FamilySearch seeks volunteers for US 1950 Census Community Project

From FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org):

1950 US Census: The Next Big Thing in Family History
Online Volunteers Will Make Historic 1950 US Census Searchable Online

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH—FamilySearch International today announced its participation in the 1950 US Census Community Project. FamilySearch is inviting online volunteers to assist in making the 1950 US census easier for everyone to search and discover their family connections—while having the opportunity to make personal discoveries of their own. This unique crowdsourcing project, the largest census undertaking to date, will make the 150 million records of the individuals found on the census’s tens of thousands of digital images searchable online.

WHY THE 1950 US CENSUS?

The US census collections are some of the most popular online databases used by millions of people for family history research. Most people in the US today can remember an ancestor who can be found in the 1950 US census.

On April 1, 2022, the National Archives and Records Administration of the United States will make digital images of the 1950 US census available to the world. Protected by law for 72 years, this long-awaited census will be the most comprehensive record set available of those who were living in that historic era in the United States. The 1950 US Census Community Project is a national collaborative effort that uses the Internet, artificial intelligence, and a massive volunteer workforce to make these census records searchable online.

The outcome of this amazing initiative benefits everyone. Not only will every page of the 1950 US census be digitally preserved forever, but the general public will have convenient access to volumes of rich historical information that could provide the missing links to their own family histories.

WHAT KIND OF INFORMATION DOES THE 1950 US CENSUS CONTAIN?

The 1950 US census included the obvious questions such as name, age, gender, race, education, and place of birth. But the census also posed more detailed questions that will cast refreshing light on the preceding decade—which included World War II and the return of US troops. For example, those over age 14 were asked, “What was this person doing most of last week—working, keeping house, or something else?” and “What is the highest grade of school that the person has attended?”

Enthusiasm and interest in the 1950 census have been building steadily since the release of the 1940 census in 2012. These new records will introduce us to the 40,000,000 people born during this era of baby boomers. But this postwar decade wasn’t just prosperous for newborns. It also ushered in the civil rights movement, rock ’n’ roll, suburban living, and a wave of colorful innovations. Many of the powerful voices and inspired minds behind these changes will be found in the 1950 census—like 14 past and future U.S. Presidents, vocalist Aretha Franklin and actors Chuck Norris and Jimmy Stewart.

The 1950 US Census Community Project is receiving additional support from Ancestry and leading societal organizations to engage and coordinate the volunteer workforce needed to deliver the ambitious 1950 US census project.

Although the 1950 US census is notably larger than the 1940 US census, thanks to advancements in technology, the anticipated help of online volunteers, and community support, the project is expected to be completed in a few months following the census’s release by NARA.

THE ROLE OF ONLINE VOLUNTEERS

Ancestry will use state-of-the-art handwriting recognition technology to scan the census images and make a functioning searchable index. Online volunteers on FamilySearch.org will then be able to find a surname or location of personal interest to them as a starting point to perform a comprehensive review of the computer-generated index to ensure it is accurate and complete. To stay on top of the 1950 US Census Community Project’s updates or to volunteer to help create the rich, searchable index, subscribe at FamilySearch.org/1950census. 

(Original press release at https://www.familysearch.org/en/newsroom/1950-us-census-online-volunteer-project)

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

What to Expect from FamilySearch in 2022

From FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org):

What to Expect from FamilySearch in 2022
Making personal family discoveries while volunteering online

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH—Consumers love a sneak peek at the fun products and features planned for the upcoming year. Consumers in the expanding family history market are no different, and FamilySearch loves giving them something to enable more personal family connections. In 2022, FamilySearch will introduce a marriage of artificial intelligence and crowdsourcing that is sure to deliver millions of inspiring family discoveries for years to come; plus some fun, new international tree features.

FamilySearch Crowdsourcing

Hundreds of thousands of online volunteers have produced nearly 2 billion searchable online records since 2007 using FamilySearch crowdsourcing technology.  The result of these efforts are free, highly searchable name indexes that enable anyone to instantly find information about an ancestor at FamilySearch.org.

The challenge of late has been how to create these searchable name indexes as fast as FamilySearch is digitizing the world’s historical family history records. Part of the answer is engaging more online volunteers. To do this, FamilySearch is offering new mobile technology and personalizing the experience so more volunteers can contribute in ways that are personally relevant to them.

“What if online volunteers could conveniently participate using their mobile phones? What if the records they help make more discoverable online were relevant to their personal family tree? What if meaningful contributions only took a few minutes to complete? What if the experience was in the volunteer’s native language? Those are some of the unique benefits of upcoming upgrades to the online volunteer experience. We are merging the lines between volunteering and making personal family history discoveries,” said Ian James, a FamilySearch product manager.

This is the vision for the new online volunteer experience and integrated mobile app FamilySearch will unveil at RootsTech Connect 2022. FamilySearch believes these new experiences, expanding volunteer involvement globally, along with more technological capabilities under development, will exponentially increase access to the world’s historical records and enable millions more personal family discoveries.  

Online volunteers have already made invaluable collections like the 1790 to 1940 US Censuses freely searchable online. Imagine what they will do with projects like the 1950 US Census and many more historical records collections from patrons’ homelands using FamilySearch’s new online volunteer experiences!

FamilySearch Handwriting Recognition Artificial Intelligence

FamilySearch works with archives all over the world to help digitally preserve and expand online access to their genealogical records. In 2022, FamilySearch will be unveiling some exciting developments utilizing handwriting recognition artificial intelligence and records access technology to make impressive additions to the number of searchable ancestor names found in genealogical records at FamilySearch.org.

These emerging technologies will enable FamilySearch to make ancestral information hidden in its billions of digital images of historical records more discoverable—in a fraction of the time currently required.

“We’ve been implementing our new records access technologies in Spanish-speaking countries for the past year. We are very pleased with the results. We’ve been able to produce in one year what would have otherwise taken us a hundred years to do with previous technology.  We are excited to unveil it at RootsTech 2022 along with our expansion plans,” said John Alexander, a FamilySearch product manager for the emerging technology.

Alexander said the new handwriting recognition technology, coupled with the new online volunteer experiences and integration with a patron’s FamilySearch Family Tree, will dramatically increase personal discoveries and access to the world’s records.

FamilySearch Asian Pedigree Feature

A continual focus of FamilySearch is to help meet the needs of its growing base of international customers. In 2022 FamilySearch will deliver a new family tree visualization and documentation tool for its patrons with Asian ancestry. The Asian pedigree or “First Ancestor View” in the FamilySearch Family Tree will better reflect the record-keeping traditions and processes of Asian cultures that view their ancestors in a “top-down tree” perspective.

“Asia is an exciting segment for us,” said Mitch Wasden, a FamilySearch outreach manager.  “We want to give people around the world the tools they need to help them to collaboratively create the ‘Family Tree of Humankind.’ This feature will give people with Asian ancestry a FamilySearch.org tree-building experience equal to those in other areas of the world.”

FamilySearch Middle East North Africa Family Tree

FamilySearch teams have been spending time in Africa and the Middle East getting to understand these cultures and their needs. For example, individual families in these regions may not be accustomed to documenting, visualizing, and sharing their family relations in the context of a “tree.” FamilySearch is delivering a new experience in 2022 tailored to patrons from Africa, North Africa, and the Middle East to artistically preserve and illustrate their family history in a variety of beautiful printable keepsakes. It will be offered through a mobile and web app that requires very little bandwidth or phone storage memory. Learn more, follow, and share these Family Tree initiatives at FamilySearch.org/Africa and FamilySearch.org/MENA (Middle East and North Africa).

Discover your ancestors for free today at FamilySearch.org.

Register for RootsTech Connect 2022 (March 3–5) for free and be the first to learn more about these new FamilySearch features.

(Source: https://www.familysearch.org/en/newsroom/what-to-expect-familysearch-2022)

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Scottish Jewish Archives Centre to host Open Day on February 13th

The Scottish Jewish Archives Centre (www.sjac.org.uk), located in the historic A- listed Garnethill Synagogue at 29 Garnet Street, Glasgow, is hosting an Open Day on February 13th 2022, from 2pm-4pm. 

The Open Day is a chance to learn more about Glasgow's and Scotland's Jewish history, with an opportunity to visit the archive's collections and displays.  

If you wish to attend you will need to book a place at www.trybooking.co.uk/BLOX, and masks must be worn, and social distancing observed during your visit. 

(Source: SJAC announcement at https://www.facebook.com/events/2463095273820593/)

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Glasgow Registrars seek to start ScotlandsPeople access end of February

From Glasgow Registrar Services:

Registrar Services are currently in discussions with the Mitchell Library, working towards a re-opening date for the end of February.  It is likely that the centre will open one day per week initially, with the hope of increasing this to two days per week over the following month. The centre will also be open one Saturday per calendar month.

Health and safety measures are currently being implemented to support the safe resumption of this service.

The appointment diary will open within the coming weeks as soon as a re-opening date for the centre is confirmed. This will allow customers to book a date in advance to visit the Genealogy Centre.

All of the above is subject to change dependant on future Scottish Government announcements/guidelines.

Thank you for your continued patience and support as we continue to face the challenges of the ongoing pandemic and the impact on our resources and services.

NB: Please note that the guidance from East Ayrshire Council regarding the Burns Monument Centre at https://www.glasgowfamilyhistory.org.uk/DiscoverLearn/GettingStarted/Pages/Registrars.aspx is inaccurate - the centre is still only offering pre-booked four hour slots, not full days as stated on the site, which was updated on January 11th.

(Source: https://glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=17698)

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Scottish Government questionnaire on historic forced adoption

The Scottish Government (www.gov.scot) is inviting those who were affected by the issue of forced adoptions from the 1950s-1970s to fill in an online questionnaire to share their experience, in order to allow them to better understand and target support where it is needed for those affected. 

From the Government's website:

Historical adoption

Sadly, we know that there were practices in place in Scotland around the time of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s which resulted in new-born babies being unnecessarily taken away from unmarried mothers and placed for adoption, without any regard to the mothers and children’s own needs or wishes. People who experienced this have reported the long-lasting impacts on their health and wellbeing.

In June 2021, the First Minister made a commitment to fully consider the issue of historical adoption practices in Scotland. The Minister for Children and Young People, Clare Haughey, is grateful to have had the opportunity to hear from women, sons and daughters across the country who have taken the time to share their own personal stories and explain how it has affected their lives. We now want to open this conversation up more widely to hear from more people affected and to ensure they are able to access support.

Historical adoption questionnaire

We have developed an online questionnaire to invite views from anyone who has been affected by historical adoption in Scotland. And from those who may also wish to take the opportunity to share their story. This is so that we can continue to learn and understand about the support that is needed now and in the future. The questionnaire is available from 26 January 2022.

The Family Care Team in the Scottish Government would like to hear from anyone affected by these outdated adoption processes, their representatives and/or organisations with an interest in historical adoption practices in Scotland. 

Further details, including the links to the questionnaire and details of agencies that may be able to help if you have been affected by this issue, are available on the Government's website at https://www.gov.scot/publications/historical-adoption/ 

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Family Tree's Scottish Family History Month talks - schedule change

This is just a quick note to say that there is a slight change to the schedule for next month's Scottish Family History Month talks programme from Family Tree magazine (www.family-tree.co.uk), which kicks off next week. The talk by Michelle Leonard will now be on Tuesday 22 FEB 2022 at 6pm, whilst my talk from the 22 FEB is being brought forward to Tuesday 8 FEB 2022 at 6.30pm. 

The schedule is thus now as follows:

• Making sense of the Scottish census, Emma Maxwell, 1 February, 6.30pm
• Civil cases in the sheriff courts, Fergus Smith, 4 February, 2pm
• Scottish research resources before 1800, Chris Paton, 8 February 6.30pm
• Tracing Scottish women, Kirsty Wilkinson, 17 February, 6.30pm
• Using DNA for Scottish family history research, Michelle Leonard, 22 February, 6.00pm
  

I'm delighted to be the host for all five sessions, and also to be giving my own talk, Scottish research resources before 1800, which is described as follows:

In this talk Chris Paton, author of 'Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records', takes us to pre-19th century Scotland, when things begin to get a little more complicated with our ancestral research.

From Kirk to state, a variety of records are available, but it's one thing to find them, and quite another to understand them, with different handwriting styles, language problems and the feudal nature of Scottish society forming some of the many challenges that make earlier Scottish research fun but challenging.

Chris will explore the various record types available, and how to access them both online and offline.

To sign up for this talk, please visit https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/3316377463895/WN_BruyImi3SEmSYjTQv4Yqbw, whilst links are available for all five sessions at https://www.family-tree.co.uk/news/scottish-family-history-month-2022/. Each event will comprise a 50-min Zoom talk, followed by a 30 minute Q&A, and they are each priced at £10 each. 

Please note that there is also a bundle price of £40 if you sign up for all five, and if you're a magazine subscriber, there's an even better bargain going for all five at just £35!

I look forward to hopefully seeing you there!

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

MyHeritage offers free access to updated photo enhancement tools

MyHeritage (www.myheritage.com) is offering free and unlimited use of its MyHeritage In Color, Photo Enhancer, and Photo Repair tools from January 24th to February 5th 2022, to tie in with a release of an updated version of its colourisation tool.

You can find more about these tools at https://blog.myheritage.com/2022/01/improved-color-restoration-for-photos-on-myheritage/.

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

More tickets available for tomorrow's NLS maps talk

This National Library of Scotland maps department talk tomorrow (Wednesday) was sold out, but the NLS has now released more tickets:

Navigating the Maps website

The maps website is a wonderful resource for researchers, with almost 250,000 maps for you to view. What better time to learn how it works? And what better way to navigate it than in an interactive workshop, guided by an experienced member of the maps team? After half an hour you’ll know the best ways to find specific maps, how to use geo-referenced mapping, and how to view maps side-by-side (and we’ll also point you towards those little-used extras on the site, such as the print function and the measurement tool). This online workshop is hands-on, so be ready to visit the maps website and build your skills.

To register a place visit https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/navigating-the-maps-website-tickets-244336536157

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Scottish and Northern Irish genealogy events in February 2022

The following is a listing for February 2022 of Scottish hosted/themed genealogy events, Scottish themed events worldwide, or events of potential interest to those carrying out Scottish based family history research. I have tried to include as many as I have been able to locate, but if your society is hosting an event, I'd be more than happy to list it in future posts (or to amend this one if it is in February!). To share details, please email me at chrismpaton@outlook.com

To the best of my knowledge, with one exception, all of these sessions are online, and some may be for society members only, but please check the relevant links for further details.

Tues, 1 February, 18.30pm (GMT)
Making sense of the Scottish census, by Emma Maxwell
Family Tree magazine – Scottish Family History Month
https://www.family-tree.co.uk/news/scottish-family-history-month-2022/

Wed, 2 February 2022, 19.30 – 20.30 (GMT)
Why I use Roots Magic, by Charlie Wilson
Guild of One-Name Studies
https://one-name.org/seminar-events/

Thu, 3 February 2022 9.00-10.00 (GMT) and 14.00-15.00 (two sessions)
Strictly for Beginners in Family History and Genealogy, by Audrey McKeown
North of Ireland Family History Society
https://www.nifhs.org/courses/

Fri, 4 February 2022, 14.00pm (GMT)
Civil cases in the sheriff courts, by Fergus Smith
Family Tree magazine – Scottish Family History Month
https://www.family-tree.co.uk/news/scottish-family-history-month-2022/

Sat, 5 February 2022, 14:00 – 16:00 (GMT)
Far is Auchterturra? Finding places around North-East Scotland
ANESFHS (Elgin)
https://www.anesfhs.org.uk/meetings-events/events

Sat, 5 February 2022 14:00 – 17:00 (GMT)
Scottish Kirk Session Records, by Emma Maxwell
Anglo Scottish Branch Meeting, MLFHS
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/anglo-scottish-fhs-meeting-scottish-kirk-session-records-tickets-239300001747

Sun, 6 February 2022, 14.00 (local time Adelaide)
Scottish Naming Patterns" - are they relevant to your research?
Genealogy SA
https://www.genealogysa.org.au/whats-on/events-calendar

Tues, 8 February 2022, 18.30 (GMT) *change to previous billing
Scottish research resources before 1800, by Chris Paton
Family Tree magazine – Scottish Family History Month
https://www.family-tree.co.uk/news/scottish-family-history-month-2022/

Tues, 8 February 2022, 19.30 (GMT)
Commonwealth Graves Commission, by Sehar Sardar  
North Ayrshire FHS
http://northayrshirefhs.org.uk/meetings.html

Wed, 9 February 2022, 10am-11am (local time Ontario)
Glengarry Archives, by Allan MacDonald
Ontario Genealogical Society – Scottish SIG
https://scottishsig.ogs.on.ca/calendar/glengarry-archives/

Wed, 9 February 2022, 19.00 (GMT)
The story of the Usher family, the Usher Hall and a dispute over inheritance, by Stuart Usher
Lothians Family History Society
http://www.lothiansfamilyhistorysociety.co.uk/diary.htm

Wed, 9 February 2022, 19.30 – 20.30 (GMT)
Why I Use Family Tree Maker, by Susan Atkins
Guild of One-Name Studies
https://one-name.org/seminar-events/

Wed, 9. February 2022, 19.00 (GMT)
Writing Family History Articles, by Chris Paton
Central Scotland FHS
https://www.csfhs.org.uk/index.php/info/syllabus

Thu, 10 February 2022, 09.00-10.00 (GMT) and 14.00-15.00 (two sessions)
More Online Resources for Genealogy and Family History, by Audrey McKeown and Mike McKeag
North of Ireland Family History Society
https://www.nifhs.org/courses/ 

Sat, 12 February 2022, 14:00 – 16:00 (GMT)
Members' Day: Adventures in Kirk Session Records
ANESFHS (Glasgow)
https://www.anesfhs.org.uk/meetings-events/events

Mon, 14 February 2022, 10.30-12.00 (GMT)
Scottish Marriage - Instantly Buckled for Life, by Chris Paton
Phyliss Court Family History Society
https://www.phylliscourt.co.uk/membership/interest-groups/family-history/

Wed, 16 February 2022, 10am-11am (local time Ontario)
Merchant Seamen, by Caroline Gurney  
Ontario Genealogical Society – Scottish SIG
https://scottishsig.ogs.on.ca/calendar/merchant-seamen/

Thu, 17 February 2022, 9.00-10.00 (GMT) and 14.00-15.00 (two sessions)
Strictly for Beginners in Family History and Genealogy, by Audrey McKeown
North of Ireland Family History Society
https://www.nifhs.org/courses/

Thurs, 17 February 2022, 18.30 (GMT)
Tracing Scottish Women, by Kirsty Wilkinson
Family Tree magazine – Scottish Family History Month
https://www.family-tree.co.uk/news/scottish-family-history-month-2022/

Thurs, 17 February 2022, 19.30 (GMT)
Paisley High Street, by David Roberts
Renfrewshire FHS
https://renfrewshirefhs.co.uk/meetings/

Sat, 19 February 2022, 05:00 – 07:30 (GMT)
Sat, 19 February 2022, 16:00 – 18:30 (AEDT)
Scots in the West Indies, by Trish Adams
ANESFHS (Melbourne)
https://www.anesfhs.org.uk/meetings-events/events

Sat, 19 February 2022, 10.30 – 11.30 (GMT)
Scottish Research Resources Before 1800s, by Chris Paton
Society of Genealogists
https://societyofgenealogists.arlo.co/w/events/218-scottish-research-resources-before-1800  

Sat, 19 February 2022, 14:00 – 16:00 (GMT)
DNA Workshop and Q&A, by Helen Taylor
ANESFHS (Aberdeen)
https://www.anesfhs.org.uk/meetings-events/events

Sat, 19 February 2022, 14:00 – 16:00 (GMT)
Aspects of Illegitimacy in Scotland, by Alex Wood  
ANESFHS (Aberdeen)
https://www.anesfhs.org.uk/meetings-events/events

Sat, 19 February 2022, 14:00 – 15:00 (GMT)
Same Sex Love, 1700–1957: History and Research Sources for Family Historians, by Gill Rossini
Society of Genealogists
https://societyofgenealogists.arlo.co/w/events/224-same-sex-love-17001957-history-and-research-sources-for-family-historians

Mon, 21 February 2022, 19:30 – 21:00 (GMT)
Love of the Sea, by Sean Szmalc
Glasgow and West of Scotland FHS
https://www.gwsfhs.org.uk/events/event/love-of-the-sea/

Mon, 21 February 2022, 19:30 – 21:00 (GMT)
Genetics, Succession and Family Law. The Baronetcy of Pringle of Stitchill, by Gillian Black (following the AGM)
Scottish Genealogy Society, to be held at Augustine United Church Centre, George IV Bridge, Edinburgh
http://www.scotsgenealogy.com

Tues, 22 February 2022, 18.00 (GMT) *change to previous billing
Using DNA for Scottish family history research, by Michelle Leonard
Family Tree magazine – Scottish Family History Month
https://www.family-tree.co.uk/news/scottish-family-history-month-2022/

Tues, 22 February 2022, 19.45 (GMT)
Scottish Marriage: Instantly Buckled for Life, by Chris Paton
Liverpool and South West Lancashire FHS
https://www.lswlfhs.org.uk/events

Wed, 23 February 2022, 19.00-20.00 (GMT)
Family Finder, by Martin McDowell
North of Ireland Family History Society
https://www.nifhs.org/courses/

Thurs, 24 February 2022, 10am-11am (local time Ontario)
Paisley Weavers, by Stephen Clancy
Ontario Genealogical Society – Scottish SIG
https://scottishsig.ogs.on.ca/calendar/paisley-weavers/ 

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Scottish Indexes conference on March 12th 2022

The next Scottish Indexes conference, the 16th, takes place on March 12th 2022. 

Amongst the talks given will be a presentation on the replacement for SCAN, Your Scottish Archives (see http://scottishgenes.blogspot.com/2021/11/scan-website-to-be-replaced-by-new-your.html), which will be given by John Pelan, Director of the Scottish Council on Archives.

For further details on speakers, keep an eye on www.scottishindexes.com.

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Transcribing Dad's stories

There was an interesting article on the BBC website at the weekend about a journalist called Dan Johnson, who had recorded interviews with his father prior to his passing, from which he has subsequently made a personal version of Desert Islands Discs to remember him by. You can find the article at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-60084596.

By coincidence, on Sunday I started to transcribe interview sessions with my own father, recorded in mid-2020 prior to his passing almost a year ago. An uncle of mine passed away a week ago, and a cousin contacted me last week with some family photographs that I had not seen before, and I knew my father had discussed his brother in one of our sessions, hence the transcription effort to allow me to be able to share what had been said. (My father was quite elderly with an Ulster accent, and with my cousin being very much a Londoner, and not likely to understand many of the colloquial terms, the transcription seems to be a better option!). In this first session alone there were extraordinary stories about how my father was once sneaked into the very exclusive Annabel's club in London by my uncle, who was the doorman for a time after it first opened, stories about my father's naval experiences in Singapore and at a base in England, tales from his childhood in Carrickfergus, and much more. I have over two hours of recorded material still to work through, and it is a joy to hear his voice again. I had deliberately avoided doing so for the last year - his passing was all a bit too close still - but now is a perfect time to hear his voice again (although my wife got slightly startled last night when I played his voice on the computer, and she suddenly heard it out of the blue!).

I mentioned this on Twitter, and was asked how I had recorded this. Very easily - I simply sat my phone down on the table and recorded using the voice recorder app on it, and then moved the MP3 files to my computer (and onto back-ups - it's precious material). To make it feel less like a one-on-one inquisition, I also had my wife with me on some sessions, and even my kids were present on a couple of occasions, so that he had an audience to 'perform' to - he liked to tell stories (Paton thing!)!

Whenever interviewing someone, never make it feel like an ordeal, you can just keep the tech to a minimum, and there is no need to go in with formal questions that demand specific answers, but do have an idea of what you want to cover, and just steer the conversation along those lines. Don't even call it an 'interview' - just ask your parent or relative if they would mind talking about a particular aspect of the past that you are interested in if they have a few minutes, and let nature take its course if they agree! On a few occasions my Dad would veer off topic (sometimes hilariously so!), but I would always gently steer him back to where I wanted him to be. The effort was truly worth it.

Recording with a microphone is not the only way to try to capture such memories. My mother passed away a few years earlier in 2013, and I had not recorded her discussing her memoirs in the same way. However, I did once spend an afternoon with her, over a few cups of tea, filling in a 'grandparents book' that I had bought her a couple of years earlier, and which had just been gathering dust. She had been loathe initially to fill it in herself ("Och son, what do ye want to know all that for?!"), but I eventually talked her into it if I would do the writing - she agreed, and over a few cups of tea she started discussing her background, and would not stop!

Historic documents will only take you so far with ancestral research, but first hand testimony will get us much closer to our ancestors, how they thought, what made them laugh, even how they sounded, the idioms they used, the things that motivated them, and more. We may not have the chance to do so with relatives who have already passed, but if there is still a chance to do so with those still around, and a relative is willing to do so, you are looking a gift horse in the mouth if you don't at least try.

And when they have passed, as Dan Johnson noted in his account, it can be a comfort to hear their voices once again.  

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Anglican baptismal registers from Derryloran parish in County Tyrone

I'm doing some client research just now involving the Church of Ireland parish of Derryloran in County Tyrone. The surviving records have been transcribed as part of the Representative Church Body Library's Anglican Record Project, but are not appearing in the list of records available at https://www.ireland.anglican.org/about/rcb-library/anglican-record-project, whilst the RCBL's excellent and recently updated List of Parish Registers at https://www.ireland.anglican.org/about/rcb-library/list-of-parish-registers simply redirects to the main ARP home page for Derryloran.

However the records are available online, with two baptismal registers available, one from 1796-1842, and another from 1843-1896. Both volumes also contain lists of confirmations from various years. I have contacted the RCBL and asked if they can update their directory. 

In the meantime, you will find the records themselves freely accessible at at https://www.ireland.anglican.org/about/rcb-library/anglican-record-project/derryloran. 

UPDATE: Fair play to the RCBL - they have responded within hours to say that they have rectified the situation and provided relevant links to the Derryloran pages from the ARP home page (with Armagh as the diocese), and will include the relevant links when they next update the List of Parish Registers. Excellent response!

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Forthcoming PRONI events in Northern Ireland

The following events are being organised by the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (www.nidirect.gov.uk/proni) - register via the links:

Fate Unknown: Tracing the Missing after the Holocaust
25 January, 2pm
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/fate-unknown-tracing-the-missing-after-the-holocaust-tickets-221976958057

Launch of Belfast Workhouse Indexes
27 January, 1pm
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/launch-of-belfast-workhouse-indexes-tickets-247209479207

Antrim – The Irish Revolution 1912-1923
9 February, 7pm
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/antrim-the-irish-revolution-1912-23-tickets-242968584577

Getting Started Workshops: Using Online Resources
9 and 23 February, 12.30pm
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/getting-started-workshop-using-online-resources-tickets-137600911029

The Cult of Patrick and his later Medieval Latin Lives
17 February, 7pm
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-cult-of-patrick-and-his-later-medieval-latin-lives-tickets-244374389377

Hindenburg, Ludenorff and the rise of the Nazis
9 March, 7pm
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-legacy-of-ww1-hindenburg-ludenorff-and-the-rise-of-the-nazis-tickets-244443877217

(With thanks to the PRONI Express via email)

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Judicial review over Scottish 2022 census question

A group called Fair Play to Women is seeking a ruling through a judicial review that the definition of 'sex' in the forthcoming 2022 Scottish census is unlawful. The applicant's petition is available at https://fairplayforwomen.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Petition-as-lodged.pdf.

At heart is the issue about whether someone who is transgender can follow the Scottish Government's current guidance on how to answer the question on sex, as laid out at https://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/documents/scotland-s-census-2022-sex-question-guidance/. A recent ruling in England saw similar guidance removed prior to the taking of the 2021 census down south.

Scottish offical census day was delayed by a year due to the Covid pandemic, and is now slated to take place on Sunday, March 20th 2022, although forms will be made available from the end of February. You can find more about the census at www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk. 

NB: Please note, I am well aware how heated the current debate on gender reform has become - I am simply reporting a factual development with regard to a documentary source that our descendants will be using for family history purposes in a hundred years time. I make no comment on the issues at stake, and will not be publishing any comments for this post. Thanks!

Chris 

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

National Library of Scotland Map Transcription Projects

Fancy another transcription project?! From the National Library of Scotland (www.nls.uk):

Over the next few months we are looking for volunteers to help with a set of new collaborative projects to transcribe features and text from maps. We are hoping to gather all of the placenames from the Roy Military Survey maps of Scotland (1747-55), trace footpaths from Ordnance Survey six-inch to the mile maps of Scotland (ca.1900s), and gather text from Ordnance Survey 25 inch to the mile mapping of Edinburgh. The results will be released as open datasets for onward use, allowing new place-name search possibilities, helping research into the history of footpaths to safeguard rights of way today, and assisting with automatic text recognition from historic maps.

For further details, and to register an interest, please visit our New Map Transcription Projects page.

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Derry surnames guide added to RootsIreland

From RootsIreland (www.rootsireland.ie):

We are delighted to announce the addition of 386 family surname histories to the Roots Ireland database! Written and compiled by Brian Mitchell of Derry Genealogy, these surname histories cover mostly Gaelic and Planter names from the north-west of Ireland and are an invaluable guide to those researching their family histories. These family histories are free to view at no cost and with no limit to those with a current subscription.  

For further details visit https://www.rootsireland.ie/2022/01/new-surname-histories/.

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

ScotlandsPeople Customer Satisfaction Survey

From ScotlandsPeople (www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk):

Have you used our services? We would love to hear your thoughts! We are currently carrying out a Customer Satisfaction Survey alongside the Institute of Customer Services which closes 4th February 2022. You can complete this short survey here – http://ow.ly/LiNx50HwK8Z

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

British Newspaper Archive passes 47 million pages of content

The British Newspaper Archive (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk) has passed the 47 million pages mark, with 47,112,194 pages accessible at the time of writing.

The most recent additions from the last 30 days are available at https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/titles/recently-added/30days. For Scotland and Ireland they include the following:

Scotland

Northern Scot and Moray & Nairn Express
1914-1915

Montrose Standard
1962

Arbroath Guide
1962

Huntly Express
1915

Port-Glasgow Express
1962

Arbroath Herald and Advertiser for the Montrose Burghs
1962

Northern Chronicle and General Advertiser for the North of Scotland
1915

Broughty Ferry Guide and Advertiser
1962

Dalkeith Advertiser
1962

Barrhead News
1915

Alloa Journal
1915

Banffshire Herald
1915

Banffshire Advertiser
1915

Leven Mail
1962

Highland News
1915

Orcadian
1915

Forres Elgin and Nairn Gazette, Northern Review and Advertiser
1915

Scottish Leader
1889

Evening Gazette (Aberdeen)
1884-1885

Ayr Observer
1875, 1879-1882, 1884-1885, 1888, 1891

Crieff Journal
1875-1877, 1879-1888, 1890

Bridge of Allan Reporter
1876, 1879, 1881-1887, 1889

Northern Advertiser (Aberdeen)
1858, 1879-1884, 1888-1890

Annandale Herald and Moffat News
1879-1885

Aberdeen People's Journal
1879, 1881, 1883

North British Advertiser & Ladies' Journal
1880, 1884, 1887

Glasgow Property Circular and West of Scotland Weekly Advertiser
1881-1882, 1884, 1889

Glasgow Weekly Mail
1881-1882, 1884

Saturday Inverness Advertiser
1880

Glasgow Weekly Herald
1882, 1886, 1890

Kelso Mail
1890

Galloway Gazette
1882, 1890

Fraserburgh Herald and Northern Counties' Advertiser
1890

Haddingtonshire Courier
1875-1877, 1882-1883, 1890

Galloway Advertiser and Wigtownshire Free Press.
1882, 1885

Dundee Weekly News
1883

Portobello Advertiser
1882

Dundee People's Journal
1883

Dunfermline Saturday Press
1876, 1879, 1881-1883, 1885-1886, 1889

Ayr Advertiser, or, West Country Journal
1884

Northman and Northern Counties Advertiser
1890


Ireland

Bray and South Dublin Herald
1876, 1878-1886, 1888-1889, 1891-1904, 1908-1909

Cavan Weekly News and General Advertiser
1889

Irish Emerald
1881-1888, 1890-1912

Cork Weekly News
1900

Ulster Echo
1880

Strabane Weekly News
1915

County Down Spectator and Ulster Standard
1915

Strabane Chronicle
1915

Fermanagh Times
1880

Bassett's Chronicle
1885

Cashel Gazette and Weekly Advertiser
1864

Belfast Weekly Telegraph
1894, 1929

Donegal Independent
1890

Belfast Weekly News
1881

Flag of Ireland
1872

Witness (Belfast)
1874-1880, 1883-1896

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Irish adoptees to gain right to see original birth certificates

Quite a big development in Ireland - the forthcoming Birth Information and Tracing Bill from the Republic's government, if it becomes law, will permit adopted children the right to see their original birth certificates and to learn the identity of their birth parents. 

Until now the law in Ireland has provided rights of privacy to mothers who have given up their children for adoption, in preference to the rights of those who have been adopted. If enabled, the new law, which builds on recent GDPR legislation from the EU, will also inform adoptees whether their birth mothers wish to establish contact with them. Details of fathers, if recorded on the birth certs, will also be passed on.

For more on the story read the Irish Times story at https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/adopted-people-will-be-given-right-to-see-their-original-birth-certificate-1.4774214.

(With thanks to Shauna Hicks via Facebook)

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Scottish Research Online course from Pharos start Feb 28th

The next 5 week long Scottish Research Online course from Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd (www.pharostutors.com), taught by yours truly, starts on February 28th 2022. The following is the course description:

Scottish Research Online (102)
Tutor: Chris Paton

Scotland was one of the first countries to digitise its major family history records collections for accessibility online, and continues to this day to use such resources to promote a worldwide interest in family history for those with Caledonian connections.

This course, originally created by genealogist Sherry Irvine, and now taught and regularly updated by Scottish based genealogist Chris Paton, describes the major sites and record types that you will encounter in your research, and how to analyse the results. Most importantly it will inspire you to actively pursue your interest in Scottish genealogy and take it to the next level.

Lesson Headings:

• Understanding Scotlands People, FindmyPast, Family Search, Ancestry, and FreeCen
• Essential Maps and Gazetteers
• Civil Registration and Census Research
• Searching in Church of Scotland Registers
• Scottish Wills and Inventories
• Bonus lesson - Take It From Here

Note: it is recommended but not required that students in this course sign up for the basic search option, 30 units/seven days, at ScotlandsPeople (cost is £7.50 for 30 credits)

Each lesson includes exercises and activities; a minimum of 1 one-hour chat - See How the Courses Work.

STUDENTS SAID: "I particularly liked the fact that the course didn't just focus on the well-known BMD resources available, but on a much wider range of websites, including many which give extremely useful background information on the geography and history of the localities where our ancestors lived."

"a very knowledgeable Instructor"

Relevant Countries: Scotland

Course Length: 5 Weeks
Start Date: 28 February 2022
Cost: £58

For a wee video introduction to the course, see below or visit https://youtu.be/ssdYLlGtoHw

I'll hopefully see you there! 

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

SAFHS Conference 2022 - 'Hard Times'

From the Scottish Association of Family History Societies (www.safhs.org.uk):

‘Hard Times’: Annual Conference Saturday 9th April 2022

Last year, due to the covid 19 pandemic the SAFHS Executive took the decision not to cancel the annual conference (2021) again, but to take it online. This was made possible thanks to Scottish Indexes www.scottishindexes.com who very kindly helped us in offering the use of their online platform. With their experience and assistance, Emma and Graham Maxwell were able to provide an online SAFHS conference for the very first time shown via a Zoom link and through our Facebook Group Live.

Each presenter pre-recorded their talk and there was time allocated after each one to allow the presenter time to answer questions live time after each one. Members of the SAFHS Executive, Emma and Graham were also on hand during these live Q&A slots.

The conference was very well received, and the viewing figures were in the thousands. Each presentation was available on YouTube for a week afterwards to allow those who were unable to join in on the day catch up later.

This year’s conference ‘Hard Work’ will also go online using the same platform and with the help of Scottish Indexes. We have already started planning this event and we are pleased to announce the following speakers:

Irene O’Brien, Glasgow City Archives
Myko Clelland, Find My Past
Fiona Musk, NHS Grampian Archive
Emma Maxwell, Scottish Indexes
Jill Williams, Irish Genealogy
Ken Nisbet, Scottish Genealogy Society and SAFHS

The talks will incorporate records of the poor, crimes, migration and immigration, Kirk Session and records from the asylums and institutions as to the effects poverty and ‘hard times’ had on people’s health.

Our Patron, Lord Lyon King of Arms who officially ‘opened’ SAFHS 2021 with a positively rousing opening speech in April has kindly agreed to officiate next year.

We will be updating the website and keeping you all informed through Facebook (we have a page and a group) and on twitter. To register for a Zoom link follow the link.

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/4816346514768/WN_m3nVdz_kSNCTrhX4EXfVQg

Alison Murray, SAFHS 

(With thanks to Alison)

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

RootsIreland adds further Monaghan records

From the Irish Family History Foundation (www.rootsireland.ie)

We are delighted to announce the addition of 5,861 Monaghan records to the Roots Ireland database. These are Church of Ireland (CI), Presbyterian (PR) and Roman Catholic (RC) baptism, marriage and burial records, as well as a list of CI parishioners in Monaghan in 1802. The full list and details are below. For an up to date list of sources for Monaghan and to search these records, go to monaghan.rootsireland.ie and login or subscribe as required.

Baptisms:

Errigal (Shanco) (CI, 1877-1961): 145 records
First Ballybay, Derryvally & Cahans (PR, 1799-1831): 1924 records
Monaghan (First) (PR, 1860-1915): 1068 records
Stonebridge (PR, 1821-1916): 1043 records

Marriages:

Ballymackney (Killanny) (CI, 1853-1955): 36 records
Derryvally (PR, 1846-1918): 178 records
Muckno (Castleblayney) (CI, 1811-1845): 1036 records
Muckno (St Mary's Oram) (RC, 1901-1918): 42 records
Stonebridge (PR, 1821-45): 284 records

Burials:

Ballybay (CI, 1823-1931): 703 records

Census Substitutes:

CI Parishioners Monaghan (1802): 190 records 

(With thanks to RootsIreland, via email)

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Scottish Indexes adds Crown Counsel Procedure Books 1854-1863 index

From Scottish Indexes (www.scottishindexes.com):

Ahead of the Scottish Indexes Conference this weekend we’ve just added an index to Crown Counsel Procedure Books 1854-1863 to www.scottishindexes.com. These are entries from volumes AD9/15-18 which are held by the National Records of Scotland. In this release, we have added over 30,000 new entries.

The total number of records now in Scotland's Criminal Database is 365,732. You can see a breakdown of our coverage here: https://www.scottishindexes.com/coveragescd.aspx

There is more information here: https://scottishgenealogyblog.blogspot.com/2022/01/scottish-indexes-adds-more-records-to.html 

NB: For more on this weekend's confernce see http://scottishgenes.blogspot.com/2022/01/scottish-indexes-conference-on-january.html

(With thanks to Emma Maxwell)

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Guild of One Name Studies webinar series

The Guild of One Name Studies has two free webinar series coming up, which may be of interest:

Family History Software for your One-Name Study (perspectives from Guild members)

Wednesdays from 12th January - you can book a place on these sessions using the link at https://one-name.org/seminar-events/

Resources for your Study

Three free talks, covering the 1921 census (Myko Clelland, 16th Feb), the upcoming US 1950 census (Marian Burk Wood, 1st June), and Chancery records (Sue Swalwell, 9th March).  

For further details visit https://one-name.org/webinars-2022/

(With thanks to Charlie Wilson)

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

FIBIS website - scheduled maintenance on Wednesday

From the Families in British India Society (www.fibis.org):

Please note that the main FIBIS website will be down for scheduled maintenance on Wednesday 12 January 2022. The FIBIS database, Gallery and Fibiwiki will remain online though.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

(With thanks to Valmay Young via email)

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

North of Ireland Family History Society classes for 2022

From the North of Ireland Family History Society (https://www.nifhs.org):

Bookings are now being taken for our series of Classes for Spring 2022.

There are lots of exciting topics on offer and some of the classes are FREE!
All classes will be via Zoom - so you can join us from wherever you are in the world.

Thursdays 3 & 17 February @ 9am GMT - Strictly for Beginners
Thursdays 3 & 17 February @ 2pm GMT - Strictly for Beginners
Thursday 10 February @ 9am GMT - More Online Resources for Genealogy & Family History - FREE
Thursday 10 February @ 2pm GMT - More Online Resources for Genealogy & Family History - FREE
Wednesdays 23 February & 2 March @ 7pm GMT - Family Finder
Friday 11 March @ 7pm GMT - Valuation Records
Tuesday 15 March @ 7pm GMT - An Introduction to Scottish Online Records
Wednesday 23 March @ 7pm GMT - NIFHS Look Up Service - FREE
Thursday 24 March @ 7pm GMT - What’s New in Family Tree Maker- Discussion and Q & A - FREE
Friday 25 March @ 2pm GMT - Emigration to Australia and New Zealand
Friday 25 March @ 7pm GMT - PRONI Online Records
Thursday 7 April @ 7pm BST - Using Ancestry DNA
Saturday 23 April @ 11am BST - DNA Day - Beginner’s Talk - FREE
Tuesday 3 May @ 7pm BST - Five Top Tips for Analysing your DNA Results

For further details on the talks, and to book, visit https://www.nifhs.org/courses/. 

NB: I'll be doing the talk An Introduction to Scottish Online Records on March 15th, I hope to maybe see you there!

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Family Tree magazine Feb 2022 issue now on sale

The February 2022 issue of Family Tree magazine is now on sale, and includes a hefty article by yours truly on Scottish land records, whilst genealogist Alison Spring looks at free records available on ScotlandsPeople. 

From the site:

Also in this issue:

Explore the Family Tree 1921 census fact-file
Top 10 1921 Census FAQs, a crop of fascinating facts revealed about the 1921 Census, and a look at the tumultuous times in which with census was taken, with Helen Tovey

Writing the stories of our ancestors
With the help of her daughter and for the love of her mother, family historian Sarah Lewis has written a book of her family’s story

Documenting your life, creating your legacy
Chris Broom takes a look at why now is the time to start keeping a log of what your life is like

#reclaimjane
Join family historian and family story teller Natalie Pithers this February in her free online writing challenge

Improve your search skills

Investigating our ancestors’ names
Family Tree Academy tutor David Annal discusses our ancestors' first, middle and surnames, and suggests ideas as to how we can better glean the clues from them

5 ways to research with The Gazette
Search for notable ancestor details back centuries

The Rumsfeldian approach
Engineer & genealogist Alfred Gracey suggests a practical method for turning unknown facts into known ones

Kickstart your research
Jump start your genealogy in 2022 with Ancestry in 5 simple steps

& all your regular favourites 

For further details visit https://www.family-tree.co.uk/store/back-issues/family-tree-magazine/family-tree-magazine-february-2022-issue-195-1/

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.