Monday 30 January 2017

Full marks to Ancestry.com

I don't often mix politics and genealogy on this blog, despite being quite a politically minded person, but sometimes the two worlds collide on their own, making it legitimate to comment.

I have just read the reported words of Tim Sullivan, CEO of Ancestry.com, from an email written to his staff in the aftermath of US President Donald Trump's executive order to stop migrants from seven countries gaining access into the United States, even if they have dual nationality. You can read the full text of the email on Thomas MacEntee's Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/tmacentee/posts/10209978074821353.

In his message. Mr. Sullivan is reported to have said:

"Ancestry is stronger due to the diversity of our employees' personal and professional experience, so we have a clear business interest in not seeing America’s doors slammed shut to those that desire to come here and to contribute to our national strength, regardless of religion, race, or national origin. Ancestry is also a company whose values are on display every day, and I’m proud to be part of a company that strives to have a positive impact on people’s lives, respects every person’s story, and celebrates the diversity of everyone’s ancestry. So I want to clearly affirm that the content and intent of President Trump’s executive order on Friday, as well as the disturbing actions that were unleashed by this order, represent the total antithesis to the values of our company."

COMMENT: I completely applaud Ancestry for taking a stance on this. As the last year's Brexit shenanigans have shown in the UK, these are not rational times - and as history has shown over and over again, there are always unintended consequences to such poor decisions.

(With thanks to Thomas MacEntee)

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Saturday 28 January 2017

Irish Newspaper Archive subscription discount offers

I've just had an email from Irish Newspapers Archive (www.irishnewsarchive.com) announcing the following:

Irish Newspaper Archives now available through Independent.ie. To celebrate we have major discounts on offer. Limited time offer ends 31.01.2017.

Get access to over 69 newspaper archives from across the country. Enjoy the Irish Independent, Sunday Independent, Evening Herald and over 60 other newspaper titles from the Belfast Newsletter, Kerryman to the Freemans Journal. Search, retrieve and view news from 1738 to date!



VALID until 31.01.2017 Days T&C apply
30% off 1 Month : Normal Price 30.00 - Discount price 21.00
60% off 1 Year : Normal Price 178.00 - Discount price 71.20

Have fun!

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Friday 27 January 2017

Australian additions to FindmyPast

Latest additions to FindmyPast (www.findmypast.com):


Victoria Petty Sessions registers
http://search.findmypast.com/search-world-Records/victoria-petty-sessions-registers

The Victoria Petty Sessions registers contain over 3 million records that will allow you to find out whether any of your Australian ancestors had a brush with the law. The Court of Petty Sessions was created to hear minor criminal cases such as those involving drunkenness, criminal damage and theft. These cases, brought before a magistrate, would usually not involve a jury.


Queensland Custom House Shipping 1852-1885 passengers and crew
http://search.findmypast.com/search-world-Records/queensland-customs-house-shipping-1852-1885-passengers-and-crew

Search over 107,000 records from the Collector of Customs (Brisbane) to discover the names of the passengers and crew of 485 inward ship voyages from 1852 to 1885. These transcripts list information from taken from original do
cuments held by the National Archives of Australia and will allow you to discover your ancestor's age, nationality, occupation, date & port of arrival, date & port of departure and the name of the ship they sailed on.


PERSI Quarterly Index Update
http://search.findmypast.com/search/periodical-source-index

Over 14,600 articles from 46 assorted titles have been added to the Periodical Source Index this month. The new additions have been made to a variety of English, Scottish and American publications including Family History Society Journals, Local histories and family history periodicals.


Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Rugby Football Union partners with CWGC

From the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (www.cwgc.org):

RFU chooses CWGC as its Military Charity Partner for 2017 as the Commission marks 100 years of caring for our war dead

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is delighted to announce that it has been chosen as the official Military Charity Partner by the Rugby Football Union (RFU). In 2017 the CWGC celebrates its centenary, marking 100 years of commemorating 1.7 million Commonwealth war dead in 154 countries around the world.

The partnership is an opportunity to highlight the contribution rugby made in the two world wars. Players from all over the world gave up everything to join up and fight. Twenty-seven England Internationals lost their lives during World War One along with many other international players from around the world, the majority of whom are commemorated by the CWGC.

Announcing the partnership, CWGC Vice Chairman, Sir Tim Laurence said: “Huge thanks to the RFU for supporting the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in our centenary year. Together, we will remember them”.

CWGC Director General, Mrs Victoria Wallace, added: "We are delighted to have been selected by the RFU for this privilege in this our centenary year. We hope rugby fans around the world will be inspired to learn more of past players who made the ultimate sacrifice for their countries in the two world wars, and to pay their respects at any of our 23,000 cemeteries and memorials in 150 countries. The CWGC made a commitment in 1917 that the names of these heroes would live forever. Thank you to the RFU for helping us pass on the torch of remembrance to another generation in 2017."

RFU Chief Executive Ian Ritchie said: “Partnering with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission will build on those themes, drawing on the Commission’s work in their centenary year as they celebrate the work of their staff around the world and commemorate the 1.7 million Commonwealth servicemen and women who died in the two world wars.

“We are grateful to the Commission for their help in producing our Rose and Poppy Films and the First World War Exhibition in the World Rugby Museum and hope to grow support for the Commission and encourage the RFU’s member schools and clubs nationwide to remember those who left rugby fields for battlefields never to return.”

Victoria Wallace attended the formal launch of the partnership, along with Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence KCVO CB ADC(P) - CWGC Vice Chairman and Ian Ritchie - RFU CEO at Twickenham Stadium on Wednesday 25 January at 10.45am.


One story among many

Ronald Poulton Palmer (see pic) was just one of the Rugby players who answered the call of King and Country. Palmer was probably the most famous rugby player of his day, noted for his ability to play all over the pitch and to swerve past opponents. In 1913/14 he was captain of the England side that won back to back ‘Grand Slams’. Already in the Territorial Force of the Royal Berkshire Regiment, Ronald underwent officer training and was sent to the Western Front in the spring of 1915. On the night of 4th May, Ronald was killed by a single shot whilst supervising a trench working party and was buried in CWGC Hyde Park Corner [Royal Berks] Cemetery at Ploegsteert in Belgium, his death causing national grief.

[Image courtesy of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission or Courtesy of the CWGC]

Get to know the Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Read: http://www.cwgc.org/
Follow: https://twitter.com/CWGC
Like: https://www.facebook.com/commonwealthwargravescommission
Watch: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuyv7WCJv_NYL04eKG3oyVA

(With thanks to Peter Francis)

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

TNA podcast: Prosthetics and the First World War

The National Archives in England (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk) has launched a new podcast series on its media player entitled Archive Notes, in which it talks to researchers about the records and stories they have uncovered at the institution. In the first edition, Prosthetics and the First World War, Louise Bell looks at the impact of the war on disability history through our records: from designs for lighter, more flexible prosthetics to new rehabilitation methods trialled by specialist hospitals.

To listen to the podcast or to download it, please visit http://media.nationalarchives.gov.uk/index.php/archive-notes-prosthetics-first-world-war/.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Indonesian newspaper available on TROVE

The National Library of Australia has announced that the Embassy of Indonesia in Canberra has funded the digitisation of the Berita Repoeblik Indonesia newspaper, which marked the formation of the newly independent Indonesia in 1945.

 
For more on the story, please visit https://www.nla.gov.au/news/2017/01/17/indonesian-history-preserved. The paper itself is accessible via Trove at http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/title/1283.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Wednesday 25 January 2017

NIFHS to hold book sale this Saturday

From God's own family history society...

NIFHS Announce History Book Sale Next Weekend Family History Society Announce Sale of Surplus Library Stock

The North of Ireland Family History Society is holding a book sale of surplus library material next Saturday, 28th January 2017, from 11am - 2pm at their Library and Research Centre in Newtownabbey.

The catalogue includes local history books and journals, gravestone inscriptions, church histories and other miscellaneous books.

Prices start at 20p with many under £1. A selection of books is open to offers while other books and magazines are FREE!

Please support the Society and call in & have a rummage to see what deals you discover. On the day, there will also be a chance to find out about local meetings and upcoming family history classes. Talk to the Society about their genealogy DNA project and perhaps buy a testing kit.

Have a look around the Research Centre and see the facilities and the material held.

It may be possible to reserve some books to be held for later collection. For book reservations, queries & a full book sale list, please email: librarian@nifhs.org

.
~ ~ ~
The address for book sale: Research Centre & Library, North of Ireland Family History Society, Unit C4, Valley Business Centre, 67 Church Road, Newtownabbey BT36 7LS.(Near the Valley Leisure Centre).

The Charity:
The North of Ireland Family History Society (NIFHS) is a charity run by volunteers and has eleven branches across Northern Ireland. We also have members worldwide who are interested in getting help with tracing their local roots using our facilities and the resources our members have gathered and worked on over the years. As well as a Library, we also have a classroom in the NIFHS Research Centre in Newtownabbey. We increasingly use social media to keep in touch with our members and have attracted people from all over the world to our Library so they can get assistance with discoveri
ng their roots.

NIFHS Branches across NI:
Ballymena, Belfast, Causeway Coast & Glens, Foyle, Killyleagh, Larne, Lisburn, Newtownabbey, North Armagh, North Down & Ards, and Tyrone.

(With thanks to Maeve at NIFHS)

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

South Africa occupational index on Ancestry

Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) has uploaded a collection of potential interest to those with connections to South Africa:

South Africa, Occupational Index, 1864-1918
http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=61327
Source: Various sources from across South Africa.

The following is the collection's description:

This index includes records from the following collections of South African occupational records.

Business Proprietors, 1914
Business Proprietors, 1915
Cape Civil Service Pension List, 1894
Cape Civil Service Pension List, 1895
Cape Civil Service Pension List, 1908
Civil Servants and Justices of the Peace, 1907
Civil Servants Pension Lists, 1900
Civil Service Pension List, 1908
Cullinan Staff Wages, 1903-1918
Field Cornet's Pension List, 1908
Indian Employers, 1861-1911
List of Businesses Registered, 1915
Medical Practitioners, 1910
Medical Practitioners, 1915
Natal Health Officers, 1902
Natal Legal Practitioners, 1902
Natal Railway and Postal Civil Servants, 1902
Public Service And Pensions, 1910
Schedule Pensions, 1910
Tribal Records, 1850

The details provided for each person typically include name, occupation, record date, record place, collection, and source. Depending on the collection, additional details may be available as well.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Saturday 21 January 2017

North of Ireland family history courses announced

The following press release comes from God's favourite family history society...! :)

NIFHS Launches Spring Series of Family History Short Courses

The North of Ireland Family History Society (www.nifhs.org) has released its spring schedule of family history short courses

The programme covers a wide range of topics of interest to everyone from beginners to those
wanting to dig deeper into their roots. DNA testing for genealogy continues to be a popular topic so we have extended those classes. A new topic this year is photo restoration for beginners. Day, evening and weekend classes are available
  • Starting your Genealogy - Beginners Course
  • Breaking through Brickwalls
  • Using Newspapers for Family History Research
  • Land Records
  • Valuation Records
  • Photo Restoration for Beginners
  • Technology for Genealogy
  • Family Tree Maker: Basics and Benefits
  • Family History using Powerpoint
  • Family Finder
  • Using Gedmatch
  • Dublin Archives (+ visit if there is interest)
  • Emigration to Australia & New Zealand
  • Researching Military Ancestors

With the success of programmes like Who Do You Think You Are?, there has been an increased interest in family history and more people than ever are taking up this fascinating and worthwhile hobby.

NIFHS Education Officer, Martin McDowell, said,“I think it's a great line-up with something for everyone. Courses are open to everyone and I hope people enjoy discovering more about their roots.”

All the classes will be held in the Society's Honneyman Room at the NIFHS Research Centre in Newtownabbey where there's plenty of free parking available. An on-site café is usually open until mid-afternoon.

The courses are of one to three-week duration and run between February and April. They cost between £10 and £24, with Society members getting a discount. For anyone wishing to do additional research, the Society's Library is open until 8pm every Tuesday and from 10.30–1pm on the 3rd Thursday of each month.

The classes will be run in addition to the packed programmes of lectures presented by each of
the Society's eleven branches.

For further details and to book a place, please visit: www.nifhs.org/resources/courses/

(With thanks to Maeve Brogan at the NIFHS)

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

England's active six generation family!

This takes some going! A family in Yorkshire, England, currently has six generations alive at the same time, headed by great great great grandmother Hilda Hanson, aged 103. Baby Finley is the most recent addition - in total there are 44 members of the family.

The BBC ran an interview on local radio with members of the family to to try to establish who was related to whom - have a listen at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-38704598 !

The Guardian newspaper also has a story on the family at https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/jan/21/nought-to-103-in-six-generations-bradford-hanson-family-claim-uk-record.

Some of us can only get back that number of generations after a lot of research - if only we could just have a cup of tea and interview all of our ancestors in one go, as with this Yorkshire family!

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Friday 20 January 2017

Jersey parish records join Ancestry

From Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk), several new collections for Jersey, in the Channel Islands, have now been released:
  
Jersey, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1541-1812
http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=60860
Total Images: 21,998
Total Records: 458,350

Jersey, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1915
http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=61218
Total Images: 15,686
Total Records: 289,952

Jersey, Church of England Marriages, 1754-1940
http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=61219
Total Images: 21,013
Total Records: 152,195

Jersey, Church of England Deaths and Burials, 1813-1940
http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=61220
Total Images: 9,953
Total Records: 86,286

Further details via the individual URLs.
Here's the official press release:

Jersey Baptisms, Marriages and Burials now available on Ancestry

Jersey Heritage is delighted to announce that, as a result of a collaboration with Ancestry and with the kind permission of the Dean of Jersey, the Island’s Church of England baptism, marriage and burial records from 1540 – 1940 are now available to search online for the first time.

The collection includes over 72,000 images covering the key milestones in the lives of hundreds of thousands of Islanders from Tudor times to the beginning of the Second World War.

The records are searchable by name, birth date, parish, baptism, marriage and burial date, name of spouse and name/s of parents, and these records contain vital information for anybody looking to find out more about an ancestor who lived in Jersey.

Local Personalities

A number of famous names can be found in this important collection from philanthropists and artists of the 20th century to well-known sporting figures, including:

· Jesse Boot - 1st Lord Trent, of Boots the Chemist, businessman and philanthropist, who transformed the small business founded by his father into an international retail company. Jesse came to Jersey to convalesce after an illness in 1886 and met his future wife, Florence Rowe. The couple were married at the St Helier Town Church on the 30th August 1886 and on their marriage record Jesse’s occupation is described as a ’wholesale druggist’. The couple retired in Jersey, where they made a number of very generous donations to help improve the lives of Islanders such as FB Fields.

· Lillie Langtry – actress, renowned beauty and mistress of King Edward VII. Lillie, who was born Emilie Charlotte Le Breton, was baptised in the Parish Church of St Saviour on the 9th November 1853, by her father Reverend William Corbet Le Breton. Lillie married her first husband, Edward Langtry in this same parish church on the 9th March 1874 and was eventually laid to rest in the cemetery on the 23rd February 1929, following her death in Monaco.

· Harry Vardon – golfer, six times winner of the British Open. Henry William Vardon was baptised in the Parish Church of Grouville on 12th June 1870. Harry did not take up golf until his late teens, as he needed to work from a young age to help support his family. When he decided he could make a career from the sport his natural talent shone through and it was not long before the young man from Jersey who had been too poor to buy his own golf clubs went on to become acknowledged as the world number one. Vardon won the British Open Championship six times, which is a record that still hasn’t been broken. He also toured America, winning the US Open in 1900, and becoming golf’s first international superstar.


The records are predominantly recorded in French, this being the written language at that time, but they follow a standard format and with some French knowledge they are relatively easy to interpret.

Linda Romeril, Archives and Collections Director at Jersey Heritage said; “The publication of the Church of England registers by Ancestry is a significant step forward in opening up access to Jersey’s records. These unique images can now be accessed by individuals with Jersey connections around the world.

”We know that a number of people left Jersey over the centuries and believe that their descendants will now be able to find their connections to our unique Island. We hope that this will encourage individuals to continue the stories of their Jersey ancestors by searching our catalogue www.jerseyheritage.org/aco for more information and ultimately visiting the Island to discover their roots.”

Rhona Murray, Content Manager at Ancestry, adds: “We are delighted to be working with Jersey Heritage to provide online access for people all around the world to these valuable parish records. The large-scale historic migration from the Island has resulted in a broad Jersey diaspora across the globe, so whether you’re aware of having heritage from the Island or are curious to discover if you have ancestors from the Channel Islands, now is the perfect time to search these collections on Ancestry and find out.”

The images can be searched by visiting www.ancestry.co.uk. As part of the agreement with Ancestry there is now free access to search the Ancestry catalogue at Jersey Archive.

(With thanks to Bryony Partridge)

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Wednesday 18 January 2017

New London based record collections on Ancestry

The following London collections are now available on Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) :

London, England, TS Exmouth Training Ship Records, 1876-1918
http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=61332
Source: TS Exmouth training records held by the London Metropolitan Archives, London, England.

London, England, Gamekeepers' Licences, 1727-1839
http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=61308
Source: Gamekeepers Licences, Middlesex Sessions, London Metropolitan Archives, London.


Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Monday 16 January 2017

Talks tour to New Zealand and Australia in 2017

Hi everyone and apologies that I've been away from this blog for a few days. I have some major developments on a couple of fronts currently happening at my end, which has kept me unbelievably busy, which I will be in a better position to discuss in the near future. In the meantime, here's news of another major development affecting what I will get up to later in the year...

So brace yourself Australia and New Zealand - I'm heading back down under again in August! And this time I'll be there for Family History Month!


From August 8th to 26th I am participating in another Unlock the Past talks tour of Australian cities, and in an expo organised by Auckland Library, in which I will be accompanied by fellow genie Dirk Weissleder, an expert in German genealogy (www.forum-familiengeschichte.de). The following is the current schedule proposed for the event:

BRISBANE - Tue-Wed 8-9 Aug
Kedron-Wavell Services Club, Chermside South - 9am-4.30pm each day

AUCKLAND - Fri-Sun 11-13 Aug (Auckland expo organised by the Auckland Library)
Fickling Convention Centre, Three Kings, Auckland

SYDNEY - Tue-Wed 15-16 Aug
Parramatta RSL, Parramatta - 9am-4.30pm each day

MELBOURNE - Fri-Sat 18-19 Aug
Veneto Club, Bulleen - 9am-4.30pm each day

CANBERRA - Mon 21 Aug
venue to be advised - 9am-4.30pm

ADELAIDE - Wed-Thu 23-24 Aug - Adelaide
The German Club, Adelaide - 9am-4.30pm each day

PERTH - Sat 26 Aug - Perth
venue to be advised - 9am-4.30pm


Program

Each city will have a two-stream program

Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne & Adelaide
- British Isles stream one day – headed by Chris Paton
- European/German stream the other day – headed by Dirk Weissleder
Canberra and Perth - both streams the same day in two separate theatres
Auckland - Chris and Dirk will be key presenters in the wider expo program

Supporting presentations will be given by major libaries and societies in each city.

Full details and booking form for each city to come

COMMENT: I'm very much looking forward to returning, particularly to Auckland, whilst my visit to Sydney in particular will be the third time that I'll have spoken in the Parramatta RSL - so I'm guessing I might even qualify for residency soon!

Keep an eye on the Unlock the Past website at www.unlockthepast.com.au/events/researching-abroad-british-isles-and-germanyeurope for more developments, as well as for biographies on both myself and Dirk, and I will of course update this blog in due course. 


It's going to be a lot of fun - see you there!

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Friday 6 January 2017

FindmyPast completes Irish petty sessions court registers

Following on from the release of a further 900,000 more dog license register records from Ireland last week, FindmyPast has now completed the Petty Session Court Registers collection for the country, with the addition of 227,000 more records. A list of courts records previously available in the collection is available at http://www.findmypast.ie/articles/world-records/full-list-of-the-irish-family-history-records/institutions-and-organisations/petty-sessions-order-books-1842-1913 but I have absolutely no idea what is in the update, as FindmyPast has not actually indicated what court records have been added. Their blog merely states the following:


Ireland, Petty Sessions Court Registers

Over 227,700 new records have been added to complete our collection of Irish Petty Sessions Court Registers. Petty Sessions handled the bulk of lesser criminal and civil legal proceedings in Ireland. Now the largest collection of Irish court & prison records available anywhere online, there over 22.8 million records in the collection. They include details of victims, witnesses and the accused, such as address, date in court, details of the offence, details of the verdict and the sentence...

...before going into a general description of the records. It is great that these are online, but would it honestly hurt to actually inform us about what is actually new, other than the total of names included?

Other collections released today include:
  • Dorset Memorial Inscriptions
  • Warwickshire Burials
  • Northumberland & Durham Monumental Inscriptions
  • Ireland, Society Of Friends (Quaker) Congregational Records

Details - such as they are! - are at https://blog.findmypast.co.uk/findmypast-friday-january-05-2017-2180504219.html.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Thursday 5 January 2017

Asiatic Annual Register records indexes on FIBIS

The Families in British India Society has added indexes to birth, marriage and death records from the Asiatic Annual Register for the years 1806 and 1807 to its online database at http://search.fibis.org/frontis/bin/aps_browse_sources.php?mode=browse_components&id=1038 - adding to the entries already indexed from 1798-1801 and 1815. The records have been indexed by Pat Sewell and S. Seager.

Note that several editions of The Asiatic Annual Register; or, A view of the history of Hindustan, and of the politics, commerce and literature of Asia from 1799-1810/11are freely available to view on The Internet Archive (www.archive.org).

(With thanks to Valmay Young)

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy book on sale in Canada

Another quick note here to say that I have also noticed that my latest Unlock the Past guide book, A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, released last August in Australia, is now also available for sale in Canda from Global Genealogy at http://globalgenealogy.com/countries/england/resources/2590289.htm, priced at CAN$18.

Here's the blurb!

You've decided that you want to trace your British and Irish family history, but have absolutely no idea where to start. If only there was a handy beginner's guide...?

In this Unlock the Past guide, genealogist Chris Paton takes you through the key record sets that will help you get underway with your family history research. He will introduce you to the family history societies and archives that can assist your efforts, and provide a little context to the ancestral landscape within which your ancestors once lived, and into which you will soon be immersed. Along the way he will point out some of the major differences in record types to be found in England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, and the Crown Dependencies of the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.

In each chapter Chris also provides a steer towards further books which can further develop your skills as you become more experienced with the subject matter, making this an invaluable introduction.

Warning – once you get started with your family history research, you will never stop...!

And the contents list:

Introduction
Acknowledgements
1. Researching your family tree
- Documentary sources
- Gateways
- Record your finds
- Gadgets
- Brick walls
- Overcome mistakes
- Question everything
- Make your ancestors real
- Damn the rules!
- Further reading
2. Civil registration records
- Basic information
- England and Wales
- Scotland
- Ireland
- Certificate exchange sites
- Further reading
3. Parish registers
- Baptisms
- Marriages and banns
- Burials and deaths
- Locating state church records
- Records of church governance
- Non-conformist churches
- Further reading
4. Monumental inscriptions
- English and Welsh gravestones
- Scotland
- Ireland
- Further reading
5. Cenuses
- What censuses contain
- Online records
- Scotland
- Ireland
- Census substitutes: directories
- Further reading
6. Wills and testaments
- Forms of estate
- Probate and confirmation
- England and Wales
- Recent wills
- Scotland
- Ireland
- Further reading
7. Maps and gazetteers
- Modern maps
- Ordnance Survey maps
- Other maps
- Gazetteers
- Further reading
8. Occupations
- Ancestral context
- Understand the job
- Newspapers
- Dig deeper
- Further reading
9. Societies, archives and libraries
- Umbrella bodies
- National societies
- Special interest groups
- Archives
- Catalogues
- Libraries
- Further reading
10. Social networking
- Facebook and Twitter
- Blogs
- Message boards and forums
- Family tree networks
- Further reading
11. DNA tests
- Types of DNA
- Testing companies
- Further reading
Appendix: The Crown Dependencies
- Isle of Man
- The Channel Islands
Index

For details of all of my genealogy books, and how and where to purchase them, please visit the Books section of this blog at http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Enjoy!

Chris
 
For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Discover Scottish Church Records 2nd edition - on sale in UK

A quick note to say that my book Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition) is now on sale from Yorkshire based My History at http://www.my-history.co.uk/acatalog/Discover-Scottish-Church-Records-UTP0281A.html#SID=876. Released last year in Australia and Canada, it now joins several other titles available in the UK from both myself and other Unlock the Past writers.

For a sneak preview of the title, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/kirk-history.html, where you can read the first chapter for free, and get the heads up on what else to expect within the book. I should add that of all the books I have written for Unlock the Past so far, this is one of my faves, as it includes a great deal of material and topics that I have not seen covered in other Scottish genealogy guides.

The range of Unlock the Past books available from My History can be browsed at http://www.my-history.co.uk/acatalog/Unlock-the-Past-Booklets.html. I hope they can help with your research!

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

ScotlandsPeople's New Year records update

From ScotlandsPeople (www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk):

Entries from important statutory records have been released today onto ScotlandsPeople; the family history website operated by the National Records of Scotland.

Digital images of 110,000 birth entries from 1916, more than 47,000 marriage entries from 1941 and 64,000 death entries from 1966 are now available for members of the public to search, view and save, no matter where they are in the world.

Three entries give details relating to the lives of three Scots of note. These are:

* The birth of Jessie Grant Kesson (nee McDonald) (1916 – 1994), who wrote The White Bird Passes. Born in Inverness on 29 October 1916, Kesson rose from humble beginnings to become an acclaimed author receiving honorary degrees from both the University of Aberdeen and the University of Dundee.

* An entry detailing the birth Jack Milroy (1915 -2001), the Scottish comedian, who was born James Cruden on 28 December 1915 in Govanhill, Glasgow. Being born so near to the end of the year, Jack’s birth was not registered by his father until 17 January 1916. Jack Milroy was best known for his double act with comedy actor Rikki Fulton. Jack played Francie in the famous comedy duo Francie and Josie.

The death record entry for Alexander Carrick, RSA (1882 – 1966), one of Scotland’s leading monumental sculptors of the early twentieth century. Carrick’s extensive body of work includes war memorials include those at Fraserburgh, Berwick and Killin in Perthshire.

The 1941 marriage records reveal the details of those wed in wartime Scotland including one couple whose union was cut tragically short by the Clydebank blitz in 1941. They were married from just one month.

Alexander Clarkson and Margaret O’Donnell, were married on 12 February 1941 in a civil ceremony by the Registrar in the district of Old Kilpatrick. Sadly, Margaret was killed when the Benbow Hotel where Alexander and Margaret were residents was hit by a bomb on the evening of 13 March, leaving only the shell of the building.

Culture, Tourism and External Affairs Secretary Fiona Hyslop said:

“The releases of these records give us a richer understanding of Scotland’s story and our people. The marriage certificates from the early '40s in particular provide further insight into the consequences of the Second World War, and how it affected the things we take for granted today.

“I’d encourage anyone interested in finding out more about their local history or genealogy to have a look at the wealth of records now available as part of our new ScotlandsPeople website. No matter where you are in the world, you can instantly find out more about your own personal story.”

The new version of the ScotlandsPeople website launched in September 2016; it has experienced an average 3.4 million site views a year and around 1 million unique users since its launch in 2002.

Since September, visitors to ScotlandsPeople can now search statutory record indexes including birth, death and marriage certificates for free. Users are now only charged if they wish to view or download a record image.

The records will be released at 09.30 GMT on Thursday 5 January.

(With thanks to Richard Holligan)

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Wednesday 4 January 2017

An Outlander family tree

A wee treat if you are an Outlander fan - I've just found that an Outlander family tree is available at http://content.randomhouse.com/assets/9780440246442/view.php?id=ohb001, as part of the extended ebook content for the eighth book in the series, Written in My Own Heart's Blood. It can be downloaded in PDF format from the link.


Outlander starts off as a fantasy time travel series involving an English nurse who mysteriously travels back in time through a stone circle near Inverness to the year just prior to the 1745 Jacobite Rising in Scotland. It is currently being produced as a television series, and just last night I finished watching the last episode of the second series on Amazon Prime. It is unfortunate that a series that is providing Scotland such worldwide attention has still yet to be broadcast terrestrially in our own country, despite being filmed here and set here, but if you have yet to see it, it is well worth getting it on DVD/Blu-Ray, or watching it on Amazon. It is of course a fantasy series - and has occasional hiccups on the historical front! - but I have yet to meet a genie that hasn't become a fan.

My three times great gran was a Fraser from Inverness, Janet or Jessie Fraser, who lived from about 1816 to 8 MAY 1860. Sadly she committed suicide by throwing herself into the Caledonian Canal, following the death of her own daughter, who tragically died whilst giving birth. Janet was buried in an unmarked grave, and had no parental details recorded on her death record, making her a current brick wall in my research. I still have a few threads to pull on, however, so haven't given up the ghost yet - I'll let you know in due course if I find a connection to Lallybroch...! :)

Incidentally, if you want to take a look at the real family tree of Fraser of Lovat, there are plenty of good references online - see https://archive.org/stream/historicalaccoun1825ande#page/62/mode/2up for example.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Tuesday 3 January 2017

Plans to commemorate Passchendaele centenary

From the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (www.cwgc.org), an announcement of plans to commemorate the centenary of Passchendaele:

They called it Passchendaele: Government unveils plans to mark centenary of The Third Battle of Ypres
4,000 tickets available to attend centenary commemorations

Descendants of those who fought at the Third Battle of Ypres will be invited to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission(CWGC) Tyne Cot Cemetery in Belgium to mark the centenary of the Battle of Passchendaele, the Culture Secretary Karen Bradley announced today, 3 January, 2017.

Opening the public ballot for tickets, she revealed the Government’s plans to mark both the centenary of Passchendaele on 31 July 2017 and the four years of war on the Ypres salient.

The commemoration of the Third Battle of Ypres, commonly known as Passchendaele, will start with a traditional Last Post Ceremony at the CWGC Menin Gate in Ypres (also known as Ieper) on the eve of the centenary, 30 July. The ceremony will give thanks to those who have remembered the British and Commonwealth involvement and sacrifices every evening in peacetime since 1928.

It will be followed by a series of live performances, open to thousands in Ypres’ rebuilt Market Square, which tell the story of the Battle. Images and film will also be projected onto the town’s famous Cloth Hall.

On 31 July 2017, the centenary of the first day of the Third Battle of Ypres, the focus will shift to the 12,000 graves and 35,000 names on the Memorial Wall to the Missing at the CWGC Tyne Cot cemetery, which bears witness to the ferocious battle.

CWGC Director General, Victoria Wallace commented:

“The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is honoured that two of our most visited sites in Ypres will be hosting the UK Government events, marking the final resting place and formal place of commemoration of so many thousands of British and Commonwealth servicemen who died on the Ypres salient during four years of fighting. We hope those attending and watching will take the time to see more of our cemeteries in Flanders Fields after the events are over.”

Descendants wanting to honour their relatives where they fought and died can:
  • Attend the ceremony at Market Square Ypres on 30 July 2017 for an evening of live performance and music with image and film projected onto the Cloth Hall, rebuilt from rubble.
  • Apply for tickets to the commemoration at CWGC Tyne Cot on 31 July 2017.
  • Enter a sub-ballot for a very limited number of places at the CWGC Menin Gate.

The public ballot is for tickets to attend the commemorative event at CWGC Tyne Cot Cemetery on 31 July 2017. The 4,000 tickets will be allocated in pairs, free of charge. Descendants can apply online at www.passchendaele100.org before 24 February 2017.

Those wishing to be at Market Square on Sunday 30 July 2017 can also register their interest in attending in order to receive regular updates and further information about attending the events.

While the Somme holds a powerful place in the national psyche today, during the First World War, Passchendaele and Ypres were household names. The battlefield is closely associated with terrible fighting conditions, and was the first time poison gas was used in battle on the Western Front. The story of Joey the War Horse, was set in this part of the Western Front. And Harry Patch, who became known as the Last Tommy, was conscripted and fought at Passchendaele.

The event will also be shown live on large screens in the Market Square at Ypres and at the Zonnebeke Chateau Grounds, so that those not able to secure a ticket will still be able to attend the public event on 30th July, and watch the Tyne Cot event on 31 July.

The Centenary of Passchendaele, the Third Battle of Ypres is a key part of the UK Government’s four-year programme to commemorate the First World W
ar. The Government will be working closely with its delivery partner, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, as well as local partners in Belgium, such as the city of Ypres, the community of Zonnebeke, Passendale and the Westtoer Province of West-Flanders to commemorate the centenary of the First World War in the Flanders Fields region.

Fighting commenced on the Ypres Salient between British and German forces in 1914, and continued throughout the war. The Battle was the first major British offensive on the Ypres Salient. The ferocity and horror of the battle is encapsulated in Siegfried Sassoon’s famous line: “I died in hell - They called it Passchendaele”.

Belgian General Commissioner for World War One Commemoration, Paul Breyne said:

"The Belgian Government is deeply committed in bringing support for the commemoration of this historical event of exceptional magnitude. It is for the Belgian people and the Belgian Government of utmost importance to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom and peace. We are looking forward to welcoming those British citizens and visitors from other nations who will travel to Belgium to pay tribute to those who fought with dedication and bravery, a hundred years ago, in this devastating battle.”

(With thanks to the CWGC)

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Monday 2 January 2017

FamilySearch encourages your own story to be written

FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org) has launched a new project to encourage folk to write up their own stories, through a project called #52Stories. Here's a brief summary:


Each week in 2017, FamilySearch, the world’s largest genealogical organization, will publish topic questions designed to trigger your memories. You just need to focus on the topic and write a response.

It doesn’t matter if you write a few paragraphs, a single page, or several pages. You can write in a journal or in a document on your computer, or you can make a video or audio recording. When 2017 concludes, you will have 52 stories about your life to enhance your personal history.

“This 2017 personal history challenge, called the #52Stories project, is an expanded version of a similar, very successful challenge offered by FamilySearch four years ago,” said Wendy Smedley, FamilySearch project manager for social media. “This year, however, instead of having a list of only 52 questions, the writer can choose his or her 52 questions from a list of 144 questions.”

You don’t have to look far for a great series of memory triggers. The #52Stories Project has divided the year into 12 themes, from “Goals & Achievements” to “Education & School” to “Holidays & Traditions,” providing 12 different questions for each theme. That’s a total of 144 questions, giving you plenty of options to choose from as you build your library of #52stories. The questions are available for download by theme on 12 colorful pages, and you’ll also see a different question highlighted each week on Instagram (@FamilySearch) and the FamilySearch Facebook Page.

January’s theme is goals and achievements. Sample questions include:
  • What goals are you actively working toward right now?
  • What was the greatest achievement of your life?
  • What is something you taught yourself to do without help from anyone else?
  • What role has failure played in your efforts to achieve your goals?

For the full press release, please visit http://media.familysearch.org/write-your-life-story-in-2017-familysearch-52stories-project-will-make-your-task-easier/.

COMMENT: I am very much of the school that couldn't care less about the size of your family tree, it's the quality of the history which you wish to pass on that counts. And if there is one story that many family historians fail to record, it is their very own. This is something I realised many years ago, and sought to address it since both by keeping a diary (with occasional gaps!), but also by writing an account of my childhood for my kids, which I keep dipping into and updating every so often, as I remember more, or am reminded of past events. This initiative by FamilySearch is a great idea to help you achieve similar, providing a focus to get you started. You don't have to be Shakespeare, Burns or Chaucer, and by all means, hang the grammar squad - just put pen to paper and tell it like it is, or was! You may well find that you are as interesting, if not more, than some of the ancestors who came before ye, and just as important in the bigger picture!

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Sunday 1 January 2017

National Archives book sale

The National Archives in England (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk) is currently holding a sale on books, with up to 70% discount on several titles. For a full description of what's on offer, please visit http://bookshop.nationalarchives.gov.uk/11/Bargains-and-offers.

Note that if you spend more than £25, postage and packing is free.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.