Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2021 i Family Tree UK

Neanderthals disappeared from north west Europe much earlier than originally thought Neanderthal fossil remains from the key site of Spy Cave in Belgium may be up to 44,200 years old – around 5,000 years older than previously thought, new research has revealed The research, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, relates to the re-dating of the Neadnerthal remains from Spy Cave by a team based in Oxford’s Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit. Most of the dates obtained in this new study have been found to be much older than those obtained previously on the same bone samples – up to 5,000 years older in certain cases. According to the paper, Re-evaluating the timing of Neanderthal disappearance in Northwest Europe, this suggests Neanderthals disappeared…

150,000 records added to the military record collection at The Genealogist With records from Britain, Canada and a number of Indian registers and directories, these searchable records contain lists of men and women who served their country in various capacities connected to the military, and not just on the front line The records can be used to discover more about an ancestor’s achievements and can help you identify where next to apply your research, since the books can give dates of postings along with ranks or positions held in establishments. Included in the latest release is The War Office List 1920, where we can find a Miss Florence Agnes Hebb who had been deputy chief superintendent of typists at the War Office. We can follow her appointments from December 1890,…

Ancestry publish 2.2 million new prison and criminal records If you have an ancestor who fell foul of the law in the 19th and early 20th century, you might be lucky enough to find them listed among the millions of entries in Ancestry’s latest criminal and prison records release The records contains fascinating details that can add real colour to your family history, with details such as alleged crime, verdict, sentence and even information such as notes on a person’s appearance and, in some cases, photographs, particularly in the Registers of Habitual Criminals and Police Gazettes 1834-1934 collection. Ancestry also provided teaser details of collections they’ll be adding or creating over the coming months, including an extra 400,000 records to be released into the 1939 Register collection, and new valuation,…

What is the collection I’m looking at? In carrying out a search in any collection we need to first interrogate what it is, understand what it holds, and equally importantly, what it does not. For example, is the record that we are looking at a first-hand account of the event we are interested in? Most census records that we use, for example, are not ‘primary’ records – they are ‘secondary’ copies made by enumerators from original schedules filled in by heads of households, which in most cases have been subsequently destroyed. The very act of copying a source can introduce errors into the quality of the record we are using, or deliberate changes to cater for statistical categories of information, such as occupations.…

SELF-IMPROVEMENT, VICTORIAN STYLE WORKING MEN’S CLUBS: Rescuing the working man? Working Men’s Clubs were designed to educate the working classes. It is quite the Victorian notion that working class men had to be rescued from themselves, explains Lisa Edwards. Here she steps back in time to examine their history, their premises, and the role of just one such club in her home town today We are told that we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover and for me that came true; except it wasn’t a book, it was a building. I grew up near Madeley in Telford Shropshire and right in the centre of the town is a working men’s club called the Anstice. As a child I had imagined it to be a place of snooker tables, onearm bandit…

DISCOVER RESEARCH SOLUTIONS Your questions answered With our experts Jayne Shrimpton, Steven Smyrl, David Annal & David Frost Connections across continents Q Last year you featured some family photographs connected to my great-uncle, Charles John Bagwell (b.1875), who emigrated to Canada in 1903. Here are other copies I have received from his descendants. I wondered if some portray the same lady, and whether she could be Charles’s sister, Lydia Elizabeth Bagwell b.1877. Also, my grandmother Florence Rose Bagwell had a photo simply named ‘Lydia’ [see photo 2]. Lydia was also Florence’s sister, so does this photograph represent her – or is it more likely to be Florence’s mother, Lydia Elizabeth (Paddon) Bagwell (1851-1893)? This Lydia wears the same butterfly brooch that my grandmother, Florence, wears in a photo taken before…

Super Power family Q I have family from County Waterford by the surname Power, and I am keen to trace Patrick Power and Catherine Butler’s children. Denise Borrell A Your biggest obstacle to establishing the fate of Patrick Power and Catherine Butler’s issue is that Power is Co. Waterford’s most prolific surname. In Griffith’s Valuation (1848-1851), across the whole county there are a whopping 1,628 references to Power. In the 1911 Census there are 81,930 individuals recorded in Co. Waterford, and 4,590 are called Power. Seeking the children’s baptisms I identified baptismal records for Patrick and Catherine’s 12 children. The first two, Patrick, (1845), and Catherine (i) (1848), were recorded in the register for Kill parish (alias Rossmore). Other than the second Catherine (ii), who was born in 1856 and…

ALL ABOUT FAMILY HISTORY NEWS 1 million+ records from the collections of National Records of Scotland available online for the first time Thousands of volumes of historical records from the collections of National Records of Scotland (NRS) are now available online for the first time, covering 1559-1900 Rachel Bellerby reports on the latest genealogy news. Got a story to share? Email editorial@family-tree.co.uk Images of more than a million pages from the kirk session and other court records of the Church of Scotland, containing details of key events in communities across the country, have been added to ScotlandsPeople, NRS’s online research service. These records offer insights into the everyday lives of ordinary Scots, recording important moments such as births, marriages and deaths. The church also adjudicated on the paternity of children and…

Millions of Lithuanian-Jewish records added to MyHeritage Over 2.5 centuries of history are covered in a new addition to MyHeritage, with the release of a new collection of historical records: Lithuanian-Jewish Records from LitvakSIG, 1795–1940 The records in the collection were originally translated and indexed by LitvakSIG, and represent almost the entire corpus of their work over more than 20 years. The collection is a compliation of records including revision lists, tax lists, voter lists, conscription lists, citizenship and passport lists, directories, Holocaust lists and other records pertaining to the Lithuanian-Jewish (Litvak) population during the Russian Empire and the period of independent Lithuania (1795-1940). Genealogists can find information such as the names of several family members, date and place of the pertinent event, and sometimes secondary information such as year…

Reaching out for reunions Two new developments at Vivid-Pix are helping people around the world to use the power of photographs to bring families together Vivid-Pix’s recent acquisition of Reunions magazine will help family, class alumni, and military reunion participants and planners. Edith Wagner, editor and founder of Reunions, said, ‘We are delighted to be able to continue our long service of information, inspiration and ideas to reunions and reunion planners… Vivid-Pix… services are of great interest to our readers who are always looking for new ways to celebrate. The eagerly awaited future of reunions will be bright.’ Other developments at Vivid-Pix include a new free video series with information on how to record stories in bite-size videos, tutored by storyteller and genealogist Laura Hedgecock: https://vivid-pix.com/education.html Find out more about…

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6 steps to assessing a record To understand any set of records for a particular area, first take a step back to understand the genealogical landscape. Ask yourself: 1 What was going on in an area? 2 Who kept records and have they survived? 3 Are they primary records, describing events witnessed first-hand by individuals, or secondary records, compiled by others informed by such events after? 4 Are such records online or in an archive, and are they complete? 5 Are they the only records concerning the subject of interest? 6 What factors may have affected how they were compiled (or not compiled), and how they are presented?…

Find the backdrop to their lives Placing our ancestors’ lives in the context of their times is such a rewarding and valuable experience. In recent times people in England and Wales have just completed their census returns for 2021, many online. Scroll back 110 years, and our ancestors were putting pen to paper and doing the same, filling in the 1911 Census. From within the pages of these census forms, many of our ancestors took the chance to share their views. Here Simon Pearce tells of his feelings about the 1911 Census coverage on StoryScout: I was really moved by the ‘No Vote, No Census’ Protest of 1911 story. Although my ancestors were not directly involved in the women’s suffragette movement, as far as I’m aware, the story really made me…

Join us for House History Show The House History Show will take place online 10am to 4.30pm GMT Saturday 15 May, presented by the leading team of UK House Historians. The full-day show, on 15 May, will be followed by an online house history lecture and presentation series through May and June. The full-day programme will include a one-hour Keynote: A House Through Time – which will feature a conversation with historical consultant Deborah Sugg Ryan and research consultant Melanie Backe-Hansen from the popular BBC series A House Through Time. The £45 fee includes the full 15 May programme and all subsequent lectures running through May and June. All sessions will be recorded and made available to registered attendees. Find out more at https://familytr.ee/house…

WOULD YOU LIKE TO JOIN IN? THE VOLUNTEER LANDSCAPE ARE YOU UP FOR AN 17th & 18th century adventure? Sue Paul’s book, Jeopardy of Every Wind: The Biography of Captain Thomas Bowrey, tells the incredible story of a young child from 17th-century London escaping alone to a new life in the East Indies. How was this story pieced together? By the discovery of a chest full of papers in the roof of the English manor house. About the papers & their significance The collection comprised, Sue Paul explains, ‘1,000s of documents, in all stages of legibility, very many undated and unsigned. They were reorganised multiple times, donated and sold, and transferred between various repositories. Most are now held by just two archives. To enable me to work on them I paid…

Eliza Lunn (c1885-1936) Q Eliza was my nan’s mother. My nan was always pretty vague about her as she died when she was a child and said that she did not remember very much about her but remembered her always suffering from poor health. My nan, Elsie May Sawyer (née Frost) 1925-1911, was her youngest child. During the research of my family history Eliza was without doubt the biggest enigma. She married Alfred Frost (1863-1939) on 14 May 1908 at Southwark Registry Office: he a 44-year-old widower and she 24 years old, the daughter of Robert Lunn (deceased) and born in Peckham. There were several Robert Lunn’s in London in late Victorian times and I could not conclusively prove which one was actually her father (or was the name made-up…

THE FAMILY TREE NOTICEBOARD Sign up to our enewsletter and keep up with the latest family history news, info about our monthly magazine, online courses, and our jam-packed genealogy website at www.family-tree.co.uk Meet the team behind all things Family Tree. We love helping people to trace their roots Matthew Hill Associate Publisher Helen Tovey Editor Mark Dean Multimedia Advertising Account Manager Lauren Freeman Brand Development & Marketing Manager Rachel Bellerby Deputy Editor Downloadable research sheets See www.family-tree.co.uk/ store/family-tree-shop/downloads Research sheet download prices from 99p (or from 50p for Family Tree subscribers) CENSUS COMPARISON CHART Discover what information was taken on the 1841-1911 censuses for: Use this detailed chart to easily see what questions your ancestor answered – showing you the fascinating details…

London Fire Brigade reports 1915-1918 released The impact of air raids on London during World War I is highlighted with the release of London Fire Brigade reports at FindMyPast Many of us have read about the impact of air raids on London and other cities and towns around the UK during World War II, but a new release from FindMyPast sheds light on the air raids of World War I. London Fire Brigade (LFB) reports 1915-1918 is a collection of reports that cover the effect of air raids on the capital in World War I in vivid detail. The transcriptions have been painstakingly taken from original LFB reports and show levels of damage from minor through to tragic. For example, one report reads: ‘Some shrubs damaged by fire in yard…

Coming soon – The House History Show Working with the #HouseHistoryHour team of leading UK house historians, Family Tree will be holding the House History Show, online, on 15 May 2021 31,911 pages of the Illustrated Police News now available at British Newspaper Archive with their latest release, adding in the years 1875 and 1891 Covering more than two centuries of British history, Ancestry have released 2.2 million new records into their criminal and prison collections People from a total of 242 countries attended RootsTech Connect online from 24-27 February The House History Show is aimed at all those interested in tracing the history of buildings and the people who once lived in them. The combined expertise of the #HouseHistoryHour team of experts – Prof. Deborah Sugg Ryan, Dr. Nick…

NEWS ROOTSTECH ROUND-UP LATEST GENEALOGY NEWS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE Over 1 million people attended RootsTech Connect 2021 RootsTech Connect has revealed its visitor figures for the weekend 25-27 February 2021 – and the online exhibition content is available to enjoy for a whole year… RootsTech Connect 2021 welcomed more than 1 million participants from 242 countries and territories at its completely virtual, online debut. Although the ‘event’ portion of the experience ran from 25 to 27 February, anyone can continue to create their own watch lists from the 2,000 free, on-demand videos at RootsTech.org. Jennifer Allen, manager of the RootsTech effort, said many participants are enjoying the fact that all of the content is now freely available; and they can continue to enjoy the content all year – even if…

DIGGING DEEPER Twiglets From Italy to Ireland… This month Gill Shaw enjoys exploring a biography with several tantalising mentions of her ancestor Joseph Riboldi I’ve been grinning like a Cheshire cat (or should that be a gatto di Lombardia?) ever since I found almost certain proof that my 3x great-grandfather Joseph Riboldi came from somewhere near Como in the Italian Lakes. And it’s all thanks to a young man named Charles Bianconi, who made the journey from Italy to Ireland with him, and Bianconi’s daughter Mary Anne who tells her father’s rags to riches story in a biography published in 1878. I’m still struggling to believe my luck! There are no end of questions buzzing through my head now, though. Not just about what happened to Joseph, Charles and the other…

COMMEMORATING THE 80TH ANNIVERSARY The Old Palace School Bombing Regular readers will know Paul Chiddicks’ from his Dear Paul column of genealogy funnies, but here his investigations take on a more sombre role. Paul spent years researching the story of the largest ever loss of life for the Fire Brigade. One of the firefighters to perish in this terrible World War II event was his great-aunt This is the account of the Bombing of the Old Palace School in St Leonard’s Street, Bow, London, during WW2 and the sad loss of 32 Firemen and 2 Firewomen who were tragically killed during this raid. This is still today, the largest ever loss of life for the Fire Brigade, at one incident, in the history of the service. Tragically for me, one…

MY 12 MONTH JOURNAL MY REFLECTIONS Over the past year all our lives have been turned upside down, some with more drastic and more tragic consequences than others. There have been some silver linings to these troubling times and there are chinks of light, and signs that the end of the tunnel may be approaching. Whatever the future holds, we think that now is a good time to reflect on the past year. Many people are writing Covid diaries and for those who have yet to put pen to paper, we’ve provided a handy pull-out page, on which you can jot down your thoughts and feelings – and file it away for posterity among your family history papers. MARCH 2020 APRIL 2020 MY COPING STRATEGIES Keeping up with friends &…

BOOKS & co NOVELS, NOVELTIES & MORE A selection of intriguing reads, reflecting the many facets of family history interest, with Helen Tovey & Rachel Bellerby Read on & see where these tales will take you The Song Of The Skylark by Liz Shakespeare Focussed on the lives of two pauper apprentices, brother and sister, Th omas and Mary Mitchell, the story is told through children’s eyes. On reading it, facts that we may have long known about, from a family history research perspective, take on an entirely new poignancy. The understanding of how very much families were at the mercy of the authorities; split up, with children sent to live and work away from home for years at a time, often until the age of 21. Imagine hearing that…

Tracing a living relative Q My side of the family lost touch with a relative ‘O’ in 1964 when her father died and it has always bothered me that we were all so close at one point, then suddenly nothing. ‘O’ spent summers with mother in Maidstone, Kent, and had wonderful times. I have been in Canada since this time. It has been hard to locate or find any information as to what happened to ‘O’ who would now be 69/70. In the 1963 London electoral register it shows ‘O’s parents residing at Hayter Road. Her father died in 1964 and I subsequently found that there is a marriage recorded between her parents in the third quarter of 1963 in Lambeth. I am not aware of any other siblings from…

THOUGHTS ON… RESEARCH… THEN AND NOW A trip down the winding pathways of cyperspace This month, Diane Lindsay weighs up the pros and cons of information at the touch of a button, compared to the pre-internet days when adding ancestors to the family tree almost always necessitated leaving the house in pursuit of maybe just one gem of a fact… Life was tidier in the old days of family history. If we were lucky, we found perhaps one fact every few weeks in the County Record Office. Or through a rare coach trip to Kew, the Society of Genealogists’ Library or draughty old St Catherine’s House, a modest crumb of information. Even when we came home with little more than an empty lunch box, aching feet and a crick in the…