Early British and Irish Census Project

Yorkshire is the largest county in England and was historically divided into three Ridings: West, North and East. Today there are four sub-counties in Yorkshire. The webinar will explain the complexities of parish jurisdictions and county boundary changes to assist in locating the relevant archives, and societies, for researching records and documents. The varied landscape will be explored to provide a background to the main industries which influenced migration in and around Yorkshire.

The county of Hampshire covers over 1 million acres, bordered to the south by the English Channel and includes the Isle of Wight. As one might expect the ancestral roots of the county are widely represented by agricultural workers, but it also has a strong maritime history. This includes not only coastguards, fishermen, and latterly Merchant Navy seafarers, but also the Royal Navy with its Portsmouth dockyard, now home to Nelsons's flagship HMS Victory. Join Gill for a user's guide to online and offline resources, including local archive collections, a guide to boundary changes, and where to search for missing ancestors. Our aim is research enlightenment.

Understand original steps in getting from event - birth, marriage or death to an index; how online services impact searches; how to obtain inexpensive certificates. Access procedures and costs for obtaining birth, marriage and death certificates in England and Wales has changed radically in the last few years. Positively, the reduced costs make it such there is no excuse for not getting all birth and death certificates. Negatively, people are losing sight of what they are actually searching to get the certificate. - Learn the original process of getting from an event to a listing within an index (local or national). - Learn what rules and laws changed the above processes over time. - Understand differences between original and new indexes. - See the impact of which versions of the indexes are being searched by the different online services. - Learn how to purchase, and quickly obtain birth and death certificates. - See the different versions of the certificates that can be currently purchased. - Learn alternatives for obtaining cheaper marriage records.

Discover how and where to locate records relating to your Essex and East London Ancestors. Learn about the changes of jurisdictions, and the various depositories that hold the keys to researching your family history. Once one of the seven Kingdoms, Essex and its neighboring East End towns/boroughs are steeped in history - from Tudors hunting in Epping Forest, to the Windrush arriving in the port of Tilbury. Find out how the landscape, particularly the Thames Estuary, played its part in shaping the county and its people. From probate courts to manors, schools to newspapers, a vast array of sources will be covered.

An insight into the wealth of information that is available within newspapers including the British Newspaper Archive and The Gazette as well as hints and tips for getting more out of searching and finding useful articles within the newspapers.

Following on from the ‘Irish Ancestors – Top 5 Websites You Need To Know About’ webinar delivered in January 2024, this talk examines five more key websites. These websites, most of which are free to access, hold a wealth of information that can help to build your family tree and build a picture of their lives. We will examine the type of records held on each site and will include search hints and tips to get the most out of your research on the following websites: The National Archives, Griffith’s Valuation, The Registry of Deeds, Roots Ireland, The British Newspaper Archive.

Often viewed as a rural retreat for London residents, Surrey presents unique challenges for genealogical research due to its shifting boundaries over the 19th and 20th centuries. This talk will help you build a solid foundation for exploring your Surrey roots with confidence, guiding you through the complexities of tracing your Surrey ancestry, offering strategies to streamline your research journey. Learn about the essential archives and genealogical sources available, both online and in-person, and gain insights into where to find support from local Family History Societies.

The Irish Quaker community is today very small but at the turn of the 19th century, they were a large, active mobile community in Ireland, with strong links to Pennsylvania, which was founded by William Penn, an English Quaker. They also kept amazingly detailed records in both the personal and business spheres. This lecture traces the history and impact of Irish Quakers and showcases their records while considering what a largescale DNA project might uncover for this endogamous and distinct community within Ireland.

This presentation focusses on helping family historians with British ancestry to research those whose conditions or behaviours may have led them to become marginalised, or discriminated against. Their circumstances were often the result of personal misfortune, exacerbated by society’s intolerance and they are often the ancestors who are not given due attention when we research, perhaps because their life experiences make us feel uncomfortable. Now is the time to focus on the Illegitimate, the poverty stricken, the sick and the lawbreakers and restore them to prominence in the family’s story. The presentation will also consider the ethical issues that arise when telling the stories of the marginalised.