Two-year Heritage Buddies project seeks volunteers in Renfrewshire

A new 2-year project entitled Heritage Buddies (www.heritagebuddies.uk) is being launched by Stephen Clancy to record and research the heritage graveyards of Renfrewshire. From Stephen's post on LinkedIn: 

Where Buddies Rest: Stories Rise brings together archaeology, local history and genealogy into one project. research groups will survey and record Graveyards and then research the stories of those buried with. Talks and tours of the Graveyards will also be delivered between January 2026 and December 2027.

The first of several consultant/ recruitment sessions will be held at Paisley Arts Centre, formerly the Laigh Kirk on the 8th November between 10am and 1pm, where people are invited to learn more about the project, discuss the uses of the sites as heritage destinations and volunteer to participate in the resesrch groups.

The project is supported by Renfrewshire Council's Cultiure, Heritage and Events Fund, and is seeking volunteers to help survey various sites in the county and to uncover dstories of people who shaped the county's communities. Further details are available on the project website.

(With thanks to Stephen, via LinkedIn) 

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. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page.

Fort William based West Highland Museum seeks volunteers

West Highland Museum (www.westhighlandmuseum.org.uk) in Fort William is seeking volunteers to help with its activities: 

** Do you have a few hours to spare? ** You can support your local museum in so many ways by beginning to volunteer with us!

It's not just about offering a warm welcome to visitors on reception, there is so much more you can do behind the scenes to lend a hand, and we would love to welcome more of our community into our museum team.

Whether you can only offer time at a weekend, give a few hours over the winter as a seasonal volunteer, or you can come along more often, we would love to hear from you.

Get in touch soon for more information or submit the form ... 

The form is available via this link.

Chris 

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. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page.

Ancestry discontinued its World Archives Project in February

I couldn't see the link on the Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) menu for its long-running World Archive Project, but a little digging has revealed why - Ancestry discontinued it in February of this year. 

Launched in 2009, the World Archive Project brought volunteers from around the world to help index collections, with those indexes made available for free to the public, although a subscription was still requried to see the actual records involved. In total, some 407 databases were added to the site as a part of the project - you can see a list of all those involved at https://www.ancestry.com/search/categories/world_archives/.

According to Ancestry, in almost classic corporate Borg speak, the reasons for this were given as follows:

Ancestry is committed to preserving and amplifying at-risk history and powering new discoveries for all through new and exciting technology. To amplify our impact in the community, we have reallocated our resources to focus on these new technologies and have made the difficult decision to discontinue the World Archives Project.  

My guess is that AI is being employed more, but would appreciate if anyone can provide a further steer on why this has happened. 

I don't see a thank you from Ancestry in its announcement in February to the more than 150,000 volunteers who participated in the project, but for what it is worth, I'd like to convey my own thanks to you all, your contribution was certainly appreciated.

(Source: https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/Discontinuing-the-Ancestry-World-Archives-Project)

Chris

Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - 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. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.

Discover Your Ancestors back issues discounts, and other S&N offers

From S&N Genealogy Ltd (https://genealogysupplies.com):

Fancy a new read? This week we're offering 60% off Discover Your Ancestors Back Issues, plus save up to 30% on our books - with over 70 to choose from, you're sure to find something new!

Organise your family history with 25% off our Storage Boxes. Available in two sizes, they are ideal for use around the home and fold flat when not in use.

Further your research with 50% off Data Downloads, including everything from Parish records to Directories, Poll Books, Military records and more.

How about becoming involved in a volunteer project? You can choose to work from home or if you'd prefer to get outside then how about a stroll around your local church yard? These projects can be rewarding as this week's article finds out.

On behalf of everyone here at S&N, our thoughts are with those affected by the current situation. We hope you and your families remain safe and well.

Please Note: Our online store will continue to be open as long as we can ensure the safety of our customers and co-workers. We have taken additional precautions in the handling of orders and will continue to monitor the situation and evolve our response in real-time. There could be small delays for some shipments. We'll ensure our website is updated as frequently as required and contains the most up to date information.

(With thanks to S&N)

Chris

You can pre-order my new book, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 (out April). Also available, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.