2. Welcome
• Welcome
• Blog update, have a look at:
• http://rodneysgenealogyblog.blogspot.co.uk/
• Stuff from me
• Father Joe Walsh
• Stuff from you!
3. Rodney may be moving
• Family reasons
• Head back closer to kids and grandkids
• House is now on the market
• Finish as President of the Rotary Club of
Rushden at the end of June
• Implications for this Group........
• Any volunteers as Group Leader?
4. Write down
What you know
Talk to
Relatives
Look at
Family
Records
Plan your
Research
Discover
What sources
available
Keep effective
records
Births
Marriages
Deaths
Censuses
Parish
Records
Delve into
Ancestors
lives
Other
sources
Wills
START
6. CENSUSES
CIVIL BMD
RECORDS
About 1840
PARISH
RECORDS
GENES REUNITED
GENUKI , FHS, GOONS, ETC
GOOGLE, ROOTSWEB and OTHER LISTS
Ancestry.co.uk
LDS 1881
Findmypast.com
FreeBMD
Ancestry
Findmypast.com
UKBMD
Local BMD
sites
LDS Microfiche
LDS Family Search
7.
8. Northampton Family History
Centre
• We are happy to tell you that we will still be open during the
summer months, though with a restricted timetable.
• From July 29th we will be open on Tuesday evenings 7-9 pm
and on Wednesdays 10-4 pm. We should resume normal
opening hours after September 1st
• Subject to staff availability we also welcome groups who
would like to come on other days of the week.
• For any group bookings please contact Pete and Moira
Dodkins on 01604 587630 or email us at
• petedodkins@gmail.com
• Pete & Moira Dodkins, Family History Centre Directors.
9.
10. Scottish Valuation Rolls for 1895
• Scotlandspeople have just launched these
new records, comprising 2,095,707 indexed
names and 75,565 digital images, which cover
every kind of building, structure or dwelling
that was assessed in 1895 as having a rateable
value, andprovide a fascinating picture of
Scottish society during the late Victorian era
• http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/Content/
FAQs/index.aspx?2139
12. Census Research
• Frustratingly, we often encounter problems
when searching for ancestors in census
returns. The family cannot be found at the
expected location, or there are too many
possible candidates of the same name to be
sure you have the correct family.
• These tips and information from Jenny Jones
of discover your ancestors.co.uk
13. Census Research .. Family not
found at the expected location
• Check all known information including the last address given
in BMD or burial records. Has this information been
accurately transcribed online?
• Use more than one data website – the information can
differ.
• Use trade directories or electoral registers at record offices.
• Try to locate the family in earlier and later censuses. Have
they moved around between censuses? Perhaps the children
have been born in various places – did the head of
household have an itinerant occupation?
14. Census Research .. Family not
found at the expected location
• Search institutions, e.g. hospitals, workhouses, prisons,
asylums in surrounding counties as well as the expected
one..
• If in one census and not subsequent ones, consider death
records, remarriage of a spouse, emigration, and even
transportations.
• Always be aware of errors and omissions in transcription.
• Search at a record office if possible – some may have
surname indexes or extra information not available on
internet sites.
15. Census Research .. Family not
found at the expected location
• When using the data sites, use variant spellings for
forename and surname – even try forename only or
wildcards for surname.
• If still not found, broaden the search to include surrounding
parishes, even adjacent counties, as county borders
frequently changed.
• Use children’s names to try to locate the family – a child’s
unusual first name can often lead to results.
• Try finding siblings, too: this might reveal more family
members.
16. Census Research .. Where there is
more than one possibility
• Go back to basics – check all known information, eliminating
all but the strongest possibilities.
• Try to find each possible family in other censuses, baptism
and burial records or BMD certificates, in order to eliminate
them.
21. BMD searching.....births
• Certificates of birth, marriage or death are a mainstay of
genealogy, providing essential details to aid research.
• Obtaining these certificates is fairly straightforward once
the correct entry is found in indexes compiled by the GRO
since July 1837.
• Sometimes, however, the entry you are seeking cannot be
found – perhaps the surname has been incorrectly
transcribed, or an entry is not found in the expected year, or
the registration district is different from the expected
birthplace.
• These tips and information from Jenny Jones of discover
your ancestors.co.uk
22. If you can’t find a birth......
• Clues to the birth year/date may be gleaned from baptism,
death/ burial records, marriage certificates, censuses etc.
• Try all variants – Worton could be indexed under Warton/
Wharton/ Werton/ Wooton/ Morton etc. Remember that a
person may have used a nickname but would be registered
under his correct name.
• Births are indexed by registration date, not birth date (a
birth on 22 March registered on 8 April will appear in April-
June quarter). Late registrations were common, despite
fines imposed. Search up to three years either side of the
expected year.
23. If you can’t find a birth......
• Perhaps the birth was never registered – many believed
baptismal records were sufficient. Try baptismal registers for
all likely areas.
• A child born before the parents’ marriage or where the
father was absent may be registered under the mother’s
maiden name.
• Children were registered as ‘male’ or ‘female’ when a name
had not been selected before registration.
• Births abroad can be traced via e.g.
www.thegenealogist.co.uk.
• Try local newspaper archives for birth announcements –
while brief, they can provide vital information.
24. If you can’t find a birth......
• Use family history forums
e.g. www.thegenealogist.co.uk/forums/index.php –
someone may have the information you seek, but always
check the information is proven.
• School records often give a child’s age – try your local county
record office.
• Try surrounding registration districts – check
out www.genuki.org.uk and follow links.
• Common names may be troublesome. Ask advice from the
local superintendent registrar; ask them to check all possible
candidates, giving as much detail as possible.
30. Finally.........
• Any other Brick Walls for the Group to look
at?
• Anything that you would like us to look at in
future meetings?
• Anything else you would like to say?
