But What Is Genealogy?

 

Image: Tentes/Pixabay

A lot of people have never even heard of genealogy.

So I thought I'd take everything back to basics and explain a little of what it is that I do.

Genealogy is, simply, the study of family history - of lines of descent and 'pedigree.'

Your line of descent is your parents, your grandparents, your great-grandparents, etc. going back in time until you reach a point when you can't find any more (accurate) information.

Centuries ago, nobility would hire genealogists to draw up family trees showing their lineage (and therefore how posh they were and whether they could use the family coat of arms!)

Over time it's become more than just a long list of ancestors and their perceived 'good breeding,' and more about the stories that family trees contain.

Family history creates a real and tangible connection between us and the history that we hear about at school or in documentaries.

It's one thing to hear about the industrial revolution, and another to learn about an ancestor who was killed in dangerous working conditions, or a relative who lost children to the extreme poverty and disease of the Victorian slums.

It makes a difference to know that we wouldn't be alive today if these series of events hadn't taken place in the ways that they did.

Family history - genealogy - makes history personal, because it is.

We are the result of all the historical events that came before us - products of chance and circumstance - without history, each of us, as individuals, would not be here, and would not be the people who we are today.

Last-Minute Christmas Presents?

We've all been there - you're wrapping up the presents and suddenly you remember that you forgot to get anything for Aunt So-and-So, or Uncle Whatsisname.

Or wait! Your sister said she was gonna be away for Christmas! And now she's not! You haven't got her a present yet!

What do you do?!

Well, instead of running out to grab the last battered box of chocolates in the shop, or a bottle of bargain booze, why not turn that last minute panic into something special?

I can help you out.

If you e-mail me with the details before December 24th, I can create and e-mail back a personalised gift-certificate.

Sounds good, but what does it mean?

Let me break it down:

• You tell me what package you want (details of my packages are available on my website)

• You tell me what you'd like the gift certificate to say

• I create the gift certificate and e-mail you a PDF (printable) copy, along with an order form for the recipient to fill in with the information I need to start researching.

• You print out the certificate and form (or e-mail it,) and give it to the intended recipient.

• I will invoice you for the full amount of the package you selected, plus £10.50 P&P. If the recipient wants extra copies of the research, or for it to be printed in a different format, that will incur extra fees.

• Once I have payment, and the information I need from the recipient, I'll get started on fulfilling the special gift you ordered!

As long as you e-mail me BEFORE 24th Dec 2018, I should be able to help you out!

If you're not sure, feel free to ask any questions you want; my e-mail address can be found on the order information page of my website.

Have a good Christmas everyone!

Learn the Lingo - Genealogy

It suddenly occurred to me that a lot of people won't even be familiar with the term genealogy, so...

Genealogy

Genealogy is the study of lines of descent. In practice, this usually means starting with recent history and working backwards through time.

A genealogist studies lines of descent - either their own or other people's - to discover information about ancestors and relatives, and produce family trees. It's the stories that really bring it alive though - everyone's life means something, and it's so interesting to find the stories that make up your heritage.

Learn the Lingo - Alias

Alias

The term alias is used when an individual used more than one name. Most commonly, this will be found in criminal records - for example 'John Smith alias George Jones was found guilty of...' This is because people in trouble with the law often changed their names to avoid their pasts and evade detection.

The second most common use of an alias is in the case of illegitimacy. Where a child was born outside marriage, they may be known by both their father and their mother's last name, for example 'John Jones alias Evans,' this can also happen in the case of fostering, informal adoption, or remarriage of one of the child's parents. 

There are of course also many individually unique reasons why someone may be known by more than one name.

Learn the Lingo - Black Sheep

Black Sheep

A 'black sheep' ancestor is one with a criminal or otherwise scandalous past. Most family trees have at least one, and they tend to make for some of the most interesting stories. Tracking a black sheep can be difficult as they often have a habit of hiding or changing their names, ages, and other distinguishing features (e.g. where they were from.) With a lot of hard work, their stories can be discovered, and you may find something interesting about your own family's past.

Learn the Lingo

Hi everyone! I've decided to do a new post series ('Learn the Lingo'!) to explain some of the genealogy terminology that I rarely notice is terminology anymore. This will be normal terminology as opposed to things I come up with when I'm in a strange mood (let's face it, we all do it!)

So, today's lingo word is (drumroll here)....
Certs

Certs to a genealogist doesn't mean 'for certain.' It is in fact short for certificate - referring to Birth, Marriage and Death certificates which are used to find information about individual family members.

When you need some help with your research

Hi everyone, just to remind you that if you've decided to look into your British family history, and have got a little overwhelmed or stuck, help is at hand!

My hourly rate, Leaves, is £9.50 per hour; feel free to get in touch with me the usual way (via the e-mail address found on my website www.familyhistorybycerys.co.uk) so that I can help you out with your genealogy mysteries and "brick-walls."

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone!

If your News Year's resolution is to learn more about your family's history, feel free to get in touch with me using the e-mail address on my website www.familyhistorybycerys.co.uk

You may be feeling a little overwhelmed with where to start, or got confused by the number of people who share a name with your ancestor - if so help is at hand! My range of services is detailed on my website, and do feel free to get in contact!

So, if genealogy is your New Year's project then I'm here to help!

WDYTYA? - Julie Walters

So, there we are, first episode of the 2014 series (series 11.) While perhaps it wasn't the ground-breaking episode a season opener deserves, it was still a fairly interesting episode. It started off kind of slowly, with tales of Irish agricultural workers (not that there's anything wrong with that but I think perhaps a touch too much time was devoted to it,) and then picked up when Julie learned of her ancestors' association with the Land League.

The Land League, seen in their day as radicals, was an association of tenant farmers who wanted fairer rents and better tenancy agreements from the landowners, particularly at a time when they barely had enough money to feed their children. So radical was this seen to be (it is, after all, a very early form of socialism when you think about it,) that Julie's ancestor, Anthony Clarke, had to flee the country to avoid arrest. When Anthony returned to Ireland, he was arrested for another reason - seemingly unjustly.

Another side of Julie's family, the O'Brien's, were also involved in the Land League; Maria O'Brien was part of the Women's Land League - supposedly a charitable organisation, this was a cover that allowed them to take part in politics and continue the work that the men's part of the Land League could not then continue. Maria's maiden name was Buchanan, and it turned out that her father was on a very different side of the debate - that which took over the land of evicted tenants. It was really interesting to see Julie try to work out in her head whether Cummins Buchanan was justified in his actions or not. Overall, a slow and steady start to the series - and hopefully with more enjoyable episodes to follow.

Friday Quick Tip

I guess that it's that time of week again: Friday Quick Tip time! This Friday's tip may seem like a no-brainer but you'd be surprised how easy it is to forget to do this. So do your best to remember that online genealogy resources often update what databases are available, or add more names to their databases - so it's worth you checking what new records are available on a regular basis.

Friday Quick Tip

What can I tell you for this Friday's quick tip? Let me see, well I'm in a rather odd mood today so this Friday's quick'n'handy family history tip is this: perseverance. Sometimes something can drive you mad because there's just nothing you can do to find the answer to your question. But that's ok, take a break and put it on the backburner perhaps, but don't give up on it completely; you never know when you'll break through that infamous 'brick wall.'

(And if you need another perspective to the problem, you could always try my hourly rate 'leaves' service at www.familyhistorybycerys.co.uk)

Friday Quick Tip

Ok, this week's handy little genealogy tip is that people were often mistaken, misunderstood, or dishonest on census records - for example, stating their last town of residence instead of their birthplace.

Friday Quick Tip

Ok, here's this week's quick genealogy tip: Details passed down by family members can be a great help, but aren't always 100% accurate - dates, places, etc., can often be changed slightly in the telling and the remembering.

Names On a Page

I was wondering the other day what it would be like if I'd known my ancestors as people - would I have liked them? Would they have been like me?

I don't have a time machine, so there's no way I can know for sure what these people were like - but they are far from just names on a page to me. I know things about them and the people they grew up with that they may never have known themselves. Did Mary Ann know that John was not her father? She was young when her mother married him, he always referred to her as his daughter, she had his last name - did she know? Did she know of her mother's court battles to ensure her biological father paid maintenance?

People's stories never completely disappear - they just wait for a while, a hint here, a clue there; they wait for centuries if they have to.

Living History

Hi!

I have to admit, sometimes I come across people who are - frankly - a little rude about family history. The argument of why it's relevant or (and I hate this) why someone should have more research completed when their family history has 'already been done,' crops up from time to time.

As far as why you should research your family history, well, I can't guarantee you'll ever understand that. But from personal experience, the sense of connection with the past, and the fascinating stories that suddenly spring to life, are worth it every time. It can also allow you to feel part of history, and give you a wider sense of family and how you've got where you are.

The words 'it's all been done' really, really irritate me in terms of family history. I have been researching my own family history for many, many years. I can't honestly say I'm done; I'm pretty sure I will never be 'done.' There's always something more to discover, even about relatives you thought were fully researched - there's always a new perspective, or something you can discover more about.

I'm dedicated to providing history to my customers; names and dates will never be the end of the story, even if you choose to order basic research in order to use this kind of basic information as a starting point.

For more information about my services see www.familyhistorybycerys.co.uk

Bye for now,
Cerys.

Family Questions and Answers

One of the great things about family history is the individual stories that you can come across, but sometimes you can be left with yet more questions - it's the nature of the thing.

Why was this lady buried with her first husband not her second? Why would you move from Oxfordshire to a tiny Welsh village where they don't even speak English at this period?

An ancestor of my own was trying to sell a 30ft Cornish boiler via a classified ad in the paper - I have no idea why he had it, or where on earth he was keeping it, but I'm not going to stop looking.

...and then there are the answers - sometimes more surprising than the questions. This Victorian middle-class lady fell in love with the farm labourer working on her father's land, accounting for his sudden rise in fortunes. Another gentleman disappears from the family home... because he ran off with the circus!

If you have a question about your family's ancestry or background - it could be as simple as wanting to know more about a grandparent's upbringing, then you may find my hourly rate 'Leaves' is just what you've been looking for. Alternatively, you may find one of my packages more suited to your needs. Full details can be found on my website - http://www.familyhistorybycerys.co.uk/ - if you have any queries, please get in touch via the contact details provided on the site. Even if you think I can't help you, I may be able to.

Bye for now!