Imagine a scenario – you’ve traced back an ancestor through IGI/parish registers, and found the earliest record was of his marriage, but you can’t find out where he originally came from and you’ve no idea who his parents or siblings were. It’s happened to us all, probably many times.  And it is so frustrating – if only we could trace this or that person back another generation, we might then get all the way back to William the Conqueror!

Well, there may be a way to crack the ‘dead-end’ problem!  However, the technique seems to be a ‘taboo’ subject as far as Family History is concerned.  I’ve yet to see any mention of it in any Family History book, magazine or article.

Some years ago, there was a series of TV programmes on ‘Past Life Regression’ where it was claimed that hypnotists took or ‘regressed’ people back to their previous lives.

This was, as you can imagine, somewhat controversial.  Many people think there is no such thing as an ‘after-life’ or reincarnation, and therefore you cannot have any memories about past lives because you’ve never had any!  Therefore, sceptics maintain that such ‘‘Past Life Regression’ memories you may claim actually come from your subconscious – a long-forgotten book you read many years ago or an old ‘period’ Hollywood film that you saw but have consciously forgotten.  And indeed many subsequent scientific investigations seemed to bear this out.

However, there are also people who believe in an after-life, and two of the major religions of the world, Buddhism and Hinduism, subscribe to re-incarnation.  So could you have lived before?

It’s a fascinating theory, but I have my doubts.  And as far as Family History is concerned, I think ‘Past Life Regression’ would be of very limited value, even if it true.  In a previous life you may have been an Eskimo, or an African warrior, or a French washer-woman – i.e. nobody directly related to you. And because Family Historians usually have a love of history – reading factual history books and historical fiction novels, watching TV historical dramas and documentaries – it’s possible that we could create false ‘past lives’ from these experiences, as others have done so before.

However, there are many documented instances relating to ‘Past Life Regression’, especially involving young children, which are difficult to explain rationally. There are
many cases where it is claimed that a relative long-dead has been reincarnated in one of their descendants – thus, you could be you great-great grandmother reincarnated!

But if ‘Past Life Regression’ could reveal that you and your great-great grandfather were one and the same person, what a wonderful way that might be to solve you ‘dead-end’ family tree problems!

So, has anyone ever undergone ‘Past Life Regression’ and tried to fill in Family Tree gaps that way.  I’d like to know how successful you were, and what your experiences were.  Please leave a comment to this blog to let me know..

However, I’m not too hopeful that this will help you with your Family Tree, although I’d love to be proved wrong!  In the meantime, keep on looking through the censuses, parish registers and poor law records for your ancestors!

Occupations

In the ‘Occupation’ part of the Census record, there will be many occupations which no longer exist today e.g. mantua-maker (a dressmaker who made cloaks); equally you won’t find many Computer Operators in the 19th Century!  However some of the more common terms used in the censuses that need explanation are as follows:

Scholar – from 1861 onwards, a child was described as a scholar if they were over 5 years of age and receiving daily schooling, or regular tuition at home. In 1871 the census officials in London broke the census confidentiality pledge and divulged the names of all children between the ages of 3 and 13, and their parents (with their addresses) to the London School Board to help enforce compulsory education.

Annuitant – The term annuitant could describe someone on an annual allowance, as well as someone receiving annual income from an investment.  It was also used for institutionalized pensioners.

Dressmaker – the occupation of ‘dressmaker’ was commonly given by prostitutes as well as bona-fide dressmakers! 

‘Condition (as to Married)’ i.e. Relationships

In-Law – terms such as Brother and Brother-in-Law, Sister and Sister-in-Law, were often used interchangeably and somewhat unreliably. Similarly, step-children were sometimes listed as in-laws.

Unmarried women with children were sometimes listed as Widows, with their ‘Husband Lost at Sea’!

Boarder – a person who shared the dinner table with the family.

Lodger – a person who had separate accommodation to the family.

Last Column on Census Return

Lunatic – a mentally ill person, with periods of lucidity.

Imbecile – a person who, in later life, suffered from chronic dementia.

Idiot – a person who suffered from a long-term congenital mental deficiency.

The head of the household, usually the Father, had to fill in their individual household schedules, recording who was in their household on the Sunday night.  On the Monday morning after census night, the official censusenumerators collected theses schedules.

If these schedules were not completed properly, the census enumerator was supposed to ask for extra details at thedoor, although this wasn’t done to a set pattern. If the householder was unable to fill in the schedule, perhaps because he or she was illiterate, the census enumerator had to fill it in for them.  Consequently, many mistakes were made by the census enumerator, who may have misheard the householder, or even didn’t understand an accent!

The census was supposed to record all the people who were staying at a particular house on the night of the census, not necessarily who usually lived there; and, of course, some people were not at home! Thus, for example, a father may have been in lodgings away from home because of his work, or a mother may have been tending to a sick parent in the next village on that Sunday.  Children may have been staying with grandparents, and other friends and relations could have been visiting that day.  It may have been the case that a ‘normal’ resident was in hospital or even in prison!

Many other people were also not in their normal households on the census night and special arrangements had to be made for their enumeration. So apart from those in prison, these included the inmates of other institutions, the crews of ships on the seas, the army, itinerants and travellers, and night workers.

The census enumerators had quite a job on their hands trying to find people who for one reason or another did not want to complete the form. Then, as today, there were people who were fearful about giving personal information to the State – the ‘Big Brother’ syndrome. There are stories of people sleeping in fields under hedges so that they did not have to fill in the census form!  And, of course, there were some who also slept in such places because they had had too much to drink that night!!

Finally, again then as now, there were insalubrious areas where a census enumerator feared to go, and so no census information was collected.  Other people would hurl abuse at the census enumerator and tell them to go away, in less than polite terms. And there were many cases of the census enumerator knocking on doors for ages knowing full well that the occupants were hiding inside the house, not wanting to see him!

So, there are many reasons why your ancestors may not turn up where you expected them to be!

The Censuses for England, Scotland and Wales were taken on the following Sundays:

1801 10 March
1811 27 May
1821 28 May
1831 30 May
1841 6 June
1851 30 March
1861 7 April
1871 3 April
1881 3 April
1891 5 April
1901 31 March
1911 2 April

However, the 1801 to 1831 censuses are of little use to the Family Historian, being no more than headcounts, and in any case the 1831 Census was destroyed.  The 1841 census, therefore, which identified individuals and households for the first time, is the first survey which is of importance for constructing your Family Tree.

The 1841 Census is somewhat basic – it did not identify exactly where a person was born – but this was rectified in the censuses from 1851 to 1911.  For the 1851 to 1901 returns, we only have the census enumerators’ records, but for 1911, you can see copies of the census forms actually filled in by your ancestors.

The Census returns from 1921 on are still not available because of the ‘100 year’ confidentiality rules.  However, the Second World War resulted in the cancellation of the 1941 Census for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, while German bombing during that conflict destroyed the 1931 Census. 

So, after the 1921 Census is released (probably sometime around 2018 because the stricy‘100 year privacy rule was abandoned for the 1911 Census), we’re in for a long wait for the next 1951 Census to be published!

The story of the Irish censuses, started in 1821, is a tragedy for Family Historians.  The early censuses from 1821 to 1851 were destroyed by fire in 1922 during the Irish Civil War.  The 1861 and 1871 censuses were officially destroyed soon after they were taken, while those for 1881 and 1891 were pulped during the First World War.
Only fragments of the 1821 to 1871 censuses remain, and these can be examined, along with the complete 1901 and 1911 censuses.

Although there are several myths floating around when it comes to tracing your Irish Ancestors, the most persistent and false one remains the statement that in 1922, thanks to the Civil War, all genealogical documentation was destroyed.  While some information was indeed lost, due to the destruction of the Public Office in Dublin, vast amounts of genealogical documents kept in other repositories are still available for consultation.

However, tracing your Irish ancestry may not always be easy and, depending on your lineage, you may have to dig a little more deeply than you may first imagine.  The Irish censuses of 1861 and 1871 were officially destroyed soon after they were taken (although fragments remain) while the 1881 and 1891 censuses were pulped during the First World War. And civil registration of births, deaths and marriages didn’t start until 1864 (with the exception of non-Catholic marriages which were recorded from 1845).

But all is not lost and tracing your Irish ancestry is very possible.  There are, however, a few guidelines to follow when tracing your Irish Ancestors:

* Firstly, reading up on how to best trace our ancestors is a great starting place.  Having a good idea of what you are looking for and how to do it is essential, otherwise you will simply lose a lot of valuable time. Fortunately, one of the best resource guides is my own book, ‘How To Track Down Your Ancestors’ which you can find on the home page of this website
* Try to get as much information about your family as you possibly can beforehand.  Names, locations and dates are important, so start asking your family members questions
* Be patient, you will find yourself going through many ups and downs and you may have to spend a lot of time tracing information that may or may not be helpful to your search.  Be prepared to do some work and be patient.
* If you encounter a difficulty, try to figure out a way around it – there will obstacles along the way, but there is also usually a solution

Tracing your Irish ‘family tree’ can be one of the most rewarding experiences of your life.  So, go ahead and enjoy it! And have fun discovering your old Irish ancestry.

However, because there is so much information out there, you need to be able to sift through it quickly and this can only be done once you know what you want and how to find it.  Therefore, your first order of business should be to find yourself a quick and informative resource guide that can help you better understand the process of tracing your Scottish family history.  Fortunately, one of the best resource guides is my own book, ‘How To Track Down Your Ancestors’ which you can find on the home page of this website.  Once you have read this guide, you’ll be in a better position to start doing your research – by narrowing down where to look and how to do it.

You will also want to find a resource guide that can handily tell you what NOT to do when tracing your family history – again you can download my free report ‘7 Simple Mistakes To  Avoid When Researching and Writing Your Own Family History’ .  This will save you an enormous amount of time – instead of you having to learn your lessons through trial and error.  Let someone else, who has been there before you, guide the way.

Once you feel comfortable that you know what you are looking for and how to go about it, you should start with the main online Scottish genealogical information site that has been created by joining the records of the General Register Office for Scotland, the National Archives of Scotland and the Court of the Lord Lyon.  This is www.Scotlandspeople.com. This database, which isn’t free unfortunately, gives you access to births and deaths as well as marriage information and also contains records on wills and testaments.  There is a huge amount of information store here, so take advantage of it.

Of course, there are many more websites sites that you can consult when looking up your Scottish Family History.  Just remember to prepare yourself thoroughly before starting your search and to make sure that you have a lot of patience during the process.

If you happen to be of Welsh descent, tracing your ancestors may pose a bit more of a challenge, thanks, in great part, to the fact that many people with the same surnames lived in that part of the world during the same time period.  While this may be a bit daunting, it is not insurmountable.   Making it a little easier will be the easy access to the varied amount of documentation available in many parts of Wales.  Excellent civil records were kept in the 18th and 19th centuries, and these can be viewed at The National Library of Wales. There are also many older documents that have survived, dating from as early as the 1500s, thanks to the various churches of the time; these can also be viewed at the National Library and local Welsh County Record Offices.
 
If you are unsure where to start, then my book, ‘How To Track Down Your Ancestors’ will show you what Welsh Family History resources there are  and where you can find them.

When it comes to Welsh Genealogy, a few things are worth mentioning:

* Remember there are differences between the English and Welsh alphabets
* “Mab” means “son of” and can also be seen as “Ab or Ap”;
* “Ferch” means “daughter of” and can also be seen as “Verch, Vch, Vz or Ach”
* Until 1812, Welsh surnames were ‘patronymic’ – the surname being derived from the father’s first name (e.g. John Edwards would be the son of a man whose first name was ‘Edward’)

Tracing your Welsh family tree can, indeed, be a huge undertaking, so remember that this project should be done with patience (lots of it!), love and dedication. You will not find all the answers you are looking for right away and you may feel baffled or hit the proverbial “brick wall”.  Sit back and take a moment to regroup and then start again.

Indeed, tracking down your Welsh family history can be a lot easier for some people than others.  I speak from personal experience!  On my mother’s side, the first Welsh ancestor I found was Richard Davies – in 1851, he was living in Liverpool and the Census showed his birthplace in about1803 as ‘Kerry, Montgomeryshire’.  The Baptism section of the Kerry Parish Register shows him born illegitimately in 1804 to ‘Elizabeth Davies or Edwards’, she in turn being the daughter of David Edwards and ‘Martha’, but there the trail runs cold, as the Mormon microfilm didn’t contain any Marriage records!  So, I’m going to have to make a trip to Wales to find out more!

If you are feeling overwhelmed or unsure, there are a variety of “genealogy clubs” on the Internet – consider getting peer support. And don’t forget, that I can give you advice and guidance, so please read the ‘home’ page of this website.

Well, there you are with your Uncle David.  He’s agreed to tell you all he knows about his life and that of his family, he’s happy to let you record him, and now he’s ready to be interviewed about the Family Tree.  (Please note that you should always get permission from your interviewees before using a recording device.)

This first Family History interview is always the worst – like most things, it gets better and easier the more you do.  It doesn’t matter if you make mistakes, because it’s unlikely you’ll ‘publish’ the recording to the general public!  Whatever you do with the recording – transcribing it into a book or making it available on a CD – it will most probably stay in the family.

But to make the interview go a lot smoother, make sure you have a list of Family History questions written down beforehand.  That’s what journalists and TV Chat Show hosts do!  And always make a note of when and where the interview takes place – as well identifying the relationship of your interviewee to yourself e.g. David who is my uncle, and who is my mother’s brother.

Noting the date of the interview is important as it will give you a reference point.  So, if David, above, talks about something that happened 25 years ago, you can work back and establish when the incident took place.

Armed with you pre-written set of questions, just talk naturally to your Uncle David.  He may ‘wander’ from the script, but that’s OK since he may tell you things you never thought of asking.  There’s no need to insist on a ‘rigid’ approach to the interview – you don’t have to ask questions in the order you’ve written them down. All you have to do is to make sure that at some point you get answers to all your pre-written questions.  Just be relaxed because the more relaxed the interview is, the more your Uncle David will ‘open up’.

Recording an interview is a lot easier than writing everything down at the time.  However, individuals act differently when faced with recorder – some ‘clam up’, whilst others become very chatty. Whatever type of personality your interviewee is, turn off the recorder if you feel you are not getting the information you want.  You always have your notebook to fall back on! 
 

Well, the answer is ‘With You’.  You have your own birth certificate and maybe a marriage certificate, (you won’t have your own death certificate!), and you know when your children, if you have any, were born.  This information does not however comprise your own personal ‘Family History’ – it’s just a list of dates which gives the barest outline of your life.

To turn this genealogical information into a Family History, you need to ‘put flesh on the bones’.  By this, I mean that you need to fill in the gaps between the basic dates you’ve already got.  You should start writing down all the main details of your life – your memories of your early and late childhood, your schools, your college and where you worked.  You should remember all the friends you had over the years, your recollections of your own family – parents, siblings, aunts and uncles.  You should describe all the interests, hobbies and sports you enjoyed.

When you’ve done all of this, you’ve started to write your Family History.  Next, do exactly the same for your parents.  Get dates for their births, marriage (and deaths, if applicable).  If they are still alive, talk to them about their lives and make a record of what they say – again, you can write it down or get it on audio or video.

Then repeat the process with your grandparents, and don’t forget to talk to other relatives – uncles, aunts, cousins and your own brothers and sisters. You’re great-grandparents are probably no longer alive, so make sure you get as much information about them from your own parents and grandparents.

When you go further back than your great-grandparents, it is doubtful whether you will have any personal reminiscences to draw upon, but you may have old letters and photographs.  It is at this point that you’ll have to ‘change tack’ in compiling your Family History and start to investigate various ‘official’ documents in the public domain for personal details about your distant ancestors.

But for now, you’ve got enough exploring to do with your living relations to keep yourself busy for a while!

‘Genealogy’ is simply the study of a person’s ancestry and descendents – it deals with discovering who members of a specific family are and how these family members are related to others.  This was particularly important years ago to determine the relationships of the rich and powerful, because practical concerns about who inherited what from whom were at stake.  If a King or Duke had no legitimate children, then it was vital to establish the next lawful heir to the throne or dukedom; wars and armed conflict have historically been the result of such lack of accepted evidence.

‘Family History’ is much broader.  It encompasses genealogy, in so far as you need to discover birth, marriage and death dates, and any children, for your ancestors. However, this basic genealogical information constitutes only the foundations.  What a Family Historian should aim to do is to find out how the ancestor lived and worked.

Family History is much more a journey of exploration of your ancestor’s life – the area in which they lived and worked, what their homes were like, what jobs they did and how they did them, did they need to cope with sickness and poverty.  And to do this, you need to look beyond Censuses, civil Birth, Marriage and Death records, and Parish Registers.

You will need to delve into a whole host of other sources.  If your ancestors were poor, then Poor Law and Workhouse records are a must to investigate.  If your ancestors were better off, then you should look at tax records and wills.

And if your ancestors were in the armed forces or spent time in prison, you’ll get a description of what they looked like and what happened to them while they were in these institutions.

And that’s only the start!  There is much more information you can find to build up your Family History. If you want the comprehensive list of where to find the sources you can research, especially those in the first half of the 19th Century and before, then go to the home page of this website and you’ll find it’s all set out in my book ‘How To Track Down Your Ancestors’.

You’ll then be able to start building a ‘proper’ Family History of your ancestors!