All About That Place

All About That Place, our unique free challenge event celebrating family, local and social history begins on 27 September with 140 bitesize talks over 10 days. Taking place on Facebook and YouTube watch as many, or as few talks as you wish. The programme is now online at www.sog.org.uk/all-about-that-place-2024. With talks on a huge range of topics, from quack doctors to hunting for Tupperware in the woods, from WW1 service records to midden heaps and privies, from Monopoly to using artificial intelligence there really is something for everyone. Share with your friends and family!

All About That Place is brought to you by the Society of Genealogists, supported by the Society of One-Place Studies, British Association for Local History and Genealogy Stories, with huge thanks to our Platinum Sponsors: The Genealogist, University of Strathclyde, Family Tree Plus and WeAre.XYZ.

Treasure of the Month

Our September Treasure of the Month is SoG Sources for Trades and Occupations in the library and online. Catch up on the latest episode on YouTube.

Join us on Tuesday 3 September, 14:00 to 14:30, to catch the next Treasures session in real time! Book your FREE ticket to attend the Zoom. Discover our collections of local sources in the Topographical Document Collections and how they might help you with your genealogy research.

We had a wonderful time delving into all things DNA-related in August. A homework project completed by the Summer School attendees really helped to bring alive what we learned from the expert tutors, Mia Bennett, Michelle Leonard, Debbie Kennett, and Sophie Kay. Debbie returns to lead an interactive Wednesday Workshop: Autosomal DNA Matchbuster on 6 November. Places are limited so book early!

Following a month of getting out and about in the countryside and a full day dedicated to those not-so-boring Agricultural Labourers we’re turning our minds to our urban ancestors in September. We’ll be looking Beyond the Disco Lights: Culture and Innovation in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, at the history of social housing in London and a Nottingham Street, as well as celebrating 200 years of Cadbury chocolate in Birmingham with Bournville Unwrapped: a taste of life in a model suburban village.

For many September means back to school, and we’ll be learning about School Records found in County Archives, a school history, English Education Records at SoG, Apprenticeships and educating working people.

Browse all upcoming talks and courses here.

September’s Book of the Month is My Ancestors were Thames Watermen by James Legon (2nd ed., 2008).

A family historian’s guide to ancestors who worked as Thames Watermen or Lightermen in the City of London. describes in detail the typical working lives of those who toiled on the Thames, from the 16th century to the present day. James Legon includes a thorough history of the Company of Watermen and the so-called ‘Dock Age’.

Find guidance on sources for your family history research, including archives, genealogical organisations and heritage institutions.

The Halsted Trust

The Halsted Trust is delighted to welcome Hester Coley as DNA Research Director for the Trust. The Halsted Trust is a non-profit educational charity, established to advance the education of the public in the study of and research into family history, genealogy, heraldry, and local history through one-name studies. One of the objectives of the Trust is to continue research into the Halsted surname and its variants and is interested in discovering whether all the known Halsted families can be proven to be connected hundreds of years ago, or whether there are several families with different origins. To this end, Hester Coley, an experienced genealogist specialising in DNA, has joined the research team to direct the Trust’s genetic genealogy DNA project. This involves extensive DNA analysis and will examine the Halsteds who have already taken DNA tests and find new people willing to take tests, which are paid for by the Trust. Anybody who thinks their DNA might be of interest, particularly males with the surname (or a variant), is welcome to email her at dna@halsted.org.uk. Further information about the Trust's genealogy and genetic projects can be found on the website.

Hester has been a professional genealogist for ten years and is a Member of the Association of Genealogists & Researchers in Archives (AGRA). She specialises in genetic genealogy, which usually means applying DNA analysis to a client’s brick wall in their family tree, most often to determine the identity of an unknown grandfather.

The Family History Show

Discover Your Ancestors is holding The Family History Show - London at Kempton Racecourse on the 5th October 2024. 

Watch presentations on various topics, put your research questions to an expert, speak to a local society, archive or genealogical supplier and chat with other genealogists.

Talks include: 

Nick Barratt - The story of Greater London
Nick shows how the tiny settlements that grew up in the Thames Valley gradually developed, and how they were shaped by their proximity to the city. He describes and traces the ebb and flow of population as people moved in to find jobs or away to escape London's noise and bustle.

Mia Bennett - Occupations: The Why, What, When, Where and How.
This talk covers a range of sources for your ancestors’ occupations as well as considerations you should make when researching. 

Historic England and RNLI

Historic England and the RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution) are inviting people to contribute to their Missing Pieces Project by sharing photos, memories, and information about listed landmarks on their new interactive map. Whether your family was part of an RNLI crew, your community supported a lifeboat, or you have stories that keep maritime history alive, your contributions can help tell the story of these special places.

Book Release: The Wightmans of Scotland, Ireland, and Pittsburgh

Dr. Bret A. Wightman’s latest book, ‘We’re No Eerish Bot Scoatch’: The Wightmans of Scotland, County Down and Pittsburgh (Masthof Press, 2024), looks at the rich history of the Wightman family. This meticulously researched volume traces the Wightman lineage from 14th-century Scotland through County Down, Ireland, and into the United States, where they made significant contributions to Pittsburgh’s growth from 1825 to the 1920s.

The book details the journey of James M. and Martha Smiley Wightman and their ten children as they established roots in Pittsburgh, engaging in industries like steam engine and boiler construction, banking, and glass manufacturing. Readers will find a well-rounded narrative, with maps, fictional vignettes, photographs, and period illustrations bringing the Wightman story to life.

Orkney’s Heritage Online

Orkney’s rich cultural history is now more accessible than ever with the launch of a new online catalogue by the Council’s Museum and Archive Services. This portal offers access to over 100,000 records, including archaeological finds, historic texts, photographs, and sound archives, covering Orkney’s history from the Mesolithic era to today.

Residents and visitors can explore these extensive collections from home, thanks to this newly upgraded system.

Findmypast has added:

• Yorkshire Monumental Inscriptions
• Philadelphia Roman Catholic records
• Scotland Roman Catholic records
• England Roman Catholic records (Birmingham, London, Northampton, and Nottingham, 1914)
• Somerset parish records
• Kent parish records
• Buckinghamshire parish records
• Northamptonshire Land, Poll & Window Tax Lists
• Northamptonshire Poll Books
• Northamptonshire Quarter Sessions Licences

TheGenealogist

To mark the 110th anniversary of the start of World War I, TheGenealogist has released an extensive collection of military records featuring the global conflict. The newly released records offer a look at over 25,000 individuals, giving details such as the service histories of soldiers, portraits, details of their schooling, and family connections, including poignant details of those killed or wounded in action.

• Birmingham, Service Record of King Edward School 1914-1919
• Whitgift Grammar School, The Book of Remembrance 1914-1919
• Memorials of Rugbeians Who Fell in the Great War, Volumes II, III, V, VI
• A Book of Remembrance of Old Boys and Masters of Watford Grammar School who Served in the Great War, 1914-1918
• Shrewsbury School, Roll of Service, 1914-1918
• Portsmouth and the Great War
• Swindon's War Record 1914-1918
• The Clan MacRae Roll in the Great War - Unveiling of Memorial Supplement
• 7th Battalion Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, Officers and Men Who Fell During the Great War
• London County Council Record of Service in the Great War, 1914-1918
• Phoenix Assurance Company, Ltd. - War Service List, 1914-1919
  - Children's Story of the War
• Deeds that Thrill the Empire

MyHeritage’s Super DNA Sale is on. This is a rare opportunity to stock up on MyHeritage DNA kits for the lowest price this year: order MyHeritage DNA for the lowest price of the year.

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