YouTube Family History

 

 Image by Tymon Oziemblewski from Pixabay

Videos are perfect for brushing up your family history research skills.

There are plenty of organisations that have their own channels hosting genealogy how-to videos. Use them to learn about researching a specific country’s records. Get ideas on how to use your DNA results to better effect. How can probate documents help to build your family tree? What impact is AI having on genealogists’ work?

All these and other topics can be found on the YouTube channels listed here – and more. If you can think of an organisation or company that is involved in family history, they very likely have a selection of YouTube videos too. For instance, the national library of your country of interest may well have its own video channel. 

Check out some (or all!) of these for inspiration.

The Society of Genealogists

The National Archives UK

FamilySearch

FamilyTreeDNA

Findmypast

ScotlandsPeople

The Genealogist

MyHeritage

Who Do You Think You Are?

I’ve made a few presentations that have found their way online as well, courtesy of the RootsTech genealogy conference and YouTube: https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/speakers/alison-spring/en

Some Family History Freebies

 

Image by Hans from Pixabay

Over the past weekend I noticed some family history resources being offered for free - one via on-demand TV which may well be free indefinitely, and another couple of what are very likely time-limited offers. So I'll start with those two.

First: A free download of a useful reference book, the Kindle version of The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland, Volume 1. It covers the surnames Aaron-Cushing, so tough luck if you're researching Millers, Robinsons, Smiths, or Thomsons - some of the most common surnames in Britain! However, the Introduction covers British naming history, trends, and types of names and is very interesting. 

This offer only appears to be valid in the UK at the moment, and you'll need an "eligible" (i.e. not too old) Kindle device to read it on.  This particular download doesn't seem to work on the Kindle app on my phone, or on a laptop. But hey, it's free - what did I expect?!

Second: 7-day free trial membership of Family Tree Plus, a service run by the UK Family Tree Magazine. The membership gives access to its online community plus hundreds of how-to articles and webinars. These are archived and can be used on demand. For more information about what's included in the package, the membership web page has much more detail. Note that the offer's only open if you haven't already had a free trial or membership of Family Tree Plus.

In addition, anyone visiting the Family Tree website may notice a pop-up offering a free "Collect Your Family Stories" research kit, including ideas for interviewing relatives - particularly useful over the festive season. To get this download you simply have to sign up for the Family Tree Magazine regular e-mail. Of course you can sign up, get the download, then unsubscribe if you don't want the e-mails. 

My usual tip for this kind of thing is to set up a dedicated, separate e-mail account for offers. That way, if unsubscribing doesn't work, your regular e-mail address won't be inundated with unwanted messages!

Third: I spotted a social media post about episodes of a British television show "DNA Journey", linking to Ancestry's YouTube channel. Sadly, only short trailers are available to view on that platform for now. If you want to see the full programmes they are archived on ITVX, an on-demand service, where they're free to watch.  

The show itself was quite entertaining, although the focus was more on trying to find links either between the celebrities, or between their work and that of their ancestors.  I found the different eps a bit hit-or-miss, but the best ones were with Ricky Tomlinson and Sue Johnston, and John Simm and Philip Glenister.  I cannot in all conscience, however, recommend the Ant and Dec episodes, with their questionable Viking DNA results!

Who Do You Think You Are? Returns

 

Tonight (9pm UK time) the latest series of the genealogy programme Who Do You Think You Are? begins.  A new tranche of celebrities will share their family trees, and hopefully demonstrate some techniques and record sources that will be of interest to family historians.  Having seen the USA’s version of this show, I think it’s fair to say that viewers from either side of the pond don't always recognise celebs from across the water, who may be less well-known to a transatlantic audience.  I confess to not knowing who some of the US series' subjects were, although they were clearly popular over there!

While I’m pretty sure that most international fans of the programme would recognise Dame Judi Dench in the new UK series, those not familiar with British politics (or Strictly) might struggle to identify Ed Balls.  However, and this is especially useful for those who don’t have access to BBC TV services on its iPlayer platform, there is a large back catalogue of the previous WDYTYA? series available on YouTube.  Here, there are some slightly more high-profile subjects: J.K. Rowling, John Hurt, Kate Winslet, Daniel Radcliffe, Courteney Cox, and Boris Johnson, to name just a few. 

Some of their ancestors' stories are tragic, others inspiring – for instance, J.K. Rowling discovers a French military hero in her family.  For me, one of the most memorable instalments was about actor Alan Cumming’s father. I won’t spoil it for you but it does have a very different outcome.

Another unrelated, but no less fascinating family history BBC show that aired recently was a standalone documentary about a young woman seeking to discover her birth parents’ identities.  Having been abandoned as a baby and with the support of her adoptive family, she used DNA to try and trace blood relatives.  Shown as part of the Our Lives collection of programmes, it’s called Finding My Family and can be viewed on iPlayer.

Hopefully some of the family stories told in these productions will encourage you to keep researching when you feel like giving up, or to develop a better appreciation for those who have gone before us.

Doctor Who or Genealogy? You Decide

Last week, in the UK, the TV genealogy programme Who Do You Think You Are? had a military theme as it researched the great-uncle of Doctor Who actor Jodie Whittaker.  Some of the records used on the show to document his life are available online or in record offices. Note: In this post I'm not listing sources that presently charge for these records.

1901 census – for England & Wales, this is available via FamilySearch. You will need to be signed in to your account, or be viewing the record at a FamilySearch centre or affiliate.  Some of FamilySearch's records, such as the 1901 census, are subject to partnership viewing restrictions.  For Ireland, search on their National Archives website; for Scotland, images of the census may be accessed on microfilm at a public library, archive, or family history centre.

WWI Medal Card (WO 372/7/115041)

WWI Medal Cards – these are currently free from The National Archives (Kew). Registration with the website is required before you download the documents.  The web page includes a helpful guide to interpreting the different formats of medal card for this period.

War Graves - it's free to use the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website to find the names of war dead.  Additionally, the CWGC has very recently launched Our War Graves, Your History to promote local involvement in activities such as guided walks, family events, and public talks. Find out more about the work of the CWGC through their outreach programme, which includes virtual talks offered to community groups and schools.  Download their free War Graves app to help you locate memorials and headstones in your area.

This series of Who Do You Think You Are? begins with just four episodes.  The producers have expressed the hope that further instalments will be filmed at a later date.

Time Travel

Gearrannan Blackhouse Village, Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides

Do you remember the first boost you got in researching your family's history?

I was about 18 years old and a friend who knew my heritage referred me to someone he thought would have useful information on my father’s side.  Dad’s family came from North Uist, a small island parish in the Western Isles of Scotland, and apparently someone local to me had researched many families of these islands, the Outer Hebrides.  I rang this gentleman and he asked me a little about my parentage.  He excused himself to get a file, and a few moments later said, “Then your grandparents must be…”  The hairs on the back of my neck stood up.  I made an appointment to visit and find out what else this man knew about my ancestors.

And it turned out he knew more than possibly anybody else on the planet.  Bill Lawson was then, and is now even more so, the most knowledgeable Hebridean genealogist, having interviewed and researched thousands upon thousands of individuals whose blood flows from these islands, not only in Scotland but across the ocean.  Last night a documentary about the remarkable work he carried out together with his late wife Chris aired on the Gaelic TV channel BBC Alba (pronounced ‘Alabah’).  Don’t worry if, like me, you don’t speak Gaelic – subtitles are provided.  I highly recommend that you watch it.

Bill Lawson (Photo courtesy of BBC Alba)

For me, seeing this programme was like travelling back in time to the day I visited Bill in his Paisley flat in the late 1970s.  His extensive library, his extraordinarily detailed and well-organised files of families from Lewis to Barra, his prodigious knowledge and astonishing memory were all still there.  If it were not for him and his willingness to share what he has collected, myself and countless other family historians would be struggling to piece together a much smaller jigsaw.  He is, quite simply, my family history hero.

If you are able to watch BBC television programmes, this link should take you to the documentary, "Bill Lawson - Sar Shloinntear (The Genealogist)" https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000c088

Family history as entertainment...?

Image by Kevin Ramirez from Pixabay

If you live in the UK, perhaps you’ve noticed the recent trend for family history-based TV programmes, particularly on daytime television.  These aren’t of the celebrity-focused variety like Who Do You Think You Are?, but instead attempt to answer family history queries for people like you and me.

The oldest of these is the BBC’s Heir Hunters, which has been running for several years now, and traces the work of various probate research firms, with the emphasis on the family trees which they build to try and identify potential heirs to unclaimed estates.  Although this has been an interesting show, it’s running out of steam a bit now as the format grows tired.  There are only so many spins you can put on the "elderly lady who led a fascinating life dies in a care home with no known relatives" scenario.

More recently, Channel 4 aired My Family Secrets Revealed, an Ancestry.com-sponsored series where a team of regular experts used various strategies (including DNA testing) to help people uncover their roots or debunk family legends.  These programmes covered several different stories in each episode, and were well-presented as the researchers sat down with the family to reveal what they had discovered about their ancestors, and whether they really were related to Elton John.  It had a good few surprises as previously unknown cousins were introduced to each other during filming.

The BBC’s Murder, Mystery & My Family, meanwhile, takes up individual cases where a family historian feels their ancestor has been wrongfully convicted (and usually executed).  It investigates the crime and trial of the subject’s great-uncle/grandma/other relative, using the skills of two barristers, official documents and contemporary newspaper reports, plus information provided by the family.  The case is then presented to a judge (well, a retired one) who renders his opinion as to whether the original conviction was a sound one.  The genealogist who has submitted the case is either delighted or disappointed at the end of the programme, but usually manages to see the outcome in a positive light anyway.

In Scotland, a new series that has just begun is The Generation Frame.  Each programme tracks the family history of two different subjects, enlisting the help of professional genealogists and archivists.  The cases highlight areas of interest to the family historian, such as poor law records or heritage sites (like Dundee’s Verdant Works).  A unique twist at the end of each episode is the unveiling of an artwork created exclusively for each subject, including drawings of their family members and locations with special meaning to them.  This is quite an emotional element of the programme, and threatens to out-Kleenex Long Lost Family, ITV’s not-quite-genealogy show.  It certainly makes this programme stand out as different from the others.

Some of these programmes may be available on their respective channels’ on-demand platforms, while non-UK viewers may not have access to some British shows due to licensing restrictions.  And then there are other countries’ editions of Who Do You Think You Are? (the American version is sometimes shown on the BBC or on the cable channel W in the UK), and genealogy-based programmes like the “reality” show Relative Race, which is broadcast in the United States but is available to watch online outside the U.S.

On the whole these can be informative and entertaining programmes, but if the format remains the same it can grow a bit samey and stale.  Approaching it from a different angle, as some of the newer shows do, can bring a fresh perspective on tracing the family tree and give you new ideas for breaking down brick walls in your own research.