Don't always assume with database sites!

Whilst working on the second edition of my Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet book today (cooking along nicely!), I came across a timely reminder that what you think a genealogy website may have to offer you by way of resources has every means to surprise you, by throwing up something completely new.

Eddie's Extracts (www.eddiesextracts.com) is Eddie Connelly's go to website for many Northern Irish resources, most notably intimations extracts from many newspapers in the north of Ireland. But there are a few surprises in there also. For example, in Eddie's Mariner Extracts section, you will find entries from the Register of Deceased Seamen from 1911 to 1924/25 for the Scottish islands of Orkney and Shetland. In his Roll of Honour section, where the Presbyterian Church in Ireland Rolls of Honour for the two world wars are located, as well as many rolls for Northern Irish based congregations, you will also find the The Register of the War Dead (Dublin City and County), the Kilkenny Great War Memorial, and Roll of Honour for St. Nicholas Collegiate Church, Galway, amongst other southern Irish based collections.

You'll find the same thing on other sites. On ScotlandsPeople (www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk), for example, the Scottish Roman Catholic records collections also include material from the Aldershot based Bishopric of the Forces, for events featuring Roman Catholics from British bases worldwide - no Scottish connection required!

And on the English and Welsh General Register Office site (https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/default.asp), you're not only able to order up records of English and Welsh birth, marriage and death records from 1837 onwards, but also many British overseas records, including various Army registers dating back to the 1760s. The records are separately indexed on Findmypast, FamilyRelatives (free) and TheGenealogist, but for a detailed overview of them, the best place to go is to a cached version of an article on FindmyPast's old help site, the 'Knowledge Base', located at http://tinyurl.com/overseasbmds, preserved by the Internet Archive a few years ago.

The moral of the story? Fully EXPLORE the sites you are using!

You'll never know quite what you might find if you don't... :)

Chris

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.

FamilyRelatives back online

A few weeks ago I blogged a post about the FamilyRelatives website (www.familyrelatives.com), in response to a concerned reader who had been unable to access the site for many weeks. I managed to track down the site owner and was informed that the site would be back up in due course - see http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/familyrelatives-will-be-back.html.

I have just carried out a spot check and have discovered that it does now seem to be back up and running. There is a pop up about various new features, but as I am not a regular user I cannot tell if these are new - there seems to be nothing in its news, blog or twitter feeds.

Nevertheless, it is now back up and running by the looks of it - including free access to the overseas British BMD indexes, for records held at the GRO in Souhport, England.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including my recently released Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html. My Pinterest account is at https://www.pinterest.com/chrismpaton/.

FamilyRelatives will be back

A few days ago I blogged that a reader had informed me that the genealogy records site Family Relatives (www.familyrelatives.com) had seemingly disappeared from the internet. At that point, I posted a short guide on how to access the overseas GRO records, that I have personally found of use on the site, at alternative locations (see http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/familyrelativescom-and-gro-overseas-bmd.html). Since then, I have also been trying to find out what has happened to the site itself, and have now obtained an answer.

I've managed to contact a representative from the Jersey based company, and have just had a phone conversation with him to ask what has been happening with the platform. I have been told the following:

I have been informed that the site's online storage servers were enduring some major technical problems, and that in the period leading up to five weeks ago, various users of the site were enduring intermittent access to the records, caused by the fact that the data was stored on several servers which kept going down. The decision was taken about five weeks ago to close it down altogether on a temporary basis, and for a new storage solution to be found and utilised. The site is now being re-hosted on an alternative platform.

I have also been told that it is believed that the site should be back up and running in the next 7-10 days, and that it will be accessible at www.familyrelatives.com as before. Once the site is back online, current subscribers will be contacted to discuss their subscriptions, with a view to possible extensions. It was also stated that the new version of the platform should hopefully have increased search speeds, to improve the user experience.

NB: Please note that I do not work for FamilyRelatives, and I am simply responding to a reader's request to try to find out what has happened to the site...! Hopefully it should be back up and running soon, and that the platform's owners can resolve any queries or issues with subscribers in due course.

(With thanks to FamilyRelatives)

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including my recently released Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html. My Pinterest account is at https://www.pinterest.com/chrismpaton/.

FamilyRelatives.com and GRO overseas BMD records

Thanks to reader Keith Jones for informing me that the FamilyRelatives website at www.familyrelatives.com has been down for several months.

FamilyRelatives had several collections on its site beyond the English and Welsh GRO images and censuses. Whilst I personally rarely used it, it was still a favourite repository to visit for the GRO overseas indexes, which were freely available on the site. These record many events such as army chaplains and other military records and registers, various consular returns, Ionian Island registers, and more. Although administered by the English based GRO, they feature people from across the UK, including citizens from what is now the Republic of Ireland (which was previously in the UK). For example, the marriage of my 3 times great grandmother from Dublin, to a soldier who was born in India to an Irish father, took place in Corfu, and they went on to have kids in Gibraltar and Bermuda, before returning to Ireland - all events are recorded in the overseas indexes and certs.

The site was last cached on the Internet Archive on June 19th 2015 at https://web.archive.org/web/20150619095612/http://www.familyrelatives.com, and its dedicated blog at www.familyrelatives.blogspot.co.uk has not been updated since November of last year. I don't know if it has ceased to trade, or whether it has a technical fault, but if anybody has information on its current status, it would be gratefully received.

NB: I've not used other sites for access to the GRO overseas consular and military birth, marriage and death indexes for quite some time, but I've had a quick look and as far as I can see, they are on TheGenealogist (www.thegenealogist.co.uk) via its Overseas BMDs collection, and FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk), which seems to have the indexes gathered into datasets beginning with British Nationals in the UK part of the site - e.g. British Nationals Armed Forces Births 1761-2005.

Unfortunately, from what I can see, neither site allows searches in individual collections in the way that FamilyRelatives used to (indeed, as FindmyPast used to), so you cannot search for the GRO Ionian Islands Chaplains Returns, for example, as an individual dataset on its own. For an idea of what is included, cached description lists from Family Relatives are accessible at https://web.archive.org/web/20150510092737/http://www.familyrelatives.com/post_search.php?area_id=11.

* UPDATE: Thanks to Nick Thorne from TheGenealogist for flagging up that you can in fact select the individual collections there, via the Section drop down menu once you have accessed the Overseas BMDs item in the BMDs menu (see pic) - this would effectively seem to make TheGenealogist by far the best place online now to be able to control a search within these various GRO collections *

To order original entries from the GRO, obtain the index entry then visit the English based GRO at www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/default.asp. Note that for overseas certificates, you have to use a different search form on the site than those used to obtain English and Welsh BMD certs.

Note that some of the overseas entries for Scots are included on ScotlandsPeople (www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk), within the miscellaneous returns sections.

Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) does not host the same indexes, but does carry various other miscellaneous overseas records, as sourced from the National Archives collections RG32 to RG36. These are available in a collection it calls UK, Foreign and Overseas Registers of British Subjects, 1628-1969, available at http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=1993. The same records are also available via BMDRegisters at www.bmdregisters.co.uk and on TheGenealogist.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including my recently released Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html. My Pinterest account is at https://www.pinterest.com/chrismpaton/.

FamilyRelatives adds 1841-1901 censuses subscription

From FamilyRelatives (www.familyrelatives.com):

We are celebrating the beta launch of the Censuses 1841-1901 and are offering 5,000 Census Subscriptions at a 25%* discount that's an incredible 3 months extra to your 12 month subscription at no extra cost.

That is a fantastic 15 months access for just £29.95 (or less than £2.00 a month). Simply select the Census Subscription on the purchase page and your additional 3 months will be added automatically to you your subscription.

We believe that this offer is unrivaled and is the best value access to the Births, Deaths, Marriages and the 1841-1901 Censuses for England & Wales currently available. You can access all the records on the website with millions of births, deaths, marriages, census, military, parish and international records which are all included in the “Census subscription”.

You must hurry though if you don’t want to miss out and once the first 5,000 Census subscriptions are gone that’s it. Offer is valid for 7 days or when the discounted subscriptions run out.

Enjoy 25% off & also get 3 months extra. Offer is valid for 7 days or when discounted subscription runs out.

NB: This collections contains the English and Welsh censuses, as we
ll as the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. Scotland and Ireland are not included. From what I can see, the Premium Census Subscription also offers all the records available through the Standard subscription (which costs £25 for 12 months access), you just get the censuses as additional content for the £29.95 subscription.

(With thanks to FamilyRelatives)

Chris

For details on my range of genealogy guide books please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html. To commission me for genealogical research, please visit my research site at www.scotlandsgreateststory.co.uk.

Family Relatives offers WW1 infographic

Abridged press release from FamilyRelatives (www.familyrelatives.com):

FamilyRelatives Mark Remembrance Day With Military Infographics & 1 Million Military Records for World War I

As all thoughts turn to remembrance on this year’s hugely significant Armistice Day, leading genealogy and family history site, FamilyRelatives, is urging people to discover more about their military past, using their incredible archive of over 20 million military records. This week marks 100 years since the beginning of the First World War, and FamilyRelatives has more than a million records from this specific time period alone, allowing users more insight than ever before, into their own military lineage.

FamilyRelatives will be commemorating the occasion with the release of a booklet made up of 26 infographics, a totally free download for all visitors to the site. Packed full of fascinating facts about the war and the people who fought in it, the infographics are sure to satisfy the appetite of anyone who has ever wondered whether their relatives played a part in one of the most infamous battles that ever took place.

The infographic is available to download for free to encourage more people to think about their family history in the context of the Great War. The graphics are packed with interesting snippets of information that bring home the reality of the war for so many – for instance, the youngest British soldier to die in World War I is thought to have been just fourteen years old, while the oldest man to die as a result of war wounds was a Lieutenant at the age of sixty-eight. ‘Smith’, ‘Jones’ and ‘Brown’ were the most common surnames of men to die in the war, and 628 of the 1,357 Victoria Crosses that have been awarded throughout history came from World War I.

For more information about FamilyRelatives’ extensive military records, or to search the database, visit the website: www.familyrelatives.com or visit www.familyrelatives.com/infographic_wwi.php to download the free infographic, or to use it for your own website.

(With thanks to Robert Woods)

Chris

My next Scotland 1750-1850: Beyond the Old Parish Records online course starts on November 5th, and runs for 5 weeks, priced at £45.99. Spaces are still available - see http://pharostutors.com/coursedescriptions.php#302

FamilyRelatives sale ends Jan 6th

The Family Relatives (www.familyrelatives.com) sale, with annual membership available for £20, ends on January 6th. The site, which hosts many useful international, British and Irish records collections, has sent out an email with the following update on plans for 2013:

We will be adding over 50 million records over the next 60 days.

Over the course of 2013 we will be adding to our collections:
English collection including parish records
Australian Records
US Military
Divorce Records
Births Marriages and Deaths
Census Records

and much more.

Full details at http://familyrelativesnews.com/CMU-17GGJ-D91GUB2YA2/cr.aspx

Chris

Pre-order my new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, through Pen and Sword (30 April 2013), or purchase early at Who Do You Think You Are Live 2013 in London. For my other genealogy books, please visit  http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html; whilst for online Scottish based genealogy courses please visit the Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd site.

FamilyRelatives Christmas sale

Family Relatives (www.familyrelatives.com) is currently having a Christmas sale with 20% off 12 month subscriptions (down to £20 from £25). The full detail is at http://familyrelativesnews.com/CMU-174OF-D91GUB2YA2/cr.aspx.

As part of he page there is the following on forthcoming records:

Throughout 2013 we will be adding new records including:

• Vital Records (Births, Marriages & Deaths)
• Parish Records
• Military records
• Trade Directories
• Divorce Records
• and so much more...

Chris

Having a Christmas present crisis?! Check out my range of genealogy books at http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html - perfect for the family historian's Christmas stocking...! Also now out - new Kindle edition of Tracing Your Family History on the Internet, from http://tinyurl.com/d3vqtz5

International directories on Family Relatives

Family Relatives (www.familyrelatives.com) has now made the following international trade directories online via an annual subscription:

• Barbados Telephone Directory 1969-1970
• Directory of Swiss Manufacturers and Producers 1937
• Juta's Directory of Cape Town Suburbs & Simon's Town 1904
• Southern Rhodesia Telephone Directory 1958
• Telephone Directory Kenya, July 1962
• Telephone Directory Tanganyika, March 1962
• Telephone Directory Uganda, October 1962

(With thanks to Robert Woods at Family Relatives)

Chris

Scottish Research Online - 5 weeks online Pharos course, £45.99, taught by Chris Paton from 26 SEP 2012 - see www.pharostutors.com
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)

FamilyRelatives.com update

I've just had an email from Robert Woods pointing out some of the changes recently implemented on FamilyRelatives (www.FamilyRelatives.com). The site is one which is always on my radar, but which I just never seem to use much, so Robert's email has prompted me to have another look.

The layout is much improved, there's a new viewer, and for £30 subscription, that's not bad at all for what is there. You can have a look to see for yourself what is there - there's all sorts - but I just thought I'd highlight a couple of things particularly worthy of note.

The first is that the site freely offers access to the overseas GRO indexes, with all sorts available, from army indexes, consular records, Ionian Islands registration, and much more. These have been there for some time, but they are now very easy to locate on a dedicated page at www.familyrelatives.com/post_search.php?area_id=11 - that is a page most definitely worth bookmarking.

There are pages for English, Irish, Scottish and Welsh records, as well as Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the US. But something else that caught my eye is the ROW page (Rest of the World), with some interesting offerings. Here is what can be found there:

• Barbados telephone directory 1969-1970
• Directory of Swiss Manufacturers and Producers 1937
• Juta's directory of Cape Town Suburbs & Simon's Town 1904
• Southern Rhodesia telephone directory 1958
• Telephone Directory Kenya, July 1962
• Telephone Directory Tanganyika, March 1962
• Telephone directory Uganda, october 1962

Definitely useful if you have research to pursue around the Commonwealth.

If you've not looked at the site before, it's definitely worth having a look at.

Chris

Check out my Scotland's Greatest Story research service www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)

FamilyRelatives relaunches with beta site

From FamilyRelatives (www.familyrelatives.com):

This week sees the exciting re-launch of our upgraded and much improved Familyrelatives website - which is in Beta testing.

It is packed with many new features and information to help you discover even more about your family history. Our new ‘at a glance’ layout will enable you to find records easily, going back to the year 1538.

With over 850 million records from more than a dozen countries including Australia, Canada, England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, New Zealand, USA, and the Rest of the World (ROW), we are confident that you will find it useful for filling in those frustrating gaps.

Also remember that you have an enormous and fantastic number of FREE records at your disposal - over 90 million at the last count.

Buy a subscription now and view a range of records including Parish Records, Births, Marriages and Deaths, Military, Trade Directories and so much more being added regularly.

For those on a modest budget, Pay Per View allows members to search specific records and we suggest that you view the PPV tab at the top of the main search page to see the latest additions as well as view over 90 million records in the Free Tab.

To celebrate our improved website we’re offering you a great opportunity - Buy 12 Months Subscription for £20.00 and save 33% - that’s an exceptional saving of £10.00 (down from our usual price of £30.00) and matches our best ever discount. To subscribe, visit www.familyrelatives.com/information/info_detail.php?id=80&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Treequest+Limited&utm_campaign=1550985_33+Percent+off+Sterling&utm_content=PricingPage&dm_i=CMU,X8QX,1GUB2Y,2RCP3,1

We aim to inspire you to start your family history and for those who have already started, we aim to help you refine your research:

• Access all records from over 12 different countries with one affordable subscription
• Receive 12 months Access and save 33% off our normal price (offer open until August 31st)
• Search 850 million records from over a dozen different countries

We are also launching our Social Genealogy suite of products in September. These Social Genealogy Features are uniquely and specifically designed for Familyrelatives and they include:

• Photos – Upload & Share albums at no cost
• Calendar – Create and event & never miss an important occasion
• Access your information – anywhere and anytime – its in the ‘CLOUD’
• Secure – Only share information you want
• Build Your Family Tree – Coming soon

Many changes are taking place on Familyrelatives.com and we hope you will like them. The good news is there are many more changes on the way, so look out for these new changes online or in future newsletters.

(With thanks to FamilyRelatives)

Chris

Check out my Scotland's Greatest Story research service www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
New book: It's Perthshire 1866 - there's been a murder... www.thehistorypress.co.uk/products/The-Mount-Stewart-Murder.aspx (from June 12th 2012)