The Scold's Bridle

I've just read the astonishing fact that the use of a Scold's Bridle was not outlawed in Britain until 1967.

The Scold's Bridle was a punishment device, an iron mask made to be worn, usually, by women accused of being gossips, or of having committed some other transgressive behaviour - its intention was to both humilate and punish at the same time.

There's a fascinating short article about the Scold's Bridle in Dundee’s Albert Museum at https://www.scottishlegal.com/article/our-legal-heritage-the-branks-or-scold-s-bridle.

For more on the Scold's Bridle, see the following YouTube video from the Wellcome Collection:

Also available at https://youtu.be/T7lGsWO5R10

Chris

My next Scottish Research Online course starts March 11th 2019 - see www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102. Details of my genealogical research service are available at www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk. For my Scottish and Irish themed books, visit https://britishgenes.blogspot.com/p/my-books.html. Further news published daily on The GENES Blog Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

More First World War military records added to FindmyPast

The latest records added to FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk):

Irish Officers Died in the Great War, 1914-1919
Search over 1,000 records to learn more about the Irish officers who died in the First World War. Discover where and when an officer died, as well as the cause of death. You may also uncover details of an officer's family and pre-war life.

Honourable Women of the Great War, 1914-1918
Discover your female ancestor who served during the First World War. Learn about the wartime activities your ancestor was involved in as well as her pre-war life. You may also find a photograph of your ancestor.

British Subjects Who Died In The Service Of The Indian Empire
Uncover the stories of British subjects who died in the service of the Indian Empire.

Airmen Died in The Great War, 1914-1919
Discover your relative in this index of airmen who died during the First World War. Discover your relative's name, birth and death years, cause of death, rank, and more.

Britain, Campaign, Gallantry & Long Service Medals & Awards
Over 58,000 additional records have been added to the collection. The new additions cover recipients of the Military Cross, Distinguished Flying Medal, Distinguished Conduct Medal, Distinguished Service Order and Commando Gallantry awards.

British Newspapers
This week we've added 144,026 pages to our archive of British newspapers, tipping the total to over twenty-seven million pages. Additional years have been added to five of our existing titles, including:

Liverpool Echo - 1989-1990
The Newcastle Journal - 1992
The Music Hall and Theatre Review - 1908-1909, 1912
The Scottish Referee - 1893, 1895-1896, 1899
The Wicklow People - 1914, 1917-1929, 1931-1976, 1986-2001

Further details at https://blog.findmypast.co.uk/findmypast-friday-august-10th-2593975282.html

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.

History of Women Religious Britain and Ireland conference 2018

The 2018 annual conference for History of Women Religious Britain and Ireland (https://historyofwomenreligious.org/) takes place at the National University of Ireland (NUI), Galway at the Moore Institute on Thursday 7 June and Friday 8 June 2018. The conference will explore the theme of Space, Place and the History of Women Religious across a broad chronological timeframe, from medieval to modern

The full conference programme is available at https://historyofwomenreligious.org/conf_programme/, whilst travel information and a registrationlink can be found at https://historyofwomenreligious.org/annual-conference/registration-and-information-2/. Tickets for the event are directly available at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/history-of-women-religious-of-britain-and-ireland-conference-tickets-44845532194 - priced at €25 (student/unwaged) – €30 (waged). 

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.

Fold3 celebrates Women's History Month

From Fold3.com (www.fold3.com):

March is Women's History Month. Come explore two of Fold3's newest collections of women's records: British WWI Honourable Women and British WWI Service Women Casualties.

British WWI Honourable Women
https://www.fold3.com/title/986/british-wwi-honourable-women
This collection is a reproduction of a book entitled Honourable Women of the Great War & the Women's (War) Who's Who. The book gives brief biographies of more than 200 British society women who participated in the WWI war effort through nursing, charitable work, etc. Photos of some women are also included. In addition to discussing the women's war work, each entry provides a wide range of genealogical and social information, such as parents' names, husband's name, marriage date, hometown, hobbies, club membership, and more. The book's entries are arranged in alphabetical order by surname. However, note that many of the married women included in this book are referred to by their title or surname only, or by their husband's name or initials, rather than by their given name.

British WWI Service Women Casualties
https://www.fold3.com/title/982/british-wwi-service-women-casualties
Like the title indicates, this index documents British servicewomen and nurses who became casualties of World War I. Early in the war, women were primarily involved in the war effort through nursing, caring for refugees, and assisting and caring for wounded servicemen. But as the war progressed, women’s branches of the armed forces were created, and as a result women also served in organizations such as the Women's Army Corps, Women's Royal Navy, and Women's Royal Air Force. On Fold3, this index is organized first by the organization the woman served with, then by given name in alphabetical order.

Get started searching or browsing these two collections on Fold3!

Women's History Month Special!
Save $30 on a Fold3 All-Access Membership
was $79.95 Now $49.95. 

See https://go.fold3.com/join/?p=wh&utm_source=content&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=content-march-2018

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.

Glasgow Women's Library fundraiser

The Glasgow Women's Library has a fundraising initaitive currently on the go called Women on the Shelf.

Glasgow Women’s Library’s ‘Women on the Shelf’ fundraising initiative enables individuals and organisations to sponsor a Library section, shelf or book and dedicate it to a woman of their choice.

For more information, please visit http://womenslibrary.org.uk/how-to-get-involved/women-on-the-shelf/.

Chris

My next 5 week Scottish Research Online course commences Feb 21st 2017 - details at http://pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102. For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923, 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.

Irish Family History Centre podcast: Mna 1916

The latest podcast from the Irish Family History Centre entitled Mna - 25 years of searching - lesson and leads, a talk by Sinead McCooly recently given at the National Library of Ireland. 'Mna' is the Gaelic word for women, and the talk discusses an exhibition on the women of the Easter Rising, and other movements from 1916, as well as tips on how to search for them in the records.

To listen to the podcast, visit https://irishfamilyhistorycentre.com/article/sinead-mccool-mna-25-years-of-searching-lesson-and-leads-2.

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.

New 1916 exhibition at the Ulster Museum

From today the Ulster Museum in Belfast is hosting a new Heritage Lottery Fund funded exhibition entitled The Corr Family: Witnessing History, which looks at the lives of five brothers and sisters from the city's Ormeau Road, as they separately experienced aspects of the First World War and the Easter Rising in 1916.

The Irish News has the story, along with a photo gallery, at http://www.irishnews.com/news/2016/07/27/news/different-roads-taken-by-family-during-1916-to-be-focus-of-new-ulster-museum-exhibition-624202/.

The Ulster Museum has a story on the exhibition also at http://nmni.com/um/What-s-on/Current-Exhibitions/The-Corr-Family--Witnessing-History.

The exhibition runs from Wednesday 27th July until Tuesday 23rd August 2016.

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.

TNA podcast - 100 years of the Women's Institute

The latest podcast from the National Archives (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk) in England is entitled 100 years of the WI: The acceptable face of feminism, a 50 minute lecture by Maggie Andrews, professor of Cultural History of the University of Worcester.

The lecture can be listened to at http://media.nationalarchives.gov.uk/index.php/100-years-wi-acceptable-face-feminism/ or downloaded for free via iTunes.

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.

Free lunchtime talks at National Library of Ireland

The following free luchtime talks will be given at the Dublin based National Library of Ireland (www.nli.ie) from July 26th 2016:

Sinead McCoole
Mná - 25 years of searching - lessons & leads
Date: July 26th Time: 1.00pm

Dermot Bolger
A reading from his new novel - The Lonely Sea and Sky, followed by a talk.
Date: July 28th Time 1.00pm

Paul McCotter
Territory, maps and genealogy
Date: August 2nd Time: 1.00pm

Fiona Fitzsimons
Explorations in Irish genealogy.
Date: August 4th Time: 1.00pm

Liam Breen / Cormac Leonard (interpreter)
Deaf history in Cabra
Date: August 9th Time: 1.00pm

Nuala Ni Dhomhnaill
"The selkie’s skin" : How Irish oral traditions preserve family and local history
Date: August 11th Time: 1:00PM

Eleanor Fitzsimons
Wilde’s women: How Oscar Widle was shaped by the women in his life.
Date: August 16th Time: 1.00PM

Damien Shiels
The Forgotten Irish: Revealing the voices of Irish 19th Century Emigrants
Date: August 18th Time: 1.00PM

Ambassador O’Malley
Irish American identity: How do we sustain the people to people links between Ireland and the United States?
Date: August 23rd Time: 1.00PM

Aoife O’ Connor
Seen ? Heard ? Records of children in Nineteenth Century Ireland
Date: August 25th Time: 1.00PM

Clodagh Tait
"The Simple annals of my parish poor": stories from parish registers
Date: August 30th Time: 1.00PM

Nora White
Ogham Stones: Our earliest genealogical sources
Date: September 1st Time: 1.00PM

Joe Buggy
Ten free websites for U.S. genealogy research.
Date: Sept 6th Time: 1.00PM

Dan Bradley
Adventures in ancient DNA: Who were the first Irish?
Date: September 8th Time: 1:00pm

(With thanks to the Irish Family History Centre at https://www.irishfamilyhistorycentre.com/article/free-lunch-time-talks-in-the-national-library-of-ireland-2016)

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.

Forthcoming events at TNA in March

The following events are taking place at The National Archives (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk) in Kew, England:

Thursday 3 March 2016, 7:00 pm
100 years of the WI: The acceptable face of feminism
FREE

Friday 4 March 2016, 2:00 pm
Spitfire girls
FREE

Saturday 5 March 2016, 2:00 pm
Out of the Archives: A zine workshop on 20th century women's movements
PAID

Tuesday 8 March 2016, 6:00 pm
Myth-busting the Suffrage movement
FREE

Friday 11 March 2016, 9:45 am
Theatre in the First World War
PAID

Friday 11 March 2016, 2:00 pm
Simply a Jacobite woman? The life experience of Margaret, Lady Nairne
FREE

Tuesday 15 March 2016, 4:00 pm
Experiencing the First World War in the Middle East
FREE

Thursday 17 March 2016, 7:00 pm
Beyond the guns: Experiences of women in the First World War
PAID

Friday 18 March 2016, 2:00 pm
'Tell Them of Us' screening
FREE

Monday 21 March 2016, 1:00 pm
Dispatches from the front
FREE

Tuesday 22 March 2016, 2:00 pm
100 years of the Military Medal
FREE

Tuesday 29 March 2016, 4:00 pm
Making the most of The National Archives' Library
FREE

Further details are available at http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/about/visit-us/whats-on/events/

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/.

Forthcoming genealogy talks and events in Belfast

From the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (www.proni.gov.uk):

Surviving the City: Lunchtime Lecture Series throughout February and March 2016

Thursday 4 February – The Belfast Workhouse in the nineteenth century by Dr Olwen Purdue
Thursday 18 February – The Great Famine in Belfast by Professor Peter Gray
Thursday 25 February – The Belfast Corporation and Council archive in PRONI by Ian Montgomery
Thursday 3 March – Voluntary charities for the poor in Belfast, 1800 - 1838 by Robyn Atcheson
Wednesday 16 March – Sailor Town, Belfast
by Dr Elizabeth Thomas
Tuesday 22 March – Belfast Corporation and the management of public health, 1880-1914 by Stuart Irwin

All lectures will be held in PRONI and will commence at 1pm.


Wikimedia Edithon
4th February 2016 from 2.30pm to 5.30pm

This comprises of a number of talks on the Somme and Ireland 1916 as well as a workshop to show how to edit and upload information to Wikipedia articles.


Women’s work through the years - Afternoon Tea and Archive Exploration
Monday 7th March, 2pm - You are invited to join HMS Caroline, PRONI and The Northern Ireland War Memorial for a relaxed afternoon tea and the opportunity to explore the role of the Wrens, HMS Caroline and the women of Belfast during WWs 1 and 2 through objects, costumes, archives, photographs and film. Find out more about the exciting plans for the restoration of HMS Caroline and the opening of this historic ship as a museum and visitor attraction in Belfast in June 2016.

This is a free event aimed at women and women’s community groups as part of International Women’s Day. Places are very limited booking is essential.


Easter Rising
Thursday 21 April, 7pm - Irish Volunteers Centenary Project, talk to be given by Donal McAnallen


Easter 1916 – Conflict and Consequences ½ day Conference
Friday 22nd April, 2pm – Speakers and topics will include: Fearghal McGarry - the outcome of the Rising , Tim Bowman – British Army in the Rising, Mike Foy - Planning of the Rising.


Exhibition launch
Thursday 28th April, 6.30pm – PRONI are pleased to host the launch of the UAHS exhibition.


Book Launch
We are pleased to host the Launch of Trevor Parkhill’s new book ‘The Nurse in the Belfast Blitz, Emma Duffin’ on the 3rd May 2016 at 1pm.


Evening Presentation
Thursday 26th May, 6.30pm – Evening Presentation on the archaeology of the Battle of Jutland by Innes McCartney – Nautical archaeologist, historian, explorer and broadcaster. In conjunction with History Hub, the Royal Navy and Belfast City Council


Temperance Conference
23 June 2016 - Half day conference on the theme of temperance and alcohol starting at 1.30pm.


WFA 2016 Programme. - The second Thursday of the month the WFA meet in PRONI please see website for their full programme.

(With thanks to the PRONI Express)

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/.

Glasgow Women's Library official opening

Congratulations to Glasgow Women's Library upon opening its first permanent home in Glasgow, within the city's Bridgeton district.

The new premises are located in the former Bridgeton Public Library building, a B-listed Carnegie library building located at 23 Landressy Street, Glasgow, G40 1BP. For further details on the facilities available, please visit http://womenslibrary.org.uk.

The First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, attended the official opening last week, with the full story available online at http://womenslibrary.org.uk/2015/11/07/gwl-launches-beautiful-newly-renovated-home/ and in the Herald newspaper at www.heraldscotland.com/news/13952176.First_Minister_visits_newly_refurbished_Glasgow_Women___s_Library/.

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/.

Female munitions workers in the First World War

The National Archives in England has an interesting blog post by Chris Day and Vicky Iglikowski entitled Equal pay for equal work: female munitions workers in the First World War at http://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/blog/equal-pay-equal-work-female-munitions-workers/.

It's the second post on female munitions workers in the conflict, the first can be found at http://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/blog/image-female-munitions-worker/ - well worth checking both out!

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.

TNA webinar - tracing female ancestors in the First World War

The latest podcast is in fact a webinar from the National Archives in England entitled Tracing your ancestors – women in the military services during the First World War. It is a 30 minute recording with slides by Emily Stidston, and discusses records from the British Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force, Merchant Navy, nursing services and voluntary organisations.

To watch and listen to the webinar please visit http://media.nationalarchives.gov.uk/index.php/webinar-women-first-world-war/ or download from iTunes.

Chris

The latest British GENES podcast is available at http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/podcasts.html. 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.

Women's WW1 military collections and Queensland records on FindmyPast

Amongst the latest updates to FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk) are images for the Civil Service Evidence of Age collection, which has been available in index format for some time, as well as the following military collections (with National Archives references for the collections from which they have been sourced):

• Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps Service Records 1917-1920 (WO 398)
• British Women’s Royal Naval Service officer files 1917-1919 (ADM 318)
• British Women’s Royal Naval Service Ratings’ Service Registers 1918-1919 (ADM 336)
• British Women’s Royal Air Force Service Records 1918-1920 (AIR 80)

Also available for Australia are:

• Queensland Assisted Immigration 1848-1912
• Queensland Immigration registers 1922-1940
• Queensland Passport registers 1926-1939

Full details are available at http://blog.findmypast.com/2015/new-findmypast-friday-records-6

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.

London workhouse records and women's military records indexes on Ancestry

Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) has added one new major London dataset, comprised of city workhouse admission and discharge records, and two third party indexes for collections held at the National Archives at Kew, England:

London, England, Workhouse Admission and Discharge Records, 1738-1930
http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=60391
Source: Board of Guardians records held by the London Metropolitan Archives, London, England.

Web: UK, Women's Army Auxiliary Corps Index, 1917-1920
http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=9293
Source: Women's Army Auxiliary Corps service records 1917-1920. The National Archives of the UK (TNA), Kew, Surrey, England. Series WO 398.

Web: UK, Women's Royal Naval Service Index, 1917-1919
http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=70690
Source: Women's Royal Naval Service (1917 - 1919). The National Archives of the UK (TNA), Kew, Surrey, England. Series ADM 318 and 336.

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

Glasgow Women's Heritage Cycle Trail

Glasgow Women's Library (http://womenslibrary.org.uk) held a heritage cycle trail event in the city on Saturday 28th June to highlight women's cycling history. From its site:

The bicycle has been an important fixture in women’s history. The ride will stop off at Nelson’s Column which was a meeting point for suffragette rallies. The bicycle enabled suffragettes to distribute leaflets and promote events, thus playing an important role in the women’s suffrage movement. The route will also take cyclists to Anderston, where industries such as shipbuilding and engineering thrived. Many women were employed in these industries and cycling gave them a greater freedom and independence. It changed the way they dressed as the restrictive styles of the 19th Century weren’t conducive to riding a bike.

The full story is at http://womenslibrary.org.uk/2014/06/19/womens-heritage-bike-ride/

Although the trail has already happened, you can pick up a copy of the Women’s Heritage Bike Ride map from the Library, which is open Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 5pm and 7pm on a Thursday. (It's based in the same building complex as the Mitchell Library)

(With thanks to Sue Johns and Gabrielle Macbeth)

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.

British women's writing database accessible via NLS

If you are a licensed digital collections registered user with the National Library of Scotland (www.nls.uk), you can now temporarily access a new database called Orlando - here's the blurb:

NLS has a trial membership to the biographical and literary resource Orlando: Women's Writing in the British Isles from the Beginnings to the Present.

Orlando is a reference database on the history of women’s writing, literature and cultural history, from the early mediaeval period onwards. It includes factual, critical, and interpreted material, with biographical and writing career entries on over a thousand writers.

Registered users of NLS who reside in Scotland can access Orlando.

We are keen to hear about your experiences of using Orlando and are running a short online survey.

Trial access is available until 4 June 2014

The survey is accessible via https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/QB29BGB

(With thanks to the NLS)

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.

Women's History Month blog posts from TNA

The National Archives at Kew is running a two part series of blog posts to help commemorate Women's History Month. The posts can be accessed as follows:

Official discourses and personal sources: Women’s History Month
http://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/blog/official-discourses-personal-sources-womens-history-month-part-1/

Official discourses and personal sources: Women’s History Month, part 2
http://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/blog/official-discourses-personal-sources-womens-history-month-part-2/

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.

Clydebank Women's History Detectives course

Glasgow Women's Library is running a six week course entitled Clydebank Women's History Detectives from Wednesday 24th October to Wednesday 28th November. For further information on he course, which is free to attend, please visit http://womenslibrary.org.uk/event/clydebank-womens-history-detectives/2012-10-24/.

(With thanks to @gwlkettle and @thomasconnelly on Twitter)

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)