Author Topic: FAMILY HISTORY (Read 11335 times)

Margaret · « **on:** December 19, 2003, 12:07:30 »

Hi all! It would seem there are quite a few of you interested in your family's past.I have been ever since I was a teenager.As the years have gone by it has been a slow process,but the advent of the net has truly brought a wealth of info. Â So I would first like to tell you about the other sites to the one mentioned last night(www.familysearch.org for those who don't know).This was set up by the Mormons and i have got the most fantastic amount of use out of it.

However,I started first of all with Â :
www.census.pro.gov.uk Â which is mainly the 1901 census.You can search for free,but only get mimimal info.To get more you do have to subscribe,but it isn't much.I have not done so yet,but i may in the future.It gave me enough info to go to the 1881 census the mormons provided.

Another one i have just found is Â :
www.familyhistoryonline.net
This you also can search for free,but again you have to pay for individual dates and names.Again,I will be using that for any gaps i still have.

2 more which may also be of use,depending on where you need to look,are Â :
www.familyrecords.gov.uk Â which gives more help in where to look rather than actual detailed info,and
www.ancestry.com Â which is an american site but I have also found useful.

On one of the sites,and I cannot remember which one,I found someone looking for members of her family,tracing that name.Turns out that 6 generations back,we have the same grandfather!! He is the one whose grave we went to see.She has been very active in going to find parish records,public office records,etc,and she was able to give me loads of info I did not have.Very exciting that was.I was also able to help her.

When I first found the mormon site i literally lived on the computer,gathering info for about 3 weeks.So be warned!! It is VERY addictive. ;D ::)

How did you all get into it? I started by being fascinated with a tapestry hanging on my grandma's( mum's mother) wall,dated 1861.She told me it was done by my great great grandmother,named Jane Linney.She left it for me when she died in the 1980s,along with some old photos and a few names.That go t me curious to find out more about the person,and it grew and grew from there.I would now need a 4' wide piece of paper to completely draw out my spreading tree.I have not only traced the direct lines,but brothers and sisters as well.

Do let me know how you all get on.Maybe if we ask Dan nicely we could have a separate board for all info that we could share,to help each other.

Dan,are you listening?PLEASE!! :D :D

SueT · « **Reply #1 on:** December 19, 2003, 12:42:21 »

Hi Margaret, I started my search by asking my mother in law if she could give me any names, she came up with a list from her side of the family from the 1800`s which an elderly uncle had given her. It is a highly addictive hobby and I spend most evenings at the computer either checking through my census discs or trawling the internet looking for more sites. I don`t know how I`m going to last out until Christmas Day when I`ll get my new census disc, I`m desperate to get my hands on it! :-[ ;D God, I really should get out more........ ;)

Margaret · « **Reply #2 on:** December 19, 2003, 12:55:09 »

Hi Sue.That site you mentioned that links to the Gloucs census;does it cover any other county? I am interested in at least 4 other counties as obviously families,as you go further back,split up and moved.

Also,what is freebmd that you mentioned? As for getting out more.That is just the point,you don't need to.We have wasted more than one day on fruitless searches in county offices trawling through the tiny print on the wretched micro fiche.The net is just wonderful after that!!

mysticmog · « **Reply #3 on:** December 19, 2003, 15:17:27 »

Good idea Margaret to create new thread....

My uncle started researching our family, but got stuck due to the grandiose storytelling habits of my elders. I'm hoping that all these new resources will help and can't wait to get stuck in over xmas

SueT · « **Reply #4 on:** December 19, 2003, 15:44:51 »

Hi Margaret, the Glos 1851 site doesn`t have any other county census details on it, but you can buy other census discs from there. Freebmd provides a search facility for birth, marriage and death records and I`ve found it very useful. I wanted to give you the link but for some reason when I clicked to check it works it wouldn`t find the site. Just type in Freebmd and you`ll get it...........it is free by the way! ;D

SueT · « **Reply #5 on:** December 19, 2003, 15:49:41 »

Here are two other sites which are useful for geealogical research..........
www.genuki.org.uk
www.ukbdm.co.uk

SueT · « **Reply #6 on:** December 19, 2003, 15:51:19 »

:-[ Sorry I`m making up my own words now! Should have read genealogical ???

Margaret · « **Reply #7 on:** December 19, 2003, 19:03:08 »

hi Sue.you realise you've really set me off again? I have been trying each and every site out.Plus by a coincidence,I read on teletext today of another one www.1837online.com

Now that's one I can really get into. :D Apparently it has all the records for great britain from 1837 onwards.You have to subscribe a minimum amount and then you type in the name,year etc and they charge 10p for each look.That's ok if you know the year but in some cases,that's my problem,I don't.Could waste a lot,having to look through every quarter.But i will get into that come the new year,definitely.

Tried freebmd but they did not come up with anything,nor did ukbdm.But I will keep trying when I have more time.Thanks a million for all your help.

SueT · « **Reply #8 on:** December 19, 2003, 21:07:27 »

,You`re welcome Margaret, glad you found the sites of help. Here is another one which is especially useful if you`re trying to track ancestors who may have emigrated. It`s www.immigrantships.net
It contains passenger lists from a huge amount of ships starting from the 1600`s. I`ve never found anything relevant to my research but someone else out there might ;D It`s an ongoing project though so one day I might get lucky! Just had a thought, you mentioned census records from other counties earlier, try the Genuki site for the area you want. If you`re lucky someone may have transcribed a census for it. :) By the way, I`ve tried the 1837 site and it is very good - I found my mother in laws registry of birth, but like you said you really need to know where to look!

SueT · « **Reply #9 on:** December 20, 2003, 00:08:28 »

Here is a site for anyone interested in Cumberland & Westmoreland, the 1851 census for those areas is available here...... jennylittle.members.beeb.net

Margaret · « **Reply #10 on:** December 20, 2003, 00:27:07 »

Sue,what I need is Bucks,Herts,Wiltshire and Suffolk.Out of interest,what is the furthest date you have managed to trace back? Mine is 1681,the date of marriage of my great x 7 grandparents!!

SueT · « **Reply #11 on:** December 20, 2003, 00:35:21 »

Hi Margaret, I`m still quite new to this so I`m still stuck in the 1800`s, but I`ll get there in the end! I`ll have a poke around and see if I can find anything for you ;D

SueT · « **Reply #12 on:** December 20, 2003, 00:54:51 »

Margaret I think your best bet at the moment is to go to the Genuki site and check the different counties on there. ;D

Carol · « **Reply #13 on:** December 20, 2003, 01:15:34 »

Hi all, I have finished my Family History and really quite sad about it. It is very addictive and it certainly kept me sane for 10 years. I was unable to get a job when I moved from Fife and I spent my free time in the Local Library trawling through Old Parish Records and Census. I also paid a weekly visit to the Records Office in Edinburgh to look for the B/M/D certificates of my ancestors. My research has gone on and on and even yet when one of my family names crops up it sets me off. I have made lots of friends through the hobby both in this country and abroad and it is certainly a worthwhile hobby. For 11 years I was Secretary of the Local Family History Society and I also carried out research for other people. For a time, but not for a few years I recorded the headstones and in turn with the help of others they were turned into books for sale. I really should be in the middle of typing out recorded headstones for the Historic Melrose Abbey. So in all I have enjoyed it all and will do so until I am completely dolally. The furthest back I got was on my Baxters 1690 They were yeoman from Cumbria. My lot moved into Scotland and bred quite nicely. I have found lots of information on them with lots of sad stories. I have dabbled on the computer, but there is nothing like looking at the original census and OPR's on film. I think if you get your information from the 'net' try and check out with the film at your local library or wherever. The Mormons made lots of mistakes. Always remember too at the different ways of spelling names il.e. Weddell, Waddell, Wadell etc. can be the same family. My gr.gr Grandmother was Jessie, but she was also Janet and Janett. just some of the pitfalls.
You will also be lucky if you find a headstone of your ancestors. They were very costly even then to erect and if the family were poor then no headstone. I had better stop going on but amused that you Margaret, interested in birds like me is also into genealogy.
Again, if anyone in Scotland is looking for advice I can help.

SueT · « **Reply #14 on:** December 20, 2003, 01:25:33 »

Hi Carol, I am so new to this and I have learnt so much over the last few months but I`m still learning! Thanks for your advice ;D

Carol · « **Reply #15 on:** December 20, 2003, 01:43:11 »

I don't know if this is the same for England and Wales, but in Scotland in the past children born were as follows: sorry if you already know this.
First son named after the grandfather paternal
first daur. named after the grandmother paternal
2nd son named after the maternal grandfather
2nd Daur. named after the maternal grandmother
3rd son named after the father
3rd daur. named after the mother
4th son named after an uncle
4th daur. named after an aunt.

In my family the common name was James.
Look what you have started, you have got me going again. I bet I get my books out tomorrow night. I tell you, Family History is addictive.

SueT · « **Reply #16 on:** December 20, 2003, 01:50:10 »

Thanks Carol I didn`t know that! ;D

Margaret · « **Reply #17 on:** December 22, 2003, 23:59:36 »

Hi again,Carol and Sue.thanks for the further information.Yes,I have discovered quite a few mistakes on the Mormon site,but have been able to correct some of them as other members of the family have come up with snippets of information that they have found from various sources(the genuine ones).I also soon realised that there were frustrating gaps in the amount of info I could get.But it was still very exciting when i did get back such a long way after years of getting so few answers.

I have now started again in earnest and intend doing a lot more in the New year.It is my new year's resolution to fill in all the missing names and dates.

I only wish I had started a lot earlier.I have no chance of doing my dads side,as most of the family are now dead.Their surname was Smith,and they came from the London area.Not a good easy start!!

SueT · « **Reply #18 on:** December 23, 2003, 00:10:05 »

Hi Margaret, so pleased to hear you`re getting on well with your research. I`ve been having a break but intend to pick up the threads again in the New Year, I find it gets confusing after a while and my brain needs a rest ??? ;D

Carol · « **Reply #19 on:** December 23, 2003, 00:37:13 »

Hello Margaret and Sue
I had the same problem with my Dads family too. My maiden name was Anderson - quite common in Scotland, but when I got started I found that the christian name of Peter sometimes Patrick with Anderson wasn't so common so with that and the naming patterns got back quite a way into the early 1700's. You never know what can happen next. Don't give up on your Smith. What about your Paternal grandmother? I went through all my names and if you have an uncommon name then presto off you go again. lovely.................

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Author Topic: FAMILY HISTORY (Read 11335 times)