Ancestry launches 1911 census summary books

Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) has uploaded the 1911 census summary books for England, Wales, Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. These are NOT the full census returns, however - they are coming very soon - but one of the additional pages following the household schedules, which lists the heads of household only, and information about the properties enumerated. Useful information in its own right, though sadly not as useful as the Irish 1911 census equivalent which lists landlords' names also, and which can tell you if your ancestor actually owned the property he occupied etc.

Whilst the books are online, the descriptor for each collection on the respective search screens seems to be providing information for the actual forthcoming household schedules, and not the enumerators' returns. I've had a quick play, and searched for my great great uncle James Paton in Croydon - he is in fact listed as "Mr Paton", and the search only worked when I put in the surname and input Croydon into the "Registration District" field - not the "Lived In" box.

An interesting addition, and good quality images from what I have seen - but not a patch on the original schedules which will be of much more use when uploaded in the next few months.

Click on View All New Records on the home page to access the respective search screens.

UPDATE: Audrey Collins from the National Archives at Kew has added an informative background piece on the story behind the creation of these returns at her The Family Recorder blog at http://thefamilyrecorder.blogspot.com/2010/12/1911-census-enumerators-summary-books.html?spref=tw

FURTHER UPDATE: From Ancestry "The complete set of 1911 Census record images will launch online at Ancestry.co.uk in early 2011, followed by the indexes, which will be made available in sections throughout the remainder of 2011." A new 1911 site page is available at www.ancestry.co.uk/home/new.aspx?o_iid=44806&o_lid=44806

Chris

www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
Professional genealogical problem solving and research
http://twitter.com/ChrisMPaton
Researching Scottish Family History (New book)

Addressing History video lectures now online

Videos from the Addressing History project's lanch day in Edinburgh a couple of weeks ago are now online at www.youtube.com/user/AddressingHistory.

I attended the day's events and my summary of the proceedings is at http://scottishancestry.blogspot.com/2010/11/addressing-history-launch-report.html. Of particular interest to most genealogists will be the lecture by Ines Mayfarth on the NLS Post Office Directories digitisation and indexing project for the Internet Archive, and Nicola Osborne's and Stuart MacDonald's presentation on Addressing History itself, but there are also useful presentations on the NLS georeferncing project and the Tobar an Duachais/Kist o' Riches audio digitisation project.

(With thanks to Nicola Osborne)

Chris

www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
Professional genealogical problem solving and research
http://twitter.com/ChrisMPaton
Researching Scottish Family History (New book)

FamilySearch and GoONS to work together

The latest newsletter from the Guild of One Name Studies (http://www.one-name.org/) has announced major new working relationship with the Utah based FamilySearch team:

New Guild links with Familysearch.org

Since the Marketing Strategy meeting in March, the Guild has been liaising with Familysearch to build up more links with their organisation. Those of you who are regular users of Familysearch will have seen the new beta.familysearch.org site and 2010 Conference attendees will remember that we were informed that the site would be completely re-launched ‘in due course’ with all the data on one site, as well as the IGI (with members submitted data separately). Familysearch are keen for their work to benefit the worldwide family history community as much as possible and, to this end, we have set up a link with them. Anyone who searches their website for a surname registered with the Guild will be presented with a link to the Guild website and your contact details! There will be an opt-out facility if you do not wish your details to be made available in this way. The link is due to ‘go live’ in February – look out for more details in January JOONS and hopefully many more contacts as a result!

Familysearch are also in the process of converting all their genealogical and historical records from around the world into digital images which are stored in their online system. They plan to give everyone free access to these indexes through their website. Our volunteers coordinator, Glenys Marriott has agreed to coordinate an indexing project on behalf of the Guild. This project will be a closed project in which we can select the records we want to transcribe, at a county and record level (e.g. Yorkshire marriages post-1837, not in the IGI). These records will be completed solely by the Guild volunteers and we will then receive a copy of the images and index for our archives.


The Guild has alos announced a new course in partnership with Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd (http://www.pharostutors.com/), to follow up its successful introductory course on one name studies:

Pharos One-Name Study courses

There are two Pharos courses being run next year. They are:

Introduction to One-Name Studies

This was the first course to be offered and was first run in 2009. It is a five-week course, covering the history of one-name studies, reasons why genealogists should have a one-name study, how to check on the suitability of your surname, the history and distribution of surnames, the practical aspects of running a one-name study, and the collection and analysis of data from core records needed for a one-name study. This introductory course has proved very popular. The next five week course starts on the 20th January 2011 - see the Pharos website for the next offering of the course.

Advanced One-Name Studies

Students who complete the Introduction course, or who already have a registered name with the Guild of One-Name Studies and a large amount of surname data, can also take advantage of the latest course Advanced One-Name Studies. This intensive course looks at studies in the light of analysis and synthesis of findings with an optional assessed element. The course runs for six weeks starting on the 23rd May 2011.


I know for a fact that the one name courses are very quickly booked out, being so popular, so if interested, I humbly suggest you get in like Flynn!

Further news from the Guild, including details of its 2011 conference (April 15th-17th, warrington), can be accessed on its latest newsletter at www.one-name.org/rss/story43.htm

(With thanks to Debbie Kennett)

Chris

www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
Professional genealogical problem solving and research
http://twitter.com/ChrisMPaton
Researching Scottish Family History (New book)

Robert Burns Birthplace Museum

The official opening press release:

National Trust for Scotland unveils its new £21m Robert Burns Birthplace Museum

The National Trust for Scotland has opened the doors to its £21m Robert Burns Birthplace Museum (RBBM) – the first major museum to open in Scotland in three years and the bench mark against which all future Trust properties will be set.

The highly anticipated opening is the culmination of years of planning and includes a 500m2 exhibition space which has four distinct areas - ‘Identity’, ‘Inspiration’, ‘Fame’ and ‘Creative Works’ - addressing every aspect of Burns’ life through an innovative and thought-provoking interpretation.

Highlights from a collection of over 5,000 historical artifacts, original manuscripts and pieces of memorabilia are presented in a fresh and novel way while engaging interactive multimedia features and newly commissioned works from leading Scottish artists including Kenny Hunter, Timorous Beasties and Sue Blackwell, which are interspersed throughout the site, will engage visitors of all ages.

Kate Mavor, chief executive of the National Trust for Scotland, said: “We are extremely proud of what we have achieved with the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum – it is a world class visitor destination that will draw Burns enthusiasts from around the globe and it has set the standard for Trust properties for the future. We are looking forward to welcoming our first visitors and hope that they will take away an enriched learning of Burns and his work.”

The Robert Burns Birthplace Museum replaces what was formerly known as the Burns National Heritage Park to bring together all of the Alloway sites with a connection to Burns including the new 1,600m2 museum, the Burns Monument, Alloway Auld Kirk, Burns Cottage, an education pavilion and Auld Brig O’Doon. A new footbridge will also be created to link key sites to the new museum to make accessibility as easy as possible for visitors.

Nat Edwards, director of the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, said: “This has been a real labour of love for all involved and we’re absolutely delighted to open the doors to the new museum today. Our aim is to provide a modern and relevant interpretation of Burns that will intrigue visitors of all ages, whether they are lifelong Burns enthusiasts or completely new to his work.

“Here you will not just be able to read the manuscript of Tam o’ Shanter, you can see the fireplace round which Burns first heard the stories that he turned into that poem, and you can look out the window and see that landscape, places like the Kirk Alloway and Brig O'Doon where the poem takes place. It gives you every facet of the man and his work.”

The museum, which is the largest, most ambitious project the National Trust for Scotland has ever undertaken, is generously supported by the Scottish Government, the Heritage Lottery Fund, Scottish Enterprise and South Ayrshire Council in addition to thousands of donors who have generously contributed to the creation of a lasting, and fitting legacy for the bard.

Colin McLean, Head of the Heritage Lottery Fund in Scotland, said: “This is truly a day to celebrate Scotland’s cultural history. We can now offer the world a captivating insight into the life and works of one of our national heroes through a state-of-the-art museum which we can all be proud of.

“The words and works of Burns touched, and continue to touch, ordinary lives with their humanity. They have now been given a home which keeps them safe while bringing them to life for generations to come. The Heritage Lottery Fund congratulates the National Trust for Scotland in making this happen.”

From the initial planning stages of the RBBM, the Trust was keen to ensure the Scots language would feature predominantly throughout the museum; aiming to position it as the leading museum destination for those looking to learn about the ‘mither tongue’. From Scots words engraved on the wall of the museum exterior to the descriptions of artefacts which are given in Scots in the exhibition – RBBM is the first museum to feature the language in this way.

Hundreds of contractors have been involved in the museum’s build including lead designers Events Communication and builders Border Construction. From an architectural perspective, Arnaud Schwartz’s, of Simpson and Brown’s, main aim with the modern design of the new Robert Burns Birthplace Museum was to create an ecologically responsible and sustainable building that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability to adapt to fit the needs of future generations and the museum. As such the museum has a unique sedum roof that naturally insulates the building while heating and cooling is provided by 12 earth energy ground-source heat pumps.

Upon entering the exhibition area, visitors see a timeline of important dates in Burns’ life and events taking place in Scotland that would have affected his work; but that’s where the traditional museum experience ends.

A theatrically lit corridor serves as the entrance to the main exhibition area and sets the scene as voices of gossips talking about Burns quietly echo through the hall while words such as ‘exciseman’, ‘lover’, ‘poet’, ‘ploughman’, ‘icon’ inscribed on the floor open visitor’s minds to the idea of Burns as a man through the different stages of his life.

London based company Spiral Productions has created 17 interactive features for the new museum and has worked closely with interpretation manager Mary Stones to create unique interactive elements that complement the artifacts on show and encourage visitors to actively participate in learning about Burns.

Celebrities including Bill Paterson, Brian Cox and Eddi Reader have lent their support to the museum by recording vocals for audio visual interpretations of ‘To a Mouse’, Red, Red Rose’ and ‘Tam o’ Shanter’ which are accompanied by stunning imagery to ignite imaginations and bring the pieces to life.

Upon entering the main exhibition space, visitors go through the Identity section which will present Burns’ family and relationships and how these had an influence on his life and works. The section is split to focus on Burns as a brother, a friend, a lover, a husband and a father with relevant artifacts featured in each display including a fragment of his wife, Jean Armour’s wedding dress, Highland Mary’s bible and a letter to his brother William.

Burns’ influences are then explored in the ‘Inspiration’ section which is segmented into five key areas – ‘nature’, ‘books and music’, ‘politics’, ‘love’ and ‘belief’. One of the highlights in this section is a tongue-in-cheek interactive news programme called ‘The Burning Issues’ presented by anchorman ‘Jeremy Waxman’ which looks at topical issues of Burns’ time. Visitors will later move onto explore Burns the songwriter with a jukebox that categorises his songs into modern day genres such as ‘floorfillers’, ‘tearjerkers and ‘power ballads’ which aims to show that Burns was as much an accomplished songwriter as he was a poet.

This area also features an Auld Lang Syne interactive element which allows visitors to listen to different versions of the iconic song which have been recorded by Burns enthusiasts from around the world and uploaded to a special RBBM Facebook page before the museum opened. Visitors can then go home and upload their own renditions which will be considered for inclusion on the jukebox. It’s these modern touches that make the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum unlike anything that has ever been done before and present Burns’ work and significance in a way that will appeal to visitors of all ages and from all walks of life.

Burns’ status as a global icon is explored in the ‘Fame’ section which looks at the ‘cult of Burns’ and how the fascination with Burns grew after he died. This area includes an interactive Burns Supper which encourages museum visitors to engage with each other as they learn about the way in which the bard’s birthday is celebrated around the world each January 25.

Finally, in the ‘Creative’ section, Burns’ works are enclosed in listening pods where visitors can listen to his poems while many original manuscripts, including Scots Wha Hae and Auld Lang Syne will be on display for visual purposes.

Part of the museum space will play host to a series of temporary interpretations with the inaugural exhibition being a major new showcase by Scottish artist Peter Howson. The exhibition, ‘Howson Burns: Revealed’, features 15 new portraits of Robert Burns which are on display and available to purchase from December 2010 – June 2011. The exhibition includes 12 pastel paintings and 3 new oil paintings of the bard which are guaranteed to spark the interest of fans of Burns and Howson alike.

(With thanks to the NTS)

Chris

www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
Professional genealogical problem solving and research
http://twitter.com/ChrisMPaton
Researching Scottish Family History (New book)

New Bletchley Park web page from BBC

The BBC has created a new site dedicated to the World War 2 code-breaking statioon at Bletchley Park, which can be found at www.bbc.co.uk/history/places/bletchley_park.

Recently on Twitter, myself and a group of other genealogists were having a conversation about Bletchley Park and were all a bit stunned to discover that each and every one of us had a relative who worked there, in my case my grandfather's cousin Catherine Paton. It made me wonder if the 1939 National Register wasn't in fact an enlistment roll for the centre, and that the whole nation wasn't employed there! :)

In June, Bletchley Park Museum announced it was digitising its entire archive over the next three years to place online, although some resources are already available on its website. To catch up on the story visit http://scottishancestry.blogspot.com/2010/06/bletchley-park-archive-to-be-digitised.html.

Chris

www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
Professional genealogical problem solving and research
http://twitter.com/ChrisMPaton
Researching Scottish Family History (New book)

RCAHMS news

From the Royal Commision on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (www.rcahms.gov.uk):

Explore Scotland this Christmas

As a special offer to RCAHMS newsletter subscribers, our two new publications Above Scotland - Cities and Victorian Scotland are available at special discount prices, including free postage and packaging.

In Above Scotland - Cities the fascinating stories of the nation's dominant urban landscapes are told through 90 years of stunning aerial imagery. To order for £19.99 (RRP £25.00) with free UK P&P call BookSource on 0845 370 0067 and quote CITIES.

In Victorian Scotland the pioneering work of the nation's first ever photographers mixes with rare and never-before-seen imagery from private family albums in a compelling account of the generation that changed the world. To order for £23.99 (RRP £30.00) with free UK P&P quote VICTORIAN.

We are also offering a further discount if you order both books together. For a special price of £39.99 (RRP £55.00) you can buy both books with free UK P&P by quoting EXPLORE.


Fantastic Savings on RCAHMS Images

From December, if you order an existing digital image from RCAHMS you will receive your second image half price.

Select from 150,000 stunning, high quality digital images from Scotland’s architectural, industrial, archaeological and maritime heritage over the last 100 years. Click on the image of your choice and select Order Image. Your first selection costs £10 plus VAT and each subsequent image is only £5 plus VAT.


Are You a Fan of RCAHMS?

You can now follow RCAHMS on Facebook and Twitter.

Fans and followers can keep up to date with all RCAHMS news and events, and benefit from a growing selection of interactive content.

Updates of projects, exhibitions, publications and websites are posted regularly and are easy to share with colleagues, friends and family.

Chris

www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
Professional genealogical problem solving and research
http://twitter.com/ChrisMPaton
Researching Scottish Family History (New book)

Scottish directories project developments

Two developments concerning the Scottish Post Office Directories (aka PODs) digitisation project for the Internet Archive by the National Library of Scotland. The first is that a summary of the recent talk by Ines Mayfarth of the NLS, responsible for the project, is now online at the Addressing History blog, along with other talks given on that day. See http://addressinghistory.blogs.edina.ac.uk/2010/11/17/addressinghistory-launch-live-blog-chris-fleet/. Ines gives details of how the project has been co-ordinated, and also news of a forthcoming website from the NLS which will fully index the 750 directories involved from 1783-1911, which should be out by the middle of next year.

Also concerning the Internet Archive hosted images, Michael Tobias has slightly beaten the NLS to it, by creating a free to access index for the Glasgow directories from 1783-1911 at http://bizdirs.from-mt.com/glasgow/. Michael is keen for feedback, and has stressed that he may be moving the project to a different web address in due course. His contact details are on the site.

(With thanks to Addressing History and Michael Tobias)

Chris

www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
Professional genealogical problem solving and research
http://twitter.com/ChrisMPaton
Researching Scottish Family History (New book)

More on FindmyPast's new English marriage database

FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk) has been clearly having some fun with its new MarriageMatch database - here's its latest press release:

‘FOR BETTER OR WORSE’ – I NOW PRONOUNCE YOU HOLLY OAKES!

o 95 million fully searchable wedding records from 1837 – 2005

o Eileen Dover, Holly Oakes and Mary Christmas all found in the records

o The real Romeo and Juliet married in 1971

Have you ever met a Mary Christmas, Moana Lott or Anita Bath? Many may see these names as amusing but some women who have met the man of their dreams have taken their partner’s name, becoming the Butt of many jokes. Findmypast.co.uk, a leading UK family history website, has launched an easier way to search the marriages of English and Welsh ancestors online. Over 95 million wedding records from 1837 to 2005 have been made fully searchable making it easier to find the exact record you’re looking for.

It’s all in a name

The new fully searchable records have thrown up some interesting finds, proving that when taking a partner ‘for better or worse’; an embarrassing married name doesn’t put everyone off…

A selection of the married names found:

Holly Oakes
Eileen Dover
Hazel Nut
Queenie King
Mona Lott
Jean Pool
Joy Rider
Lily Pond
Anita Bath
Candy Barr
Kerry Oakey

Findmypast.co.uk has introduced the revolutionary MarriageMatchTM, meaning the end of mystery marriages and endless searching of the records. It will find all the possible matches within the records even if only one name is known. Alternatively, if the first or last name of the spouse is known you get an even more accurate list of possible spouse matches.


Keeping up with the Mary Christmases

It seems that a large number of Marys have continued the Christmas theme with their name and married someone with the festive surname, Christmas. There are over 50 Mary Christmases in the records and the earliest recorded Mary Christmas married in 1837 losing the maiden name of Cannon in Alton, Hampshire.


Where for art thou…

Findmypast.co.uk has discovered a pair of real star-crossed lovers in the marriage records as, in 1971, a ‘Romeo’ married a ‘Juliet’ in Lambeth, London. The family history website has also found the marriage records of Oscar Fingal Wilde to Constance Lloyd in Kensington, London in 1884, Jude Law to Sadie Frost in Westminster, London in 1997 and Kate Winslet to Jim Threapleton, in Reading, Berkshire in 1998.


With this record I thee wed.

Findmypast.co.uk has discovered that the most popular county to be wed in is Lancashire, with 11.66 million records listed between 1837 and 2005, closely followed by London with 11.62 million.


The five most popular towns to be married in were:

Registration District
Number of records

Birmingham, Warwickshire
1,656,516

Manchester, Lancashire
1,127,584

Sheffield, Yorkshire
988,541

Leeds, Yorkshire
980,207

Bristol, Somerset
899,885


Debra Chatfield, Marketing Manager at findmypast.co.uk, said, “As the first company to publish birth, marriage and death records online, findmypast.co.uk has always been committed to making family history research more accessible. This brand new way of searching the marriage records is a major breakthrough in family history enabling people to find their ancestors’ marriages more quickly and easily than ever before by using our revolutionary new tool MarriageMatchTM. Thanks to initiatives like this, family history is more popular than ever and we hope that we can help even more people to start uncovering their family’s past.”

The sophisticated new search facility will match up your ancestors' records, providing you in many cases with one definite marriage match, or a list of up to four most likely possible matches, saving you time and money.

The launch of these records is part of a year long project that will see findmypast.co.uk digitise over a quarter of a billion records. The reindexed birth records were launched in July 2010 and the death records will follow early in 2011.


The records

Findmypast.co.uk is the only place you can search the 1837-2005 marriage records all in one place. The online family history website has reimaged and transcribed the full collection, allowing researchers to search directly for their ancestors, making it much quicker and easier than before to find one person.

Findmypast.co.uk was the first company in the world to put the complete Birth, Marriage and Death indexes (BMDs) for England and Wales online on 1 April 2003. Previously these were only available offline on microfiche or in registry books, at a selected number of locations. This landmark achievement was recognised in 2007, when findmypast.co.uk won the Queen’s Award for Innovation.

Mary Christmas! (ahem!).

Chris

www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
Professional genealogical problem solving and research
http://twitter.com/ChrisMPaton
Researching Scottish Family History (New book)

Google launches new ebook store

Google, the new worldwide religion replacing God...

Sorry, Google, the internet giant, has today launched its long awaited eBook store at http://books.google.com/ebooks, through which it will be possible to purchase copies of books and to source many millions of others for free. Books can be read on many different platforms, including Amazon's Kindle, Google's Android and others utilising Adobe's ebook platform. On a quick search of Scotland all sorts of free material emerged, such as "Documents and records illustrating the history of Scotland, and the transactions between the crowns of Scotland and England, preserved in the treasury of Her Majesty's Exchequer", "Memoirs of the Church of Scotland" and many other fascinaing texts. A little light bedtime reading!

For more on the story visit http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704493004576001671533243118.html and www.betanews.com/article/Google-launches-eBooks-crossplatform-ebookstore-and-reader/1291654034

Chris

www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
Professional genealogical problem solving and research
http://twitter.com/ChrisMPaton
Researching Scottish Family History (New book)

Save Every Step

A new timeline site called Save Every Step at www.saveeverystep.com is proving to be a lot of fun! I am currently writing a full review of the site for a forthcoming magazine column, but in essence it allows you to create an interactive 'lifeline' which can be used as both a daily diary or to upload historic events.

It's a Yorkshire based initiative from Helen Spencer, who I had the pleasure of speaking to yesterday, which has a lot of potential and many forthcoming developments promised for the next year. Big thumbs up from this end, why not sign up and have a play - it won't cost you a penny! :)

Chris

www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
Professional genealogical problem solving and research
http://twitter.com/ChrisMPaton
Researching Scottish Family History (New book)