Videos of Irish Farming Life

I've just stumbled across an absolutely brilliant Facebook page, entitled Videos of Irish Farming Life, available at https://www.facebook.com/Irishfarmingvideos. It carries videos demonstrating traditional farming techniques in Ireland, as recorded by John Thompson in Garvagh, which can also be purchased on DVD from www.thompsontrading.co.uk/farming.

I've learned more about flax scutching (part of the linen manufacturing process) in five minutes from this site than I have from years of reading about it! Well worth subscribing to.

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102. For my genealogy guide books, visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html, whilst details of my research service are at www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk. Further content is also published daily on The GENES Blog Facebook page at www.facebook.com/BritishGENES.

The penalties for non-registration of Scottish births

Whenever we carry out our family history research, do we actually stop and think about the mechanisms employed behind the creation of the very records we need? Do we understand the law behind their collation, and the penalties for non-compliance?

The following is taken from my book Discover Scottish Civil Registration Records, and explains the penalties surrounding the non-compliance of birth registration in Scotland from January 1855, following the advent of civil registration in the country:

If the birth was not registered within twenty one days, the local registrar would contact the person with primary care for the child, either by letter or in person, to try to compel them to turn up to carry out the procedure. Registrars were permitted to do this twice, before a three month period had expired. If the parents or primary carers had left the registration district, it was possible for a nurse or a doctor to be allowed to act as the informant instead.

If after three months following the birth there was still no registration, the county Sheriff would then be informed, as would the local Procurator Fiscal (the Scottish public prosecutor). The Sheriff would issue a warrant compelling attendance, whilst the Fiscal would commence with prosecution proceedings. The following is an example of such a case as reported in the Dundee Courier on July 4th 1855.

WARNING – REGISTRATION ACT

On Monday, Robert Mann, agricultural labourer, West Newbigging, New Vigeans, appeared before Mr Sheriff Henderson, to answer to a complaint preferred against him at the instance of the Procurator Fiscal, for a contravention of the new Registration Act, he having failed within the statutory period of twenty-one days to give the requisite information to the registrar of his district, relative to the birth of a female child of which his wife was delivered on 14th May last, whereby he had incurred a penalty not exceeding twenty shillings. The Sheriff convicted him on his confession, and adjudged him to pay a fine of ten shillings in name of modified penalty, besides two pounds ten shillings of expenses.

If it got as far as being forced to appear before the Sheriff, as in the example above, the parent or carer would have to make a subsequent declaration about the child's birth, which the Sheriff would then allow to be recorded in the birth register – although in such cases a District Examiner was required to formally sign the register entry, rather than a registrar. If after three months a parent or guardian tried to register a birth without the authority of the Sheriff, he or she could be fined up to £5.


This is just a small part of the law surrounding birth registration. Are you aware, for example, that from January 1864, immediately upon the registration of a child's birth, parents in Scotland were compelled to vaccinate their children (and that this requirement lasted until 1948)? And that many didn't and were prosecuted? Do you know how the law treated the subject of illegitimacy, or how the results of paternity claims in the courts were registered? Do you understand how the law dealt with the registration of stillbirths, or how the process of adoption was catered for? Or why some births are registered twice in separate districts within twenty one days of a child's birth?

These are just questions for birth registration - but what about marriages, divorces, deaths, overseas registration, and more?

Discover Scottish Civil Registration Records can be purchased from My History in Yorkshire, Gould Genealogy in Australia, Maia's Books in the USA and Global Genealogy in Canada - details are available at http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html. A cheaper ebook edition is also available for download online at https://www.gen-ebooks.com/discover-scottish-civil-registration-records.html. I hope it helps with your understanding of what you are truly looking at when you use the records of Scottish civil regsitration, and other British registration systems, covered in the second part of the book!

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102. For my genealogy guide books, visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html, whilst details of my research service are at www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk. Further content is also published daily on The GENES Blog Facebook page at www.facebook.com/BritishGENES.

Men and Arms: The Ulster Settlers, c.1630 back in print

From the Ulster Historical Foundation (www.ancestryireland.com):

Men and Arms: The Ulster Settlers, c.1630, the bestselling volume in the critically R.J. Hunter Collection is now back in print and available to purchase on Booksireland at £19.99.

Men and Arms is essentially the first ‘census’ of English and Scottish settlers in the nine counties of Ulster in the early seventeenth century. The edition includes extensive additional information on the settlers drawn from a variety of contemporary sources.

For more information go to: www.booksireland.org.uk/store/all-departments/men-arms-ulster-settlers-c-1630

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

Latest FindmyPast releases

This week's FindmyPast (www.findmypast.com) collection releases/updates:

Philadelphia Roman Catholic Parish Baptisms
Over 556,000 records have been added to our collection of Philadelphia Roman Catholic Baptisms. Each record includes both a transcript and an image of the original document. Records will typically list your ancestor's name, parent's names, and residence.

Philadelphia Roman Catholic Parish Marriages
Explore more than 278,000 new additions to our collection of Philadelphia Catholic Marriages. Each record consists of a transcript and image of your ancestor's entry in an original marriage register from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. As well as details such as the couple's names, marriage date and location, you may also find details relating to the couples' baptisms.

Philadelphia Roman Catholic Parish Registers Browse
Over 65,000 additional records have been added to this collection. In this browse-only search, you can navigate through 456 sacramental registers in their entirety to discover all there is learn about your ancestor's connections to the church.

Staffordshire Monumental Inscriptions
Staffordshire Monumental Inscriptions contains over 127,000 records covering 168 churchyards, burial grounds, and cemeteries throughout the county. Monumental inscriptions are a valuable resource The collection consists of transcripts created by the Birmingham & Midland Society for Genealogy & Heraldry.

Yorkshire Memorial Inscriptions
Over 4,000 new records have been added to our collection of Yorkshire Monumental Inscriptions. The new additions cover Greasbrough Town Lane Cemetery and Wentworth Holy Trinity churchyard. The entire collection now contains over 374,000 records.

Monmouthshire Burials
Over 2,000 additional records have been added to Monmouthshire Burials 1727-1987. The new additions cover three Monmouthshire parishes: Llandegfedd, Llandewi Fach and Llanfrecha.

Irish Newspapers
Over 1.6 million articles and four brand new titles have been added to our collection of historic Irish Newspapers. New titles added this month include:

• Limerick Chronicle
• Mid-Ulster Mail
• Irish Independent
• Northern Constitution

Further details and links to the collections can be found at https://blog.findmypast.co.uk/findmypast-friday-july-28th-2466242717.html.

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

Save Northamptonshire County Record Office Facebook group

In light of developments in Northamptonshire this week, a new Facebook group has been set up called Save Northamptonshire County Record Office, located at https://www.facebook.com/groups/513111562360866/. The group is a closed group, so if you wish to join click on the Join Group button and await admin approval to participate. Established earlier today, it already has almost fifty members.

Elsewhere, the petition set up just over a day ago by Dr Mary Ann Lund from the University of Leicester, asking Northamptonshire County Council to think again on its access plans for the county archive, has already gained over 1300 signatures. You can sign the petition at https://www.change.org/p/northamptonshire-county-council-northamptonshire-county-council-don-t-charge-for-visiting-archives.

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

TheGenealogist adds directories from 1921

From TheGenealogist (www.thegenealogist.co.uk):

TheGenealogist introduces a new census substitute for the year 1921

TheGenealogist has just released a new circa 1921 resource, covering 23 counties, with over one million records. These form part of the Trade, Residential & Telephone record sets on TheGenealogist covering a period currently not served by a census.

The fully transcribed, searchable records released today will allow researchers to:

● search on forename, surname and profession
● search by street, town and county
● look for a business name
● discover your ancestors’ addresses
● find professions listed

These 1921 directories cover the North, South, East and the West of England, the Channel Islands and as far up the country as Aberdeen. If you have ancestors who you are tracing in 1921, this new release from TheGenealogist adds a fantastic name rich resource to your family history research armoury.

Searching for householders within these 23 newly released county directories returns a good number of names from that time, including many that are still famous today. For example, in these new records we can find Harry Gordon Selfridge, founder of Selfridge's department store; Jesse Boot, who was behind the chemist chain that still carries his name; Winnie-the-Pooh’s author A. A. Milne; J.M. Barrie, who created the characters of Peter Pan and Wendy; plus the celebrated economist, John Maynard Keynes. You can read more about finding them in the records in our featured article at: https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2017/addressing-where-they-were-in-1921-571/

The areas covered in this release include:
● Aberdeen
● Bath
● Berkshire
● Bradford and Surrounding Districts
● Bristol and Suburberbs
● Brixton and Clapham
● Buckinghamshire
● Cambridgeshire
● Channel Islands
● Cheshire
● Cumberland
● Dorset
● Durham
● Hessle
● Hull
● Lincolnshire
● London
● London County Suburbs
● Middlesbrough
● Norfolk
● Northumberland
● Oxfordshire
● Somerset
● Suffolk
● Westmorland
● Wiltshire
● Worcestershire
● Yorkshire

We will be adding further counties in the coming months.

(With thanks to Nick Thorne)

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

RAF and London records join Ancestry

Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) has released three more major collections, two for London, and one for those with RAF members in their family.

UK, Royal Air Force Airmen Records, 1918-1940
http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=61400
Source: AIR 79 Royal Air Force Airmen Records, 1918-1940. The National Archives of the UK, Kew, Surrey, England.

This collection comprises records of Airmen serving in the Royal Air Force during the years 1918 up to, and including, 1940.

The Royal Air Force (RAF) was founded in 1918, after the uniting of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). The records are arranged by service number and include the following details, where available:

• Name
• Date of Birth
• Age
• Place of Birth
• Date of Service
• Service Number
• Name of Mother
• Name of Father
• Name of Spouse

UPDATE: Sadly, you need a subscription to Fold3.com to view the images - I don't get the point of this. If it is not on Ancestry, why advertise that it is? Only the indexes are available on Ancestry. Disappointing.


London, England, School Admissions and Discharges, 1912-1918
http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=61572
Source: School Admission and Discharge Registers, London Metropolitan Archives, London, England.

This collection comprises School Admission and Discharges in London for the years 1912 to 1918. It contains details of just under 100,000 students from schools across London. In 1833, Parliament started to provide money for the construction of schools for poor children, although it was still largely a private affair. Mandatory schooling was a local decision until 1870, when children were required to attend from age 5 to 10. By 1918, education was required up to the age of 14.

These records are made up of lists of children who were admitted to and discharged from schools. When education was required, children could be discharged from their schooling if they were needed to work to help support the family. The records vary by school and some are more detailed than others. The records include (where available):

• Admission Date
• Name
• Parents’ names
• Parents’ occupation
• Address
• Birth date
• Age

London, England, Poor Law School District Registers, 1852-1918
http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=61452
Source: Poor Law School District Registers, London Metropolitan Archives, London, England.

This collection comprises admission and discharges for Poor Law school districts in London for the years 1852 to 1918. It contains details of more than 219,000 students from District schools across London. After 1834, the Poor Law Commission required each union to set up a properly constituted residential school for pauper children with a salaried schoolmaster or schoolmistress. Pauper children were to receive both a basic education and industrial training to make them fit for employment. The 1844 Poor Law Amendment Act and 1848 District Schools Act gave the Poor Law Commissioners powers to combine parishes and unions into school districts which would establish a large residential school outside London for the care and education of all pauper children from the areas concerned. Seven Poor Law School Districts were formed in the metropolitan area.

These records are made up of lists of children who were admitted to and discharged from schools. When education was required, children could be discharged from their schooling if they were needed to work to help support the family. The records vary by school and some are more detailed than others. The records include (where available):

• Admission Date
• Discharge Date
• Name
• Gender
• School
• Address
• Birth date
• Age

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

Northamptonshire Record Office fees - the archive sector responds

The following statement has been issued by John Chambers, Chief Executive of the Archives and Records Association (UK & Ireland) (www.archives.org.uk), with regards to the shocking developments concerning records access at Northamptonshire Record Office (see http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2017/07/northamptonshire-holds-firm-on-archive.html):

The news of the drastic service reductions at Northamptonshire Record Office in England this week came as a surprise to the Archives and Records Association. In short the county council has reduced the ‘free public access’ element of the service to 12 hours a week (three mornings), proposing to charge over £30 an hour for ‘research support’ outside these hours. Usually we get to hear about threatened cuts and can take some pre-emptive action but on this occasion we were not aware of these proposals. We will now do what we can to challenge the cuts in free public access. The proposed charges are likely to cost more to administer than they ever raise in revenue. There are bound to be questions about the sustainability of the archive service in Northamptonshire, its status as an official Place of Deposit and the county’s ability to retain custody of part of its local heritage over the long term.

We have contacted The National Archives about the Northamptonshire situation. As TNA is the regulator of Places of Deposit in England and Wales, we will urge it to seek to reverse what has happened. We will be contacting both the Leader and Chief Executive of Northamptonshire County Council and others to urge the same.

Separately, members will know that the ARA has been working on the sustainability and resilience of local government record offices for the last year and commissioned a report from Elizabeth Oxborrow-Cowan. The ARA Board considered and approved the report at its annual planning day last month and is developing an action plan based on the recommendations in the report. We will publish the findings after Conference in the autumn. Evidently, the need for us to lead this work going forward has become more urgent than ever.

COMMENT: It seems clear that this move by Northamptonshire County Council is out of step with what the archive sector itself considers best practice.

A reminder that the petition opposing the development is online at https://www.change.org/p/northamptonshire-county-council-northamptonshire-county-council-don-t-charge-for-visiting-archives

(With thanks to Lorraine Logan and John Chambers)

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

Northamptonshire holds firm on archive fees

Northamptonshire County Council has issued the following statement in response to criticism of its appalling plans to drastically reduce free access to its county archive, and to charge £31.50 an hour for the remainder of the week (see http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2017/07/northamptonshire-council-to-impose.html):

STATEMENT ON NORTHAMPTONSHIRE ARCHIVES AND HERITAGE SERVICE OPENING HOURS

Northamptonshire County Council is responsible for making sure that limited and reducing local government resources are used as effectively as possible. In the current financial climate, it has no option but to look at how best to remodel service delivery with reduced budgets.

The Archives Service changes to opening hours that will be implemented from 21 August show a commitment to maintaining free public access to archives. The service will continue to be free for on-site visitors from 9am to 1pm Tuesday to Thursday and one Saturday morning each month. 

Customers have said that they most need and want online access to resources; numbers visiting the service in person have fallen dramatically in the past two years. This has been taken into account in this revision to opening hours and the intention is that outside the core opening hours, the service’s limited staff resources will be redirected to the work of digitisation and developing on-line access to archives.

In order to mitigate the impact on research of the changes, the service has in fact extended the times during which people can choose to visit.

These additional hours are chargeable but are offered in order to support researchers and not otherwise.

This is a bold step in difficult times and we seek your support as we work to ensure that researchers can enjoy and learn from our rich collections now and into the future.


COMMENT: This is quite classically a response looking at the accounts and not the point of the service. It is an appalling assault on the right to free access to the county's heritage, already paid for by local taxation. Will they be charging for access to their libraries next? What alternatives were considered? Where was the consultation?

If this plan continues, it may well incentivise other archives to do the same, and utterly devastate the provision for both genealogical and academic research. A petition opposing the plans and calling for a rethink has been set up by Dr. Mary Ann Lund from the University of Leicester. If you do one thing today, please seriously consider signing the petition - it is available at https://www.change.org/p/northamptonshire-county-council-northamptonshire-county-council-don-t-charge-for-visiting-archives.

Here is just one of many comments on the petition:

Archives should be for all. As a specialist curator for the National Trust and as Chairman of the Furniture History Society, both charities, charging scholars and ratepayers for access to historic documents seems a retrograde step, which, if implemented, would set a regrettable precedent. It would go against the wishes of donors and depositors of archives (the National Trust is a major depositor of archives across the country) betraying the natural assumption that access to historic documents would be available to all without charge. Charging over £30 an hour would deter many scholars and younger researchers. It will tarnish the reputation of Northampton.

This really has got the makings of a devastating development for our sector, whether for amateurs or professionals requiring access to archive records. Please sign.

(With thanks to Wendy Archer via email)

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

AncestryDNA 25% kit discount offer

AncestryDNA is offering a 25% discount on all new DNA testing kits before August 3rd 2017.

(Also at https://youtu.be/ns8gOcOQ9Go)

For further details visit https://www.ancestry.co.uk/dna/

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

Northamptonshire Council to impose outrageous archive charges

There has been what can only be described as a fairly outrageous development in England this week with regard to access to archives, in that Northamptonshire County Council has decided to restrict free access to its archives collections from August 21st to Tuesday-Thursday monrings, and a handful Saturdays throughout the year - and to impose a whopping sized charge of £31.50 per hour for access at other times.

Here is the announcement from the archive's Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/NorthamptonshireArchives/:

Important Information: From 21 August 2017, opening times for free access to the Archives Service will be as follows:

• Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday: 9am to 1pm
• First Saturday of the month only, April - October: 9am to 4pm

The times during which researchers can visit the Archives Service are being increased. Appointments can now be booked, in advance and for a fee, to view original documents during the following times. The current fee is £31.50 per hour.

• Monday & Friday: 10am - 1pm and 2pm - 4pm
• Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday: 2pm - 4pm

1-1 personal consultations can also be booked in advance for an hourly fee during the following times:

• Monday to Friday: 9am - 4pm

A subsequent post made today (Wednesday) states "A further statement about the changes to opening hours will be made tomorrow."

Such a charges regime will surely be damaging to the archive - who is going to pay £31.50 an hour to view its holdings? Clearly a MAJOR rethink is in order here.

A petition condeming the announcement and asking the archive to go home and think again is available at https://www.change.org/p/northamptonshire-county-council-northamptonshire-county-council-don-t-charge-for-visiting-archives - please do sign. If this sets a precedent, it will cause unlimited damage to the field of family history research, and I would venture, hit academic research hard also.

(With thanks to Vivienne Dunstan via Facebook)

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

Plant a Family Tree software released

I've received the following press release from Miavy Systems:

Miavy Systems has announced the launch of its online family tree builder - Plant a Family Tree (https://www.plantafamilytree.com)

Miavy Systems is the developer of the existing My Family Tree app for Mac OS, and is looking to expand their offerings of genealogical software with this web based online family tree builder.

The Plant a Family Tree builder is targeted towards users looking for a simple and fun editor which is not over-complicated by the in-depth record keeping features which are standard with other genealogical software.

The tool is ideal for beginner genealogists and parents looking to get their children involved in researching and building a beautiful family tree.

The online builder is available free of charge to all users.

Paid accounts are also available at $4.99 monthly for users who wish to store their family trees online to continue editing them later.

Company Bio

Miavy Systems
Founded: 2010
Developer of several apps for Mac OS including "My Family Tree"

Contact:
support@miavy.com
abdulqadir@miavy.com

(With thanks to Abdulqadir Rashik)

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

The Bailie's Great Adventure in Elgin

From Moray and Nairn Family History Society:

Council Corruption

Documents have come to light, revealing council corruption on a grand scale: votes bought and sold; kidnapping; attacks on properties; and, mob rule.

Read all about it (free online) in a new publication from Moray & Nairn Family History Society on their website at http://www.morayandnairnfhs.co.uk/moray.asp, in The Bailie’s Great Adventure.

In the early part of the 19th century, general elections were very different to what we know today. In the town of Elgin, for example, there were only 17 voters. Little wonder then that
the greatest efforts were made to capture the votes of these people. 

This publication describes some of the events surrounding the general election called at the
death of King George III in 1820. It follows the life of one of the bailies of Elgin, Francis
Taylor, during the election period in March that year.

(With thanks to Doug Stewart)

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

Dundee cemeteries

In response to a previous post I had a query from a reader called Ravey Hites, which I accidentally deleted instead of publishing, so apologies Ravey!

The query was with regards to the existence of Dundee cemeteries - you'll find maps of the city's cemeteries at http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/environment/cemeterymaps, and some burial transcriptions at http://www.fdca.org.uk/ and https://www.scottish-monumental-inscriptions.com/collections/angus-area.

Hope that helps!

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

QUB's Ordnance Survey Memoirs of Ireland website

Have you used the Ordnance Survey Memoirs for Irish research? They provide a great contextual backdrop to the parishes in the north of Ireland in early to mid 19th century Ireland.

Queens University Belfast previously had a great page detailing their contents, but this now seems to be dead - however, I have found it preserved on the Internet Archive at https://web.archive.org/web/20140403234906/http://www.qub.ac.uk/schools/IrishStudiesGateway/Research/PastResearch/OrdnanceSurveyMemoirs/OrdnanceSurveyMemoirsbyCounty/.

They are a great resource - the volumes themselves can be purchased form the Ulster Historical Foundation at https://www.ancestryireland.com/latest-news/ordnance-survey-memoirs-now-available/.

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

FamilySearch courses and webinars in August

FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org) is hosting the following online classes in August 2017:

SALT LAKE CITY, UT (25 July 2017), The Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, has announced its free family history classes and webinars for August 2017. Participants can attend in person or online. Many of the August classes teach how to research records in Great Britain, China, and Prussian Poland, to understand DNA, and to use documents and photos to preserve memories. Some classes are also in Spanish. See the full schedule below. Mark your calendars for events you want to join so you don't forget. Find and share this announcement online in the FamilySearch Newsroom.

Online classes are noted on the schedule as webinars. Webinar attendees need to click the link next to the class title at the scheduled date and time to attend the class online. Those attending in person simply go to the room noted. Invite your family and friends. All class times are in mountain standard time (MST).

Most sessions are recorded and can be viewed at a later date at Family History Library classes and webinars.

DATE / TIME	CLASS (SKILL LEVEL)	WEBINAR | ROOM
Wed 2 Aug,11:00 AM	Ask Your United States Research Question (Beginner)	Webinar | MF Lab
Sat, 5 Aug,1:00 PM	Los libros de la vida (Beginner)	Webinar | B1 Lab
Mon, 7 Aug,10:00 AM	Using the FamilySearch Catalog Effectively (Beginner)	Webinar | MF Lab
Tue, 8 Aug,11:00 AM	Starting Family Tree: Navigating, Adding a Person, Standardizing Views, and Printing (Intermediate)	Webinar | MF Lab
Tue, 8 Aug,1:00 PM	British Case Study (Beginner)	Webinar | B2 Lab
Tue, 8 Aug,3:00 PM	Genetic Genealogy: An Introduction to DNA (Beginner)	Webinar | MF Lab
Thur, 10 Aug, 3:00 PM	DNA: I’ve Tested; Now What? (Intermediate)	Webinar | MF Lab
Mon, 14 Aug, 10:00 AM	Using the FamilySearch Catalog Effectively (Beginner)	Webinar | MF Lab
Tue, 15 Aug,11:00 AM	Starting Family Tree: Preserving Memories Using Photos and Documents (Intermediate)	Webinar | MF Lab
Thur, 17 Aug, 1:00 PM	Tracing Ancestry in English Census Records (Beginner)	Webinar | B2 Lab
Sat, 19 Aug,1:00 PM	La tecnología de Ancestry (para miembros SUD) (Intermediate)	Webinar | B1 Lab
Mon, 21 Aug, 10:00 AM	Using the FamilySearch Catalog Effectively (Beginner)	Webinar | 2N Lab
Mon, 21 Aug, 1:00 PM	Researching in Prussian Poland (Beginner)	Webinar | B1 Lab
Tue, 22 Aug,10:00 AM	FamilySearch Wiki (Beginner)	Webinar | MF Lab
Tue, 22 Aug,1:00 PM	Kissing Cousins or Not? Understanding British Generations, Kith, Kin, and Relationships (Intermediate)	Webinar | B2 Lab
Tue, 22 Aug,3:00 PM	Finding Records of Chinese Americans (Beginner)	Webinar | MF Lab
Thur, 24 Aug, 10:00 AM	Using Metasuche or Metasearch on Genealogy.net (Beginner)	Webinar | MF Lab
Thur, 24 Aug, 1:00 PM	Genealogical Treasures at findmypast.co.uk (Intermediate)	Webinar | B2 Lab
Thur, 24 Aug, 3:00 PM	Organizing Your Family History Research (Beginner)	Webinar | 2N Lab
Mon, 28 Aug, 10:00 AM	Using the FamilySearch Catalog Effectively (Beginner)	Webinar | MF Lab
Tue, 29 Aug,10:00 AM	Family Tree: Research Help and Searching the Records (Beginner)	Webinar | MF Lab
Thur, 31 Aug, 1:00 PM	Your British/Irish Research Questions Answered (Beginner)	Webinar | B2 Lab

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

How to deal with a disastrous Scottish naming tradition!

It's the middle of summer, and a bit quiet here in Scotland just now, so here's a wee advert to remind you of the importance of those all important historic naming conventions - and how to deal with them when they don't suit your taste!

(Also available at https://youtu.be/ibuLgsVcQUY)

For those not in the know, Irn-Bru is Scotland's national soft drink, and there has been a decades long tradition of humorous adverts for the product!

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

Scottish Monumental Inscriptions website revamped

The Scottish Monumental Inscriptions website has been revamped at https://www.scottish-monumental-inscriptions.com.

The site provides images and transcriptions of monumental inscriptions from graveyards across Scotland. As well as new CDs being added over the next week, there are also additional links and general information now available on the site. Amongst the new additions is a page listing family history researchers who might be able to help.

Please note that as part of the change, if you were registered on the old site, you will need to re-register for the new version.

(With thanks to Helen Grant)

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

Latest British Newspaper Archive additions

The following newspapers have been added to the British Newspaper Archive (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk) over the last 30 days:

Irish Independent
1898, 1903-1908

Southern Echo
1891-1896, 1909-1910

Limerick Chronicle
1832-1868

Sheffield Daily Telegraph
1915, 1918-1932

Mid-Ulster Mail
1891-1892, 1894-1898, 1900-1909

Fulham Chronicle
1914-1918, 1939-1940, 1942, 1944-1945

Herts & Cambs Reporter & Royston Crow
1898

East Anglian Daily Times
1894, 1905

Torquay Times, and South Devon Advertiser
1869-1871, 1873-1892, 1894-1895, 1897-1910

Hampstead & Highgate Express
1888, 1900-1910

Knaresborough Post
1868-1878, 1880-1898, 1900-1905, 1912

Galloway Gazette
1891-1892, 1895, 1952

Forfar Dispatch
1912-1952

Kidderminster Times and Advertiser for Bewdley & Stourport
1874, 1900

Londonderry Sentinel
1885, 1925

Carluke and Lanark Gazette
1906-1913, 1915-1951, 1953

Buchan Observer and East Aberdeenshire Advertiser
1863-1917

Brechin Advertiser
1879-1898, 1925-1957

Northern Constitution
1877-1899

Southend Standard and Essex Weekly Advertiser
1873-1875, 1878, 1880-1896, 1898-1905, 1907-1909

Wharfedale & Airedale Observer
1880-1881, 1884-1885, 1888-1889, 1899-1907, 1909-1910

Kilburn Times
1876, 1881-1882, 1885, 1892, 1901-1909

Isle of Wight County Press and South of England Reporter
1884-1887, 1889, 1900-1902

Eastern Evening News
1882-1883, 1885, 1900-1904

Ilford Recorder
1905

Islington Gazette
1908-1910

Boston Guardian
1938

Northwich Guardian
1861-1879, 1882-1896, 1898-1910

Nottingham Journal
1893

Lancashire Evening Post
1953-1957

Shields Daily News
1875-1876, 1879

Brighton Gazette
1877, 1889

Ballymena Weekly Telegraph
1896-1902

Weston-super-Mare Gazette, and General Advertiser
1901-1902

Staffordshire Chronicle
1887-1892, 1894-1896

Yarmouth Independent
1895, 1938

Skegness Standard
1922

Wigan Observer and District Advertiser
1890, 1902-1910, 1912-1918

Rothesay Chronicle
1875-1877, 1879-1882, 1884-1892

Glasgow Evening Post
1884, 1892-1893, 1895

Catholic Standard
1933-1936, 1938-1949, 1951-1957

Kentish Mercury
1872-1884, 1898-1910

Montrose, Arbroath and Brechin review; and Forfar and Kincardineshire advertiser.
1935-1951, 1953-1957

Ballymena Observer
1951-1957

Watford Observer
1879-1886, 1898-1900

Irish Society (Dublin)
1919

Nelson Leader
1929, 1931-1937, 1940-1949, 1951, 1953-1957

Yarmouth Mercury
1880

Hackney and Kingsland Gazette
1902-1909

Bradford Daily Telegraph
1878, 1897

Hexham Courant
1877

(Source: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/titles/recently-added/30days)

Use subscription discount code BNAJULY30 to get a 30% discount from a subscription - offer ends July 23rd 2017.

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.

Controversial BritainsDNA company passes into history

BritainsDNA has ceased trading. Hallelujah.

The DNA testing company, which led some to believe that a new field of 'genetic astrology' was being invented, traded under several names, including BritainsDNA, ScotlandsDNA, and YorkshireDNA. Whilst its DNA results themselves were not contentious, the company was never a stranger to controversy in terms of how those results were interpreted, with outlandish claims about who people were descended from. For a while it seemed to be the darling of the British media sector, not least because of the close connections to the sector that one of its founders had with the industry. At one point it even claimed to have found 'Eve's grandson' in Scotland, and nine people related to the Queen of Sheba (see http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/bbc-story-featuring-britainsdna.html).

Effectively challenging many of the company's more extraordinary claims was University College London, which set up a page to document and refute some of the nonsense at https://www.ucl.ac.uk/mace-lab/genetic-ancestry, whilst industry commentators such as Buzzfeed News's science correspondent even ran a headline stating "This DNA Ancestry Company Is Telling Its Customers “Mostly Total Bollocks” About Their Ancestors".

The full announcement of the company's final demise is told at http://notjustsheepandrugby.blogspot.co.uk/2017/07/britainsdna-thing-of-past.html.

(With thanks to Debbie Kennett via Facebook)

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Sept 11th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102.
For details on my Scottish & Irish genealogy guide books, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.
For my genealogy research service, please visit http://www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk.