Scottish GENES: 2026

Saturday, 14 February 2026

TheGenealogist adds Large Scale 25-inch Historic OS Maps and LiDAR to its MapExplorer tool

From TheGenealogist (www.thegenealogist.co.uk):

TheGenealogist adds Large Scale 25-inch Historic OS Maps and LiDAR to MapExplorerTM

TheGenealogist has enhanced its MapExplorerTM historic map overlay with the addition of large-scale 25-inch-to-the-mile 1890-1914 Ordnance Survey (OS) maps, alongside a brand-new LiDAR mapping layer, giving family historians sharper ways to pinpoint where ancestors lived and understand the landscapes that shaped their lives.

The 25-inch OS maps are among the most detailed historic maps available for genealogy, showing features often missing from smaller-scale mapping: individual building footprints, property boundaries, yards, alleys, small lanes, wells, schools, chapels, mills, sidings, and other local landmarks. When used in MapExplorer’s overlay view, researchers can compare these fine-grain historic details against other map layers and modern geography to locate ancestral homes and communities with far greater accuracy.

Additionally, the newly released LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) maps bring another dimension to local history research. LiDAR reveals the shape of the ground beneath vegetation and modern land use, helping users spot historic earthworks, trackways, field systems, quarries, embankments, cuttings, and other “hidden” features, particularly valuable for rural research, lost buildings, and places where the visible landscape has changed.

“By adding 25-inch OS maps and LiDAR layers to MapExplorer, we’re giving researchers new ways to connect records to real places, right down to individual buildings and the landscape around them,” said Mark Bayley, Head of Online Content at TheGenealogist.

The 25-inch-to-the-mile OS map layer and LiDAR maps are available now within MapExplorerTM at TheGenealogist.

Read about these new additions and how they can help reveal the landscape your ancestors knew here: https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2026/lines-across-the-landscape-8934/.

** I asked what the coverage was, and the new additions cover the whole of Britain; it is hoped Ireland will be added in the future.

(With thanks to Paul Bayley)

Chris

Order Researching Ancestral Crisis in Ireland in the UK at https://bit.ly/4jJWSEh. Also available -Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors, Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, 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. To purchase in the USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page.

Wednesday, 11 February 2026

University of Strathclyde to host two-day Irish Family History Course in April

Something I've been sitting on for a while, and now delighted to announce, is that I will be one of the speakers at a forthcoming two-day conference in April at the University of Strathclyde, dealing with Irish family history research. I'll be giving four separate presentations at the event, where I will be joined by fellow speakers Judith Russell, Dr. Martin Mitchell, and Ciara Chivers.

The following is an overview of the event:

Irish Family History Course

Join us on Tuesday 21 and Wednesday 22 April 2026 at the University of Strathclyde for an engaging two‑day introduction to Irish family history research.

Participants are welcome to arrive from 8:30–9:00 am each day, with teas, coffees and biscuits available to help you settle in before the sessions begin.

The course will run until 5:00 pm on day one and conclude at the earlier time of 4:15 pm on day two.

Designed for beginners and intermediate level researchers, this hands‑on course features talks from experienced genealogists and educators, covering the fundamentals of genealogy and how to work effectively with key Irish records.

Through practical exercises using vital, land and poor relief sources, attendees will gain confidence and practical skills to apply in their own research.

The two‑day course fee is £165.00 (participants are asked to bring their own lunch).

Full details of the programme and speaker biographies are provided below. Book online today!

The talks I will be giving are Tracing the Irish in Scotland, Discover Ireland's Vital Records, Irish Censuses and Census Substitutes, and Tracing Irish Land Records. The event will be at the university, not online, and should be a lot of fun!

For a full overview of the talks programme, speaker biographies, and to register for the event, please visit https://www.strath.ac.uk/studywithus/centreforlifelonglearning/genealogy/irishfamilyresearch/.

We'll look forward to seeing you there!

* Just a quick word also to say that I will be participating at the Association of Professional Genealogists' Professional Genealogy Symposium at the university on 24 June 2026 - further details on this can be found at https://www.strath.ac.uk/studywithus/centreforlifelonglearning/genealogy/apgprofessionalgenealogysymposium/.

Chris

Tuesday, 10 February 2026

Departmental bunfight in Ireland over 1864-1870 death records?

I commented the following on the Irish Government's Department of Culture, Communications and Sport's Facebook page yesterday (https://www.facebook.com/DeptCultureCommsSport):

"What about the 1864-1870 death records? Sporadic death indexes, absolutely no images. Come on lads, it can't be that difficult to put them online!"

And I received a response:

"This week’s release includes the annual update of records, adding an additional year of civil records to the website. The Irish Genealogy website now provides access to Civil birth records from 1864–1925, marriage records from 1845–1950, and death records from 1864–1975.

"Please note that while death records from 1864–1970 are indexed on the website, the associated images are not yet available. These images remain with the General Register Office (GRO). The Department has informed the GRO that we will prioritise uploading these records to the Irish Genealogy website as soon as they are provided."

First of all, the indexes are absolutely not complete for death records from 1864-1870. But secondly, have we been unable to see this small group of records for all this time because one Irish governmental department is simply not collaborating with another?

I'll repeat the last line again:

"Come on lads, it can't be that difficult to put them online!"

Chris

Monday, 9 February 2026

Update on plans for proposed Glasgow Necropolis eastern entrance

The following has been sent by Annette Mullen, chair of The Friends of the Glasgow Necropolis (https://www.glasgownecropolis.org):

Dear Supporters,

Further to my previous correspondence, I wanted to provide an update on the proposed Eastern
Entrance to the Glasgow Necropolis

The Friends of Glasgow Necropolis had been invited to a Progress Update Meeting on the 27th
Jan 2026 with Glasgow City Council (GCC) representatives, Ian Elder, the current Project
Manager of the proposed Eastern Entrance and Alice Fayaud - Project Assistant.
Attending the meeting on behalf of the Friends of Glasgow Necropolis: Annette Mullen, Chairperson; Colin Campbell, Deputy Chairperson

The following Progress Update was provided:

Topographical Study – complete.
Ground Penetration Survey - not completed as yet, will take place imminently.
South side of Firpark wall is the proposed site for the new entrance.
Discussions have been held by GCC with the following representatives:
Parks Management
Police Scotland
Neighbourhood Co-Ordinator (Ward 22 Dennistoun)

We were informed that GCC are looking at a sustainable approach with possible CCTV cameras
and appropriate lighting at the Firpark Street side of the wall looking into the Necropolis.
CCTV cameras would be managed/monitored 3pm – 3am seven days a week.

We were informed some trees have already been cleared from the Firpark Street side of the
wall area, but many of these had already been highlighted for removal previously due to ash
dieback.

We were informed it is anticipated that the design plan will be ready to be shared with the
Friends of Glasgow Necropolis in 4 – 6 weeks at another progress meeting.

It was confirmed Historic Environment Scotland have been informally engaged.

Time scales for the Project:

Planning & Operating Plan – 8 week process
It will then move to formal planning application. If formal consent approved, work would start
asap, with an anticipated timescales to complete of 4 weeks.
Completion anticipated late Summer/Early Autumn.

The current Project Manager Ian Elder is moving to a new role in 4 – 6 weeks. At the next
progress update meeting, the Friends of Glasgow Necropolis will be introduced to whoever will
take forward the project.

It was confirmed that the Friends of Glasgow Necropolis will continue to be engaged in the
progress of the project by whoever takes over the role as Project Manager from Ian Elder.
We will update you as soon as we have the next meeting which we anticipate will be towards
the end of February or early March.

As soon as we are aware that the Planning Application consent has been progressed, and we
are monitoring this, it is the intention of the Friends of Glasgow Necropolis to formerly object to
the Planning Application.

There will be a very short window to object and our understanding is this must be done via the
Glasgow City Council planning portal by email, or by post within the specified consultation
period (usually 21- 28 days).

This will be your opportunity to make your voice heard and we sincerely hope you stand with the
Friends of Glasgow Necropolis in objecting to this Planning Application and prevent this very
real threat to the future of the Glasgow Necropolis.

Annette Mullen
Chairperson - The Friends of Glasgow Necropolis

(With thanks to Annette)

Chris

Free access to 100 million pages of British Newspaper Archive content via FindmyPast

The British Newspaper Archive (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk) will be reaching 100 million pages of content this week (it's currently at 99,924,013 pages). The same content is also made available to view via a FindmyPast subscription, and as such, FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk) is opening up its access to the collection for free until February 16th to celebrate. The following is its announcement:

Findmypast opens newspaper archive for free to celebrate 100-million-page milestone

Findmypast and the British Newspaper Archive reach 100 million historical newspaper pages digitised and published online to the public
The collection dates back to 1699, covering over 2,700 titles and more than 7 million issues, offering a vast, powerful resource for uncovering vibrant family stories
Findmypast’s high quality digitisation process and powerful search tools mean it's easier than ever to make discoveries, add them to family trees, or save them to Workspace projects
To celebrate, Findmypast is offering free access to the entire newspaper archive until 16 February 2026, giving family historians a full week to explore

Findmypast, the home of British and Irish family history, is celebrating a monumental milestone this week: its ever‑growing digital historical newspaper collection reaches 100 million fully searchable pages, opening up countless new opportunities for family historians to uncover hidden stories, forgotten moments, and long‑lost ancestors.

This milestone marks one of the world’s largest long-running digitisation projects to enable broader access to these significant historical records. To celebrate the occasion, Findmypast is offering free access to its entire newspaper archive until 16 February 2026, giving researchers a full week to dive into centuries of headlines and discover the unexpected.

Spanning 400 years and featuring more than 2,700 titles and 7 million issues, Findmypast’s newspaper archive is one of the richest sources for building a vivid picture of your ancestors’ lives. Whether you're chasing down a great‑grandfather’s wartime escapades, tracking a long‑forgotten marriage announcement, or stumbling across a scandal that reshapes your family narrative, these pages offer a window into events as they happened.

Findmypast’s newspaper search tools are designed to help family historians uncover stories quickly and accurately. Researchers can draw on extracted details from birth, marriage, and death notices—instantly linkable to family trees—and refine broad searches with smart filtering to pinpoint the most relevant results. Clip and save articles to your tree, add them to your Workspace, or create a Collection around a family member or project.

The vast, continually growing archive includes newspapers from the UK, Ireland and beyond, digitised page-by-page on an ongoing basis by a team based in Boston Spa, Yorkshire.

Using the latest equipment, the pages are scanned to a high resolution, and the images processed using Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. This extracts the text data, enabling Findmypast’s own machine learning technology to identify key terms powering a more detailed search, including information like names, dates, locations, and even phrases. Quality checks ensure that the pages are clean and readable before they are processed and added to the archive.

Lee Wilkinson, Managing Director of DC Thomson History, which owns Findmypast, said: “Reaching 100 million published newspaper pages is a landmark moment for Findmypast, and a powerful reflection of what long-term partnership can achieve. Over 15 years, we have worked closely with major British & Irish archives, cultural organisations, and publishers to preserve these fragile records and expand public access to them. Each page adds depth to our shared history and gives researchers, educators, local historians and families new ways to understand the lives and communities that came before us. I’d encourage everyone to go online and explore this rich resource for free.”

Delve deeper into your family history at www.findmypast.co.uk

(With thanks to Madeleine Gilbert)

Chris

Annual update for IrishGenealogy.ie - but still no 1864-1870 death records

The IrishGenealogy.ie platform (www.irishgenealogy.ie) has received its annual update of vital records, meaning that biorth records from 1925, marriages from 1950, and deaths from 1975 can now be viewed online free of charge.

Please note that these are for records in what is now the Irish republic - for Northern Ireland, the equivalent records can be found at the pay-per-view GRONI website at https://geni.nidirect.gov.uk (note this site has an ongoing weekly update of records to reflect the same closure periods of 100 years for births, 75 years for marriages, and 50 years for deaths).

In what is now becoming a well-established IrishGenealogy.ie tradition, there is still absolutely no news as to why the death records from 1864-1870 continue to remain inaccessible on this platform. Will they have to kill us if they release them, are they really so top secret?! Note that death records for the six Northern Irish counties from this same period are available on the northern GRO site, there's absolutely nothing remarkable about them!

Chris

Saturday, 7 February 2026

Registration now open for Strathclyde's postgraduate genealogy courses

From the University of Strathclyde:

Registration is now open for the April 2026 start Postgraduate Certificate in Genealogical Studies.

The online modular route offers greater flexibility, perfect for students who prefer to learn at their own pace over a longer period of time. There are no formal exams on any of our courses. Instead, you’ll complete modules through engaging assignments and coursework.

What you will gain from the programme:

develop a grounding in the theory and practice of genealogical research, records, archives and heraldry;
focus on the sources available to genealogists and family historians;
gain a deeper, more critical understanding of the field, its literature, professional and academic practice;
professional recognition (ASGRA, AGRA, RQG) from PGDip level.

Application deadline

Please submit your application no later than the 31st of March 2026.

Normally, a degree or similar evidence of study skills is required however non-standard educational or professional qualifications will also be considered Download our FAQ document for further guidance.

Information including fees and course content can be found on the MSc Genealogical, Palaeographic and Heraldic Studies course page.

** This year marks 20 years since the Postgraduate Certificate in Genealogical Studies course first commenced, as designed by Bruce Durie. I was in the first cohort of students for this, and the subsequent year's Postgraduate Diploma, although did not continue to the masters, as this took a bit longer to set up and I was already onto other things (I may go back some day to complete the Masters, who knows?!). I can thoroughly recommend the course for those wishing to take a serious approach to becoming a professional genealogist.

It's not an easy course - there is a LOT of work involved - but the rewards are worth it!

Chris

Forthcoming talk: The Bombing of Edinburgh and Leith

From Leith Local History Society (https://www.leithlocalhistorysociety.org.uk):

Please join us on Tuesday, 17th February at 7pm in Leith Community Centre to listen to Tom Woods fascinating talk about the bombing of Edinburgh and Leith during World War II. He has recently published a book on the same topic. Tom was previously one of the most senior law enforcement officers in Scotland and his last role was in command of the investigation into the infamous World's End murders. After leaving the police he has worked in various posts including Adult and Child protection and writes for the Scotsman on crime and justice. Tom has also written another best selling book Ruxton. The First Modern Murder.

Further details at https://www.facebook.com/events/909716141427158/.

Chris

A search for bilingual Gaelic and English headstones in Scottish kirkyards

The BBC's Gaelic news page, Naidheachdan, has an interesting article entitled "Am faca sibhse clach-uaighe dhà-chànanach?", meaning "Have you seen bilingual headstones?", available at https://www.bbc.co.uk/naidheachdan/sgeulachdan/ckgkmel4vlko.

The article discusses a headstone from Monzie graveyard in Perthshire, dated to 1793, which is written in English on one side, and in Scottish Gaelic (Gàidhlig) on the other. The dialect of Gaelic spoken in Perthshire at that time has now been extinguished, making the find a sort of 'Rosetta Stone', providing evidence of local pronunications of the language in this part of Scotland at that time.

The article discusses whether other examples can be found to help flesh out the picture some more.

The article is written in Gaelic, but can be easily translated with Google Translate.

Chris

Share discoveries with the British Newspaper Archive as it approaches 100 million pages of content

The British Newspaper Archive (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk), a collaboration between the British Library and FindmyPast, is on the point of reaching 100 million pages of content, with the current total at the time of writing at 99,828,117 pages.

On the site's Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/TheBritishNewspaperArchive), it asks the following:

Now, as we approach our 100 millionth page, we’d love to hear from you. What have you used the BNA to uncover? #100MillionPages

By replying, you’re happy for us to quote your comment (and your name) in our milestone blog and related marketing.

The following are the latest additions for Scotland and Ireland over the last 30 days:

Scotland:

John o' Groat Journal
1957, 1986-1987, 1989-1993

Invergordon Times and General Advertiser
1887, 1889-1891

Fifeshire Advertiser
1849-1856, 1858-1869, 1900

Edinburgh Evening News
1996-2004

Govan Press and Weekly Advertiser for Govan & Kinning Park
1889, 1891-1892

People's Friend
1930-1948

Sunday Post
1929, 1940

Ireland:

Irish Railway Gazette
1844-1850

Belfast Telegraph
1986-1999

Chris

Sunday, 1 February 2026

Scotland 1750-1850: Beyond the Old Parish Registers genealogy course returns 16 March

The next 5 week long Scotland 1750-1850: Beyond the Old Parish Registers family history course from Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd (www.pharostutors.com) commences in just over a week's time from Monday, 16 March 2026.

The following short video introduces the course:

(Also available at https://youtu.be/1aGSA-mEiQY)

And the following is the course description, and how to sign up if interested!

Scotland 1750-1850: Beyond the Old Parish Registers

This is an intermediate level course in Scottish family history for those who are going back beyond 1850. You should have some experience with research in the Old Parish Registers (OPRs) of the Church of Scotland and in using major websites for Scottish research.

This course discusses sources that fill the gap when the OPRs are uninformative or missing, such as the kirk session and presbytery courts records generated by the Kirk (Church of Scotland), as well as the records of dissenting and seceding Presbyterian congregations. From the forerunners of Scotlands modern towns and cities are the administrative records of the burghs, and the trades incorporations and merchant guilds, as well as other professions, which can enhance our understanding of our ancestors lives. And in the final two lessons the course turns up a notch and tackles two areas where the Scottish records, as generated through the feudal system, are truly unique, namely the various registers of land records known as sasines, and the separate legal processes in Scotland for the inheritance of both moveable and heritable estate.

Whilst some of the records discussed in the course are available online, many are available only in the archives, or in private hands, and a strong focus of this course will be in how to successfully employ the relevant catalogues and finding aids to locate such treasures.

Whilst not compulsory, it is strongly recommended that you complete the Pharos course Scottish Research Online before studying Scotland 1750-1850: Beyond the Old Parish Registers, as it will be assumed that you are already familiar with the more basic resources available online for Scottish ancestral research.

Lesson Headings:

    * Kirk Sessions records and parish poor
    * Burgh records and town poor
    * Occupations, taxation and early lists
    * Land transfer and the value of sasines
    * Land, inheritance and estates

Each lesson includes exercises and activities; a minimum of 1 one-hour chat session per week. (See How the Courses Work at https://www.pharostutors.com/howcourseswork.php.) NB: Unlike previous courses, I am trialling using Zoom for these chat sessions, rather than the previously used text-based chat rooms - recordings of Zoom sessions will be made available after each lesson chat.

Relevant Countries: Scotland
Course Length: 5 Weeks
Start Date: 16 March 2026
Cost: £70

Student feedback:

"The exercises helped you to explore new lesson concepts right away. Especially by directing students to apply new research aids to their own work."

"Very clear explanations of terminology and legal processes Really helpful exercises and comprenesive list of useful catalogues and other references Chat sessions very helpful and engaging."

"This being the second genealogy course I have taken, and the second with Pharos, I found these were detailed foundation courses which will permit me to search better and with less effort in my future research work."

"Great subject-matter and excellent tutor/written materials. It could not have been better."

For further details, and to sign up, please visit https://www.pharostutors.com/scotland-1750-1850-beyond-the-old-parish-registers.

I'll hopefully see you online there!

Chris

Scottish GENES Webinar: Tracing the Irish in Scotland

My next monthly Scottish GENES Webinar will take place on Saturday 21 February 2026 at 7pm (UK time), and will be entitled Tracing the Irish in Scotland.

Following the event, a recording of the presentation will be available for one week to registrants, and a handout will also be supplied.

The following is the talk's description:

The first census in Scotland, the Senchus Fer nAlban, documented the descendants of Irish Gaels in the west of Scotland, a people known to the Romans as the ‘Scotti’ from which ‘Scotland’ derives its name. The stories of both Scotland and Ireland have remained intertwined ever since. Whilst the 17th century Plantations of Ulster led to the settlement of thousands of Scotland in the north of Ireland, the incorporation of Ireland into the UK in 1801, and the subsequent Great Famine of the 1840s, led to an equally vast migration of Irish folk into Scotland in the 19th century, and beyond.

In this session, family historian Chris Paton will explore the Scottish records which can assist in not only documenting what became of the settlers who have arrived over the last two centuries, but which in many cases can also identify an original point of origin in Ireland from which they came. He will cover the vital records as created by the state and the various Scottish churches, the records of confirmation (probate), the administration of poor relief, the records of religious and political conflicts, and more, explaining how such records can help to shed light onto their ancestral stories. In addition he will also flag up some Irish resources that can provide clues to family circumstances in Scotland.

To register for the event, please visit https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_9aN1bbcrQYyt_jjTZ1dbiw - the registration fee is just £10 Stirling.

I hope to maybe see you there!

Chris

Date announced for next Scottish Indexes conference

Thanks to those who attended my DNA talk at yesterday's Scottish Indexes genealogy conference, run by Graham and Emma Maxwell, I hope it helped!

Graham and Emma have announced that the next Scottish Indexes conference will take place online on Saturday 28 February 2026.

For further details keep an eye out at https://www.scottishindexes.com/conference.aspx.

Chris

My farewell to the postion of APG eNews editor

At the end of December 2025 I stepped down as editor of the Association of Professional Genealogists' monthly eNews publication, a position I held for four years, from January 2022, with my last edition being January 2026.

At the time I took on the role the publication had not been in operation for 18 months, and I had initially offered to revive it on a voluntary basis as a means to help develop communication with members in the organisation, before accepting an offer after a few months to take the role on as a paid contractor. (I should add that that had never been my intent, I had fully intended to hand it on after a few months to someone who new what they were actually doing!).

The early editions were just a few pages in length, but working with the APG team over the last four years to develop it, the publication now regularly reaches twenty pages of content, and offers a great overview of the organisation's work.

To my replacement, Allison Beard, I wish the very best of luck, and also to the wider APG team led by Michelle Leonard Cohen. The eNews is available to read at https://www.apgen.org/apg_enews.php, with the February edition now out (in which I am weirdly the main story!).

For more on the APG, please visit https://www.apgen.org.

Thig crìoch air an t-saoghal, ach mairidh gaol is ceòl!

Chris

National Library of Scotland using georeferenced maps webinar

The National Library of Scotland will be holding a webinar on how to make best use of its georeferenced maps on Wednesday 11 February at 3pm-4.15pm (UK). The following is the blurb:

In this interactive workshop, we will show you tips and techniques to help you make best use of our georeferenced maps.

Georeferenced maps are those which have been aligned with the real-world, so they can be viewed as overlays on top of modern satellite imagery and mapping, or even in comparison to your own live location!

We now have over 600 georeferenced layers of mapping freely available on our website, along with tools to filter, measure, draw, compare and export them. Discover how to use these tools, as well as how you can easily bring these georeferenced maps into other web and desktop applications.

The workshop will last approximately one hour with a question-and-answer session after that. This workshop will not be recorded but it is repeated regularly.

If you enjoy georeferenced maps but are not sure you are making full use of them, this workshop is for you!

To register for the free workshop, please visit https://www.nls.uk/whats-on/georeferenced-maps/.

Chris

Monday, 26 January 2026

February 2026 issue of Who Do You Think You Are? magazine on sale

The latest edition of Who Do You Think You Are? magazine (Feb 2026) is now on sale. In the magazine I have a three-page article about Scottish Wills, which may be of interest.

Also this issue, Debbie Kennett looks at Ancestry's Pro-Tools, Claire Vaughan looks at the DNAngels team, and Jo Thompson explores the Second World War NAAFI women. In addition Nicola Vaughan looks at Irish teachers, Jonathan Scott looks at free websites for research, and Nick Peers looks at RootsMagic's use of AI.

Further details on the magazine will be available shortly at https://www.whodoyouthinkyouaremagazine.com/magazine/.

Chris

Friday, 23 January 2026

MyHeritage offers free access to Australian records

MyHeritage (www.myheritage.com) is offering free access from January 22-27 to all Australian records (308 collections) to celebrate the country's Australian Day. You can access the records at https://www.myheritage.com/research/catalog?location=Australia&utm_campaign=New%2520historical%2520records&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8ms2EIR8ZyKZ-M9wOMCtYYXsRyvy8tTycrwgYImZ7sUB2tqd569fmmyql0JoIU_W-aCWfOMmdjU5M7cK5m4luxFLxNqQ&_hsmi=399876018&utm_content=399876018&utm_source=hs_email

There's a blog post about the promotion at https://blog.myheritage.com/2026/01/celebrate-australia-day-with-free-access-to-2-2-billion-australian-records/.

(With thanks to Daniel Horowitz)

Chris

LostCousins founder Peter Calver passes away

I was saddened to learn last night that Peter Calver, the force of nature who created and ran the LostCousins website and newsletter, sadly passed away from bowel cancer on Monday this week. The news comes from an announcement by his wife Sian, which can be read at https://www.lostcousins.com/newsletters2/Jan26deathnews.htm.

In 2014 and 2015 I had the great pleasure to visit Rocha Brava in Portugal's Algrave, where Peter held a timeshare, to take part as a speaker in two highly successful LostCousins hosted Genealogy in the Sunshine events. Peter kindly extended the invitation to my wife and sons also, and I can honestly say that they were two of the best genealogy conferences I have ever attended, with a great crowd of attendees and fellow speakers (including Else Churchill, Debbie Kennett, and John Hanson), and in such a wonderfully relaxed environment. Peter was an absolute gentleman at both events, a fun host, and one who knew exactly what his delegates were looking for from a conference. Due to factors beyond Peter's control the second conference would be the last, but in many ways that only adds to the legend of what they were.

Peter announced that he had become ill in his last LostCousins newsletter just a few weeks ago in December 2025, and I learned a few days ago that his condition had seriously declined, mirroring the rapid situation that my own family experienced when my mother passed away from bowel cancer in 2013. To Sian, and to Peter's wider family, I extend my heartfelt condolences, and those of my wife and boys.

Sian has informed me that she wishes to honour Peter's legacy by continuing the LostCousins platform, although the site will take an understandable break on the newsletter front until Easter.

In the meantime, if you have not subscribed to LostCousins, it would be a fitting tribute to someone who was an absolute legend in the genealogy world. You can do so at www.lostcousins.com.

RIP Peter.

* You can read about the Genealogy in the Sun confernces via the following reports written at the time:

Chris

Wednesday, 21 January 2026

Update on Irish RASCAL local archives platform

The following update is available concerning the Research and Special Collections Available Locally (RASCAL) platform in Ireland, normally available at www.rascal.co.uk, which allows you to look for local holdings of collections, but which has been down for many months:

RASCAL is an electronic gateway to research resources relating to Ireland. It is administered by Special Collection & Archives, Queen's University Belfast. The site is currently undergoing redevelopment and will be back online in 2026. All information from participating institutions has been saved and will be reinstated.

We apologise for any inconvenience.

(Source: https://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/InformationServices/TheLibrary/SpecialCollections/DigitalResources/RASCAL/)

Don't forget that the Irish Archives Resources site at https://iar.ie is another very useful finding aid for finding Irish resources across the island.

Chris

Monday, 19 January 2026

MyHeritage adds incoming and outgoing UK passenger lists

MyHeritage (www.myheritage.com) has added the surviving incoming and outgoing UK Board of Trade registered passenger lists from the late 19th to mid-twentieth centuries, which may be of interest if your Scottish and Irish ancestors emigrated or returned back to the UK or Ireland in this period.

From MyHeritage:

United Kingdom and Ireland, Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878–1960

This collection includes 15.7 million records of passengers arriving in the United Kingdom (and Ireland until independence in 1922) from ports around the world between 1878 and 1960. Each record documents an individual’s arrival into the country and typically includes the passenger’s full name, date of birth, current residence, intended residence, date and place of arrival, place of departure, and the name of the ship.

While the collection begins in 1878, many of the earliest records from 1878 to 1888 were destroyed by the Board of Trade in 1900. The surviving records from this early period are especially rare and valuable.

In addition to immigrants and returning residents, the collection also captures short-term visitors and transit passengers. Because ships were required to submit passenger lists at every U.K. stop, even those not intending to stay often appear in the records.

This collection is particularly useful for locating individuals who may not appear in other sources — such as those who fell between census years, left home temporarily, or migrated in stages. Whether your ancestors were arriving for work, travel, or to begin a new life, these records provide valuable insights into their movements and circumstances.

Search the incoming passenger lists at https://www.myheritage.com/research/collection-20991/united-kingdom-ireland-incoming-passenger-lists-1878-1960

United Kingdom and Ireland, Outgoing Passenger Lists, 1890–1960

This collection contains 23.5 million records of individuals departing from ports in the United Kingdom (and Ireland until independence in 1922) between 1890 and 1960. Records typically include the passenger’s name, date of birth, current and intended residence, date and place of departure, place of arrival, and the name of the ship.

These lists are a vital resource for understanding emigration patterns from the U.K. and Ireland, particularly to destinations such as the United States, Canada, Australia, and South Africa. For many families with ancestors who left the British Isles in the late 19th or early 20th century, these records may contain the only surviving documentation of their departure. These passengers include many continental Europeans, especially Scandinavians, who commonly passed through the U.K. en route to destinations like the United States and Canada.

Together, the incoming and outgoing collections represent the entire surviving set of U.K. and Ireland passenger lists for this time period, offering a comprehensive view of travel into and out of the country across 8 decades. They provide detailed, global context for millions of family journeys.

Searc the outgoing passenger lists at https://www.myheritage.com/research/collection-20989/united-kingdom-ireland-outgoing-passenger-lists-1890-1960.

The company has also added some nonconformist English and Welsh parish records - for details of the full release visit https://blog.myheritage.com/2026/01/now-live-4-major-u-k-and-ireland-collections-passenger-lists-and-nonconformist-vital-records/.

(With thanks to Daniel Horowitz)

Chris

Saturday, 17 January 2026

New maps feature and OS maps from National Library of Scotland

The National Library of Scotland maps platform (https://maps.nls.uk) has a new tool that can help when consulting its georefernced maps.

At present you can look for a map and see a counterpart map alongside it using the Georeferenced Map Viewer at https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/, which can allow you to compare changes to an area across time.

The default for this feature has previously been that when you move one map, the other automatically moves as well in the same direction, but as of this week you can now lock, unlock, or relock the two maps - this means you can now keep one of the maps in the same place, but move the other around, offering a bit more flexibility.

For further details visit https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/help.html#unlock-sidebyside

The site has also added 9,851 Ordnance Survey maps at scales of 1:1,250 to 1:10,560 published in 1975, and covering areas in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, with a further 2,872 more detailed maps at scales of 1:1,250, 6,281 maps at 1:2,500, and 699 less detailed maps at scales of 1:10,000/1:10,560. For more on this visit https://maps.nls.uk/additions/.

Chris

FindmyPast updates English Catholic records databases

FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk) has made some updates to its Roman Catholic databases for England and Wales, with additional baptism, marriages and burials records from 1916 now available.

For further details visit https://www.findmypast.co.uk/blog/new/english-roman-catholic-baptisms-marriages-burials.

Chris

Thursday, 15 January 2026

TheGenealogist updates 1939 English and Welsh 1939 Register database

From TheGenealogist (www.thegenealogist.co.uk), an update to the 1939 Register, which might be of interest if your Scottish or Irish ancestors were south of the border at the time:

TheGenealogist has today announced a significant update to its 1939 Register collection, adding 185,396 individuals from newly opened records. Most of these additions relate to people born in 1924 and 1925, further strengthening one of the most important resources for tracing families in 20th-century Britain.

Created at the outbreak of the Second World War, the 1939 Register provides a vital snapshot of the civilian population, capturing names, dates of birth, occupations and addresses at a key moment in modern history. For many researchers, it helps bridge the gap between earlier census returns and later post-war records, offering new routes to confirm identities, locate relatives, and place families in a precise time and place.

The update will be of interest not only to family historians but also to social historians and those looking to better understand the everyday lives and circumstances of well-known figures and the communities in which they lived.

Born in 1925 and found in the 1939 Register is Ernie Wise, one half of the iconic comedy partnership Morecambe and Wise. Read the related article exploring Morecambe and Wise here: https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2026/eric-morecambe--ernie-wise-8866/

(With thanks to Paul Bayley)

Chris