Now and next

 

Image by Gerd Altmann at Pixabay

Social media is a bit of a Marmite* thing - people tend to either love it or hate it. But like any aspect of technology, it can be used positively or negatively, and if you're aware of how to make it work for you, it can be a great route to learning about new family history resources and events.

In the past week I've come across some familiar and new sources of information that I'll share here. I believe it's important to share what we learn about becoming better genealogists because ultimately, we all benefit from building our skills and our trees!

My first find promotes one of my local groups' meetings, the Renfrewshire Family History Society, on Thursday 19 February at 7.30pm. It will be held in Paisley South Church at 123 Rowan Street and and also on Zoom. It's free to join and details are on the society's website. The guest speaker will be Gillian Brogan, who will give a presentation about Summerlee Museum of Scottish Industrial Life. This museum is a great free attraction showing many aspects of Scotland's industrial heritage that you can explore, including trams and a coal mine. 

The next item on my list of recent discoveries is The Canadian Letters & Images Project, a digital archive of photographs and correspondence relating to the Canadian experience of World War I, on both the home and battle fronts. Rather than official government or military documents, this collection is made up of personal letters and photos shared by families. You can search or browse the names listed for any relatives who might be mentioned. This could very well include some of my family who emigrated from Scotland to various parts of Canada including Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Saskatchewan, although I've yet to discover any in this particular archive.  Fortunately, the letters have been transcribed alongside the scans of the originals, so reading the handwriting isn't a problem. If you have any material that falls into this category you may consider sharing it with the project.

Last but not least, the annual family history conference RootsTech is coming soon, 5-7 March. For most of us the free online event is what we can sign up for and enjoy, although for others there is an in-person conference in Salt Lake City. This year there's also a series of live webinars in the run-up to the event itself, in the next week or two. There's a huge number of activities to take part in online, including "Relatives at RootsTech", a tool to help you link up with your distant cousins who are also joining the conference. 

There are hundreds of video presentations available from previous RootsTech years, covering many topics relating to family history. You can watch a few of mine at https://tinyurl.com/yk8msuac

*Marmite - a Love and Hate Story

Family History Events for your Calendar

 

Keeping up to speed on the wide variety of family history fairs, courses, conferences, classes, and open days on offer can be a bit of a task. Although they don’t list everything, there are two websites that post details of plenty of family history events, both online and in person. Note that many of these events do charge for attendance, but may be open to non-members of the host organisation. More about those two listings websites 👇

GENEVA has a strong emphasis on English research, mainly because very few other organisations seem to submit their events to the site! Come on, you other family history societies; this is a great (and free) way to publicise your meetings and services!

Conference Keeper, a U.S.-based website. Search its calendar for all forthcoming events, or select online-only meetings and talks. Although focusing largely on North American topics, there are plenty of internationally relevant themes too, such as the impact of artificial intelligence on genealogy. Some online meetings even offer on-the-spot help with your research. Also listed are Legacy Family Tree webinars as they occur. (Don't miss their free Webtember event that I blogged about last week)

Of course, your local archive or heritage group may not use these services, but rely on local media and word of mouth to promote their events. Keep an eye on posters and leaflets in your public library or archive, or check out the local council’s website. That’s where I found the details of a free event taking place in my community next month:

ByGoneCon is a regular all-day event sponsored by South Lanarkshire Council and held in different locations around the county. A bit like a family history fair, it features stalls and talks from heritage, local, and family history societies and organisations. Included in past events have been representatives from local archives, Lanarkshire Family History Society, FamilySearch and Scottish Indexes. Speaking of whom...

Scottish Indexes are holding their free quarterly online conference on Saturday 13th September. The schedule for the day will be posted on their website soon, but each presentation is aired twice, to allow viewers in time zones around the world to watch at a time that suits them. Subjects up for presentation this time include Scottish church records, and getting started on tracing your family tree. There will be something for everyone, and not all the talks will be solely Scotland-focused. You can watch on Zoom or via their Facebook group, and submit questions for the speakers.

If you belong to a family or local history society that needs to boost attendance and membership, do ask them to consider using GENEVA or Conference Keeper (or both!) to publicise the group’s events. That way, we’ll all get the chance to join in and learn more. There’s always something new to discover!

Some free discoveries this week

 

While staying at home during the latest Scottish weather instalment (Storm Éowyn), I've spotted a few interesting things for frugal family historians…

First, an offer from MyHeritage: they're celebrating Australia Day this weekend - 25-28 January - with free access to many of their Australian records. You can read the full details at their blogpost, but note that their recent additions from OldNews.com are not included. 

Just this morning I came across an old blog post by the Knowles Collection about accessing their records of Jewish families from around the world. These are available on FamilySearch.org in its lesser-used Genealogies section, and the Collection's blog gives step-by-step screenshots to help you find and search these databases. Using this, I found a family I've researched in the past listed in the UK records.

In the past week I’ve begun contributing to a very worthwhile but straightforward indexing project for Arolsen Archives - #everynamecounts.  This is working to compile a database of those whose names are recorded on twentieth-century prisoner registration and displaced person cards. Almost 190,000 volunteers are currently working on this, and once you’ve read the Help notes to understand what’s required, it only takes a minute or two to complete one entry.

Finally, what are you doing tomorrow? If you'd like to stay home but are itching to attend a family history event, East Surrey Family History Society have the answer. They're holding a virtual family history fair which is free to attend. Many different societies will be "attending" and you can visit them on Zoom, ask questions, and find out what resources they offer. Why not pop along and have a chat? Among those holding virtual stalls will be 

• Aberdeen & North East Scotland FHS

• East of London FHS

• Glasgow & West of Scotland FHS

• FIBIS (Families in British India Society)

• Manchester & Lancashire FHS

• Romany & Travellers FHS

Support Your Local Family History Society

 

Family history society publications

Happy New Year! and welcome to another twelvemonth of family history money-saving tips. Not all frugal resources are completely free, but there are some that are definitely a good investment. Take family history societies, for example...

Over the past few years, these organisations have really upped their game and taken to online meetings with gusto. This has opened access to a worldwide audience for society events, particularly those with guest speakers or special discussions. 

Different societies operate in a variety of ways: some open their online and/or in-person meetings to everyone, not just members; some offer free entry for members and a small entry fee for non-members; for others, attendance is free to all; some vary their meetings between online and in-person; some regularly offer hybrid meetings, combining both remote and present audiences.

For example, this month I'd been invited by a family history society to give a talk via Zoom, and this was an online-only meeting, open to members at no extra charge (other than their annual membership fee), and just £2 for non-members wishing to attend.  And later this month, I'll be giving an in-person talk at a meeting of the Renfrewshire Family History Society, which will be a hybrid event. Any non-members who want to join this meeting can find the contact details on the society's website.

Other than meetings, family history societies around the world support their members in many ways, including

• Online databases compiled by members, such as indexes to local burial or poor relief records
• A register of members' surname interests
• Regular journals or newsletters, both in print and electronic formats
• Operating a research centre in the local community
• Research services for those living in other parts of the world
• Projects like graveyard surveys - these often end up as monumental inscription books (MIs)

Access to society research facilities and remote research services may also be open to the general public, usually for a small fee.  

If you've visited a family history fair or conference, you'll have seen some local societies at work, with their member volunteers staffing a stall. This normally has publications for sale: monumental inscription books, historic maps, works authored by members, and sometimes titles of local or general history interest that relate to the society's area. And of course the volunteers are delighted to enroll new members who wish to join.

For those who live at a distance from their ancestors' parish(es), society websites now have a greater role to play. Some record Zoom meetings for members to watch at their leisure. Society journals can be downloaded, and this can give members the choice of a lower-cost subscription - a society I belong to has a sliding scale of membership fees which includes a £7 reduction to members opting for electronic delivery of their journal (hats off to the Aberdeen & North-East Scotland FHS!).

I've also found that where you're not familiar with an area but want some tips or pointers on sites or records, dropping the relevant society an e-mail can work wonders. Members often have excellent local knowledge and can advise you on the best research strategies.

Society publications - MIs, church records, military history and many other subjects - can be ordered via the society website. These are of tremendous value and often contain information about ancestors that isn't readily available elsewhere, especially if you're not local to the area.

There are also umbrella organisations which include societies from across the world. The Family History Federation is the largest such group in the UK, with 160 member societies. It hosts educational resources for genealogists - this list of free family history websites is very useful - and keeps a calendar of some society meetings, although this isn't exhaustive. Its associated online shop will keep you browsing for a while, too.

Additionally, Scottish genealogy and heritage groups come under the auspices of the Scottish Association of Family History Societies. Check out their list of members if you have Scots heritage. One of these is the Scottish Genealogy Society, which has research premises in Edinburgh. Its website has an online shop selling an excellent range of publications from many other societies. Some of these are available as instant downloads, cutting down on postage costs.

My feeling about family history societies is that although they involve a (relatively) small expenditure to join, they are well worth it. They provide a network for people with very similar interests, which may even lead to finding a distant cousin; offer opportunities to contribute through volunteering on committees, projects, and events; and have a myriad of resources including courses and classes to guide you as you work on your family tree. A search of the Internet for a society that matches your interests should help you identify what groups are available. Go on, give it a try.

A Really Useful Family History Event

Want to hear about something Really Useful?  The UK’s Family History Federation is taking its annual show online on Saturday 14th November.  I don’t often recommend events that charge an admission fee, but this one has a lot going on, and I think it's worth the money.  

For £7 (paid in advance; on-the-day entry will probably cost more), you will get

• Access to six different channels of expert speakers on varied topics - and as there are more talks scheduled than you could watch in one day, recordings of them will be available for at least 2 days after the event
• An exclusive goody bag
• Virtual vendors’ stalls with specialist genealogy products
• Family history societies’ chat booths where you can ask questions of the organisations' helpers, and perhaps become a member of a group relating to your family’s history
• FamilySearch volunteers to point you in the direction of their resources and take your research a step further

(You can learn about the kinds of societies you might be interested in visiting or joining by checking out the Federation’s membership page.  And they’re not confined to place-specific societies; groups with an interest in religious families, Quaker or Jewish, for instance, are represented.  Also included are professional and one-place/name study organisations.)

Society members and FamilySearch volunteers will be available to chat during the show, and once you've asked your question on their dedicated text chat, you can decide if you want to continue with that, or switch to Zoom instead for a face-to-face discussion.  Whichever you choose, helpers with specialist knowledge will do their best to advise you.

This is the first time the Federation has staged an online event of this size, so patience on the part of both organisers and attendees will be necessary as everybody gets used to this fun new way of doing things.  And of course it means that a lot more people will be able to attend than would visit the traditional show - even though everybody will be taking part from the comfort of home!

Give More, Get More - Family History Society Projects

Glasgow Cathedral from the Necropolis graveyard

In this post, learn about organisations that are running projects to benefit genealogists, how you can help them, and discover some completed projects that you may find useful in your own research.

Current Projects Looking for Volunteers

Experienced family historians will already have the perfect skills to bring to projects like these.  If you choose a project in an area that you're familiar with, you'll be able to contribute your local knowledge of place and family names. 

Glasgow & West of Scotland FHS  This group is currently working on Baillieston Churchyard and Glasgow Cathedral burial ground.  The reopening this week of the Mitchell Library will mean the society's Glasgow Pedlar project can start again. 

Dumfries & Galloway FHS  Their ambitious graveyard transcription project aims to record the monumental inscriptions of every cemetery and kirkyard in the two counties.  No matter where you live in the world, you can help with this, as transcription is from the society’s collection of headstone photographs. 

Family & Community Historical Research Society (FACHRS)  Here you have a choice of projects to get involved with, both long- and short-term, currently Parlour Maids and Communities of Dissent as well as a COVID-19 Pandemic project.

Completed Family History Society Projects

These online resources are free for anyone to use.

Lancashire Family History & Heraldry Society (in conjunction with Lancashire Archives) produced an index of seamen on Crew Lists of registered vessels from Preston, Fleetwood, and Lancaster for the mid-19^th and early 20^th centuries.

The Federation of Family History Societies is co-operating with the National Archives to create a database of the English Manorial Documents Register.  You can search the Register and learn more about these records on the website.

Webinar

Troon @ Ayrshire FHS are promoting a free webinar on Thursday 29^th October, “Finding Your Scottish Ancestors in Canada”.  Pre-registration is essential for this Zoom presentation.

And this is just a fraction of the work that's being carried out by family and local history societies and other heritage groups around the world.  Use those research skills you've developed to search for a society that you can donate your time and talents to.  Archives and local history libraries are good places to find out about groups that need volunteers, and if you live in Britain or Ireland, GENUKI has a handy list of links to genealogy and special interest societies' websites.

Searching for London Ancestors

 

Temple Church, London

Libraries and archives are starting to reopen under special conditions, such as pre-booking a seat or specific records.  It’s always a good idea to check opening hours and other arrangements, and that’s especially true at a time when repositories are restricting the numbers of visitors per day, as well as the number of documents you can order or view in one visit.  Some of the first sites to welcome researchers in person again are in London.

The National Archives at Kew have been open for a few weeks now, but they continue to offer free downloads of records that are already available in digital format.  As this will probably return to being a paid service, find out what they have that's of use to your research, and get your free documents while you can!

If your focus is on the City of London, the Guildhall Library has excellent resources for that area, such as parish records for many of the oldest churches, including some that were destroyed in the Second World War.  For those planning a trip to the Library once it's open again, its virtual open day should be of interest.

The Library recently had a reprieve from controversial proposals that would have seen it merged with London Metropolitan Archives, which hosts a myriad of original sources, including workhouse, electoral, and school records.  They have a comprehensive guide to London family history research and a video introduction to using the archives.

For those of us who can't visit in person, certain relevant collections are available online.  One of the lesser-known ones is the Consistory Court Database, which covers the late medieval period in London.  Although an ecclesiastical body, the consistory court governed all aspects of life, including debt, marriage, defamation, and probate matters.

If you’re investigating the life of someone who lived and worked in London, they may appear in the records of London’s Livery Companies, who provide lists of apprentices and freemen. Trades such as chandlers, musicians, salters and goldsmiths feature in these fascinating rolls.

To learn more about ordinary Londoners through social history, check out London Lives.  Its resources include a database of convicted criminals who were transported to Australia.  Some fascinating cases are highlighted and will give you an idea of what kind of information can be gleaned from these records, which also cover the Old Bailey - this has its own separate searchable database of criminal trials from 1674 to 1913.

Finally, you may think of joining a family history society that covers the part of London your forebears come from.  GENUKI has a useful guide to the various groups that take in London and the surrounding areas.  Many societies are taking to video conferencing as a way to include their members near and far in meetings and workshops.  And they are continuing with traditional FHS routes like magazines, newsletters, and registers of members' surname interests.

Killing off Ancestors From the Comfort of Home, Part 1

Certificates

Does the oldest member of your clan have a stash of family papers? Maybe you’ve inherited ownership of the documents and photos that your mother carefully collected.  Whichever it is, there are very probably death certificates in amongst them. 

These are the official designation of someone’s demise, although they are notoriously the least accurate kind of certificate, given that the person they refer to isn’t around to correct any errors on them.  Sometimes the relative who registered a death was distressed, misinterpreted what was being asked of them, and didn’t answer the questions correctly - hence the discrepancies with what appears in other documents.  The other possibility is that they just didn’t know the maiden surname of their father’s mother, and either said so, or made one up on the spot to avoid embarrassment.  Awareness of these potential mistakes, coupled with careful research, will allow you to weed out any misinformation.

Burials

A number of sources are used to record when and where someone was buried.  These include church or parish records, interment registers, and graveyard inscriptions. 

Check out the availability of UK church burial or death records using GENUKI or the Online Parish Clerks

and search them using FreeReg.

Faith records from Britain and other countries may be found and searched through

FamilySearch’s Catalog.

Local authorities or other bodies responsible for the upkeep of cemeteries should have records of burials and cremations, or at least be able to direct you to where they are kept.  A quick phone call to your council office can be very useful, even to simply determine which department is in charge: parks, sanitation, public health or whatever.  The website related to the council or even an individual cemetery may provide information about the layout of the grounds, as well as opening hours and contact details for cemetery staff. 

Headstone inscriptions can give details not found anywhere else, although beware the slip of the stonemason’s chisel.  Verify the date(s) on gravestones using other sources where possible.  Again, parish clerk or GENUKI web pages can direct you; they may contain links to online indexes of specific graveyards. 

Contact the family history society for the area you’re interested in to see if they have conducted any cemetery surveys, perhaps publishing their findings in booklet or website format.

And if you’ve already got books of monumental inscriptions on your shelves, why not go through them again, especially if it’s been a while since you consulted them.  I’ve had lots of success with this strategy by matching names found in my recent research with printed gravestone transcriptions that I've owned for years.

Of course there are always the two major free graveyard online resources:

Billion Graves 
and

FindAGrave 

All of the above are not the only free resources for tracking down your family’s deceased members – in the next blog post I’ll share some further tactics to help you locate them.

The Best Source of Local Knowledge

A recent chat with a fellow family historian prompted me to think about how helpful it can be to draw on the resources of family history societies, heritage groups and local history organisations. 

Usually these groups are run by volunteers and focus on a subject of common interest, like the area where ancestors lived or originated from.  Other societies are based on religious affiliation e.g. the Quaker FHS or ethnic background e.g. the Romany and Traveller FHS.  Some groups cover a broader subject area, such as the Family and Community Historical Research Society (FACHRS). 

Paying to join a society is customary and although these charges vary, they’re usually fairly affordable.  However, society meetings are often open to non-members for an entrance fee, and are one of the most accessible aspects of family history societies’ work.  Attending a meeting can be a good way of gauging whether membership will benefit you.  Check out your local family history society’s website for their calendar of upcoming events in your area, as well as membership rates and details of ongoing heritage projects.

Another feature of many societies is their local research premises, sometimes hosted in a library or archive.  Here you can access indexes to census returns, gravestone inscriptions, parish registers, newspapers and other resources that society members have compiled or collected.  Some may have microfilm copies of original records to browse through.

One of the aims of family history societies is to connect members who have common ancestry.  They do this by compiling a register of members’ interests and publishing society magazines or newsletters.  Access to these is included in membership fees.

So how do you identify a society that covers your area of interest – for instance, the county where your forebears hailed from?  A good starting point is the website of a national umbrella group.  In the UK, these include the Family History Federation and the Scottish Association of Family History Societies.  Links to other historical societies and genealogical groups from around the world are found at genealogy directory Cyndi's List.

You can also try searching on social media for an organisation related to your ancestors; many FH societies have Facebook or Twitter accounts, offering another way to get in touch with them.

One very active group is the Families in British India Society.  Their website hosts resources and ideas for tracing those in your tree who, for example, served in the British Army or the East India Company in the subcontinent.

The Ulster Historical Foundation boasts a rather impressive website which includes a bookshop for those hard-to-find genealogical publications, and some free finding tools such as a list of Ulster graveyards.

One example of a society which has a broad reach is the Northumberland and Durham FHS, which has branches not only in local towns but also in London – this is true of other organisations, like the Aberdeen and North-East Scotland FHS, which also has groups in Glasgow and Manchester.

When you’re researching an area for the first time, an excellent way to learn more is to contact the relevant family history society for advice.  You’ll find the members are more than happy to give you pointers on where to look for the information you need, especially when the organisation has close links to local archives.  Some FH societies offer remote research for a charge, if you aren’t able to visit the area in person.

My tip this week is to look at the branch, twig, or leaf of your family tree that’s causing you the most headaches, and then find a society in that county or town to check out online.  Contact them with your question and ask them to suggest a solution.  If they are helpful, consider making a donation if you aren’t going to become a member.  Societies like these depend on voluntary donations from their members and others who have used their resources.  And if you do join a family history society, get involved and give back, especially to those who follow in your footsteps.