Research Tips
Kindly provided by the Federation of
Family History Societies.
First Steps in Family History
Where
do I start?
Start with
yourself, add your family, your parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins,
etc., in fact, any relatives you can remember. Question older relatives who can
be invaluable in providing knowledge of ancestors you may not know of or have
forgotten.
I've
recorded everything my relatives told me. Where do I go next?
In England
and Wales people have been able to register births, marriages and deaths since 1
July 1837. Certificates of events occurring from this date can be obtained from
local Register Offices or you can search the General Register Office (GRO)
indexes to these registrations at The Family Records Centre, 1 Myddelton Street,
London EC1R 1UW. Some local libraries and record offices have copies in
microform; and on their website, FindMyPast.com
provide digitised images of the index pages for a fee.
What
information can I expect to obtain from a certificate?
A birth
certificate usually names both parents, including the mother's maiden surname.
Knowing both parents' full names, you can search the indexes for a reference to
their marriage. A marriage certificate usually supplies the names of the fathers
of both parties. Simple steps like these can take your line well back into the
nineteenth century.
But
this information only applies to England and Wales. My ancestry is Scottish and
Irish. What do I do?
Civil
Registration began in Scotland in 1855 and in Ireland in 1864. Certificates can
be obtained from New Register House, Princes Street, Edinburgh EHI 3YT (for
Scotland) and from the Registrar General, 8-11 Lombard Street East, Dublin 2 for
Ireland. Registrations for Northern Ireland from 1922 are at Oxford House, 49-55
Chichester Street, Belfast BTT 4HL. Before commencing this part of your
research, however, you are strongly advised to read the relevant chapter in one
of the many books available.
To date my family history consists,
mainly, of names and dates; how do I find out more about my ancestors' families?
A census
is taken every ten years and the records become available for public scrutiny
when they are 100 years old. We can therefore see, on microfilm or microfiche,
those returns for 1841, 1851, 1861, 1871, 1881, 1891 and 1901. They are arranged
under addresses, not names, and so you need to know where your family lived at
those times to trace them. Details such as age, occupation and place of birth
may be found on the census returns for 1851 and after. The 1841 census omits
place of birth and relationships.
Where
can I search the census returns?
A complete
set for England and Wales, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man is housed at
The Family Records Centre, 1 Myddelton Street, London EC1R 1UW. That for 1901 is
also available at the National Archives at Kew. Additionally, those relating to
your area may be found at your local record office or library. There are many
name indexes available, particularly for the 1851. The 1841, 1851, 1861,1871,
1881, 1891 and 1901 censuses have been indexed for the whole of England and
Wales.
I
have traced my line back to the mid-1800s, using the GRO Indexes. How do I get
further back?
Now, you
will be largely dependent on the church (or parish) registers. These registers
were introduced in 1538 and contain baptisms and burials (as distinct from
births and deaths) and, of course, marriages. Although many early registers have
been lost over the years, a surprising number still exist.
Where
do I find parish registers?
Today,
very few registers, other than those which are still in use, are held at
churches. Many of the registers have been filmed and copies are widely
available; ask at the relevant county record office or local studies library. In
addition to the registers, from 1598 parish priests had to send to their bishop
an 'annual return', a copy of the register, known as a Bishops' Transcript.
Those that still exist can be very useful in supplying entries omitted from the
register or replacing a missing register.
I've
heard of the IGI, what is this?
The IGI,
or International Genealogical Index, is an index to about 800 million births,
baptisms and marriages from around the world. The index is produced by the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and is available in many libraries
and record offices, and in the Church's own Family History Centres. It can also
be found online at http://www.familysearch.org/
I
have heard that wills can be useful - how do I go about using them?
Wills and
administrations, proved in England and Wales from 1858 are available at the
Principal Registry of the Family Division, First Avenue House, 42-49 High
Holborn, London WC1V 6NP. Indexes can also be found at several record offices
and libraries elsewhere. Before 1858 there was no national probate registry and
research is more complicated as a result.
What
else can I expect to find out about my family?
There are
many other sources which you can search, far too many to list here. There are a
number of useful books and magazines that may help, so ask at your local
library. The Federation of Family History Societies publishes a selection of
modestly priced books to help you with both your research and the location of
source material. For a list of publications write to: FFHS Publications, Units
15/16 Chesham Industrial Centre, Oram Street, Bury, Lancashire, BL9 6EN (or
visit the on-line catalogue on the GenFair
web site).
What are family history societies?
They are
groups of family historians who have an interest in a particular geographical
area, such as a county, or live in that area. There are also special interest
societies, for example a specific surname. You should definitely join your local
society.
Where
can I find information on any family history societies that I might want to
join?
Most
societies have websites: you can link to those that are members of the
Federation from this site (see Contacting
our Members).
What
benefits can I expect for my Membership?
Most
societies hold regular meetings - go along to these and join in their
activities. You may also find it useful to become a member of those societies
covering the areas in which your ancestors once lived. All societies produce
journals and these will describe local records and history. Their Members might
be able to help with particular 'local research' problems, for example by
visiting the churchyard to read your grandfather's gravestone for you! Belonging
to a family history society will also enable you to contact others who are
tracing the same surname that you are, in the area where your ancestor lived.
How
do I find out if there are any family history classes in my area?
Your local
Family History Society (see above) may run classes and if not they will
certainly know where there are classes in your area. Contact them first.
Supposing
there is someone already researching the same family as me, how do I find them?
Many
family history societies publish directories of Members' interests. You can also
search the internet, and there are a number of books available advising you how
to do this to best effect.
| 
