Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2017 i Who Do You Think You Are?

As more and more family history records go online, we’re all gradually become armchair genealogists, which is great for convenience, although not so good for the waistline! However, as your research takes you further back in time, you’ll reach a point when you will need to visit archives and for early records (pre-1600) you will probably need to visit The National Archives (TNA) in Kew. If you haven’t been before, then follow Ed Dutton’s advice (p17) to get more from your visit, including tips on how to make old documents more legible and how to save money on copies. We’ve also got a feature on First World War pensions appeals tribunals (p61) that I’m particularly pleased with because it was suggested by a reader who had discovered a vast amount…

42,000 PDF copies of civil birth and death records were ordered during the General Register Office’s digital record trial between 9-30 November 2016 4.7 million viewers tuned in to watch Amanda Holden’s episode of Who Do You Think You Are? when it aired on Thursday 1 December 23,603 digital images of Bristol nonconformist church records from 1777-1936 are now free to explore on familysearch.org 44 parishes within the historic county of Middlesex are covered by a new collection of war memorial records on findmypast.co.uk 17 million pages of historic newspapers have been digitised and made available to view online at britishnewspaper archive.co.uk…

The London Family History Centre (LFHC) is temporarily located in the Reading Room of The National Archives. It is run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS or Mormons), and has a microfilm collection containing almost all of Britain’s parish records. Though the records that have already been indexed can be searched through familysearch.org, you can take advantage of the 60,000 original microfilms at LFHC and in so doing, you can obtain extra information in the parish register entries (such as profession), which will be absent from the entries on FamilySearch. Check the catalogue at londonfamilyhistory.org/catalogue to see which microfilms are available at LFHC and, if they’re not on site, which you will need to order in advance. There’s a lot more to uncover at LFHC besides…

In Georgian Britain, theatrical personalities were not held in high esteem. Actors, singers and other performers had long been viewed with suspicion, and were typically characterised as disreputable bohemians, prone to promiscuity and excess. There was also a long-standing association between acting and prostitution: both actors and prostitutes were objects of desire whose services were advertised publically and exchanged for money. Furthermore, acting and prostitution were two of the only professions that enabled women to be self-sufficient during this period. In addition to these prejudices, performers were also seen as vagabonds and outsiders because they travelled from town to town and kept unconventional hours. It is easy to understand, then, why stage folk were seen as disreputable. These sentiments are evident in some of the reports that were published about…

The internment of enemy civilians (mostly men of military age and suspected spies) began as soon as war broke out in 1914. They were held in unused army camps, on merchant ships, even in a former holiday camp. In May 1915, following Zeppelin raids, submarine warfare and a vicious press campaign, a more general internment began. Old workhouses, disused factories, hospitals, and schools were taken over and new hutted camps built. The biggest was at Knockaloe on the Isle of Man which held 20,000. Internees were guarded by soldiers, usually older men, and camps ringed with barbed wire. Prisoners had freedom within the camps during daylight hours. They ran their own kitchens, libraries, lectures and classes, usually a theatre, as well as bands and orchestras. They organised themselves, did the…

Q One of my family history discoveries has led to unknown cousins in Australia, whose ‘founding father’ was, Thomas Meadows Baum (born 1824, Wigston, Leicester, died 1861), my 3x great uncle. Their story tells of him deserting from the army and settling in the Australian gold fields, where he died in a mining accident, leaving his wife, Ann (Holyoak) Baum, (born 1824 – died 1894) and four girls, to fend for themselves, with just a tent for a home. I’ve looked at desertion papers at The National Archives (TNA), with no success. Can you tell me of any other records or websites that would be of help? Mark J Smith, by email A The Australian gold rush began in 1851 and was a constant draw for poorly paid soldiers through…

‘Contact with home was important and letter writing was encouraged’ Letters written in our ancestors’ own hand are especially prized among family historians. It is not only the frisson that comes from handling the paper that they touched, but the glimpses they reveal of their lives, thoughts and opinions. And this is especially true of children’s writings, which may be less often preserved – particularly in public collections. A growing interest in childhood studies means that more archives aim to collect and preserve such letters. This month Guy Baxter talks about an example of a child’s letter from an important collection of evacuee memoirs from the Second World War. Which document have you chosen? I’ve chosen a letter from the evacuee archive written by Barbara Stagles. She was evacuated in…

Find out more about the conflicts of the era on the Britain’s Small Forgotten Wars website (britains smallwars.co.uk), which looks at some of the more obscure conflicts of the past 200 years; or try British Battles (www.britishbattles.com), where you can explore images, maps and lists of regiments involved in battles, grouped by conflict. There’s also the FamilySearch wiki focusing on British Military Records (family search.org/wiki/en/British_Military_Records), which leads to pages focusing on specific wars. This page from the Roll of Honour website (roll-of-honour.com/Boer) tells you about the Boer Roll of Honour database, and you can explore details of Boer War memorials across the UK. There’s also the pay-per-view Register of the Anglo-Boer War 1899-1902 (casus-belli.co.uk), which also hosts the Anglo-Boer War Memorials Project (casus-belli.co.uk/abwmp), run under the auspices of the Victorian Military Society…

Most local authorities have records covering the whole of the 20th century, including those set up specifically for the two world wars. For the Second World War, for example, London County Council holds records relating to Air Raid Precautions and Civil Defence, 1935-1947, Evacuation Schemes, 1938-1947, the Rescue Service, 1938-1947, Civil Defence personnel, 1939-1947, requisitioning of property 1938-1946 and many more to do with the day-to-day running of a city under the threat of multiple air raids and their fallout. All local authorities to one extent or another will hold records of civil defence that were created during this period and these can lead to discovering if your ancestors were involved in Air Raid Precautions, Warden Services, Cyclist Messenger Corps, and so on, or if they were killed or displaced…

Was the appeal allowed or disallowed Reflecting the tribunal’s opinion on the seriousness of the illness. Name, rank and number of applicant Use these details with other records to help you find supplementary information from other sources. Address This is often not available from other sources at this post-census date. Pre- and post-war occupations and employers A good guide to the working life of the individual and his peers. Pensions already awarded If there were any, these give good pointers to past military service records. Service record A good record of dates of service in the UK and elsewhere, and whether or not the applicant was a prisoner of war. Foreign service Often valuable as it might account for certain medical conditions. Reason for discharge This shows why he was…

‘This project is an exciting opportunity to unlock a valuable new source for family historians’ The Lancashire Family History & Heraldry Society, in partnership with Lancashire Archives, has been awarded local project funding by the Federation of Family History Societies. Volunteers, working under the supervision of an archive support officer, will create a comprehensive name index to two important series of Lancashire Crew Lists, held at Lancashire Archives. The lists, covering the period 1863-1914 and with about 82,000 entries, give details of the crew members of ships registered in Lancashire. Seamen from across the UK, and occasionally beyond, are recorded in these documents. Because they were at sea, many are known to have been omitted from censuses, so this project is an exciting opportunity to unlock a valuable new source…

‘Our success would not have been possible without genealogical websites’ How long have you been doing your family history? This research has been ongoing since the late 1800s, so it has preoccupied four generations! Our aim was to identify the birth parents of Ebenezer “Eben” James whose place and date of birth were unknown (believed to have been in 1872-73) and was given to foster parents residing in Ramsgate, Kent. I am nephew by marriage to Eben’s son and the other key team members were Eben James’s eldest son, Eben James 2, daughter-in-law Dorothy James and granddaughter Heather James. What had already been uncovered before you hit your brick wall? Although Ebenezer died in 1949 without ever discovering his parentage, his estate contained letters, photos and other documents offering clues…

The county is known for its coal and lead mining heritage Derbyshire Jonathan Scott delves into Derbyshire’s heritage to find out what’s available for family historians This month we return to Derbyshire to unlock the genealogical treasures housed at the county record office in Matlock. Here, the family historian on the trail of their Derbyshire roots can find archives of the county council, Derby City Council, the Anglican Diocese of Derby, and a lot more besides, from the archives of Denby Pottery to the earliest recorded recipe for Bakewell pudding, which was written in 1837. The most used genealogical sources at the record office tend to be church registers, and the collection of wills proved at the Derby Probate Registry from 1858-1928. Digitisation in recent years has improved access to…

Everyday Life in Tudor London by Stephen Porter (Amberley, 304 pages, £20) If you’re interested in the Tudor period, this is the book for you. Even if you haven’t traced your ancestry to the 16th century, the wealth of information, extensive quotes, as well as the maps and illustrations give an insight into both the lives of ordinary citizens and those of higher social standing. You learn so many interesting facts, such as Thomas Cromwell extending his property by having his neighbour’s house moved on rollers! In 1536, the first murder using a handgun was recorded. The victim, Robert Packington MP, was assassinated for importing English bibles from the Continent. Porter describes the huge changes in trade; imports and exports of goods from thimbles to silks. He reveals how foreigners…

PICK OF THE MONTH Activist ancestors Who Do You Think You Are? February BBC One As we went to press, it was still unclear whether the second tranche of episodes in the current season of Who Do You Think You Are? would be shown in the immediate aftermath of Christmas. Even the running order has not yet been finalised, but currently slated to be first up is Sir Ian McKellen, star of the Lord Of The Rings trilogy, who visits his “dynastic church”, the place where his paternal grandmother, Alice, worshipped. “Mother Mac”, as Alice was known, was an active member of a religious movement called Christian Endeavour, which aimed to improve the lives of inner city workers. Not only does Ian see the font where he was…

The Name of the Game 11 February BEARLEY VILLAGE HALL, NR STRATFORD-UPON-AVON one-name.org/seminar-events 0800 011 2182 Another chance to get inspired about one-name studies. This event will detail what support and resources are provided by the Guild through its website, as well as focusing on the best way to use official records and social media for one-name studies. There will also be advice on managing a surname project and the day will conclude with highlights from different aspects of an already established study. The seminar costs £18 (including refreshments and lunch), and you can book online via the link above.…

‘In those days, no one took their feet off the ground, so she must have been a real risk-taker’ WDYTYA? reader Glynis Haynes had been researching her family history for some time when her brother showed her an entry on findagrave.com for an Elizabeth Mary “Lily” Cove, who was described as a “parachutist”. He wanted to know if she was related to them as their family name is Cove. With a bit of research, Glynis found out that Lily was a relative – in fact she was her first cousin once removed, and had been born in 1885. “I eventually found her in the 1891 census where she is recorded as Elizabeth Mary Love,” says Glynis. “In the 1901 census, she was living at 112 Downs Park Road, Hackney, working…

‘Finding the names of godparents can build up a picture of family networks’ We’ve just been to the wedding of a goddaughter, a very enjoyable occasion for meeting people we’d not seen for 30 years. I was best man at her parents’ wedding, when I made an extremely witty speech about the groom, my best friend from school. And now here he was as father of the bride, a generation later – a real embodiment of the passing of time and the unfolding of family history. Godparents are a half-forgotten element of family history. Centuries ago, they were more than just the people who ‘sponsored’ the infant at a baptism. They became part of your family, and you of theirs, but it was a spiritual family – and given the…

TNA’s records are being continually indexed so that they can be searched via the Discovery catalogue (discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk). Currently, about 32 million records are indexed while over nine million are available for download. What you uncover may break down your brick wall, but if it doesn’t then it’s time to look at the records in person. If you’re looking for early modern or medieval ancestors, you can download nonconformist and non-parish BMDs, 1567-1969; famous wills, 1552-1854; and wills at the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, 1384-1858, directly from Discovery. The ‘Medieval and early modern family history’ guide (nationalarchives.gov. uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/medieval-early-modern-family-history) explains what records are relevant and which ones have been catalogued. If they haven’t been catalogued on Discovery, there’s often a published index which will direct you to how to find them. The following…

‘The press had a field day reporting on all the scandalous details that came to light’ During the first half of the 19th century, John Braham (1777-1856) was one of the most famous men in Britain. An opera singer of international renown, he had appeared at theatres across Europe. But on 23 July 1816, he attracted an audience for all the wrong reasons. This crowd packed a courtroom at London’s Court of Common Pleas in order to hear the case brought against Braham by Mr Wright, a purser who worked in the naval service of the East India Company. Journalists waited with their pens poised, ready to report the details of the trial. Braham’s counsel paced, eager for the opportunity to make the singer’s case. Wright’s counsel glared at them,…

MEET OUR EXPERTS KRISTINA BEDFORD is a member of the Association of Genealogists and Researchers in Archives (AGRA). PAUL BLAKE co-wrote Discover Your Roots and is a Fellow of the Society of Genealogists (SoG). ALAN CROSBY lives in Lancashire and is editor of The Local Historian. ALAN STEWART is a family historian with 30 years of genealogy experience and author of Grow Your Own Family Tree. PHIL TOMASELLI is a military family history expert and the author of Tracing Your Air Force Ancestors. ALISON TOPLIS writes on the history of clothing and is an honorary fellow at the University of Wolverhampton. MIKE TRENCHARD is a member of the Association of Genealogists and Researchers in Archives (AGRA). Is this my missing Mary Ann? Q I’m trying to find a birth for…

Ricky has a strong Liverpudlian identity and when he looked into his tree he discovered that his family had, indeed, been in that city for many generations. He followed the Tomlinson line back several generations to discover a long line of his ancestors working as carters during the 19th century. He also was sad to discover the dramatic deaths of two of his forebears. His 3x great grandfather, Richard Tomlinson, met an untimely death after being crushed by his cart in 1839. Bad luck would follow the generations as the same unhappy fate was met by Richard’s son, William, who also died in a carting accident. We learnt the fate of these two men firstly by ordering their death certificates. The certificates gave exact details as to the cause of…

‘Genteel profession, tall in stature, finely-shaped and well-proportioned’ The urge to advertise for a potential partner, whether online or in print, is nothing new. “Husband-seeking ladies, and wife-wanting gentlemen,” as the Sunday Times described them in 1840, have been writing lonely hearts ads for centuries. The very first lonely heart ad is believed to have appeared in 1695, inside a pamphlet with the unlikely title of “A Collection for the Improvement of Husbandry and Trade”. Just over a decade later, The Tatler began running ‘once seen’ adverts. These were the province of the wealthier middle and upper classes, as placing an advertisement in the late 1700s cost two to three shillings, roughly twice the daily pay of a labourer at the time. In one typical example from 1758, a young…

The exciting adventures of the first police detectives captured the imagination of the Victorian public, and our fascination with their sleuthing skills and undercover missions has endured ever since. When Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes in the late 1880s, his stories were rooted in the everyday work of Britain’s pioneering police detectives. Until the mid-18th century, communities were policed by unpaid parish constables, assisted by watchmen, whose main responsibilities were to keep the peace and bring local lawbreakers to justice. Private individuals, usually victims of crime, could employ a ‘thief-taker’ to track down the perpetrator for a fee, yet impoverished victims had limited means of redress. When the writer Henry Fielding took over the London Bow Street Magistrate’s Office in 1748, he established the Bow…

c1160 Although the exact date is unknown, around this time Derby School is founded by a local magnate. The school will be open almost continuously (it closes for a few years as a result of the Dissolution of the Monasteries) for more than eight centuries. 1683 Charles Cotton writes about the old Ashbourne custom of Shrovetide Football (see p31), still played every Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday, when two massive teams of players compete over a cork ball. 1735 Writer and journalist Samuel Johnson, 25, marries Elizabeth Porter, 46, at St Werburgh’s Church, Derby. This ex-Anglican church is a Grade II listed building today. 1771 Richard Arkwright, pioneer of the factory system, opens Cromford Mill in Derbyshire. This was the first water-powered cotton spinning mill. 1822 Pioneering photographer Francis Frith…

The German Orphanage by Patrick Wiegand (Anglo-German Family History Society, £9) London was home to a thriving German population by the early 20th century. The orphanage in Dalston, open for more than 60 years, received support from German merchants and the patronage of the Kaiser. The orphanage was a little bubble of German life in London’s East End. The book includes vivid descriptions of orphanage life up until the Second World War. Salts Mill: The Owners and Managers, 1853 to 1986 by Maggie Smith and Colin Coates (Amberley, £12.99) In 1853, Titus Salt built a mill and founded a village in West Yorkshire called Saltaire, which still exists today. This book details the fortunes of Salts Mill and the lives of those who ran it, through wars and times of…

After censuses and civil registration documents, most family historians find success going back further using parish records either online or at the county record office. Baptisms, marriages, burials and wills transport us to between about 1550 and 1600, but the question is where to go next? Many genealogists stop tracing their tree at this point. ‘There is no more information,” they conclude. “Time to send the tree out to relatives and start on a different line.” But all is not lost! That brick wall can often be demolished with a trip to The National Archives (TNA), which has records stretching all the way back to Anglo-Saxon times. However, to make the most of its astonishing collection and ensure you get full use of your time and money, you need to…

1 Type full names Type in the full name, surname or place that you are interested in. This will often lead to a huge number of record abstracts. However, to avoid missing anything out it is often best to take the time to read through all of them. 2 Advanced searches If you can’t face the long trawl, then under ‘Advanced Search’ you can opt for a string of words, exact phrases, ‘any of these words’ and also ask it to avoid documents that include certain words. 3 Refine your search Refine searches by changing the date in the sidebar, but you may miss documents that are just beyond the date boundary or are undated. Get round this problem by using the ‘advanced search’ option. 4 Spellings & surnames Spelling…

When Braham began his affair with Mrs Wright, he was living with his common-law wife Nancy Storace. The couple had been together for almost 20 years. Though Braham was the greater celebrity of the two, Storace was also an opera singer of considerable renown. Born in London in 1765, Anna Selina Storace (known as Nancy) had an English mother and an Italian father. Stefano Storace, who hailed from Naples, was a double bass player at London’s Italian Opera and he encouraged the musical talent of his young daughter. The young Nancy was trained by various Italian masters, making her first public appearance in 1773. Not long after this she travelled to Italy, where she performed in cities including Naples and Florence. In the latter city the young singer caused a…

‘Who was this man? I had known the names of all Theodor Friedrich’s family since childhood’ During the First World War, Britain saw the rise of strong anti-German sentiment, also known as ‘Germanophobia’. Stoked by propaganda, some UK citizens distrusted German people and this led to riots, looting and even attacks on Dachshunds. The atmosphere was very frightening for those Germans who had made the UK their home and raised their children as British citizens. Corinna Meiss is a German genealogist and public relations manager who lives in Goslar, near Hanover. She had no idea that members of her extended family lived through Germanophobia in the UK until she made an astonishing discovery. Initial clues came from a treasure trove of old family photos that her paternal grandmother, Hermine Meiss,…

Could this be my red-haired grandmother? QI believe this photograph, found among my aunt Catherine’s things, is of my grandmother Elizabeth Ellen Guyers (born 1891) with possibly my aunt (born 1910) and my uncle Dave (born 1911). If it is them, it would date from about 1912. Could you confirm the date? It would mean I have a photo of my grandmother, who had red hair. My mother, Lilian, also had red hair, as does my daughter, Wendy. George Evans, by email A This is a charming portrait which, without your family information, I would date to circa 1910-12, so this would fit with the dates of your ancestors. The hair of the lady is the main dating clue, puffed out, possibly over-padding, either side of a central parting, a…

Where is this bridge? bit.ly/2hzQxAT This photo was taken during the 1920s or 1930s. I have no idea where it is – it could be Yorkshire, Cumbria or Scotland or anywhere – there are no clues on the back at all. pathoaruk Brothers died in the same battle bit.ly/2gGOc5m I’m attempting to identify two brothers who died in the same battle during the Peninsular War and I have very little to go on. This info came from a newspaper article about another family death. I have looked at the guides from TNA, they suggest looking at records of payments made to next of kin for dead soldiers. I don’t know their wives’ names (or if they were married), these records aren’t digitised and I can’t get to Kew. Their surname…

“The reign of Queen Victoria was one of almost continual warfare, from Canada, to Egypt, New Zealand, India and the Crimea. Joining the army to escape crushing poverty, or later in the century to satisfy a wanderlust, makes having a Victorian Redcoat in the family a proud possibility. During the course of researching my book, which explores the lives of British cavalry soldiers from Waterloo to the First World War through their letters home to family and loved ones, I called on the Victorian War Forum (victorianwars.com) many times. It is simply one of the best resources for studying Victorian Wars and covers the period 1837-1901, as well as the immediate pre-First World War period. Its members are friendly and well-informed, and can answer most questions concerning medals, campaigns, uniforms,…

ARCHIVES • The National Archives discovery.nationalarchives. gov.uk/find-an-archive Here you can search for an archive in your area, or where your ancestors were from. There is also a map available to show which archives are where. • Hull History Centre hullhistorycentre.org.uk Check out its online catalogue for details of the Civil Defence index and other records mentioned in this article. • London Metropolitan Archives search.lma.gov.uk/scripts/ mwimain.dll/144/LMA?LOG  ONFORM Its catalogue is to be found here and has details of the Civil Defence records in the London area. • DeceasedOnline deceasedonline.com BOOKS • Town Records by John West…

Tuberculosis (TB) is a bacterial infection of usually the lungs, spread by coughing and sneezing. It was formerly a major problem worldwide, especially where there was overcrowding, malnourishment and poor health care – so it was rife amongst troops in wartime. Many of the appeals maintained that TB had been contracted during war service. Lessons had been learned from the First World War, when enlistees had often only had a physical examination. By the outbreak of the Second World War, the examination included a chest X-ray, looking for TB and other thoracic diseases, thereby eliminating sufferers from active service. TB (or consumption, phthisis or ‘white plague’) caused more deaths in industrialised countries than any other disease during the 19th and early 20th centuries. In late Victorian times, 80 per cent…

The 1827 ‘Red Barn Murder’ is a notorious criminal case, yet the killer’s audacious attempt to evade justice is less well-known. A few weeks after shooting, stabbing and strangling his fiancée, Maria Marten, William Corder placed two lonely heart advertisements. After fleeing from rural Suffolk to London, Corder posed as a widower, a “private gentleman, aged 24, entirely independent,” seeking “any female of respectability” with some property. His description “turned the heads of 98 indiscreet spinsters, silly boarding school girls or wanton widows” aged 18-26, according to The Times. Some of the replies were later published and they reveal admirers ranging from a lady’s companion to a shop assistant. Most wished to escape unhappy or impoverished homes. One painfully honest woman admitted that she was an ex-governess with an illegitimate…

Jerome Caminada of the Manchester City Police Force was one of the finest detectives in the city’s history. Such was his celebrity status that he became known as ‘Manchester’s Sherlock Holmes’. Caminada was born on 15 March 1844, in Deansgate, Manchester, opposite the Free Trade Hall. His parents were of Italian and Irish origin. Jerome survived a precarious childhood of abject poverty and personal loss. In 1868, aged 23, he joined the Manchester City Police Force as a constable and vowed to clean up the crime-infested streets of his neighbourhood. A master of disguise and an expert in deduction, Detective Caminada tackled all types of crime, including fraud, theft, gang warfare and murder. He exposed quack doctors, infiltrated an heir hunting scam and even investigated a cross-dressing ball. Like Sherlock…

Why doesn’t the code that’s printed in the magazine work correctly? Each bonus content code applies only to the issue of the magazine in which it’s printed. Make sure that you’ve clicked on the red ‘View content’ button next to the cover of the correct issue. Why isn’t the code box appearing? If nothing happens when you click the red ‘View content’ button, it’s possible that firewall or virus-checking software is stopping the website from running JavaScript. You can check to see if this is the case by temporarily halting these programs and then reloading the website. Why is the data only available for a period of six months? Due to the terms and conditions agreed with some of the firms that provide the bonus content for our magazine, we…

DOWNLOAD Preserving Old Family Letters: Tips from an Archivist Kindle, £2.40 If you’ve stumbled on a bundle of old letters, it can be tricky to know how best to keep them intact for future generations, so who better than an archivist to tell you how to look after them. In this short book, Melissa Barker provides plenty of useful preservation advice. APP Shoebox Couch Labs INC Google Play, free If you’re out and about, it can be handy to snap a picture of documents or locations on your phone’s camera to refer to later – but these photos can quickly use up your memory. Using a cloud-based app can solve this issue: your photos can be easily backed up, keeping them safe, secure and private. DOWNLOAD Oxford Biographies Oxford…

LONDON FFHS Marketing Seminar 28 January WESLEY’S CHAPEL AND LEYSIAN MISSION bit.ly/FFHsSMarketing education@ffhs.org.uk Have your FHS numbers stagnated? Carenza Black, who is facilitating this free event, is a marketing professional on a mission to show you the best way to promote your FHS and grow your membership. How to Get the Best From Family Pictures 4 February SOCIETY OF GENEALOGISTS sog.org.uk/events 020 7553 3290 Join Jayne Shrimpton for a full-day course on understanding your family photos. There are limited places on this event, each costing £35, so book now to avoid disappointment and get your old family photos in order. SOUTH-EAST Schooling for the Agricultural Poor 21 January GALLEYWOOD HISTORY CENTRE, CHELMSFORD esfh.org.uk/events meryl.rawlings@btinternet.com Victorian attitudes to the education of farm labourers, with particular reference to the case study of…

French ancestors Amanda Holden had some knowledge of her French ancestry and was able to learn more about it during her WDYTYA? episode. If you also have French forebears you may be able to find records for them using the website, geneanet.org. 1 This is a large database for genealogical sources for Continental Europe and can be searched free of charge (after creating a login). It contains archival records, family trees, newspapers and other records to search. It also has a great forum. Navigate to the homepage (geneanet.org) to begin. 2 Click on ‘more search criteria’ at the foot of the left-hand search box to enter all known details (including a place and a date range). Type in the information you know and press ‘Search’ to view all relevant hits.…