Genealogy Chat

It's a real bonus to find yourself in some lovely places searching out your family. I've visited Binton in Warks, very picturesque (and found nothing),Great Ayton, Yorks (and found nothing),Manchester (and found nothing), Wigan (and found nothing). But I did have some sucess in Okeford Fitzpaine, Heaton Cemetery, Rotherham (suprisingly nice), Stockton-on-Tees, Berwick-on-Tweed and Falmouth. It's taken years mind!

Sounds like you had a lovely visit Sharon. What a shame that so much of our past has been built over. You struck lucky with the helpful lady that you contacted, well done!

I recieved a death cert about a month ago for my great grandmother and it touched me that she had died 100 years ago this year on my birthday. So plucked up the courage to phone the department that looks after the cemetries locally to her. The lady was so helpful taking all the details and phoning me back twice. and letting me phone her back a couple of times too. She faxed a map of the cemetry over showing what section and grave number GG was in. also telling me there was no headstone and that noone had been buried in her grave either (GGD is going to prove to be elusive after her death as well as before their marriage. Typical! ) She told me that in that part of the cemetry they were trying to encourage wildlife and wild flowers ( I think she thought I might have been worried by the long grass) Infact it was beautiful! every time I walked near a bush hundreds of butterflys flew off, lovely flowers and tiny fuzzy bees. I didn't feel like I was in a grave yard, more of a beautiful country field. Quite fitting for a lady that gave her daughters flowery names. She couldn't been more helpful, including telling me to keep coming back to her with more family so she could help me find where they were laid to rest. She even told me to pop up and see her and we could do it together if I liked as she loved going through the old books! - what a GEM! Anyway I had a lovely wander yesterday finding out that where my dad was born is now a square in the middle of a shopping centre ( couldn't find it on a map) The street where GGD was living before marriage and the street where they lived when she died have both been pulled down and are little walkways to the bus centre :( I stumbled acros the church where they were married by accident ( although it's now closed and attached to a school) . After leaving the graveyard I took a stroll down the street she lived in for a little while before she got married her aunt, grand parents( when they got old), and cousin had lived in two houses next to each other and they hadn't been pulled down! I had to stop myself jumping up and down with excitment. They were built in 1880 so they must have been the first residents who moved in. How excited they must have been to get a brand new house?! - and I got some photos just in case someone feels like pulling down some more streets! Got home with my feet feeling rather sore but very happy and next time I go to Bedford I feel a bit more confident to find places and take some photos for others if they can't get there.

See below in a mo. x