Genealogy Chat

Thank you so much for your help its nice to know i can call on you for advice thank you Diana

You need to check as many censuses as possible. Obviously earlier censuses might have the whole family group but later ones will often have a brother, sister-in-law, grandson, uncle etc. These can often be very valuable because they can be clues to spouses's names. This is where ancestry (and any other indexed census) can be very useful because you can often find someone living somewhere else in the country. Even if they are just shown as "Visitor", "Lodger" etc then it is worth looking the details carefully because they can be related. Similarly check servants because it could be a niece or other relative. Martin

"The I.G.I (International Genealogical Index) This the foremost of many indexes to parish registers, compiled by the Mormon church from baptism and marriages records worldwide and searchable at www.familysearch.org. Because it is neither comprehensive, fully accurate or as detailed as the sources, the original records should always be checked. " [this info is on the home page of this website. scroll down to Genealogy Resources, click "Getting Started" section to find] You can google Hugh Wallis to find his guide to batch numbers and follow the instructions. nell

what is IGI please thanks

Hi Another way to search the IGI is to click on search on the family search home page. Then click on the IGI link on the left. Then all you have to do is fill in the father and mothers first and last names. You have to put in which region to search (British Isles in most cases). Then you can say which country if you want. Then just search. Hopefully this will bring up some siblings. Don't forget to confirm their details though as its the IGI. I have found many siblings of ancestors this way. If you don't find any for your first couple, try another. Lynne

If the birth of the relative you know about is on the IGI you can find out the siblings quite easily. Look at the record and at the bottom left will be a batch number with C at the front for christenings. If you click on that number you will get into the batch. On the next screen put in the surname and the christian names of the mother and father. If you then click search you will get a list of all the children born to that mother and father. This only works of course if they were all born in the same parish.

Thank you all for answering my question now all i have to do is look in the right place thank you Diana

Diana It depends when you are talking about. If it is 1841-1901 you can check the census to see who is listed with your relative's parents. If it is pre-1837 you can look in the baptism records to find children with the same surname and parents. If it is post-1837 you can look for that surname in the births in the right registration district. I would add its not a silly question, and I've found a lot of useful genealogy clues from siblings who have been better documented than my direct relatives. nell

It really depends on the time period. If relevant, a census search would show others living in the household and their ages at census (not always accurate but fairly reliable). From there you can calculate their approximate birth and search for the ref. on FreeBMD. Pre census you are stuck with checking parish records for baptisms. Start with the birth u know and work a year either side. It helps if u have a marriage date coz they usually married before the first birth. Hope that helps a little. Beth :)

Depends when it is you could try the census for the whole family group, or Freebmd for listing same surname children registered in same district,or baptism/parish records etc. Kim

How would i go about finding brothers and sisters belonging to a relative when i (1) dont know wheter there are any and (2) have no first names to go by . Is this a stupid question am i having a seniour moment whey whey before my time ????????????? Thanks for taking the time to read this