Category Archives: Document Sources

You Had One Job…

Posted on October 10, 2021 by Lifelines Research

I’ll try to keep this brief. I’ve blogged a lot in the past few years about the problems with many of the databases on the major commercial genealogical websites and in particular the various county-wide English and Welsh parish register … Continue reading →

Posted in Document Sources, research, Soapbox, Uncategorized | Tagged cheshire, documents, family history, Findmypast, genealogy, marriage registers, parish registers, prestbury, research | 9 Comments

We Need To Talk About Ancestry

Posted on September 13, 2021 by Lifelines Research

Or … How The Major Commercial Genealogical Websites Are Killing Family History Research As a full-time professional researcher, I depend heavily on the resources that I’m able to access online, particularly those databases provided by the major commercial websites. Without … Continue reading →

Posted in Document Sources, research, Soapbox | Tagged ANcestry, documents, family history, genealogy, parish registers, research, tribbles | 25 Comments

A Draper’s Tale

Posted on August 8, 2021 by Lifelines Research

Thomas Port, my great great grandfather, was born on 22 August 1822 in St Pancras, London. There is, however, no official record of his birth or baptism – at least none that I have ever been able to find. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Document Sources, Local History, research, Stories | Tagged Birmingham, buckingham, Draper, family history, genealogy, Key Hill Cemetery, research, Smethwick, Soda Manufacturer, Thomas Port | Leave a comment

Birth or baptism?

Posted on July 17, 2021 by Lifelines Research

A couple of weeks ago, I was searching for some baptisms on Ancestry’s London Parish Register Database, when I noticed something odd. I’d just done a basic search for anyone with the surname ROGERS and the parents’ names William and … Continue reading →

Posted in Document Sources, research, Soapbox | Tagged baptism, birth, database, documents, family history, genealogy, research | 1 Comment

Walls Come Tumbling Down

Posted on June 25, 2021 by Lifelines Research

Brickwalls are an inescapable component of every family historian’s world. If you think about it, every line you’ve ever researched starts (or ends, depending on which way you look at it) with an individual whose parentage is unknown. So, for … Continue reading →

Posted in Document Sources, research | Tagged documents | 7 Comments

The Annals of the Annals

Posted on March 26, 2021 by Lifelines Research

An investigation into the early history of the Annal/Annand family in South Ronaldsay, Orkney The Annal surname appears to have originated separately in two parts of Scotland; in Orkney (specifically the island parish of South Ronaldsay) and in Fife (St … Continue reading →

Posted in Document Sources, Local History, research, Surnames | Tagged Annal, One-Name Study, orkney, South Ronaldsay | 2 Comments

Conjectures, traditions and the search for the truth…

Posted on January 10, 2021 by Lifelines Research

Sir Denner Strutt, Knt., was of Little Warley, of which place he was created a baronet in 1641; he suffered severely from the arbitrary exactions of the parliament in the time of King Charles the First, being compelled to pay … Continue reading →

Posted in Document Sources, Local History, research, Soapbox, Stories | Tagged antiquarians, antiquaries, family history, genealogy, Henry William King, John Wodehouse, Little Warley, Sir Denner Strutt, Thomas Wodehouse | Leave a comment

52 Ancestors – 52 Documents

Posted on December 29, 2020 by Lifelines Research

Throughout 2020 I’ve been tweeting my own take on Amy Johnson Crow’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – 52 different types of document relating to 52 different ancestors over 52 weeks. Now I’ve put all 52 tweets together in one … Continue reading →

Posted in Document Sources, research | Tagged Ancestors, ANcestry, documents, family history, genealogy | 6 Comments

Back From The Dead?

Posted on November 26, 2020 by Lifelines Research

This is the second part of the story of Stephen Willis, the Ramsgate hawker, and his parents, Stephen Willis senior and Ellen (née Foley). In the first part, we followed Stephen senior from his birth in Bishopsbourne near Canterbury in … Continue reading →

Posted in Document Sources, Local History, research, Stories, Surnames | Tagged census, Hawkers, newspapers, Ramsgate, the national archives, Willis family | 4 Comments

So, what next?

Posted on September 20, 2020 by Lifelines Research

Two weeks ago today, I sat down and composed a blog post entitled, Where Have All The Registers Gone? I referred to it as a ‘soapbox’ piece and my aim was to highlight what I saw as a serious problem … Continue reading →

Posted in Document Sources, research, Soapbox | Tagged digitisation, family history, genealogy, parish registers, research | 3 Comments