Miscellaneous genealogy resources

[Tizer]

The following is the main text of a promotional email from the `ScotlandsPeople' genealogy service received on 22nd March 2012. I'm not posting it as an advert but for its useful and interesting information.

Coming Soon: The Valuation Rolls for Scotland in 1915
The ScotlandsPeople Team is currently adding the Valuation Rolls (VRs) in Scotland for 1915 to the website. Compiled annually, the VRs comprise standard records for landed property from 1855 to 1989, with separate rolls for each county and burgh. Starting with the 1915 records, our plan is to release the rolls for every tenth year back to 1855 and every fifth year forward to 1955. The VRs will be fully searchable, and you will be able to search by surname, first name, county and/or parish. We will announce the launch of the Valuation Rolls for 1915 in the next email newsletter.

ScotlandsPeople at the SAFHS Conference 2012 - Dundee, Saturday 21 April
The Annual Conference and Fair of the Scottish Association of Family History Societies (SAFHS) takes place in Dundee on Saturday 21 April, and, barring a major gowk storm, ScotlandsPeople will be attending this event. As at 'WDYTYA Live', we'll be there to hear your family history stories and to help you get the most out of the ScotlandsPeople website. The event takes place in the Tower Block of the Dundee University on 21 April 2012, and runs from 9.45am to 4.30pm. The accompanying book fair will take place in the Bonar Hall, which is next door to the Tower Block. To find out more, visit the SAFHS website.
http://www.safhs.org.uk/conference.asp

‘‘Discover My Past Scotland’ - Exploring the Genealogy and History of Scotland
The latest issue of ‘Discover My Past Scotland’, the online magazine dedicated to Scottish family history, is now available. In this new edition of the 40-page e-magazine, there are special features on the following subjects:
- A celebration of tartan - myths, history and tartan today; - Tanner ba' wizards - find your footballing forefathers;
- The Titanic tragedy - Scottish ancestors who sailed on the ill-fated ship; - Wheelwrights - vital cogs in the wheel-reinventing community; - Spotlight on Forres. In addition to the above features, there is an Expert Q&A page, as well as a round-up of genealogical news and events. To see a preview of the latest edition and for details about back issues,
visit the ‘Discover My Past Scotland’ website.
http://www.discovermypast.co.uk/scotland.php

The 13th Australasian Congress on Genealogy & Heraldry - Adelaide, 28-31 March
As we have quite a number of newsletter readers from Australia, we thought it’d be worth mentioning the Australasian Congress on Genealogy and Heraldry that’s taking place in Adelaide from 28 to 31 March. There is an impressive gallimaufry of international family history experts attending this event, so it promises to be quite a shindig. Although we are not officially attending this event, you can still pick up leaflets for the ScotlandsPeople website at the Find my Past stall, stand numbers 35, 36 and 38.
http://www.congress2012.org.au

A Scottish Ancestry Guide - Courtesy of VisitScotland
VisitScotland published a Scottish Ancestry Guide, back in February. It’s a very useful resource and will be handy for any visitors from abroad who are planning to visit Scotland in order to trace their ancestors. That said, this guide will also be helpful to anyone who has recently discovered that, once released, it’s impossible to get their inner genealogist back into the bottle.
http://surprise.visitscotland.com/thing ... guide.aspx

Tracing Ancestors Who Lived in Canada
The National Archives (UK) has published a great, wee podcast on their website about tracing ancestors who lived in Canada. Written by leading genealogist, Michael Leclerc, the podcast provides info on record-keeping in Canada, how they are organised (different to the UK) and where best to find them.
http://media.nationalarchives.gov.uk/in ... -in-canada

A Full-Size Meccano Model of ‘Nessie’…
We love the virtual archive that Network Rail has recently published on its website. This digital collection contains the original architectural drawings for many bridges, stations and tunnels that form (or formed) the rail network in the UK. In particular, we love the technical drawings of the Tay and Forth bridges – and it’s interesting that they call Tay Bridge Version 2.0 the ‘New Tay Viaduct’.
http://www.networkrail.co.uk/virtualarchive/

'Wanted!' Corner
It’s not every day that you see ‘Wanted!’ poster for members of the British royal family, so we thought people might like to read this BBC news story about the auction of a ‘Wanted!’ declaration for King Charles II. Pinned to a tree following the Battle of Worcester in 1651, we like to think that the King was up the tree at the same time that the notice was put up - and it's always nice to feel wanted...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sh ... e-17244677

[Tripps]

New resource available from today 1939 Eve of war records

Very expensive to get into a particular household, but a lot of info is free. You can search by address, and the 'head' of the household is named. Just looked at my street, and disappointingly my house is not listed, though most others are. I also found three transcription errors in a small sample, very quickly.

Worth a look though.

[Stanley]

Impressive but I'm not shelling out any money David.....

[Tizer]

Another email from the ScotlandsPeople genealogy service...

We are delighted to announce the release of the Military Service Appeals Tribunal records on ScotlandsPeople.

Now available to search are 7,977 index entries relating to the Appeal cases of 5,820 men seeking exemption from Military Service between 1916 and 1918. Fully searchable by name, address, grounds, and occupation, the index is FREE* to search, offering access to a little-known series of records which are of importance to family and military historians alike. Each record is a full colour facsimile of the Appeal case documents, and for an introductory period, are only 10 credits (2.33GBP) to view. Find out more about the Military Service Appeals Tribunal Records.
<http://tracking.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/ ... Vqmu=WuSqd>

*Index for Military Service Appeals Tribunal Records are free to search. Images are chargeable and can be viewed for 10 credits per document until 3 December 2015, and will cost 20 credits per document thereafter.

What are the Military Service Appeals Tribunal records?

The Military Service Tribunal system was set up under the Military Service Act 1916, which set down the terms for mandatory military service and came into force on 2 March 1916. The new Military Service Act required all adult males, aged 18-41, to register for military service unless they were married, widowed with children, serving in the Royal Navy, a minister of religion, or working in a reserved occupation. From 1916, volunteers and conscripted men seeking exemption from military service could apply to Tribunals for temporary, conditional or permanent exemption. The Military Service Appeals Tribunal Records cover the Local Tribunal areas of Edinburgh, the Lothians and the Borders. Other chance survivals exist, including papers from the Ross, Cromarty and Sutherland (Lewis Section) Appeal Tribunal, which are preserved as part of Stornoway Sheriff Court records. Read more about the Military Service Appeals Tribunal records.
<http://tracking.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/ ... Vqmu=WuSqd>

Grounds for Appeal

The majority of Appellants were not unwilling to fight, (many had attested voluntarily or even served) but were in a position where they were unable to serve on grounds of ill-health, medical exemption or hardship. In other cases, men were granted exemption where it was deemed to be in the interests of the local populace or in service of the war effort itself that these men remain in their civilian jobs. A minority of the cases were appeals made by conscientious objectors, those who were appealing against military service on moral or political grounds. Most of the appeal cases were refused or dismissed, after which appellants had no choice but to carry out their service. Read our remarkable case studies of individuals who appealed against military service.
<http://tracking.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/ ... Vqmu=WuSqd>

What can I learn from these records?

Each set of case papers should include an appeal form, local tribunal application form and a notice of decision form which confirms the final decision of the Appeal Tribunal. The appeal application form gives the address, age and occupation in most cases. Some appeals papers include additional correspondence in support of the appeal.
For some entries the appeal papers themselves do not survive, but related applications for medical re-examination have survived. This will be indicated in the relevant index entries. Applications for medical re-examination include the name of a person, address, occupation, age and the result of the examination.

[Tizer]

More free stuff from the ScotlandsPeople genealogy service...

For seven days only the Catholic Parish Register indexes are free to search* on ScotlandsPeople! You can explore the indexes for Catholic Births, Marriages, Deaths and Other Events for free from now until 9 January at 23:59 GMT.

*Indexes for Catholic Parish Registers are free to search from 3 January until 9 January 2016 at 23:59 GMT, and 1 credit per page of 25 index results thereafter. Images are chargeable and can be viewed for 5 credits per record.

Search the Catholic Parish Register Indexes for FREE
LINK


What are the Catholic Parish Registers?

The Catholic Parish Registers are records of sacramental events recorded by the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland between 1703-1903. The registers comprise records of births and baptisms, marriages, deaths and burials, and also a small set of fascinating records of communicants, sick calls, first confessions and seat rents.

You can read more about the Catholic Parish Registers here.
LINK

What will you discover?

The majority of the surviving Catholic Parish Registers are pre-civil registration in Scotland, and so CPR records are an essential resource for pinpointing events which are known to have taken place within the Roman Catholic Church, and therefore are not recorded in the Old Parish Registers. Like the OPR's, record keeping differed from Parish to Parish, and so the information recorded in the events is varied. Interestingly, in many cases you will find that the record is recorded in Latin, including the Latin equivalent of the recorded given name. Find out more about what you can discover within the Catholic Parish Registers here.
LINK

[Stanley]

I'm tempted to go looking for one of my Scottish ancestors but I have quite enough on my plate thank you.... Isn't it marvellous what resources are available these days.....

[Tizer]

More interesting stories and pictures from the same source received on 14 April 2016...

Zeppelin air raid on Edinburgh and Leith - April 1916
A century ago the air raid by two German Zeppelins on Leith and Edinburgh caused the deaths of thirteen people and injuries to many more, as well as extensive damage to some buildings. But the terrifying raid on 2-3 April 1916 also had a big impact on the births of two children. Read some extraordinary personal stories of the raid here. Was someone in your family caught up in the raid? If you have a story to share please email us at press@scotlandspeople.gov.uk.
http://tracking.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/ ... cpr=~126~5

The last 36 inhabitants on St Kilda
Last month we highlighted a special feature about the sixteen households on St Kilda that are listed in the latest release of Valuation Rolls for 1930-31. Another feature on the NRS website brings the last 36 inhabitants into closer focus, as seen through unique records about St Kilda that are available in NRS. You can find this story here, in case you experienced difficulties linking to it from our previous newsletter.
http://tracking.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/ ... glv=75y-79

Rachel Johnson, the last surviving St Kildan, passes away
In the official list of evacuees is seven year-old Rachael Gillies, who in fact turned eight on 8 July 1930, just weeks before she left St Kilda with her parents Donald and Christina and elder sister Kate. Rachel Johnson, as she became on marriage, was the last living native islander, and another chapter of St Kilda’s history has closed with her death at the age of 93 on 4 April 2016.
http://tracking.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/ ... cpr=~126~5

[Tizer]

[Julie in Norfolk had mentioned in the Dialects topic that she had a grandad who lived in Blackburn. This prompted me to ask whereabouts he lived and that led to a series of posts that were off-topic. Therefore they have been moved here.]

Whereabouts in Blackburn did the Blackburn grandad live, Julie?

[Julie in Norfolk]

Maudsley Street then in 1891 Peter Street then 1901 Moseley Street, all in Blackburn. His father before him was born and lived in Little Rough Hey Farm, Whinney Lane nr Blackburn. Grandad Slater, GGrandad Slater and GGGrandad Slater were all tacklers. GGrandad Slater moved to Earby between 1910 and 1911.

[Tizer]

Well, well, it's a small world, Julie. In the 1890s some of my dad's ancestors lived at Higher Slack Farm, Whinney Lane, raising chickens before moving to Wilpshire. Through the 1800s my ancestors lived in a number of properties in that area. They are recorded as living in several houses at various times in Seven Acre Brook (Barker Lane) and also at Lammack and Mellor. All of them would have been no more than 10 minutes walk, if that, from Little Rough Hey Farm.

I googled Little Rough Hey Farm and it's for sale at the moment: LINK

[Stanley]

One Guy at its best!

[Julie in Norfolk]

The Slaters did the reverse journey to your ancestors, moving from Whilpshire (1792) to Salesbury (1818) to Whinney Lane (1861).

Surnames of interest: Slater, Heskin, Hesmondhalgh, Sharples, Whittaker, Fish, Aspden and Wilson.

It obviously is a small world.

[Tizer]

To be precise, it was my ancestor's younger brothers who moved to Wilpshire and were poultry farmers. My GGrandad James Barnes was probably a bit put off by the smell of hens because he went into Blackburn to train as a draper. There is a family memory of someone who got known as `Gentleman Jim' and I suspect it might have been him. My dad was a bit of a dandy and probably had the same gene (but I didn't get it). There is a Fish connection. In 1880 James married Jane Fish, daughter of Levi Fish, a cotton sizer living in Higson Street, Blackburn. Coincidentally I put an image of an inscription on OG yesterday which comes is in a book prize awarded to Levi in 1895:
http://www.oneguyfrombarlick.co.uk/view ... 210#p92188

Levi Fish was born in Mellor around 1838-41 (census ages vary for him) and there were at least three Fish families there with a possible Levi child of the right birth year(s). Levi's father might have been Edward, Joseph or Ralph but I suspect probably Joseph, it seems to be the closest match in birth year and in first names of siblings.

Main surnames of interest: Barnes, Charnock, Fish, Witton, Willacy. My Barnes ancestors was around Mellor and Balderstone in the 1700s; Seven Acre Brook, Lammack, Mellor, Blackburn in the 1800s; and Wilpshire and Blackburn in the 1900s.

You mention the surname Sharples and also the location Salesbury. Are you aware there was a farm called Sharples Farm at Salesbury next to the railway line? One of my ancestors' brothers, George Barnes, moved from Higher Slack Farm and lived there from about 1907 to the 1930s. He was one of the poultry farming side.

[Julie in Norfolk]

Stanley, I think you were a little previous with your earlier exclamation about this being Oneguy at its best, the above string is definately Oneguy at its best!

What a wealth of information again Tizer, I must go back fishing around in the tree, I had a quick look but found no Levis; I have a feeling in my water that there is a link (albeit ephemeral).

[Wendyf]

Tiz wrote:
Levi Fish was born in Mellor around 1838-41 (census ages vary for him) and there were at least three Fish families there with a possible Levi child of the right birth year(s). Levi's father might have been Edward, Joseph or Ralph but I suspect probably Joseph, it seems to be the closest match in birth year and in first names of siblings.

Might this be him Tiz?

[Tizer]

My first thought Wendy was no, the wife's name is wrong (should be Margaret). Then remembered there was something odd about the 1861 census entry so I went back and furtled. You've revealed something very interesting, Wendy, thank you!

I can readily trace Levi back through the census forms from 1901, living mostly in the same area of Blackburn until I reach the 1861 form. He's definitely there, right age (24), a cotton taper (he was always a cotton taper) but he's not in Mellor where he was born and not in the later Blackburn area, and he's living in someone else's house (Thomas Coupe, 50). Looking more carefully we find that he's listed as `nephew' and `widower' so he must be the nephew of Thomas's wife Margaret and his young wife has died. There is also listed after him: Jane, daughter, 2 years old. So you've found his first marriage, to Ellen Gormer. I looked at Free BMD and found he married again to Margaret Bates in 1862, so Jane was a child from his first marriage. I can't identify Ellen's death date from FreeBMD because there are several possible ones at the time but perhaps she died in childbirth.

In the 1871 census he's living with Margaret in Higson Street, Blackburn, and Jane is shown as 11 years old and there is Joseph, aged 3, Margaret's child There is also a daughter listed, Mary, aged 14 and she must be another of Ellen's children.

All this is complicated but at least it helps confirm that I was right by thinking Levi's father was Joseph rather than the other two contenders in Mellor. I was a bit thrown when I looked at the names of the witnesses on the marriage details you've provided - George Fish and Sarah Fish - because there aren't any of that name among Levi's brothers or sisters. But then it all came clear when I looked at the other Mellor Fish families. John Fish had both George and Sarah children of a suitable age to be witnesses...and they lived in Mellor Lane which is where Levis's parents lived. John and Joseph were probably brothers. Isn't it wonderful when things fall into place! Thanks for the help, we don't have an Ancestry.com subscription now and it's more than 10 years since I did my family history but this has given it a boost.

[Tizer]

The above series of posts about family history in Blackburn were moved here from the Dialect thread were they were off-topic. A couple may have gone missing but no important information was lost. One of Wendy's posts was lost and had links to two useful web sites and I have added them again here:

Lancashire BMD: LINK

Lancashire OnLine Parish Clerks: LINK

[Wendyf]

[Tripps]

Thanks for the link to Lancashire BMD. It's better than last time I used it. I thought the family at the top of my 'tree' had 7 children - I now discover that there were 13, and that Josephine was in fact Joseph. Quoting the mother's maiden name in 'births' is a big help.

[Stanley]

I've always said that the practice in some families of giving the eldest child the mother's maiden name as a forename was brilliant.....

[Tizer]

When Levi Fish first turned up in my family history I was a bit surprised because Levi sounded like a Jewish name to me but my ancestors had been Methodists in the 1800s. Then I realised it was Bible names again. We already had Amos, Enos, Moses etc. An odd one out was Willacy used twice as a first name, confounded by it being spelt several different ways by the census officials. It was preceded by an ancestor with James Willacy as first and second Christian names. It became clearer when I got back to the 1700s and an ancestor in Balderstone - he had Willacy as his surname.

[Tizer]

The preceding series of posts began with Julie in Norfolk listing surnames of interest for her Blackburn family history research and this included the name Fish. I mentioned having an ancestor by the name of Levi Fish, who was born in Mellor then lived in Blackburn. I had some information about him from my earlier family history research about 12 years ago. Wendy dug out some extra data and provided links to the Lancs BMD and Lancs Parish Clerks web sites. These have proved very useful and I've now been able to confirm which of the three Levi Fish children born in Mellor in the 1830s is my ancestor. It was also complicated by the fact that Levi lost his first wife very early and married again, so had children from both wives. A brief summary follows.

Levi Fish was born in Mellor, Lancashire, on 9 April 1837 to Joseph Fish and Jane (nee Coup or Coupe) and christened on 2nd May. In the 1841 census he is present, aged 4, with a brother Thomas (1). In the 1851 census the family is living in Mellor Lane, Joseph is a farmer and there are four more children: Margaret (9), William (6), James (3) and Ellen (1). On 11 November 1856 Levi (a weaver) marries Ellen Gorner (weaver, b.1836, daughter of Joseph Gorner) at St. Mary-The-Virgin, Blackburn. Their first child, Mary, is born in Mellor in 1857, followed in 1859 by Jane registered in Blackburn. In 1860 Ellen dies aged 24.

In the 1861 census Levi, now a `cotton taper sizer', is living with Thomas Coupe (50) and his wife Margaret in Blackburn at number 50 in a street whose name I can't read but ends in -sley. Also present is Levi's 2-year-old daughter Jane. He is described as a widow and `nephew' therefore Thomas must be his uncle (same surname as Levi's mother). Thomas Coupe married Margaret Whalley on 20 Jul 1834 at St Mary the Virgin, Blackburn.

In 1862 (Sept quarter) Levi marries Margaret Bates (born in Hawick, Scotland) and by the 1871 census they are shown with a third child, Joseph (3), and in 1881 Margaret (7) and Louisa (5). Jane is no longer present - she married James Barnes in 1880, which is how she came to be one of my ancestors. In 1871 and 1881 they are living in Higson Street, Blackburn but by 1891 have moved to Cambridge Street. Joseph, Margaret and Louisa are still present and all are weavers. In 1901 they live in Chester Street and Levi is a widow in his 60s with Margaret and Louisa living with him.

Lancs BMD data suggests Levi died in Blackburn in 1903 aged 66.

When researching Levi's parents and siblings I could find birth dates for all the children, and details of the parents, through the Lancs BMD and Online Parish Clerks web sites, but the birth of Levi eluded me at first. I knew he was born about 1837 but the records only begin in that year. Neither of the web sites showed his birth. I finally found it by putting his name and a few details into Google. This brought up a FamilySearch.org web page and, after some tinkering to put in the best data for the search, up popped Levi:
Levi Fish
England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975
Birth: 9 April 1837
Christening: 2 May 1837
WESLEYAN, MELLOR, LANCASHIRE, ENGLAND
Father: Joseph Fish
Mother: Jane

That made my day!

[Wendyf]

Well done Tiz! I find it's often worth just Googling a name that you are stuck on.

[Julie in Norfolk]

Well done there. I think I ought to go looking for the loose ends on my Fishes now.

[Stanley]

"I think I ought to go looking for the loose ends on my Fishes now."

That's getting very close to Quote of the Day.....