Genealogy Chat

It is not uncommon to read that people have spent years trying to find one particular record or piece of evidence in order to be reassured that they have the right person,and sometimes possibles are dismissed due to assumptions that may be relevant to todays world rather than past generations.Below I will try and outline aspects of research that can be avoided so as to free up time and not get you bogged down.

1) Whilst satisfying to have , finding and retaining all census records is not the be all and end all of genealogy-remember that there are often proper explanations for your relatives NOT being on a particular census,and NOT EVERYONE was recorded in some.Wars,travel and lost records can be reasons for not being included ,and should always be considered when obsessively seeking one particular census.Some areas were a lot more thorough in their recording. 2) Errors are frequent due to mistranscription,and it is worth keeping an open mind if suggestions that at first seem off the wall are to be considered- modern interpretation of copperplate writing is in some cases way off leading to some incredible mistakes.It is worth writing both words out in a pseudo copperplate style to see where mistakes could have been made.In one case Wilton was transcribed as Mittoe,then this was obviously rerecorded by sound-say a recorded transcription,and was then phonetically recorded as Mittow.In another case Lewis was transcribed as Severio Wilton>>>Mittow Lewis >>>Severio 3)Whilst some records are great to have they are not always accurate,thats life-people lied about their age to gain employment or a suitable partner,so there will often be conflict between official records and censi. 4)Whilst the internet provides countless areas of information,there is no substitute for hand digging in Archives-yes there are OPC (online parish clerks) sites but the information is in its infancy,and to do the job thoroughly pre 1837 and other generations,a vist to a CRO is required (County Records Office). 5) Set yourself reasonable targets and dont let particular minor details hinder progress,it will tire you and curb your zest.We have been fortunate that the Victorians and past generations recorded so much- the 20th Century will be a different animal....the TRADE DIRECTORIES are invaluable and are under used in my opinion.Used in conjunction with electoral roles they are very useful for finding people-use your Libraries. 6)In general I think because so much has become available on the internet,our expectation level has been raised so high that we often get despondent - 10 years ago we would be spending 20 times the amount of time to gain the same information-sometimes its worth standing back and looking at what you have already achieved and not take it for granted-good genealogy isnt getting as big a tree as possible-its about quality of detail,historical interest and above all accuracy.

Well done, Alter. Some really good tips there. At the risk of hijacking your thread, could I add just a couple of things myself: Some really good information can be gained from books of local history. Many towns or villages have had books written about them, often by a local history society. I have found interesting references to my ancestors in three different books. In each case it was information that I didn't already have. Could I please emphasise your point about people not always being truthful about their age. A bride may say that she is younger than she really is so as not to appear older than her bridegroom. As now, older people can add a few years to their age for effect!!! My great grandfather's death certificate shows him as being 94 but he was definitely not more than 90. Taking the age of 94 as gospel, it could lead to a very fruitless search for birth records.

Very sensible advice, Alter. No matter how much you want the soldier fighting in the Boer War to appear on a census, he won't be there. Nor will you find all the fishermen who were at sea. All the Elizas and Marias living with 'husbands' on a temporary basis and then marrying under their true surnames to someone else may be there on the census, but invisible. I was at a family history meeting last night where a member couldn't find her X....-Smith family. There are lots on the internet if you Google, but virtually nothing pre 1900 on freebmd and absolutely nothing on Ancestry. Searching on Smith, you can find them back to 1861. The double-barrelling only seems to start around the turn of the last century. But thinking out of the box is always easier if they're not your relatives!

How true! When I get frustrated with a brick wall, I look at my PAF and am staggered at just how much I have found out about so many people in such a short time. And although there are some folk I can't find on censuses, I do have some people who appear twice on the same census. This was great in 1841 as I found my gt gt grandmother's parents - I had an idea who they were, but my gt gt grandmother and her children were listed with them - so I got maiden name - as well as with her husband (so I knew it was the same woman). nell

I have seen people say on here that they are at a dead end because their Victorian relative wasn't registered for birth. It is estimated that before 1875, as many as 15% of births went unregistered, but (esp during the 1841-1901 census period) it is usually possible to get round the lack of registration with clever use of the census and GRO marriage indexes. Also, possible registration of siblings and parish baptism records. Merry

Do bear in mind that 'official' records are not necessarily accurate. I've found errors on bmd certs, parish register entries, electoral rolls, censuses and even on gravestones! Just because it was written down, doesn't mean it was written down right!

I'll second that too! There is a gravestone in a churchyard not too far from me saying that xxxxxxxxxxxxx was buried on 31 February! (There is some speculation locally that it was a deliberate mistake intended as a joke)

Excellent advice, Alter.

excellent advice from all there. I have only been doing this about 3 mths, and feel I know a little more about my blood line, the way they lived and so.I have only used the broads twice out of desperation , and was overwhelmed by the help of people,( Helen and Elaine),who know what to look for and where.

Excellent advice, Alter. I would particularly underline the potential use of public libraries - and their librarians who have a wealth of knowledge about the local area as well as their archives (and those of local authorities - they do get together sometimes!). Particularly useful are their photograph collections. Thorough search of photographic archives can locate some really useful info about the areas you are researching - though you would usually have to visit the main libraries in the authorities you are interested in. The pictures used in local history books are often housed in the library's collections and are merely the tip of the iceberg. Whilst you will probably not find a pic of your great grandfather standing out side his house (though you never know..), you may find pics of the street he lived in, local buildings of note that he would certainly have visited, newspaper articles relating to local places & people, and so on. Sorry to go on.... Jacquie

Very good tips, and I would like to add (though I will probably find that it already says it above if I read through everything properly!) DO NOT CUT CORNERS! If you can get your ancestor's marriage certificate, get it. Don't just look for him / her on a census and work back from there. Sometimes when you finally get the certificate you will find that you have traced the wrong person back! Same goes for birth certificates - then you know you definitely have the right mother. Kate.

nudged so i can keep it for later love linda x

Alter, Have you been on one of those 'training courses' recently ?? Your threads seem to be starting with............'dealing with... .......'narrowing down'............. All to me very familiar 'training terminology' -Could be wrong but put me out of my misery!! Dea xXxx

Self taught dea ;)..........training courses ?......*courses schwmourses....

An old chap once said to me that successful genealogy depends 50% on LUCK and 50% on LOOK! I would alter the odds to 90% LOOK and 10% LUCK - its all out there somewhere, you just have to know where to look - most of it ISNT on the Internet. OC

I've gone with a policy of 'stick everything in the tree, warts and all' and refine it as you go along. I've now added 'where there's doubt, make a note of where the info. came from'. I was fortunate to 'inherit' my late uncle's research, which I put on computer 'as found' nearly 15 years ago. It's grown from about 250 names (yes I know, a rather good start) to nearly 3000, with a huge increase in the last couple of years due to contacts made through GR, RootsWeb and simple Googling on surnames. Of course it helps immensely if you are looking for someone with an unusual first and/or surname. One of my wife's relatives seems to be the only person who ever had that particular name. Fortunately I don't have many Smiths or Joneses in my family.