focus on Dickens and philanthropy.
This event held at London Metropolitan Archives on Friday 26 October from 10.30 am to 3.30 pm is £10 (bring a picnic) Booking essential – call 020 7332 3851. Visitor information is available here.
LGBT History Club: Photography and LGBT Activism
As part of Black History Month, photographer and artist Ajamu will present on his work recording Black LGBT people, discuss his forthcoming exhibition, Fierce, at Guildhall Art Gallery and recount his adventures on his 19 day walk from London to Huddersfield to raise funds for the artwork.
This event held at London Metropolitan Archives on Wednesday 3 October from 6 to 7.30 pm is FREE – drop in.
Introducing an Autumn Series of Dockside Walks
A one hour talk by Mike Moran of CityHighlights Walking Tours introducing the series of four dockside walks he will be leading for the Archive this autumn from Wapping and Limehouse, to St George’s and Old Poplar.
This talk held at London Metropolitan Archives on Tuesday 9 October at 2 pm is FREE. Visitor information is available here.
St Katharine’s Dock and Wapping
This autumn visitors will be able to explore life in the Docklands with a series of four dockside walks, led by Mike Moran of CityHighlights Walking Tours.
Starting with the Pool of London and a detailed look at London’s best preserved dock this walk explores the story of one of the capital’s oldest river side communities and how the building of the enclosed docks at the beginning of the 19th century and their demise in the 1960s and 70s affected it.
This guided walk on Tuesday 23 October at 11 am is £8. Booking essential – call 020 7332 3851. No bookings on the day. Meet at Tower Hill Tube (outside the main exit adjacent to Tower Hill Gardens).
Focus on Family History
Starting your family history? Come along to this workshop and learn how to get the most out of digitised family history sources, including our records on Ancestry.co.uk. This workshop is aimed at beginners.
This workshop held at London Metropolitan Archives on Wednesday 10 October and Wednesday 24 October from 2 to 3 pm is FREE. Booking essential – call 020 7332 3851. Visitor information is available here.
In Living Memory
The third in a series of LGBT writing workshops. The early part of the twentieth century saw some changes in the way Lesbian and Gay people were treated. Find out what the Public Morality Council had to say and be inspired to do your own writing.
This workshop held at London Metropolitan Archives on Saturday 13 October from 2 to 4.30 pm is £10. Booking essential – call 020 7332 3851.
Caring for Your Family History
Get useful advice in how to care for your precious photographs, documents and keepsakes.
This event held at London Metropolitan Archives on Monday 29 October from 2 to 4.30 pm is £8 (or book four sessions for £25).
(With thanks to the City of London)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Exhibition: Workhouse
Charles Dickens created the popular contemporary view of the nineteenth century workhouse system in his novel Oliver Twist. It’s a bleak picture of punishment, cruelty and neglect. But what do the archives from this period tell us about life in the workhouses after 1834 and the passing of the Poor Law (Amendment) Act?
The act sought to abolish out-relief and ensure that any relief provided by the new Poor Law Guardians was given within the confines of a workhouse. The records provide insights into the ways in which the Poor Law Guardians sought to run their workhouses and deal with the variety of people who had fallen on hard times.
The records at London Metropolitan Archives are a rich source for the social and architectural history of the period as well as for tracing the history of people admitted to the workhouses. Inspired by Dickens and his desire to reveal the horrors of nineteenth century poverty, we’ve searched the records for the stories of real Londoners in the workhouse, from Master to the inmate, to uncover what the archives tell us about their lives.
This exhibition held at London Metropolitan Archives from 24 September 2012 - 10 January 2013 is FREE. Visitor information is available here.
Workhouse: Dickens and Philanthropy
A morning of talks, document discovery and an introduction to the new exhibition on life in the workhouse. In the afternoon a guided walk around Clerkenwell will focus on Dickens and philanthropy.
This event held at London Metropolitan Archives on Friday 26 October from 10.30 am to 3.30 pm is £10 (bring a picnic) Booking essential – call 020 7332 3851. Visitor information is available here.
LGBT History Club: Photography and LGBT Activism
As part of Black History Month, photographer and artist Ajamu will present on his work recording Black LGBT people, discuss his forthcoming exhibition, Fierce, at Guildhall Art Gallery and recount his adventures on his 19 day walk from London to Huddersfield to raise funds for the artwork.
This event held at London Metropolitan Archives on Wednesday 3 October from 6 to 7.30 pm is FREE – drop in.
Introducing an Autumn Series of Dockside Walks
A one hour talk by Mike Moran of CityHighlights Walking Tours introducing the series of four dockside walks he will be leading for the Archive this autumn from Wapping and Limehouse, to St George’s and Old Poplar.
This talk held at London Metropolitan Archives on Tuesday 9 October at 2 pm is FREE. Visitor information is available here.
St Katharine’s Dock and Wapping
This autumn visitors will be able to explore life in the Docklands with a series of four dockside walks, led by Mike Moran of CityHighlights Walking Tours.
Starting with the Pool of London and a detailed look at London’s best preserved dock this walk explores the story of one of the capital’s oldest river side communities and how the building of the enclosed docks at the beginning of the 19th century and their demise in the 1960s and 70s affected it.
This guided walk on Tuesday 23 October at 11 am is £8. Booking essential – call 020 7332 3851. No bookings on the day. Meet at Tower Hill Tube (outside the main exit adjacent to Tower Hill Gardens).
Focus on Family History
Starting your family history? Come along to this workshop and learn how to get the most out of digitised family history sources, including our records on Ancestry.co.uk. This workshop is aimed at beginners.
This workshop held at London Metropolitan Archives on Wednesday 10 October and Wednesday 24 October from 2 to 3 pm is FREE. Booking essential – call 020 7332 3851. Visitor information is available here.
In Living Memory
The third in a series of LGBT writing workshops. The early part of the twentieth century saw some changes in the way Lesbian and Gay people were treated. Find out what the Public Morality Council had to say and be inspired to do your own writing.
This workshop held at London Metropolitan Archives on Saturday 13 October from 2 to 4.30 pm is £10. Booking essential – call 020 7332 3851.
Caring for Your Family History
Get useful advice in how to care for your precious photographs, documents and keepsakes.
This event held at London Metropolitan Archives on Monday 29 October from 2 to 4.30 pm is £8 (or book four sessions for £25).
(With thanks to the City of London)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Archives Hub - regional search facility
From the Federation of Family History Societies (www.ffhs.org.uk):
Thank you to Jane Stevenson from Archives Hub for the following -
You may be interested to know that the Archives Hub (http://archiveshub.ac.uk/) now has a regional search at http://archiveshub.ac.uk/regionalsearch/
The idea is to make it easier to search for archives held in particular parts of the country, which is particularly useful where a researcher wants to limit travel time. We've done this by including pre-defined regions. But we also have a search area box that can be moved by manipulating the corners, so researchers can customise the area. We would like to make it possible to resize and then drag this search area box, so that's on the 'to do' list.
In addition to the regional search, we have been working on our results list, which now includes the title and dates, and also our display, which includes a new utility bar, designed to enable us to add functionality over time, such as various links, output option, social networking widgets and information about digital content (e.g. http://archiveshub.ac.uk/data/gb1837des-rhz - this is an example where you can see images as you scroll down the description).
NB: This is more for academic based archives than county based records offices etc, but very useful indeed for that!
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Thank you to Jane Stevenson from Archives Hub for the following -
You may be interested to know that the Archives Hub (http://archiveshub.ac.uk/) now has a regional search at http://archiveshub.ac.uk/regionalsearch/
The idea is to make it easier to search for archives held in particular parts of the country, which is particularly useful where a researcher wants to limit travel time. We've done this by including pre-defined regions. But we also have a search area box that can be moved by manipulating the corners, so researchers can customise the area. We would like to make it possible to resize and then drag this search area box, so that's on the 'to do' list.
In addition to the regional search, we have been working on our results list, which now includes the title and dates, and also our display, which includes a new utility bar, designed to enable us to add functionality over time, such as various links, output option, social networking widgets and information about digital content (e.g. http://archiveshub.ac.uk/data/gb1837des-rhz - this is an example where you can see images as you scroll down the description).
NB: This is more for academic based archives than county based records offices etc, but very useful indeed for that!
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Tuesday, 25 September 2012
Madness in India lecture and NLS genealogy workshops
Some forthcoming lectures and workshops of interest for family history at the National Library of Scotland (www.nls.uk):
Madness in British India: Life in colonial lunatic asylums
10 October, 2012 6pm
How did the British manage and treat mentally ill Europeans and natives in India? What was life really like in a 'lunatic asylum'? Did conditions differ from those in Britain? Francine Millard, Digitisation Manager for the Medical History of British India Project, explores these issues. She will introduce fascinating 19th and 20th century asylum reports from the India Papers which recently went online for the first time.
Reader workshops
Getting started at NLS
2 October 2012, 2.30pm
Learn how to register as a reader, find your way around the Library, request material and find out about our other services. The workshop also includes a tour of the Reading Rooms.
If you are planning to register to use the Library after the workshop, please bring evidence of identity such as a current driving licence or a recent utility bill.
Discovering family history
9 October 2012, 10am
Ever been interested in researching your roots, but unsure of where to start? Find out what resources the Library holds to help you with your family history research. The workshop also includes some practical information on how to become a reader.
Read all about it!
15 October 2012, 6pm
This workshop provides an introduction to the online newspaper resources available at the Library. The session includes demonstrations of a selection of resources and tips on how to search and discover the information you need.
Introduction to maps at NLS
16 October 2012, 2pm
NLS is home to one of the largest map collections in the world. Our shelves hold everything from town plans to world atlases, railway maps to star charts. Learn about the range of maps available and view a selection of highlights from the collection. Includes an introduction to the Maps Reading Room.
This workshop will take place at the Map Reading Room at the Library's Causewayside building: 159 Causewayside, Edinburgh, EH9 1PH.
The free workshops fill up quickly so please book your place online today, or call 0131 623 3918.
(With thanks to the NLS)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Madness in British India: Life in colonial lunatic asylums
10 October, 2012 6pm
How did the British manage and treat mentally ill Europeans and natives in India? What was life really like in a 'lunatic asylum'? Did conditions differ from those in Britain? Francine Millard, Digitisation Manager for the Medical History of British India Project, explores these issues. She will introduce fascinating 19th and 20th century asylum reports from the India Papers which recently went online for the first time.
Reader workshops
Getting started at NLS
2 October 2012, 2.30pm
Learn how to register as a reader, find your way around the Library, request material and find out about our other services. The workshop also includes a tour of the Reading Rooms.
If you are planning to register to use the Library after the workshop, please bring evidence of identity such as a current driving licence or a recent utility bill.
Discovering family history
9 October 2012, 10am
Ever been interested in researching your roots, but unsure of where to start? Find out what resources the Library holds to help you with your family history research. The workshop also includes some practical information on how to become a reader.
Read all about it!
15 October 2012, 6pm
This workshop provides an introduction to the online newspaper resources available at the Library. The session includes demonstrations of a selection of resources and tips on how to search and discover the information you need.
Introduction to maps at NLS
16 October 2012, 2pm
NLS is home to one of the largest map collections in the world. Our shelves hold everything from town plans to world atlases, railway maps to star charts. Learn about the range of maps available and view a selection of highlights from the collection. Includes an introduction to the Maps Reading Room.
This workshop will take place at the Map Reading Room at the Library's Causewayside building: 159 Causewayside, Edinburgh, EH9 1PH.
The free workshops fill up quickly so please book your place online today, or call 0131 623 3918.
(With thanks to the NLS)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Documents Online to die again!
The National Archives at Kew (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk) has announced the demise of Documents Online once again, though it looks like it really means it this time (there's previously been a couple of false alarms!)! As of this weekend, Documents Online is to be switched off, as will the old Your Archives wiki site, the Equity Pleadings database and Person Search facilities, as Discovery rises into the ascendant.
Records will now be downloadable through Discovery, but an interesting new feature now announced is a preview screen offerings a low resolution image of the document of interest through an image viewer, which you can consult before purchase.
The full story is at http://nationalarchives.gov.uk/news/767.htm
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Records will now be downloadable through Discovery, but an interesting new feature now announced is a preview screen offerings a low resolution image of the document of interest through an image viewer, which you can consult before purchase.
The full story is at http://nationalarchives.gov.uk/news/767.htm
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Researching Irish police from 1922 onwards
I was writing up a section for the occupations chapter of my new Irish genealogy book, and came across a problem which the following might help with. I was discussing access to police service records in Ireland, and prior to 1922, the situation is fairly clear - the main force was the RIC, and its records are fairly accessible from a few places, including the National Archives in London and a few other repositories.
Grand stuff - but what if your ancestor was a 'Peeler' after 1921?!! Well here's the answer!
Northern Ireland - the RUC and the PSNI
The Police Service of Northern Ireland's museum in Belfast has a genealogy service website at www.psni.police.uk/index/about-us/police_museum/museum_genealogy.htm, but the site is slightly out of date. It states that it can perform searches through its copies of RIC records from 1822-1922, as well as through various RIC lists, but doesn't mention what it can do for those who served with the RUC (or even the PSNI, now in its 11th year). For the RUC the museum in fact holds service personnel cards which were kept up to 1977, after which service details were computerised (still the case with the PSNI which replaced it in 2001). There is a closure period of 75 years to access these records - so at present any Tom, Dick or Harry can access the cards prior to 1937, but not after. For more recent records you need to either have been the policeman who served, or a family relative, and to supply the proof of the connection. To have a search carried out costs £25 - contact details for the museum are on the page noted above.
Republic of Ireland - An Garda SÃochána
This one's slightly more painful! The Garda Museum in Dublin has a series of extracts from service records which can only be consulted by ex-police personnel or their next-of-kin - nobody else can see them, and there is no closure period as in the north, so we are talking right back to 1922 here. Apparently the service records themselves - where they have survived - cannot be accessed, even by those they concern, only the extracts are publicly available. I was also told that some of the original records prior to the 1950s were also destroyed by keen civil servants. Whilst less is available, the good news is that at least the material that can be consulted is free to access. Contact details for the Garda Museum are at www.garda.ie/Controller.aspx?Page=72&Lang=1
Hope that helps - and keep an eye out for my Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet early next year, which lists many more police resources accessible online and other useful Irish collections.
(With a huge thanks to Neil in Belfast and Jerry in Dublin)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Grand stuff - but what if your ancestor was a 'Peeler' after 1921?!! Well here's the answer!
Northern Ireland - the RUC and the PSNI
The Police Service of Northern Ireland's museum in Belfast has a genealogy service website at www.psni.police.uk/index/about-us/police_museum/museum_genealogy.htm, but the site is slightly out of date. It states that it can perform searches through its copies of RIC records from 1822-1922, as well as through various RIC lists, but doesn't mention what it can do for those who served with the RUC (or even the PSNI, now in its 11th year). For the RUC the museum in fact holds service personnel cards which were kept up to 1977, after which service details were computerised (still the case with the PSNI which replaced it in 2001). There is a closure period of 75 years to access these records - so at present any Tom, Dick or Harry can access the cards prior to 1937, but not after. For more recent records you need to either have been the policeman who served, or a family relative, and to supply the proof of the connection. To have a search carried out costs £25 - contact details for the museum are on the page noted above.
Republic of Ireland - An Garda SÃochána
This one's slightly more painful! The Garda Museum in Dublin has a series of extracts from service records which can only be consulted by ex-police personnel or their next-of-kin - nobody else can see them, and there is no closure period as in the north, so we are talking right back to 1922 here. Apparently the service records themselves - where they have survived - cannot be accessed, even by those they concern, only the extracts are publicly available. I was also told that some of the original records prior to the 1950s were also destroyed by keen civil servants. Whilst less is available, the good news is that at least the material that can be consulted is free to access. Contact details for the Garda Museum are at www.garda.ie/Controller.aspx?Page=72&Lang=1
Hope that helps - and keep an eye out for my Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet early next year, which lists many more police resources accessible online and other useful Irish collections.
(With a huge thanks to Neil in Belfast and Jerry in Dublin)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
More Derbyshire records on FindmyPast
FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk) has added 11,576 parish burial records for Clay Cross in North East Derbyshire.
For further details visit www.findmypast.co.uk/content/news/derbyshire-sept12
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
For further details visit www.findmypast.co.uk/content/news/derbyshire-sept12
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
More Irish material on British Newspaper Archive
The following is the latest update to the British Newspaper Archive (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk) over the last month:
As well as the Belfast Morning News making it to the site, albeit for 1879 only at present, I noticed yesterday that the Cork Examiner, which covered only a handful of years from the 1840s a few months back, now has coverage from 1841-1926. Ireland is still woefully represented on the site, however, with only two other titles, the Freeman's Journal and the Belfast Newsletter, present. Both of these have already been made available on the British Library's predecessor site, the 19th Century Newspaper Collection, which can be accessed for free via many local libraries which have a subscription (those in Scotland can access it through signing up to the Licensed Digital Collections of the National Library of Scotland website).
Still, every little crumb helps - but if you want to see a bigger explosion of online newspaper activity, check out the Irish News Archive site at www.irishnewsarchive.com which has added a considerable number of new titles and editions over the last few months. The following titles are now available, with any change in status since last November in brackets:
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
- Belfast Morning News, 1879
- Coventry Evening Telegraph, 1916 - 1917
- Derbyshire Times and Chesterfield Herald, 1857 - 1859, 1861, 1863 - 1864, 1867, 1871
- Dover Express, 1862
- Dundee Advertiser, 1866 - 1867
- Dundee Courier, 1902 - 1903, 1906 - 1908, 1910, 1919 - 1920
- Gloucestershire Echo, 1934 - 1940
- Hastings and St Leonards Observer, 1867, 1888
- Liverpool Daily Post, 1858, 1864, 1866, 1868
- Newcastle Journal, 1914 - 1915
- Police Gazette, 1776
- Shields Daily Gazette, 1855 - 1856, 1862
- Staffordshire Advertiser, 1795 - 1800, 1802, 1805
- Staffordshire Gazette and County Standard, 1842
- Stamford Mercury, 1714, 1717 - 1720, 1722, 1729, 1733, 1740, 1744, 1747, 1754, 1765, 1889
- Yorkshire Gazette, 1913
As well as the Belfast Morning News making it to the site, albeit for 1879 only at present, I noticed yesterday that the Cork Examiner, which covered only a handful of years from the 1840s a few months back, now has coverage from 1841-1926. Ireland is still woefully represented on the site, however, with only two other titles, the Freeman's Journal and the Belfast Newsletter, present. Both of these have already been made available on the British Library's predecessor site, the 19th Century Newspaper Collection, which can be accessed for free via many local libraries which have a subscription (those in Scotland can access it through signing up to the Licensed Digital Collections of the National Library of Scotland website).
Still, every little crumb helps - but if you want to see a bigger explosion of online newspaper activity, check out the Irish News Archive site at www.irishnewsarchive.com which has added a considerable number of new titles and editions over the last few months. The following titles are now available, with any change in status since last November in brackets:
- Irish Independent 1905-present
- Irish Press 1931-1995
- Irish Farmers Journal 1957-1998
- Sunday Independent 1906-present
- Anglo-Celt 1846-2011
- Butte Independent 1910-1930 (a Boston newspaper - new)
- City Tribune 1984-present
- Connacht Sentinel 1927-present
- Connacht Tribune 1909-present
- Connaught Telegraph 1900-present (previously from 1975 onwards)
- Donegal News 1980-present
- Fermanagh Herald 2011-present (new)
- Finns Leinster Journal 1763-1924
- Freeman’s Journal 1763-1950 (extended from 1924)
- Gaelic Life 2011-present (new)
- Galway City Tribune 1984-present (new)
- Kerryman 1904-present (previously from 1950 onwards)
- Kildare Observer 1880-1935 (new)
- Leitrim Observer 1904-2007
- Limerick Leader 1905-1948 (new)
- Meath Chronicle 1897-present
- Munster Express 1908-present
- The Nation 1842-1897
- Nenagh Guardian 1838-present
- Nenagh News 1895-1924 (new)
- Southern Star 1892-present
- Strabane Chronicle 2011-present (new)
- Tuam Herald 1837-2000
- Ulster Herald 1901-present (new)
- Westmeath Examiner 1882-present
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
National Archives museum changes
The National Archives in Kew has posted an update on plans to refurbish its museum, which will see the museum close on October 25th for at least five weeks.
The full story is at http://nationalarchives.gov.uk/news/765.htm
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
The full story is at http://nationalarchives.gov.uk/news/765.htm
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Eunuchs live longer
The BBC is running a story that apparently shows that eunuchs live longer, after a genealogical study in South Korea showed that eunuchs from 1556-1861 apparently lived up to 19 years longer there than on average.
The full story is at www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-19699266
I'm not advocating we become eunuchs...
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
The full story is at www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-19699266
I'm not advocating we become eunuchs...
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Monday, 24 September 2012
Oxfordshire FHS Open Day
Berkshire Family History Society has posted details of its forthcoming participation at Oxfordshire Family History Society's Open Day on October 6th at www.berksfhs.org.uk/cms/2012-10-06/Oxfordshire-FHS-Open-Day-Woodstock.html
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Family history courses at Birkdale Library
Sefton Council has placed details online for a series of introductory family history courses at Birkdale Library in October, to be taught by Hillary Ambrose of Southport Family History Society.
For more information visit www.sefton.gov.uk/default.aspx?page=12005
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
For more information visit www.sefton.gov.uk/default.aspx?page=12005
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Ancestry's redesigned Irish gateway page
I've only just twigged that Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) has redesigned the interface to its Irish collections. You can still type in www.ancestry.co.uk/ireland to access them, but you will be diverted to a new page at www.ancestry.co.uk/cs/uk/ireland.
The new page no longer divides collections up into those for 'Northern Ireland' and 'Ireland' (i.e. the Republic), but simply lists them all under a new gateway entitled All Our Irish Collections with various drop-down tags to various collections. On the one hand this makes life a lot easier, because Ancestry was occasionally geographically challenged when it came to placing Irish records online, with some collections being listed under one jurisdiction when in fact they were all Ireland based, north and south - so I think this is a good thing. On the other hand, the page does look a bit more bland, but the key thing is functionality, and so far, so good when playing with it.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
The new page no longer divides collections up into those for 'Northern Ireland' and 'Ireland' (i.e. the Republic), but simply lists them all under a new gateway entitled All Our Irish Collections with various drop-down tags to various collections. On the one hand this makes life a lot easier, because Ancestry was occasionally geographically challenged when it came to placing Irish records online, with some collections being listed under one jurisdiction when in fact they were all Ireland based, north and south - so I think this is a good thing. On the other hand, the page does look a bit more bland, but the key thing is functionality, and so far, so good when playing with it.
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Irish Catholic registers to be digitised
The National Library of Ireland has reopened itself to the possibility of digitising its Roman Catholic parish register holdings, albeit through a method that may now involve a payment system to access. Today's Irish Times is reporting that the institution is seeking a partner to realise the project, with the possibility that this may be a commercial firm such as Brightsolid or Ancestry.
The story is online at www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2012/0924/1224324323188.html
UPDATE: Another angle on this story is in the same paper - see www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2012/0924/1224324323147.html (with thanks to @IrelandXO on Twitter)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
The story is online at www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2012/0924/1224324323188.html
UPDATE: Another angle on this story is in the same paper - see www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2012/0924/1224324323147.html (with thanks to @IrelandXO on Twitter)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Griffith's Valuation on The Genealogist
The Genealogist (www.thegenealogist.co.uk) has added Griffith's Valuation to its site, the records of the primary valuation for rates purposes by Sir Richard Griffith of properties across Ireland between 1848 and 1864. From the latest company newsletter:
Griffith's Valuation records provide a substitute for the lost census records for Ireland as it lists every householder in Ireland at the time it was taken. Griffith's Valuation was carried out between 1848 and 1864 and provides records on where people lived and who owned property in Ireland. It is searchable by forename and surname with phonetic matching and wildcards in combination with County and Barony and lists over 2.6 million individuals.
The information given includes County, Barony, Poor Law Union then divided into electoral divisions, parishes and townlands, and OS map sheet number with link to view available maps. This is the first time that Griffith’s Valuation has been made available with our Phonetic matching, Nicknames, Wildcards and OS Maps
It's not immediately obvious where it is on the site, but you'll find it in the British and International Records menu, as an option on the Irish Records page. The site does indeed link to corresponding OS maps, but to find them you need to do your search and then click on the icon that says View Full Transcriptions Details.
Unfortunately the phonetic matching failed on the very first search I made. One of my wife's Tipperary based ancestors, Patrick Giles, is recorded on Griffiths as Patrick Jyles. I searched with Patrick Jyles and found him instantly, but when I searched with Patrick Giles it completely missed him. I tried Jiles also for good measure, but still no luck. On a more positive note, when I tried the search with a wild card, using Patrick *les as the term and the right county (Tipperary, South Riding), it did find him. On another plus note, the transcriptions are very good, and crucially also include the publication date (each place was only enumerated once between 1848 and 1864, so useful to know exactly when the relevant record was published!). It is a pity though that the returns are not searchable by townland or parish (which can be done using the keyword field on FindmyPast.ie), only by county and barony.
The maps are in black and white, and so are not quite as easy to make out as the colour based equivalents on the free to access Ask About Ireland website - and there is no user guide to explain how to convert the findings of the first column on the returns to help you locate a property on the map (see Ask About Ireland's guide at http://askaboutireland.ie/reading-room/history-heritage/irish-genealogy/understanding-the-valuati/). In fact, as far as I can see, there is absolutely no user guide even explaining what the records are or what the returns mean, which would certainly be desirable considering how important the records are as a census substitute for Ireland. Also with the maps, on the above example with Patrick Jyles, I was in fact offered four maps to view on the transcripts page - two under the Place section, and two more under the Town section. With the latter two I had "Error: Image Missing" messages appear.
In summary - in my opinion the transcripts are better laid out on The Genealogist than on both FindmyPast.ie and Ask About Ireland. Ask About Ireland's maps are still to be beaten, but at least The Genealogist does make an offering here, unlike FindmyPast.ie. The keyword option on FindmyPast.ie will allow searches at a more localised level. As with FindmyPast.ie, the images can be saved as PDF files, not the case on Ask About Ireland (unless you 'Print to PDF' using the print icon there, if your computer allows that), and the maps on The Genealogist can at least be saved in PDF format also - you need to 'Print Screen' on Ask About Ireland and save the image there using a paint programme.
The Genealogist has also now completed its fully searchable birth indexes for England and Wales from 1837-2005, and has now added unredacted images for the 1911 census for the two countries. The full newsletter is available at www.GenealogySupplies.com/email_news.htm.
(With thanks to The Genealogist)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Griffith's Valuation records provide a substitute for the lost census records for Ireland as it lists every householder in Ireland at the time it was taken. Griffith's Valuation was carried out between 1848 and 1864 and provides records on where people lived and who owned property in Ireland. It is searchable by forename and surname with phonetic matching and wildcards in combination with County and Barony and lists over 2.6 million individuals.
The information given includes County, Barony, Poor Law Union then divided into electoral divisions, parishes and townlands, and OS map sheet number with link to view available maps. This is the first time that Griffith’s Valuation has been made available with our Phonetic matching, Nicknames, Wildcards and OS Maps
It's not immediately obvious where it is on the site, but you'll find it in the British and International Records menu, as an option on the Irish Records page. The site does indeed link to corresponding OS maps, but to find them you need to do your search and then click on the icon that says View Full Transcriptions Details.
Unfortunately the phonetic matching failed on the very first search I made. One of my wife's Tipperary based ancestors, Patrick Giles, is recorded on Griffiths as Patrick Jyles. I searched with Patrick Jyles and found him instantly, but when I searched with Patrick Giles it completely missed him. I tried Jiles also for good measure, but still no luck. On a more positive note, when I tried the search with a wild card, using Patrick *les as the term and the right county (Tipperary, South Riding), it did find him. On another plus note, the transcriptions are very good, and crucially also include the publication date (each place was only enumerated once between 1848 and 1864, so useful to know exactly when the relevant record was published!). It is a pity though that the returns are not searchable by townland or parish (which can be done using the keyword field on FindmyPast.ie), only by county and barony.
The maps are in black and white, and so are not quite as easy to make out as the colour based equivalents on the free to access Ask About Ireland website - and there is no user guide to explain how to convert the findings of the first column on the returns to help you locate a property on the map (see Ask About Ireland's guide at http://askaboutireland.ie/reading-room/history-heritage/irish-genealogy/understanding-the-valuati/). In fact, as far as I can see, there is absolutely no user guide even explaining what the records are or what the returns mean, which would certainly be desirable considering how important the records are as a census substitute for Ireland. Also with the maps, on the above example with Patrick Jyles, I was in fact offered four maps to view on the transcripts page - two under the Place section, and two more under the Town section. With the latter two I had "Error: Image Missing" messages appear.
In summary - in my opinion the transcripts are better laid out on The Genealogist than on both FindmyPast.ie and Ask About Ireland. Ask About Ireland's maps are still to be beaten, but at least The Genealogist does make an offering here, unlike FindmyPast.ie. The keyword option on FindmyPast.ie will allow searches at a more localised level. As with FindmyPast.ie, the images can be saved as PDF files, not the case on Ask About Ireland (unless you 'Print to PDF' using the print icon there, if your computer allows that), and the maps on The Genealogist can at least be saved in PDF format also - you need to 'Print Screen' on Ask About Ireland and save the image there using a paint programme.
The Genealogist has also now completed its fully searchable birth indexes for England and Wales from 1837-2005, and has now added unredacted images for the 1911 census for the two countries. The full newsletter is available at www.GenealogySupplies.com/email_news.htm.
(With thanks to The Genealogist)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Sunday, 23 September 2012
Manx family history exhibition
Just picked up on a brief announcement on the IsleofMan.com website, concerning a family history exhibition entitled Aspects of the Past running in Douglas today, at the St. John's Ambulance Headquarters. The story at www.isleofman.com/News/article.aspx?article=47821 is accompanied by a very brief audio clip from one of the society's members on Manx Radio (click on Clip 1 at the bottom of the article).
For more on the society visit www.iomfhs.im
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
For more on the society visit www.iomfhs.im
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Missed first anniversary!
I've been that busy in the last couple of weeks that I completely failed to pick up on the first anniversary of British GENES, which started on September 13th 2011. In truth, it's only the anniversary of the present incarnation of my blog, which started in late 2006 as Scottish GENES - but even so! Since then, the numbers reading have increased steadily, with last Friday seeing the highest number of daily hits yet on British GENES at 1830. I can't update on whether that has been passed yet, as Feedburner is currently not registering hits for some reason (very temporamental!). Since it started last year, however, the site has had just over 248,000 hits, but that doesn't include the reading habits of almost 600 daily subscribers by email etc, so to be honest I really don't have much of a clue how many read it - suffice to say that the numbers are steadily on the up!
If you would like to obtain a daily feed by email or to be alerted about each post by RSS feed, simply register via the options to the left of this page.
If you've been following the blog, thanks for sticking with it, and please do spread the word - not just to let those know about the service, which is free to access, but also to pass on news of anything happening in your area that you might like to have publicised.
One final appeal - I could really do with some more tip offs on things happening in Wales, it seems an awfully quiet part of the world online!
Onwards and upwards... :)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
If you would like to obtain a daily feed by email or to be alerted about each post by RSS feed, simply register via the options to the left of this page.
If you've been following the blog, thanks for sticking with it, and please do spread the word - not just to let those know about the service, which is free to access, but also to pass on news of anything happening in your area that you might like to have publicised.
One final appeal - I could really do with some more tip offs on things happening in Wales, it seems an awfully quiet part of the world online!
Onwards and upwards... :)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Saturday, 22 September 2012
Scottish Genealogy Network - September meeting
The next meeting of the Scottish Genealogy Network will take place at the Cumberland Bar in Edinburgh on Saturday 29th September at 2pm. If you are a professional genealogist, archivist, family history tutor or if you work in the Scottish genealogy scene in any other capacity, feel free to come along to catch up with like-minded professionals to figure out what is currently going on in our world - there's no fees, just a chance for a gab and pint!
For more on the network, read the following blog posts from members:
Kirsty Wilkinson
http://professionaldescendant.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/the-scottish-genealogy-network.html
Carolyn McNicholl
http://scotgen.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/professional-genealogists-have-gift-of_7.html
Yours truly
http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/the-scottish-genealogy-network.html
http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/scottish-genealogy-network-visit-to.html
Hopefully see you there! (I will be there, but later in the afternoon following a prior commitment!)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
For more on the network, read the following blog posts from members:
Kirsty Wilkinson
http://professionaldescendant.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/the-scottish-genealogy-network.html
Carolyn McNicholl
http://scotgen.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/professional-genealogists-have-gift-of_7.html
Yours truly
http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/the-scottish-genealogy-network.html
http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/scottish-genealogy-network-visit-to.html
Hopefully see you there! (I will be there, but later in the afternoon following a prior commitment!)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Military Research UK launches "The Runner" newsletter
The first ever Military Research UK newsletter is now available online at
http://myemail.constantcontact.com/The-Very-First-Newsletter-from-Military-Research-UK-.html?soid=1110983604047&aid=KMJgCye5cYo. Entitled The Runner, the first edition includes a feature on researching RAF ancestry and news of a three day tribute in Britain to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the First World War in 2014.
(With thanks to Scott Addington @military_search on Twitter)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
(With thanks to Scott Addington @military_search on Twitter)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
New Zealand wills update on FamilySearch
FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org) has added another 384,000 images from wills to its New Zealand, Probate Records, 1878-1960 collection, taking the total now to 743,000 images. If your ancestor travelled down under, this will be well worth visiting.
(With thanks to Genealogy in Time)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
(With thanks to Genealogy in Time)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Friday, 21 September 2012
Mac tool for World Archives Project
Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) now has a Mac based keying tool for those who wish to take part in transcribing for its World Archives Project. The project blog has further details at http://blogs.ancestry.com/worldarchivesproject/?p=1536. The Mac tool is available at http://community.ancestry.com/wap/download_mac.aspx
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Hebrides People update
I've just received a slightly belated press release about the Hebrides People website (www.hebridespeople.com) launch earlier this year, but it will certainly be of interest to those seeking ancestral connections to the Western Isles:
It’s official! After a trial period of a few weeks, the new emigrant website www.hebridespeople.com was formally opened on Friday 20th June 2012 at Seallam! Visitor Centre in Northton, Isle of Harris, by George MacKenzie, Registrar General and Keeper of the Records of Scotland.
John Randall, former Registrar General and Chairman of Northton Heritage Trust, Bill Lawson, Genealogist, George MacKenzie, Registrar General and Keeper of the Records of Scotland at the launch of HebridesPeople.
As well as much other information on the Outer Hebrides and their history, the website now includes a searchable database with information on over 22,000 emigrants who left the Outer Hebrides between 1780 and 1920.
The information is drawn from the records gathered over fifty and more years by Bill Lawson, who is internationally known as the genealogist of the Outer Hebrides area. In addition to his comprehensive database of all island families, he has researched the census and other records in the main emigration areas, to identify families there of island origins.
For emigrants before the 1820s, the database information is often incomplete, reflecting the limitations of the source material at that period, but after 1820 it generally has information on spouse, parents, village of origin in the Outer Hebrides, destination overseas, date of emigration (often approximate) and on occasion the name of the emigration ship. There are also cases where it is known that families left the Outer Hebrides, but their destination is not currently known – though since new information is constantly becoming available, fuller details may be available in the next version of the database!
Although the database is primarily aimed at the overseas descendants seeking to find their family’s origin, it will also be helpful for UK researchers trying to find where emigrant relatives settled.
The website works on the system of purchasing and using credits, which is similar to that which will already be familiar to researchers on the scotlandspeople web-site. All income from the site goes to the maintenance of the resource and further development of the site, which it is hoped will eventually provide information on a quarter of a million persons from all over the Outer Hebrides!
(With thanks to Chris and Bill Lawson)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
It’s official! After a trial period of a few weeks, the new emigrant website www.hebridespeople.com was formally opened on Friday 20th June 2012 at Seallam! Visitor Centre in Northton, Isle of Harris, by George MacKenzie, Registrar General and Keeper of the Records of Scotland.
John Randall, former Registrar General and Chairman of Northton Heritage Trust, Bill Lawson, Genealogist, George MacKenzie, Registrar General and Keeper of the Records of Scotland at the launch of HebridesPeople.
As well as much other information on the Outer Hebrides and their history, the website now includes a searchable database with information on over 22,000 emigrants who left the Outer Hebrides between 1780 and 1920.
The information is drawn from the records gathered over fifty and more years by Bill Lawson, who is internationally known as the genealogist of the Outer Hebrides area. In addition to his comprehensive database of all island families, he has researched the census and other records in the main emigration areas, to identify families there of island origins.
For emigrants before the 1820s, the database information is often incomplete, reflecting the limitations of the source material at that period, but after 1820 it generally has information on spouse, parents, village of origin in the Outer Hebrides, destination overseas, date of emigration (often approximate) and on occasion the name of the emigration ship. There are also cases where it is known that families left the Outer Hebrides, but their destination is not currently known – though since new information is constantly becoming available, fuller details may be available in the next version of the database!
Although the database is primarily aimed at the overseas descendants seeking to find their family’s origin, it will also be helpful for UK researchers trying to find where emigrant relatives settled.
The website works on the system of purchasing and using credits, which is similar to that which will already be familiar to researchers on the scotlandspeople web-site. All income from the site goes to the maintenance of the resource and further development of the site, which it is hoped will eventually provide information on a quarter of a million persons from all over the Outer Hebrides!
Image: John Randall, Chairman of Northton Heritage Trust, Bill Lawson, Genealogist, George MacKenzie, Registrar General and Keeper of the Records of Scotland at the launch
(With thanks to Chris and Bill Lawson)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
Addressing History extends coverage to Aberdeen and Glasgow
The Addressing History website at http://addressinghistory.edina.ac.uk has now moved beyond its previous target area of Edinburgh to incorporate Glasgow and Aberdeen, and has added several more Post Office Directories (1881 and 1891 for each city). The website essentially connects period maps which have been geo-referenced to a modern Google map, with data integrated also from the post office directories, allowing you to track an area across time and see who was there and how the place changed. The original launch of the site was covered on my Scottish GENES blog in November 2010 at http://scottishancestry.blogspot.co.uk/2010/11/addressing-history-launch-report.html
For more on the update to the site visit the project's own dedicated blog at http://addressinghistory.blogs.edina.ac.uk/2012/09/21/addressinghistory-update/
To Nicola and the team - nice one, and keep it coming! :)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)
For more on the update to the site visit the project's own dedicated blog at http://addressinghistory.blogs.edina.ac.uk/2012/09/21/addressinghistory-update/
To Nicola and the team - nice one, and keep it coming! :)
Chris
Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)