RIP Origins.net

The following message has been sent out by FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk), which acquired the Origins platform in June 2014 (see http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/findmypast-acquires-originsnet.html).

Changes to origins.net

This message is to inform you that over the next couple of days, Origins.net will be closing down. We want to reassure you that all of the records formerly available on Origins can now be found on FindmyPast.

Visit FindmyPast for more information and to continue your family history journey.

Thanks,

The FindmyPast team

And with that, one of the pioneering web platforms of the modern genealogical internet age makes its way into the night towards the great unknown. From a Scottish point of view, Origins was the first site to present much of the data now available on the ScotlandsPeople platform, and it was on Origins that Griffiths Valuation was first presented online, not to mention many English and Welsh probate indexes. The data held by the site is now available on FindmyPast and ScotlandsPeople, but not the Origins experience.

RIP Origins.net

Chris

For details on my latest book Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, and my other 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.

FindmyPast acquires Origins.net

It's truly the end of an era. The Origins Network (www.origins.net) will no longer be an independent data vendor - the following has just been announced by FindmyPast:

FINDMYPAST BUYS ORIGINS.NET

London, UK, June 17, 2014. Findmypast.co.uk, the leading British family history company, announced today that it has bought Origins.net, one of the early pioneers of online records.

The first company to set up a pay-as you-go model for online family history records, Origins.net specialises in unusual and often hard to find British and Irish records. Its many early records include rare marriage indexes, apprentices and poor law records. Another key strength is its National Wills Index, which, combined with collections currently on Findmypast and those in development, will provide the largest online resource for UK wills and probate material.

Origins will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Findmypast. Ian Galbraith, founder of Origins, will continue to work with Findmypast on collection development. The extensive record sets from Origins will be brought into Findmypast over the next few months and the Origins website will continue to run as usual.

Elaine Collins, Partnership Director of Findmypast said: “We are delighted to bring Origins and its founder, Ian Galbraith, into the Findmypast group of family history brands. By joining together, we are able to offer customers the most comprehensive collection of British and Irish online records. This rich collection will help descendants of early North American settlers to bridge the gap to the old country, as well as anyone with UK ancestry looking to delve beyond 19th and 20th century records.”

Ian Galbraith, founder of Origins, said: “The partnership with Findmypast makes perfect sense for both companies and their customers. We have had a long association and together we can offer a broader family history experience and help people to fill in the blanks on the family tree and enrich their family story.”

COMMENT: A huge thanks has to go to Ian Galbraith from many of us north of the border, and indeed across the British Isles, for Origins was the site that really kick-started the whole online genealogy records revolution in Scotland, and I would argue, Britain, when in 1997 it launched an online index to birth, marriage and death records from the General Register Office for Scotland, in partnership with that body, called Scots Origins. When the English 1901 census was first launched, somewhat disastrously, by the National Archives at Kew, Scots Origins already had two Scottish censuses online and available. However, a few years later the company lost out on the contract to continue running the Scots Origins site to Brightsolid, which then replaced the service with its own ScotlandsPeople facility, which continues to this day.

Despite a short lived look up service for records at the GROS in Scotland, the company's Scottish connection was soon radically curtailed. Two other wings which developed, however, British Origins and Irish Origins, soon flourished, despite their ups and downs. Partnering with the Society of Genealogists and Eneclann to bring further material online, some of that content was later removed and placed on FindmyPast, though its National Wills Index is still going from strength to strength, as well as its other English and Irish offerings.

FindmyPast has mentioned that Origins' collections will be integrated into its offerings 'over the next few months', and that the Origins site 'will continue to run as usual', though for how long is now perhaps anybody's guess.

Finally, in tribute to the original site, which was a Godsend in the days when whilst working at the BBC I could not get to the GROS on Mondays to Fridays, and which is one hundred per cent responsible for luring me into changing my career in due course (!), here's a wee blast from the past, courtesy of the Internet Archive (www.archive.org):

(With thanks to Myko Clelland)

Chris

Now available for UK research is the new second edition of the best selling Tracing Your Family History on the Internet: A Guide for Family Historians, whilst my new book British and Irish Newspapers is also now out. And FindmyPast - please reinstate the original Scottish census citations on your new site.

Northamptonshire Hearth Tax Abstracts 1673-1674

From Origins Network (www.origins.net):

Northamptonshire Hearth Tax Abstracts 1673-1674 on British Origins

A major census substitute resource for local and family historians

Hearth Tax returns of the second half of the 17th century are a major census substitute resource for local and family historians, providing lists of names midway between the period of surname formation in the Middle Ages and the present day.

This collection includes all legible details relating to over 22,500 individuals found in the original Hearth Tax lists 1673–1674 for the whole of Northamptonshire

Why use Hearth Tax records?

Hearth Tax records can provide firm evidence of a family’s residence at a certain place in time. For those seeking lost ancestors the distribution of a surname in a specific area may be determined very easily and the location of a particular family quickly revealed. It is also invaluable when researching a specific place, undertaking house history, population movements, patterns of employment, and early modern local government jurisdictions.

The number of hearths in a household is also a clue to a family’s wealth and status.

History of the Hearth Tax
With a need to raise revenue after the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the restoration of Charles II as King, it was decided in 1662 to levy hearth money (or chimney money). This was a property tax on buildings worth more than 20 shillings a year in rent. The number of hearths, fires and stoves there were in a building calculated the tax. However there were some exemptions. For instance, people who received poor relief did not have to pay hearth tax. Some industrial buildings were exempt but not forges, locksmiths or bakers’ ovens.

The tax, which was collected twice yearly – (on Lady Day and Michaelmas Day) - was 2 shillings per hearth per year. It was a very unpopular tax because the tax commissioners had for the first time the right to come into the home - to count the hearths. Attempts to avoid paying by blocking up a chimney could, if discovered, be rewarded with a doubling of the tax.

It was also a very inefficient tax. During the lifetime of the tax some of the collecting was farmed out to private individuals who all took their cut and it therefore simply did not raise enough money. The tax was eventually dropped in 1689.

The tax was collected according to the administrative units of the time, namely county, hundred and constablery or township, which may or may not be the same as the parish. In the cities, towns and boroughs the constables or sub-collectors often worked according to wards whose boundaries again may or may not be the same as those of the parish.

Search Northamptonshire Hearth Tax Abstracts 1673-1674 http://www.origins.net/BritishOrigins/Search/Census/NHTAX/BOSearch_Northants_HTax.aspx

(With thanks to Maggie Loughran)

Chris

Now available for UK research is the new second edition of the best selling Tracing Your Family History on the Internet: A Guide for Family Historians. And for those wishing to take Scottish ancestral research a bit further, my next Pharos course, Scotland 1750-1850: Beyond the Old Parish Records, commences May 14th 2014.

Devon wills index extended on Origins

The National Wills Index on Origins (www.origins.net) has increased its Devon wills coverage from the originally released data set last October of some 132,540 entries from 1312-1891, to well over 300,000 records from 1164-1992.

Alan Stewart has the full story on his Grow Your Own Family Tree blog at http://growyourownfamilytree.wordpress.com/2014/04/10/records-added-to-online-devon-will-index/.

(With thanks to Alan)

Chris

Time to find your inner Irish...! All the best online Irish genealogy resources can be found through my book Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet - in print and ebook formats. "Very useful, makes me wish I was Irish!" - Saint Patrick, patron saint.

Irish Origins St Patrick's Day offers

From Origins (www.origins.net):

Celebrate St. Patrick's Day with Origins.net

Access Irish Wills Index 1484-1858 FREE, plus, 36% discount off Irish Origins monthly subscriptions.

This Irish Wills Index 1484-1858 contains over 102,000 names compiled from records found at the National Archives of Ireland. It is only concerned with records that survive in more than index form, i.e. where original documents, copies, transcripts, abstracts or extracts exist.

Although the vast majority of Ireland's testamentary records were lost in the destruction of the Public Record Office of Ireland (PROI) in 1922, staff at the PROI (now the National Archives of Ireland) have spent many years trying to recover from that loss, and today there are thousands of testamentary records again, although they are not always easy to find.

This index lists records at the National Archives of Ireland that are not simply an index. In other words, there is a document worth looking at behind every index entry. Each index entry contains the name of the person leaving a will, or being covered by a grant of probate or administration. It also contains their address, sometimes their occupation, and the place where the document was proved (i.e. a diocesan or the Prerogative court). The index also contains the names of the executors for almost half the entries, along with their addresses. In essence this index contains all the information contained in the National Archives finding aids (i.e. card catalogues, typed lists, and original summaries).

Search and Access Irish Wills Index 1484-1858 FREE this St. Patrick's Day www.origins.net/IrishOrigins/Search/Wills/IrishWills/IOSearchWills.aspx

Free access will run from Monday 17 March 2014, 00:01, until Tuesday 18 March 2014, 08:00 GMT.

Irish Origins St. Patrick's Day Subscription Offer - 36% discount!

Irish research has its own very special challenges. Let Irish Origins help you uncover your past. Access nearly 6 million Irish genealogy records including: Censuses, Wills, Directories, Burials, Marriages, Electoral registers, Passenger lists, Military records, and rare publications.

St. Patrick's Day Offer: Access Irish Origins for 1 month for the price of 72 hour access - only £6.
Valid until 24th March 2014.

Step 1: Choose Irish Origins Monthly from our subscription packages.
Step 2: Enter Promotional Code StPatrick2014 at Sign up or Checkout.

Sign up to Irish Origins Monthly Subscription for only £6 www.origins.net/signup-info.aspx

(With thanks to Maggie Loughran)

Chris

Time to find your inner Irish...! All the best online Irish genealogy resources can be found through my book Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet - in print and ebook formats. "Very useful, makes me wish I was Irish!" - Saint Patrick, patron saint.

English and Welsh 1891 census joins Origins

From Origins (www.origins.net):

England and Wales 1891 Census comes to Origins.net

Origins.net now includes a full index to and digitised images of the original 1891 Census records for all counties in England and Wales. The 1891 Census includes the personal details of over 29,002,525 individuals and provides a snapshot in time for all households including any servants, lodgers, or visitors. For each person present in each household on the 5th April 1891 details are given of their names, ages, address, occupations, relationship to head of household and place of birth.

Census records can be used not only to further your search for ancestors, but also to broaden your knowledge of the wider family or your community, supplementing information found in other sources. Geographic mobility can be easily tracked through the given birthplaces, and social mobility through addresses and occupations and open up other avenues for research. The census records are searchable by name, age, parish and county.

Search England & Wales 1891 Census: www.origins.net/BritishOrigins/Search/Census/1891/BOSearchC1891.aspx

The 1881 Census will be added to Origins.net in the next 3 months, and the 1851 shortly after, to cover the full range 1841-1901

(With thanks to Maggie Loughran)

Chris

My latest genealogy books are Tracing Your Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), Discover Scottish Civil Registration Records, and Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet. My next Pharos course is Scottish Research Online, which commences Feb 27th 2014, 5 weeks, price £45.99.

Free access to York Marriage Bonds and Allegations Index

From Origins (www.origins.net):

Search and access York Marriage Bonds and Allegations Index totally free for the whole of Valentines Day

This Index to The Dean and Chapter of York's Marriage Bonds and Allegations (Applications for marriage without Banns), covers the years 1613 to 1839 and contains over 150,000 marriage licences (over 300,000 names). The Archbishop of York granted marriage licences for the Diocese of York and the remainder of the Northern province when more than one jurisdiction was involved. Although the Index mainly covers places in Yorkshire it also includes 5 parishes in Lancashire, 6 parishes in Northumberland and 94 parishes in Nottinghamshire.

Information in Origins index includes: Names, Place of residence, Age, Date and place of Marriage.

Information in the actual marriage bond or allegation can also include: the couple's names, date on which the bond was taken out, name of bondsmen, occupations, ages, parishes and the church named for the ceremony.

Digital copies of the original documents can be ordered from The Borthwick Institute for Archives via the index. Original documents are provided as digitised images, sent by email.

Search York Marriage Bonds and Allegations Index 1613-1839 http://www.origins.net/BritishOrigins/Search/Marriage/Yorkshire/BOSearchYMB.aspx

Free access will run from Friday 14 February 2014, 00:01, until Saturday 15 February 2014, 08:00 GMT.

(With thanks to Maggie Loughran)

Chris

My latest genealogy books are Tracing Your Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), Discover Scottish Civil Registration Records, and Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet. My next Pharos course is Scottish Research Online, which commences Feb 27th 2014, 5 weeks, price £45.99.

York Peculiars original probate documents from Origins.net

From Origins (www.origins.net):

York Peculiars original probate documents available on Origins.net

Obtaining copies of the original probate documents for York Peculiars Probate Collection 1383-1857 has now been made easier and cheaper.

Most of the York Peculiars Probate records held at The Borthwick Institute for Archives have been digitised, and National Wills Index subscribers can now purchase the original documents images using Pay per View credits and view these images directly from the index records.

This collection makes available, exclusively on the National Wills Index, a comprehensive index to over 25,000 wills and other probate documents proved in the 54 Peculiar Courts of the Province of York between 1383 and 1857.

The index notes which documents are currently available online for this ongoing digitalization project. Where documents have not yet been digitised, copies can be ordered online, which will then be emailed as digitised images.

The York Peculiars Probate index usually provides the following information:

Testator's last name and first name
Occupation
Places associated with person
Date
Document type
Court concerned
Borthwick Institute reference

Search York Peculiars Probate Collection 1383-1857 http://secure-web.cisco.com/auth=11fcmI1fae7rDBp-we7U6ld3s0GfyQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.origins.net%2FNationalWills%2FSearch%2Fyorkpeculiars%2FNWSearch_York_Peculiars.aspx

Free search on all Origins.net collections
Our free search facility allows researchers to search any collection without the initial need to register or subscribe. You can either search the whole site or specific collections and only need to pay if you want to view the records. Start your free searching at: http://secure-web.cisco.com/auth=11pM_DoaXZBifhyeh3Gu8lpC95xhJO&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.origins.net%2FWelcome.aspx

(With thanks to Maggie Loughran)

Chris

My latest genealogy books are Tracing Your Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), Discover Scottish Civil Registration Records, and Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet. My next Pharos course is Scottish Research Online, which commences Feb 27th 2014, 5 weeks, price £45.99.

1901 English and Welsh census on Origins.net

From Origins (www.origins.net):

England and Wales 1901 Census comes to Origins.net

Origins.net now includes a full index to and digitised images of the original 1901 Census records for all counties in England and Wales. The 1901 Census includes the personal details of 32,461,105 individuals and provides a snapshot in time for all households including any servants, lodgers, or visitors. For each person present in each household on the night of 31 March/1 April 1901 details are given of their names, ages, address, occupations, relationship to head of household and place of birth.
Census records can be used not only to further your search for ancestors, but also to broaden your knowledge of the wider family or your community, supplementing information found in other sources. Geographic mobility can be easily tracked through the given birthplaces, and social mobility through addresses and occupations and open up other avenues for research. The census records are searchable by name, age, parish and county.

Search England & Wales 1901 Census: http://www.origins.net/BritishOrigins/Search/Census/1901/BOSearchC1901.aspx

Census & census substitute collections on British Origins
England & Wales 1871 Census
England & Wales 1861 Census
England & Wales 1841 Census
Association Oath Rolls: City of London Livery Companies 1696
Association Oath Rolls: Surrey 1695
Somerset Electoral Registers 1832-1914
Search all Census & Census Substitutes on British Origins: http://www.origins.net/BritishOrigins/Search/Census/BOSearchCensus.aspx

The 1891 and 1881 Censuses will be added to Origins.net in the next 3 months, and the 1851 shortly after, to cover the full range 1841-1901

(With thanks to Maggie Loughran)

Chris

My latest genealogy books are Tracing Your Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), Discover Scottish Civil Registration Records, and Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet. My next Pharos course is Scottish Research Online, which commences Feb 27th 2014, 5 weeks, price £45.99.

London Poor Law Abstracts 1581-1899 online at Origins

Abridged press release from Origins (www.origins.net):

London Poor Law Abstracts 1581-1899 online

Abstracts of over 22,400 London Poor Law records, covering over 300 years and 66 City of London parishes, now online at Origins.net.

Poor Law records are a major source for those interested in both local and family history and touched almost every aspect of the lives of those who had fallen on hard times or whose predicaments drew them to the attention of the parish officers.

The parish officer / overseer of the poor was expected when necessary, to feed, clothe, house and find work for his poor inhabitants. He apprenticed pauper children and diligently pursued the fathers of illegitimate children born in the parish. But ultimately he protected his parish from the claims of paupers who were not his responsibility.

Thus these records can allow you to prove relationships between both members of the same family and between families and places. A large number of families lived a hand to mouth existence, illness or death of the main wage earner or a bad harvest or other disaster could cause a family to become dependent upon poor relief. Poor Law records can provide the means to help you to follow these 'pauper' ancestors through their trials and tribulations.

These poor law abstracts (summaries) contain a complete summary of the details contained within each entry and includes all details including names and places plus incidental information such as relationships and occupations where found in the original documents.

Search London Poor Law Abstracts 1581-1899: www.origins.net/BritishOrigins/Search/General/LondonPoorLaw/BOSearchLondonPoorLaw.aspx

(With thanks to Maggie Loughran)

Chris

My latest book, Discover Scottish Civil Registration Records, is now available from http://www.gould.com.au (print) and http://www.gen-ebooks.com/unlock-the-past.html (ebook), whilst Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet is available at http://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/Tracing-Your-Irish-History-on-the-Internet/p/3889/.

Devon Wills Project indexes online

From Origins (www.origins.net)

Devon Wills Project 1312-1891 fully searchable for FREE online

Index to over 132,540 and testamentary documents online.
This index has been created as a combined project by Origins.net and the Devon Wills Project (a collaborative project involving the Devon Family History Society, the Devon Record Office, GENUKI/Devon, and the Plymouth and West Devon Record Office) to compile a consolidated index of pre-1858 Devon wills, administrations, inventories, etc.

Many Devon probate records were destroyed by enemy action, when the Probate Registry was destroyed in the bombing during the Exeter Blitz in 1942. Thus the aim of this index is to create a finding-aid to enable the researcher to determine what probate materials were originally recorded and most importantly what documents have survived and where they can be located.

The current index includes over 132,540 records of probate documents compiled from the following sources. Updates to this collection will follow soon.

• Archdeaconry Court of Barnstaple Devon Wills and Administrations Index 1563-1858
• Calendar of Devon and Cornwall Wills and Administrations, proved in the court of the Principal Registry of the Bishop of Exeter, 1559-1799, and of Devon only, proved in the Court of the Archdeaconry of Exeter, 1540-1799 (BRS Vol. 35)
• Calendar of Devon and Cornwall Wills and Administrations, proved in the Consistory Court of the Bishop of Exeter, 1532-1800 (BRS Vol. 46)

Search Devon Wills Project 1312-1891 for FREE at http://www.origins.net/NationalWills/Search/devon/searchdevonwills.aspx

(With thanks to Maggie Loughran)

Chris

My latest book, Discover Scottish Civil Registration Records, is now available from http://www.gould.com.au (print) and http://www.gen-ebooks.com/unlock-the-past.html (ebook), whilst Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet is available at http://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/Tracing-Your-Irish-History-on-the-Internet/p/3889/. My next Pharos Scottish course, Scotland 1750-1850: Beyond the OPRs, starts Nov 13th - see http://pharostutors.com.

Origins loses Burkes Peerage

The Burke's Peerage website, which was developed by, and operated by Origins.net since 2005 on behalf of Burke's Peerage (UK) Ltd, has been sold to another owner. The current website at www.burkes-peerage.co.uk will therefore cease to operate from September 1st 2013.

In an email to subscribers, Origins.net has apologised for the short notice and has intimated that it has received no communication from the new operator as to its future plans. Those with current subscriptions will be refunded a proportion of their subscription fee within the next two weeks.

Dr Ian Galbraith of Origins.net has added that "normal practice when subscription services terminate is for the "old" service provider to be permitted to provide service until the end of the subscription period, so that current subscription agreements can be honoured. But in this case the new owners are not allowing this" - the company has also apologised and stated that the new owner's intentions "has left us as much in the dark as you".

The full statement from Origins.net is online at www.burkes-peerage.co.uk

(With thanks to Caroline Gurney)

Chris

My new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, is now available from Pen and Sword. My Scottish land and church records ebooks are available at http://www.gen-ebooks.com/unlock-the-past.html, whilst my next Pharos Scottish course, Scottish Research Online, starts Sep 4th - see http://pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102. Time to smash a few brick walls...!

Lichfield Consistory Court Wills Index 1650-1700

From Origins (www.origins.net):

Lichfield Consistory Court Wills Index 1650-1700 - Index to over 28,300 wills and testamentary documents online.

Between 1541 and 1836 the diocese of Lichfield and Coventry was extensive, covering the entire counties of Staffordshire and Derbyshire, north Shropshire and north Warwickshire. The bishop of Lichfield and Coventry had jurisdiction over probate in this area, which was exercised through the Lichfield Consistory Court.

The index to over 28,300 wills and testamentary documents recorded in the Lichfield Consistory Court 1650-1700 is now available to search on the National Wills Index. This index - British Record Society Volume 125 - includes names of testator / testatrix, occupation and place of abode, which will help you to locate the original document at Lichfield Record Office. This compliments Lichfield Wills and Administrations 1516-1652 which already form part of the National Wills Index.

See full details on Lichfield Consistory Court Wills 1650-1700 at www.origins.net/help/aboutNWI-LICH.aspx

(With thanks to Maggie Greene at Origins)

UPDATE: Received the following tweet from @AtcherleyOrgUK - "Lichfield wills are also indexed - from 1650 to 1750 - at staffsnameindexes.org.uk/StartPage.aspx where copies can be ordered online"

Chris

My new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, is now available from Pen and Sword. My Scottish land and church records ebooks are available at http://www.gen-ebooks.com/unlock-the-past.html, whilst my next Pharos Scottish course, Scottish Research Online, starts Sep 4th - see http://pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102. Time to smash a few brick walls...!

Oxfordshire wills and Irish directories

Some 30,000 Oxfordshire wills from 1516-1857 are available online at Origins (www.origins.net) - the search is free but images are by pay-per-view access.

For further details visit www.origins.net/help/aboutNWI-oxf.aspx

Also coming soon from Origins, the following Irish directories:

1636 A New Almanack and Prognostication for the year of our Lord by Patrick True
1684 Bourk's Almanack by John Bourke
1684 A New Almanack for the year of our Lord by Patrick Plunket
1684 Principal Inhabitants of Dublin 1684
1685 Vox Urania or an Almanack for the year Human Redemption by John Whalley
1686 Sydereus Nuncius or an Ephemeris for the year Human Redemption by John Whalley
1698 Advice from the Stars by John Whalley
1729-1753 The Gentleman and Citizen's Almanack (Watson's)
1751-1752 Dublin Directory (Wilson's)
1753 Dublin Directory (Wilson's) and The English Registry
1754-1758 The Gentleman and Citizen's Almanack (Watson's)
1759-1760 The Gentleman and Citizen's Almanack (Watson's) and The English Registry
1760 Dublin Directory (Wilson's)
1761-1762 The Gentleman and Citizen's Almanack (Watson's) and The English Registry and Wilson's Dublin Directory
1763-1768 The Gentleman and Citizen's Almanack (Watson's) and The English Registry and Wilson's Dublin Directory, with map
1769-1772 The Gentleman and Citizen's Almanack (Watson's) and The English Registry and Wilson's Dublin Directory
1773-1801 The Gentleman and Citizen's Almanack (Watson's) and The English Registry and Wilson's Dublin Directory, with map
1802-1837 Treble Almanack: The Gentleman and Citizen's Almanack (Watson's), The English Registry and Wilson's Dublin Directory, with map
1838-1844 Treble Almanack: The Gentleman and Citizen's Almanack (Watson's), The English Registry and The Post Office Annual Directory

(With thanks to Maggie Greene)

Chris

My new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, is now available from Pen and Sword. My Scottish land and church records ebooks are available at http://www.gen-ebooks.com/unlock-the-past.html, whilst my next Pharos Scottish course, Scottish Research Online, starts Sep 4th - see http://pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102. Time to smash a few brick walls...!

Oxfordshire wills on Origins Network

From Origins Network (www.origins.net)

Oxford Wills 1516-1857: Free indexes! View the images online

Wills can provide an extraordinary amount of information about your forebears, but most people probably have never had the chance to delve into these documents to see what they can learn. But now Oxfordshire wills from the 16th century up to 1858 - over 30,000 of them - are available online, at www.origins.net.

Simply Register or Login to search the Indexes and uncover some of your family’s hidden gems.

What can the original wills tell me?
Prior to census returns, meaning before 1841, wills can be the best source of family relationship information. The list of what you may find is impressive.

• Names of heirs and beneficiaries
• Relationships
• Places of residence and origin of testators
• Places of residence of the heirs and beneficiaries
• Properties and whether freehold, copyhold or lease
• Occupations
• Debts owed and due
• Business arrangements
• Executors
• Witnesses
• Inventories of personal property
• Personal comments about heirs and beneficiaries

The potential value of this information in furthering your research is high, particularly if more commonly consulted records such as parish registers have drawn a blank. The information in wills goes beyond immediate family, many wills name nieces and nephews, godchildren, husbands of sisters and wives of brothers and distant kin. Usually the relationships are defined and the place of residence may be stated.

Accessing the records:
Digitisation of these documents is now completed, and these images can be purchased with Pay per View credits and viewed directly from the index records.

Simply Register or Login to search the Indexes and uncover some of your family’s hidden gems.

(With thanks to Jane Hewitt)

Chris

My new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, is now available from Pen and Sword. For my other genealogy books, please visit  http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html; whilst for my online Scottish based genealogy courses please visit the Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd site.

Chester Wills now available on the National Wills Index

From Origins (www.origins.net):

Chester Wills Collection 1519-1940 available on the National Wills Index!

Search the Index FREE, then purchase and view original documents online.

Over 130,000 probate records held at Cheshire Record Office have been digitised, and these images can be purchased with Pay per View credits and viewed directly from the index records. A portion of the probate records held at Lancashire Record Office have been digitised and can also be purchased with Pay per View credits and viewed directly from the index records.

Simply Register or Login to search the indexes and uncover some of your family’s hidden gems.

(With thanks to Jane Hewitt)

Chris

My new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, is now available from Pen and Sword. For my other genealogy books, please visit  http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html; whilst for my online Scottish based genealogy courses please visit the Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd site.

Origins: new London burials - and free access to Irish directories

New London burials on Origins (www.origins.net) - and free access to its Irish directories for Easter:

NEW South London Burials Index on British Origins

Over 389,000 South London (Surrey) burials for the period 1545-1905, with a handful (18) up to 1957 plus one as late as 1980, are available for searching on www.origins.net.

The South London Burials Index contains surname and forename, age where given in the register, year of burial, parish and additional info / notes, which may include information such as addresses, parents names and other personal details.

South London Burials Index is part of British Origins Greater London Burials 1545-1909 which indexes over 558,000 burials in the City of London, Middlesex and South London (metropolitan Surrey) parishes.

The indexes are covered by two searches:

Middlesex & City of London Burials Index 1560-1909
South London Burials Index 1545-1905.
Records include last name, first name, age, year of burial, place name, and sometimes additional info such as parent names or addresses.


Explore your Irish ancestry this Easter Weekend

Access ALL Irish Directories FREE Good Friday - Easter Monday inclusive

Only a handful of truly national Irish directories are available. The Irish Origins directories form the largest online collection, and include the most comprehensive Irish directories available. A vital research tool, and a must for those interested in Ireland shortly before enumeration of the 1901 Census of Ireland. The collection will grow into a comprehensive collection of over 400 directories and almanacs pertaining to Dublin, Ireland 1636 to 1900. The collection currently has 69 directories from 1824-1900. These directories are covered by two searches:

Dublin Directories 1824-1894
Directories of Ireland 1845-1900

Register or Login to access the directories FREE from 29 March to midnight (GMT) 1 April 2013

(With thanks to Jane Hewitt)

Chris

My new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, is now available from Pen and Sword. For my other genealogy books, please visit  http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html; whilst for my online Scottish based genealogy courses please visit the Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd site.

Cantwell's Irish website updated

Ian Cantwell has been in touch to say that he has updated his website at www.iancantwell.com. The genealogy page has some indexes and material relating to three Irish collections collated by his father and made available on Irish Origins, FindmyPast Ireland, and on CD from Eneclann. The collections are:

• Brian J. Cantwell's Memorials of the Dead
• Memorials of the Dead, Counties Galway & Mayo (Western Seabord)
• 1798 Rebellion, Claimants and Surrenders

Two additional indexes are

• Annual Registers - Centenarians, 1758-94
• Indexes to The Spirit of Irish Wit (1811)

(With thanks to Ian Cantwell)

Chris

My new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, is now available from Pen and Sword. For my other genealogy books, please visit  http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html; whilst for my online Scottish based genealogy courses please visit the Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd site.

Free access to Irish directories on Origins

I've just picked up from Family Tree magazine's Twitter feed that the Origins Network (www.origins.net) is providing access for free to its Irish Directories collections, from March 16th-18th, as a St Paddy's Day promotion. I've also noticed on the site that its Dublin directories collection has been extended now from 1845-1900 - this collection is going to continue in due course up to 1990, so a seriously major resource for Irish research.

To access the collections you will need to register with the Origins Network site, and then look for them in the Irish Origins section of the website. Have fun!

UPDATE: Official announcement

Try FREE access to the largest online collection of Irish Directories until 18 March 2013!

Now available: Thom's Irish Almanac and Official Directory for 1845 - 1900

Directories are an excellent resource, supplying information not readily available elsewhere; they are often the only source that actually states someone’s exact occupation. A will may describe them as a merchant, whereas the directory will identify them as an ironmonger, grocer or wine merchant etc. Precise address and parish of residence are also commonly given. The only classes absent from these directories are the most disadvantaged: small tenant-farmers, landless labourers and servants.

Giving you an insight into life in Ireland in past times, these Irish directories contain a tremendous amount of information regarding the local day-to-day activities and services for those residing in the Emerald Isles. Included are postal and coach times, lists of local government and church officers, festivals and fairs, state of the weather, rising and setting of the sun, time of high-water, the highways between the towns of Ireland.

More information and details of available directories

Simply Register or Login to search records and uncover some of your family’s hidden gems.

(With thanks to @familytreemaguk and Jane Hewitt at Origins)

Chris

My new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, is now available from Pen and Sword. For my other genealogy books, please visit  http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html; whilst for my online Scottish based genealogy courses please visit the Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd site.

Oxfordshire wills added to Origins Network

The Origins Network (www.origins.net) has added a substantial new collections of surviving probate records of the bishop and archdeacon of Oxford, from 1516 to 1857, and from the Oxfordshire Peculiars, (1547-1856) - including images of the original documents. The records have been sourced from Oxfordshire Record Office - a full breakdown of what is contained is available at www.origins.net/help/aboutNWI-oxf.aspx.

Reader Wendy Archer alerted me to the development, and also asks that I mention the following:

Oxfordshire FHS www.ofhs.org.uk has built up a library of will transcripts at http://wills.oxfordshirefhs.org.uk/ donated by volunteer transcribers, with currently 4,542 testator names on-line, and almost 54,000 name mentions.

So two great options!

(With thanks to Wendy)

Chris

My new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, is now available from Pen and Sword. For my other genealogy books, please visit  http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html; whilst for my online Scottish based genealogy courses please visit the Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd site.