News & Information

Christmas is celebrated by our families in as many different ways as there are families.  It’s a time for traditions.   Even the decorations which we put on our trees may have been handed down like family heirlooms.  I’m still using some very tired angels which I remember as a child hanging from my grandparents’ tree in war time – well actually it wasn’t a whole tree then – just a branch - but just as symbolic.   As I unwrap them each year memories flood back of childhood times and the excitement of very simple and handmade presents.  If you want to know how Christmas is celebrated around the world take a look at this site about Christmas Customs

Talking to Relatives

Over the Christmas and New Year you may be meeting up with relatives and it is an opportunity to ask some questions about their memories - This article suggests some open-ended questions which might produce some ideas for further research.   It might also prevent you wishing later "If only I’d asked them when I had the chance!"

Several members have commented to me in the past how helpful it has been to have recorded the voices of their relations as they talked of their past.  The Oral History Society has published some guidelines to use when recording interviews for Family History Research which you may find useful.

Tips for Online Research

• The 1939 Register on Findmypast has recently had another 5,000,000 names added to it so it might be worth while taking another look if you were unlucky the first time.  Don’t rely on the index but if you do find a name then check the original for the information about that person.  You can also use the address search which is really helpful if the surname has been mis-transcribed.  It was interesting seeing the neighbours of my parents and grandparents when looking at the whole page.  I could remember so many of them and just seeing them brought back memories.  Including  the name of a neighbour who made me a jointed wooded dog as a gift one Christmas.  I still have it - it has been much loved and played with by children and grandchildren.
• The latest series of  "Who do you think you are" has just started and you can read more about Danny Dyer’s episode on the Findmypast Blog
• On the same page is a link to an article about ways of recording your research and keeping it on a computer but not publishing it online where others can see it.  his is a question I was asked recently by a member who wanted a way of doing this but didn’t want to have their tree seen by other researchers.  The article is written by a person who is connected with a Family Tree programme but the underlying thoughts are worth considering.
• The GRO Index  is proving a tremendous asset - it has allowed me to sort out some previously unknown (to me) births by checking out the maiden name of the mother in 19th century and enabled me to clarify which death refers to my relations with the age at death indicated in the early records. 
• On our web site under Research Aids & Transcripts  not only will full members find transcriptions of the Baptismal, Marriage & Burial Records of the parishes within our area but also under Transcripts of Various Memorials they will find 7 churches where the memorials in the churchyard have been photographed and transcribed.  –There’s even a HASE grave in Kewstoke which had taken me a long time to find several years ago.  Thank you very much to those who are making this possible.   There is also an alphabetical list of memorials at St Martin’s Worle. Transcriptions of the School Registers for Wick St Lawrence 1875-1912 are also to be found under Research Aids & Transcripts.
• I recently discovered that some members of the HASE family moved away from Somerset and settled in Manchester and I knew very little about Manchester until I found this web site for Manchester Family History Research  It has masses of interesting background information and links to where you can find out more.  The colour of the text on the site is sometimes difficult but it is worth persevering.  If you know of web sites which have proved helpful why not let us all know - you can always add a comment to this Update.

Our Society in 2017

At our AGM last week we invited those who attended to give us ideas for activities which the Society could arrange to further their research.  We are also trying to decide whether to hold an Open Day in 2017 or not.  Could we have some idea of whether you would support such an event?  In the past we have held one every other year to which we invite other Local History Groups and neighbouring Family History Societies to take stands but lately at other similar events the attendance has been disappointing.  

If we held one in 2017 – please let us know by email to any member of the committee or to myself

• Would you be able to help?
• Would you attend?
• Can you suggest a suitable location?
• What would you like to see at such event?
• Any other ideas for publicizing the Society?

I have had some queries about the November edition of Buckets & Spades which we hope will be being sent out very soon and will be available to full members on the web site.  

Just a reminder that subs for 2017 are now due and we look forward to renewing your membership for another year of fantastic strides forward in family history research! 

We do not have a meeting in December but we look forward to January when we welcome Bill Caple with his pictorial views of Weston-super-Mare.  If any of you have any pictures or postcards of the area we cover please bring them along.

Wishing you all a very enjoyable Christmas and a happy, healthy and peaceful New Year with more new additions to your family tree.