Genealogy Chat

saved 'on the off chance'.

Just looking back through some 1901 entries I had saved, just on the grounds that it was the right surname and might fit in sometime, I've noticed another surname in the same household that meant nothing at the time but now recognise as my gt gt grandmother's daughter by first marriage. :-D

Rose
Isn't it great when those unknown names suddenly mean something.?

I sometimes do the same with marriage certificates. The witnesses sometimes have a new significance.

If I go to a Record Office and find mention of one of my fairly unusual surnames in the right area, I always make a note in the hope that one day they will fit in.
I have 2 x great grandfather's possible parents and his siblings 'waiting in the wings' for such a possible moment, when I can link them in.

Gwyn

I regularly go back through each 'family' group file I have. In the vain hope that I will find something on that elusive relative. And this has proved a very good exercise.

The one thing I am doing these days is going through all my odd little notes (I have a tin of them!!!) and seeing if I can work out what they were for and invariably throwing them out as I have no idea what I was thinking of 5 or so years ago.

But both of the above have proved fruitful. :-)

I find Census originals are the best for this. Kids sometimes spent the census night with a neigbour or relations in the same town. Many a missing sprog have I found much later staying the weekend at Granny's!

Piglets Pal and I share a philosophy (and an avatar) random filing systems often produce good surprises.

Random Filing - I take umbrage at that - it makes it sound a bit too tidy for me. My filing is completely chaotic!!!!

Love the piccie.

...and my second tip is...

don't go to bed after finding new leads...you know you will only lie there muttering to yourself

" now if HE is HER nephew what relation is he to X" ,

and wondering what was that other record that you saved about 5 years ago that mentioned the same place that this one was born in....and should you get up, even though it is 3AM, to trawl through your box files
:-D

Oh RamblingRose, your second tip is just typical of what I have done on many occasions - laid awake with things going round and round in my head - definately something to avoid if possible!! :-)

It is often worth revisiting old records as new databases or existing databases are often extended.

Typical being the Probate calendars which were originally released up to 1941 on Ancestry but have just been released with records now going up to 1966. This has brought a lot of Ancestry "Tips" attached to those ancestors in your family tree on Ancestry who died between 1941~1966.

The probate records can themselves be very useful not just for displaying what someone's estate was worth but to whom probate/administration was granted. In several cases in my extended ancestor family tree it has confirmed the fact that I have indeed recognised the correct death and marriage/children of the deceased without the need to purchase all the certificates.