April 2009
This month sees the third issue of our trilogy about the Industrial Revolution. The focus for the lead article by Velma Dinkley is coal, and its subsequent effect on the iron and steel industry. Vicky the Viking has written two articles for us; firstly about discovering her family's mining heritage and secondly the death of her husband's great aunt in an horrific mining accident. Barbara Dodds writes about the fatal accident of an underground worker and Meridian Line describes the inspiring story of her great great grandfather who was orphaned at the age of eight but rose to become a colliery manager and J.P.
Away from the pits, Guinevere writes about her Allenders who were involved in the iron and steel industry and rkic talks about his connections with the Elswick lead works.
The long awaited publication of the 1911 census caused great excitement on the boards and Velma Dinkley records the findings of some of the members. Moulting Owl writes about how the census solved one of her long standing mysteries while Caroline found herself following the trail of a murderer who had a possible connection with her great great grandfather.
In addition, we have an article from Rosie Knees about her great great grandfather and his military career. This month the Spotlight is on the Community boards of the Family Tree Forum and in particular the areas where photography is important. Once again, we are indebted to Roger in Sussex for providing the black and white illustrations on the front page.
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The 1911 Census
O n the night of 2nd April 1911, all over the United Kingdom, the head of each household sat down to complete the schedule sheet, which would make up the 1911 census.
In January 2009, this much anticipated resource was released online through The official 1911 Census website, when excited family historians from all over the world were able to view and download these household schedule sheets.
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Found in 1911
T he 1911 census has solved one of my long outstanding mysteries. I clicked on the request for other members of the household of my great grandmother’s sister, Harriet, and there was an older Harriet there too – it HAD to be their mother, aged 70!
That branch is largely made up of agricultural labourers from Warwickshire and I was intrigued to see from the family bible that my great grandmother was born near Swindon.
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Skeleton by marriage?
W hen I registered for the 1911 census, I was really only expecting to confirm what I already knew, to see if some of my ancestors were still alive to narrow down dates for searching for their deaths and perhaps bring some of the distant twigs up to date. What I didn’t expect was an intriguing puzzle.
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| The Chelsea Out-Pensioner |
The Chelsea Out-Pensioner
M y 2x great grandfather, Richard Ashton, was born in Pewsey, Wiltshire, in around 1822. Richard was a labourer, probably in agriculture, at the time he joined the army. When he retired he became a shepherd....
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| Spotlight on FTF: The Community |
 | The Community
A lthough primarily a genealogy site, we also have very active community forums where members can take a break from research to socialise, arrange meets, show off family photographs or discuss issues of the day. Community forums are only open to registered members but registration is free.
At any time of the day or night, these boards are moving quickly. There might be a discusssion about the use (or mis-use) of the apostrophe, a request for advice on stain removal or a discussion about the previous evening's television programmes. It doesn't matter what the topic might be, the discussions remain reasoned and balanced even if it is clear sometimes that there is no common ground!... Read More >> |
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Industrial Revolution: Iron, steel and coal
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Iron, steel and coal
A s we conclude our trilogy of issues looking at the Industrial Revolution, we focus this month on the fuel that powered the new industrialised nation, coal, and its subsequent effect on the iron and steel industry.
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A Dirty Secret?
I spent most of my childhood growing up in an East Lancashire mill town. The tall winding wheel at the area’s last coal mine, on the edge of town and several miles away from my home, was only seen from the top deck of a bus on a rare visit into Manchester.
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William Braidford 1842-1918
A s many of my Braidford relatives have discovered, the delight of researching an ancestor with an unusual surname can soon turn to despair. Church officials, enumerators and registrars of the early 19th century struggled with spelling, making any traces of the Braidford family difficult to find but, through perseverance and a little luck, we have managed to piece together the life of my great great grandfather William Braidford.
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Fatality at Scotswood
L ike many of us, I only half listened when my grandma told me tales of her childhood, but I do remember her telling me that one of her siblings died at the age of 14.
James Robson was born on 16th April 1891 in Newburn, Northumberland. According to the family bible, he died on 29th May 1905 after an accident at the Montague Fire and Clay Pit. He had been working there for one week.
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Pit Brow Lasses
O nce we had really gotten into this family history stuff, the elderly aunts began telling us of some of the long-forgotten events in the family. Some turned out to be little more than just tales, made rather taller in the telling over the years. But usually behind the story was a grain of truth, so we set out to find out what really happened to 'Auntie Norah'.
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Elswick Lead Works
I suppose many of us have found odd coincidences between our lives and those of our distant relatives.
As a young accountant I worked for a company that operated several factories processing lead and making lead based products, which I had to visit. One that I visited regularly was at Elswick, Newcastle upon Tyne.
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The Wandering Allenders
T he Allenders or, as I prefer to call them, "my" Allenders, have become a bit of a running joke with my genealogist friends. Whenever two or more of us are gathered I manage to mention them, to accompanying groans. They aren't actually mine but belong to my husband, although I have adopted them.
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The Rise of Barrow in Furness
T he magazine's theme over the last three months has been about the Industrial Revolution, and three aspects in particular – textiles, transport and coal and the iron and steel industry. Whilst Barrow owes much to the iron industry, it would not have grown from a tiny hamlet to the ‘English Chicago’ without the railway.
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| WDYTYA | Who Do You Think You Are? Live 2009
I was fortunate in being offered a free ticket from, and having the company of, Anne in North London for this show, which was held at London Olympia from the 26th to the 28th of February 2009.
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| Family Treasure | My Diamond Ring
F rom an early age I can remember my mother’s engagement ring. It wasn’t a big stone or really flashy, but different. It was always clean and polished and sparkling.
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