Back soon folks!

Apologies for the ongoing lack of posting. Having now moved to Irvine, my new internet package does not kick in until next week, so I am saving my phone data for more important things just now, such as my next Pharos course chat session at the weekend.

In the meantime though, amongst all the box unpacking, I have managed to start getting back into some work. Last week I gave a talk to Central Scotland FHS (www.csfhs.org.uk) on tracing Scottish resources prior to 1800, on the night beforte the great migration, which was well received. I then visited Ayrshire Archives (www.ayrshirearchives.org.uk) at the Townhouse in Irvine a couple of days ago to get a sense of local holdings, and yesterday had the pleasure to speak at my former university, the University of Strathclyde, to discuss with the postgraduate students there on the genealogy courses how I make a living as a family historian, emphasising that there are many ways to do so. Following this we had a great meal in Glasgow last night (below) – thanks to Tahitia, Ali, Graham, Linda, Judith and all the students who put up with me!

For more on the genie courses at Strathclyde, visit www.strath.ac.uk/studywithus/centreforlifelonglearning/genealogy.

Blogging services will resume soon!

Chris

Order Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/Tracing-Your-Irish-Family-History-on-the-Internet-Paperback/p/16483. My next Scotland 1750-1850: Beyond the OPRs course starts 4 November 2019 - see https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=302. Further news published daily on The GENES Blog Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

My new blog - The Gaelic Genealogist

And now for something completely different... 😀

For some time now I have been trying to learn Scottish Gaelic (Gàidhlig). I started to learn it initially in Bristol some twenty years ago, after buying a Runrig album and wondering why the Irish was so different in the lyrics (!) - until that point, being a Northern Irish born madman, I had never heard of Scottish Gaelic. Since then I've had all sorts of fun with it, including working for a short stint in the BBC's Gaelic department in Glasgow, but the reality is that living in Largs, there are not a lot of opportunities for me to try to use the language, with it's current heartland being more in the Western Isles. I'm at the point where I am seriously beginning to forget more than I can remember.

One of the most useful things I ever did when I started to learn Gaelic was to keep a diary for a couple of years as a very desperate learner, to try to improve my fluency. I've decided to try to revive that idea now in blog form, by writing about something I know a bit about in a language that I want to increase my proficiency in.

This is not a blog about genealogy in the Western Isles - I have absolutely no ancestral connections that I am aware of to the Hebrides, and Gaelic is a language that should know no boundaries, geographical or otherwise. Instead, it will be a blog about Scottish genealogy, maybe even a little Irish genealogy, based on my own experience with connections to Perthshire, Inverness and Glasgow, where I will try to share a few stories and tips.

I have absolutely no idea if it is a sustainable idea, but God loves a trier - that highest apple has yet to be reached...!

The first post on The Gaelic Genealogist is therefore now live at https://gaelicgenealogist.blogspot.com. If you have an interest in the language, please feel free to follow and comment. All I ask is if that if I have made a dog's dinner of something in the way I have written it, please do drop me a note, or make a comment, about how it should be phrased better. In return, I will try to share what I know about ancestor hunting!

And if you are learning Gaelic, and fancy sharing a story or two, you will find a welcome home on the blog also!

 
Chris

Order Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/Tracing-Your-Irish-Family-History-on-the-Internet-Paperback/p/16483. My next Scottish Research Online course starts 2 September 2019 - see https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102. Further news published daily on The GENES Blog Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Irish Genealogy Projects Archives additions in December 2018

The latest updates to the Irish Genealogy Projects Archives (http://www.igp-web.com/IGPArchives/) sees records for Counties, Clare, Mongahan, Fermanagh, Tipperaray, Donegal, Meath and Waterford go online.

For a breakdown of the new additions, please visit Christina Hunt's blog at https://astheywere.blogspot.com/2019/01/additional-files-to-igp-archives.html.

The added records include church records and gravestone transcriptions.

(Thanks to Christina Hunt)

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.

New blog: Mother Nature’s Tests

From Wayne Shepheard:

Happy New Year!

I wanted to introduce you to my new blogsite titled, Mother Nature’s Tests. The new site is meant primarily for family historians.

Readers will find information about how people and communities were impacted in the past by natural phenomena – or Mother Nature.

I will write blog posts concerning examples of actual events from all over the world, and how families coped with them. Links will be added to websites and articles, including my own, that may assist genealogists looking for specific data about certain areas.

As I have said in the Introduction to my book, “responses to natural phenomena, and how people adapted to environmental changes are part and parcel of the construction of family histories. Physical changes to human habitats through natural causes may have been underlying factors in decisions to move – to find jobs and/or improved living conditions.”

The blog will be an extension to the book and, hopefully encourage genealogists to explore the natural world, especially with respect to the areas in which their ancestors lived and the physical events that occurred during their lifetimes.

Information about how to obtain a copy of my book is described on the new blogsite.

Mother Nature's Tests blogsite can be found at https://mothernaturestests.blogspot.com

I hope you will come and see what the new site is all about.

Wayne Shepheard

(With thanks to Wayne via email)

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.

The GENES Blog update

As some of you may be aware, this last year has seen some very serious challenges within my current domestic situation, that have prompted some changes to my work patterns, including a reduction in blog posting due to time constraints. I'd like to give you all a quick update, however, to reassure you that I haven't gone away, and that I have no intention of doing so!

Since January I have been working as a caseworker within the political arena, a job which initially started on a part-time basis but which due to changed circumstances I have been doing full time since late February, i.e. Mondays to Fridays. This has meant a shift in my genealogy services, most notably with client work, which has been reduced somewhat, although not completely, and in the frequency of my blogging, which readers will note is currently not on a daily basis. I will keep blogging as frequently as I can - not least because The GENES Blog is coming close to reaching 6 MILLION page views!

Whilst I am still doing some client research, there has been little change to my writing and teaching output. My Pharos courses for Scottish research are still available, with a current Scottish Research Online course at the half way stage just now, and the next Scotland 1750-1850: Beyond the OPRs course kicking off on November 5th (see https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=302). I have also just signed a contract to write a quarterly column for an international magazine on Irish genealogy matters, and am happily beavering away with content for our great publications on this side of the pond, including Family Tree magazine and Who Do You Think You Are? magazine. I'm also looking forward to attending the Lanarkshire Family History Fair on October 27th in Motherwell, to help with the Ask the Experts stall there with the Scottish Genealogy Network, and the next PRONI stakeholder forum in Belfast in early December.

But the really exciting development currently under way just now is that I am now working on a second edition of Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet for Pen and Sword. The first edition, published in 2013 is one of my proudest achievements, but almost six years on the online Irish genealogical landscape has changed dramatically, and I can't wait to get this new edition out to you also. I also have one or two other things lined up which I cannot discuss just yet, including some forthcoming talks, but things are certainly going to get busier soon!

So bear with me folks - I have still a lot to sort through in the next year or so - but I'm hoping normal service will begin to resume again with this blog by the start of next year.

I mean to say like, 6 million is nowhere near as impressive as 7 million - there is genie work to be done...! :)

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.

Judy G. Russell on the ethics of genetic genealogy

This is such a great wee video that it is worth sharing further! Genealogist Amy Johnson Crow has interviewed the US based 'Legal Genealogist', Judy G. Russell (www.legalgenealogist.com) about the ethics of genetic genealogy - the things to be wary of when taking a DNA test. Amy's original blog post is at https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/ethics-genetic-genealogy/, with the YouTube hosted video also displayed here:

Some great points to take on board - thanks to both Amy and Judy.

(With thanks to Jenna Mills for flagging it up for me on Google Plus)

Chris

My next 5 week long Scotland 1750-1850: Beyond the OPRs course commences Nov 6th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=302. 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.

How to follow The GENES Blog

Hi everyone, just a quick note to point out two ways to follow the blog, other than just dropping in occasionally!

On the left margin side of this page you will see a section entitled 'Subscribe via email'. If you register your email address in this, you will get a daily post of content from this blog, allowing you to digest everything in one go. Last night the blog passed the 1000 email subscribers mark, so there has to be at least another thousand folk out there waiting to do similarly!

Alternatively, The GENES Blog's Facebook page is another way to subscribe, simply follow the page and new posts appear as an when in your timeline - to get to the page, click on the link. Note that on the Facebook page you will get a bit more banter and a few more extras (reshared posts etc), and you can also interact with me if you require to (you can of course, also leave comments on the main blog posts!). The Facebook page currently has 2200 followers and is growing by the day.

Finally, do let you friends and societies know about the blog - and feel free to lift and re-use content for newsletters, journals etc, if you are a not for profit genealogical agency. All I ask if you do so is for a simple acknowledgement for The GENES Blog as the source.

Many thanks, and I hope this helps!

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 weeding of Scottish court records

The National Records of Scotland (www.nrscotland.gov.uk) has published an interesting blog post about the process of 'weeding' records that it collects each year from Scotland's sheriff courts.

Whilst all court registers are kept and preserved, not all original court files are retained, only those which have "historical, evidential or informational values". This is why in some cases, whilst you may find an initial summary record of a historic civil case, for example, the original case files themselves may not be available to consult at an archive. Weeding happens in many archives, across a range of record types, in order to save space within archives, and in many cases to actually make the research process easier (removing duplicates and unnecessary suport materials). Of course, from a genealogist's point of view, there may be a very different interpretation of what constitutes "historical, evidential or informational value" to what the state decides!

For more on the NRS story, visit the blog post by Jennifer Homewood, of the SCTS/NRS National Sheriff Court Records Survey, at https://blog.nrscotland.gov.uk/2017/06/19/weeding-scotlands-courts/.

The full policy on the weeding of court records by the NRS is also available online at https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/record-keeping/records-policies/selection-of-court-and-legal-records-policy.

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.

End of an era at Geneabloggers

US based Thomas MacEntee has announced that the Geneabloggers platform (www.geneabloggers.com), which documents new and merging blogs available online of interest to the family history community, is to wind down, with the following changes happening this month:

The following features will no longer appear as of May 1, 2017:

* Daily Blogging Beat
* Genealogy Blogging Events
* New Genealogy Blogs

The following features will run until May 31, 2017:

* May I Introduce to You
* The Archive Lady

Existing content will, however, remain online. In a blog post at http://www.geneabloggers.com/major-changes-geneabloggers-com/ Thomas has cited changes in the way that users are now accessing and presenting their information online as a reason for this development, and has also announced some further projects he will be developing in due course. Well worth a read...

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.

British GENES renamed The GENES Blog

I have taken the decision to rename this blog slightly from The British GENES Blog to The GENES Blog. There are a few reasons, but one of the most useful is that it takes up less room when tweeting - when making a tweet, the feed takes the page title at the start, and this will allow me an extra 8 character spaces for actual blog titles in those posts! It will also allow me to consider more international posts of interest to those resident in Britain and Ireland, without necessarily being tied to our diaspora, as I also have an increasing international readership.

The URL will remain the same for now however, at http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk.

Chris

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

Forgotten U-Boat War around the Welsh Coast project

The Royal Commission for the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales has secured Heritage Lottery Fund money for a new project, entitled The Forgotten U-boat War around the Welsh Coast.

14 underwater sites out of 170 recorded in the National Monuments Record of Wales will be explored "to enable the Great War story to be told from both the Allied and German perspectives. The sites include British and German submarines; HMS PENSHURST - the Royal Navy's most successful Q-ship or decoy vessel; HMS DERBENT a tanker which played an important part in refuelling naval vessels in the Mediterranean during the Gallipoli campaign; large merchant ships carrying Welsh coal to key theatres of the war as well as coasting vessels from the last days of sail."

For further details please visit the Heritage of Wales News blog at http://heritageofwalesnews.blogspot.co.uk/2016/05/royal-commission-gains-heritage-lottery.html.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923, Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html. My Pinterest account is at https://www.pinterest.com/chrismpaton/.

This blog passes two and a half million page views

Just a quick marker to say that I have just noted that this blog has unbelievably recently passed two and a half million page views, now standing at 2,555,920 hits and counting. As ever, a huge thanks to all reading it - and also as ever, I'm more than happy to run any news or events story concerning British and Irish genealogy, just drop me a note at chrismpaton @ outlook.com and I'll happily oblige!

I'm currently continuing my travels in British Columbia, having given my first talk here on Vancouver Island last night to Nanaimo Family History Society, and my next tomorrow at Qualicum Beach, but will do my best to blogging as and when whilst I'm away!

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923, Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html. My Pinterest account is at https://www.pinterest.com/chrismpaton/.

New address for County Sutherland genealogy site

Thanks to Judith Meibusch for letting me know that Chris Stokes' County Sutherland website has now been relocated from CountySutherland.co.uk to http://cosuthfamhistory.blogspot.co.uk.

The site has many useful sections on various settlements found within Sutherland, including many transcribed records.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923, Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html. My Pinterest account is at https://www.pinterest.com/chrismpaton/.

English volunteers who fought in the Easter Rising

There's an interesting article in the Irish Post today, looking at the story of a gent from Manchester called Liam Parr, who travelled to Ireland to participate on the side of Irish republicans in the Easter Rising. Following the Rising he was imprisoned in Wales, and eventually saw out his days in Stockport. The full story is at http://irishpost.co.uk/yorkshire-family-unearth-the-hidden-past-of-their-heroic-easter-rising-ancestor/.

The tale is one that features in a new book by Robin Stocks, entitled Hidden Heroes of Easter Week: Memories of Volunteers from England who joined the Easter Rising, The book also has its own dedicated web page at https://hiddenheroesofeasterweek.wordpress.com, where copies can be ordered. Here's the blurb:

In the middle of the Great War, members of the Irish community in British cities resolved to travel to Dublin to prepare for a rebellion to achieve Independence for Ireland.

The part played by the Manchester Volunteers has never before been made public; at last this exciting story of the Easter Rising and its build up can be brought to life in the words of those who took part.

Here are the experiences of a group of ordinary Volunteers who spent Easter Week under fire behind barricades or in the GPO. It concentrates on the human stories of two of them, a piper and a political radical, and also of their friend from Dublin who fought with the women’s volunteers, the Cumann na mBan.

This book captures the rebellious spirit of those times when Volunteers from England fought for Irish independence and to create a fairer world.

This project has come to fruition because many, many people have cooperated in sharing their memories and knowledge. For too long this part of our history had been suppressed, but now that it can be told, I hope that publishing this book will encourage others to come forward with their memories. I would love to hear from anyone who would like to contribute to this developing project. Perhaps between us we can ensure that no one remains a hidden hero of Easter Week. Please contact the author at the email or address below.

220 pages-Paperback-44 Illustrations including some unique period photographs.
ISBN: 978-0-9934399-0-2
£14.99.


NB: Don't forget also that my own new book, A Decade of Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923 is also now available to help you trace stories like that of Liam Parr and others who participated, both on the British and Irish sides of the Home Rule debate, the Suffragette struggle, the fight for workers' rights, the First World War, Easter Rising, War of Independence, Partition and the eventual civil war in the Irish Free State.

The ebook edition is available at www.gen-ebooks.com/a-decade-of-centenaries-researching-ireland-1912.html, and the print edition in Australia is at www.gould.com.au/A-Decade-of-Centenaries-Researching-Ireland-1912-p/utp0288.htm. I've just had confirmation that it will also be available very shortly in the UK from My History (www.my-history.co.uk).  Once the UK edition is available I'll provide another update.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923, Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html. My Pinterest account is at https://www.pinterest.com/chrismpaton/.

NLS launches 1930s Land Utilisation Survey maps

From the National Library of Scotland (www.nls.uk):

New map viewer compares Scottish land use in 1930s with today

This new viewer is a collaboration with Historic Environment Scotland, and allows 1930s Land Utilisation Survey maps to be compared to the 2015 Historic Land Use Assessment Layer (HLA). The link is http://maps.nls.uk/series/land-utilisation-survey/index.html

The HLA layer has been deliberately coloured to closely match the six main categories of the 1930s Land Utilisation Survey and shows striking changes in Scotland's land use during the 20th century, including afforestation and expanding urban areas. At the local level, you can see new reservoirs, roads, and significant changes to patterns of farming.

View the land-use comparison viewer. http://maps.nls.uk/projects/landuse/


In other NLS news, the Scotland on Film website has also been updated at https://scotlandonscreen.org.uk.

Screen website has re-launched with improved capabilities. This educational website, built in partnership with Education Scotland and Creative Scotland, can now be viewed on all platforms including tablets and smartphones.

Containing hundreds of free-to-watch short films and clips from our Moving Image Archive, the website also has guidance on how to use archive film in school projects and lessons.

Finally, the new NLS blog is now up and running at http://blog.nls.uk.

(With thanks to the NLS)

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/.

Commonwealth War Graves Commission blog launches

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (www.cwgc.org) has launched a new blog. The first post is written by the organisation's Director General, Victoria Wallace, and details her personal response to comments about the behaviour of teenage visitors to Tyne Cot Cemetery and Memorial, Belgium.

To read the blog, please visit http://commonwealthwargravescommission.tumblr.com.

(With thanks to Eddie Connolly via Twitter @teddiec)

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/.

Visit to Royal Kilmainham Hospital, Dublin

On Sunday my family and I made a visit to Dublin, partly to allow me to take some photographs for a forthcoming book, and partly to allow my boys a chance to see some of the key historic sites in the city, with this year being the 100th anniversary of the Easter Rising. Whilst in Dublin I took the opportunity to visit a site often overlooked by genealogists with regards to military research, the former Royal Hospital Kilmainham in Dublin.

I have written up a short account of the visit and the records available for research into soldiers who served with the British Army - it can be viewed on my research site blog at https://scotlandsgreateststory.wordpress.com/2016/01/05/the-royal-kilmainham-hospital-dublin/, and includes several photographs which may be of interest!

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/.

New blog - German Family Matters

A new blog on German ancestry, entitled German Family Matters, has been started by Australian based Eric Kopittke at http://erickopittke.blogspot.com.au.

I've had the privilege to hear Eric lecture on the subject, and he certainly knows his stuff - he is also author of the Unlock the Past published book Researching in German Civil and Church Records available in the UK via http://www.my-history.co.uk/acatalog/Researching-in-German-Civil-and-Church-Records-UTP0202.html#SID=876 or via www.gen-ebooks.com.

(With thanks to Helen Smith via Facebook)

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/.

A review of Unlock the Past's recent Baltic cruise

Jane Taubman, a fellow speaker on the recent Unlock the Past (www.unlockthepastcruises.com) genealogy cruise of the Baltic, was sponsored for the event by Family Historian, and as such has written a blog post about her experiences on the cruise for the firm, detailing her time both on board during the conference and on our various shore stops.

Jane has very kindly linked to my own blog posts on in her article, and so the very least I can do is reciprocate! You'll find her post at www.family-historian.co.uk/baltic-cruise-report - and check out her Baltic Splendour photo album/travelogue book at the end of the report!

(With thanks to Jane)

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/.

International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies 36th Annual Conference

US based geneablogger Dick Eastman has posted a call on his blog for papers for the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies 36th Annual Conference, to be held  in Seattle, Washington from August 7th-12th, 2016.

For full details, visit Dick's post at http://blog.eogn.com/2015/11/03/call-for-papers-now-open-for-36th-iajgs-international-conference-on-jewish-genealogy/.

(With thanks to Dick Eastman)

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/.