English Ancestry

New developments for 2024 include the digitization of Ministry of Defense records from WW2. The first tranche of them is planned to be available on Ancestry some time in 2024.

A very happy Christmas to all family historians! Hope you will make new discoveries in 2024.

To mark Remembrance Day this weekend, some sites are offering free access, amongst them Fold 3, the site that holds military records.

Just completed research on a Smith family, and had a few thoughts about tackling a family history for surnames that are very numerous. Searching by address can bring up some useful leads and looking for someone in the same family with an unusual feature - an unusual first name, or occupation, for example -can also really help.

Family secrets in Guernsey.

Former electrician reveals 66-year-old bunker secret to family Keith Tostevin, who was given a secret job as an electrician in 1957, revealed it on his 80th birthday.

For viewers based in the UK, a new series of Who Do You Think You Are begins tonight, 1/6, on BBC1 at 9pm. First episode features Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Do you have Irish ancestors? If so, I'm sure you have already discovered difficulties in your research. This is mainly because many Irish records, including many census returns, were destroyed in an arson attack on the Dublin Records Office in 1922. But some exciting work is underway to help with research. Work is underway to find copies of the lost material and, if found, to transcribe the results. In addition, the 1926 Census of Ireland is due to be digitized and made available in 2026. So, a while to wait perhaps, but maybe all this work will open doors to people's Irish ancestors eventually.

It is the 100 year anniversary of the Carillon Tower opening in my local town of Loughborough this year. The tower opened in 1923, to commemorate the soldiers of WW1,and features bells from the John Taylor Bell foundry, the only remaining bell foundry in the UK.

Loughborough Carillon Museum - Home

The 1921 census returns are a great addition to family history research. Did you know that this census was the first to ask a question about ethnicity? Previous censuses asked about place of birth only but the 1921 census can shed further light on a family's origins.

Was your grandmother or great grandmother a WW2 land girl? The National Archives has just digitized its Women's Land Army records. The WW2 index cards show each land girls details, including their dates of birth, employment details and address during WW2.
The information should be available through Ancestry soon.

50% off 1921 census returns from Findmypast over this weekend and Bank Holiday Monday.

Really exciting news for those of us with Yorkshire ancestors. The University of York has released online records held by the Borthwick Institute which cover around 500 years of records. They are papers centred on York and its surrounding area, and include many ancient church registers. They are available via Ancestry.

Well, we have had a few months now of access to the 1921 census. What have you discovered? The big addition to our knowledge, it seems to me, is the extra information on our ancestors' employer/place of work.

This sounds very exciting for everyone with Irish ancestors: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/may/22/irish-public-record-office-civil-war-bombardment-archives-reborn?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other&fbclid=IwAR0lWbsKH8RlQOewGYMBjpC8WkoYEvbk7RW2qYI6vL8AJs-rAYtU8pLuZJA

Seven centuries of Irish archives painstakingly recreated after being destroyed in civil war Digital wizardry and academic sleuthing have helped recreate a cultural treasure severely damaged in the conflict in 1922

A family history information source which is often overlooked is the Online Parish Clerk set of websites. Not all counties have them and some are more detailed than others, but they can be really helpful. To find them, google the name of the county and 'opc'.

A brand new series of Who do You Think you Are begins on BBC1 on May 26th. Looking forward to seeing who is featured.

The National Archives now open, offering greater access to our collections - The National Archives

Good news! Some UK archives and records offices are re-opening. The National Archives in Kew has now re-opened, and slowly the local archives are opening up again. We've missed you! https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/about/news/coronavirus-update/

nationalarchives.gov.uk We’re very pleased to be able to welcome visitors back into our reading rooms, offering a limited service to visitors who need access to our collection of

Yorkshire Day - Features | Welcome to Yorkshire

A very happy Yorkshire Day to everyone with Yorkshire ancestors! https://www.yorkshire.com/inspiration/features/yorkshire-day

yorkshire.com

'I was found wrapped in my mum's coat - but who am I?'

What amazing and painstaking research involved in tracing the direct ancestors of a foundling:https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/stories-53447901

bbc.com For 70 years Tony May knew nothing about where he came from, except that he'd been left on the bank of the Thames.

Ah,the complexities of someone going under a false name. Makes family history research really tricky. I have solved a few by trying to contact present-day people who may have been in contact with the person, and then working backwards. Not easy though.

Have you ever had an ancestor who disappears from all the records, one who, however much you search,leaves no trace? I was thinking about the ways I have resolved some of these lost ancestors, and one thing that I have found that has unlocked the mystery on occasions is contacting local newspapers. Local newspapers are always a good source of information anyway but asking a newspaper to publish a plea for local people to contact you can bring surprising information. Has anyone else had success this way?

Really inspired by the latest series of A House through Time on BBC1. It is looking at family history from a very different angle, investigating the people who have lived in a particular house. If you live in an old house, why not try researching its history yourself? You will need to look at sources such as electoral registers and land tax records, as well as the usual census returns etc.

The boy who mastered the snapshot

Old photographs are fascinating but take a look at these - taken by Jacques Henri Lartigue, who was given a camera as a young boy in around 1904. They are astonishing.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-52373308

bbc.com Jacques Henri Lartigue documented La Belle Époque of France.

Hope everyone is ok during this lockdown. Lots of family history things you could do. What about going through those old family photographs and writing on the reverse who is depicted? (Use a soft pencil when you write so that you don't harm the photo.)

Church of England announces plans to map all burial grounds | Who Do You Think You Are Magazine

The Church of England has announced it will begin a project to map all burial grounds in England and make the burial records searchable online. This should be a huge resource for family historians.
http://www.whodoyouthinkyouaremagazine.com/news/church-england-announces-plans-map-all-burial-grounds

whodoyouthinkyouaremagazine.com

March 22nd is Mothers Day here in the UK.
If you are thinking of something different to give to your mum, why not offer her the chance to begin her family history?
Gift vouchers available from English Ancestry.

Page not found | Yorkshire Film Archive

Astonishing 106 year old film found in a local market by a museum curator. The film, taken in 1914, shows the aftemath of the bombing of towns on the Yorkshiire and Durham coast, and the reactions of the local people. This bombardment was the first time British civilians had been directly targeted during WW1, and it caused huge outrage.The film has been digitised by the North-east Film Archive. Watch the film at:
http://www.yorkshirefilmarchive.com/film/attack-hartlepools

yorkshirefilmarchive.com

New for St David's Day, for all of you with Welsh ancestors, 36.000 new Welsh grave registers available on Findmypast.

Don't forget the wonderful resourse which is the local family history society. They are an invaluable source of information, often having information and documents which are outside the scope of official records.

Free Uk, the organisation that indexes Freebmd,births, marriages & deaths indexes, and provides it free of charge, is looking at the possibility of expanding its service to include a Freeprobate index. It doesn't have enough volunteers to help at the moment so, if you would like to offer help, contact them at:[email protected]