6 Years Blog Anniversary, Looking back and Forward, Back to Early Medieval Europe & Forward Planning

 

Daffs on our mantlepiece this evening

Well, I'm customarily late in writing this. In fact, our first daffodils of this year are in flower before I got this out. Ah well, I've always loved tradition...

The last while has been a lot, hasn't it?

I confess, 2021 has not been my busiest year for genealogy. I had a couple of commissions in the background, and I'm still pursuing my German descendancy project, which is technically, I think, as finished as it's going to be, but there are just a couple of 'not found' individuals that I'm still pursuing in the hopes I can fill out the set for my lovely client.

At home though, on our side, things have been fairly quiet. Mostly because keeping working, and a family together in body and mind under C-19 while cocooning throughout (this is day 700 cocooning for our family - and we still managed to catch 'Omicron' while we've been here. I became symptomatic on Boxing Day and have been poorly ever since. Spouse felt a bit tired and 'under the weather' for a few days, but is doing much better since) is... well, a lot of things from the relatives who lived 100 years ago is beginning to make more and more sense.

In other 'at-home' and social/family history news, my spouse discovered in April last year that it turns out that he/she (his/her preferred pronoun) is non-binary. This has given us some fairly unique things to think about in the context of our family history and genealogy, not least, we had to work out how to express his/her life in a way that online and computer based genealogy 'understands'.
we also welcomed two new members to the family this year, with the babies of a first cousin, and our nibling (is anyone else always tempted to write 'nibbling' too? ...or is that just me?).

I did also very nearly finish my 4 gen study - twice! First time round, our computer died and took my project with it. When I recreated it, I found that, in my sleepy, late nights approach (when will I learn?!), I did, recreate the project, but completely forgot about the research log, so I'm currently about half way through just re-doing it over again, as guessing on the log feels like cheating, so I'm starting from scratch. I've also changed my focus person from my maternal Great-Grandmother, to my Grandmother (yes, I have been on this assignment so long, that a whole new generation is eligible). With any luck, I will have that finished pretty soon (famous last words) and then it's just that licensing exam to sit. Perhaps this year. If our country ever becomes more realistic and less eugenicist in its outlook, so that it becomes safe to go out.

In recent activity though, we found another genetic cousin through one of the various facebook genealogy & DNA groups. It's looking like he and I are very probably 6th cousins once removed, but that depends on us tying my Catherine (only ever Catherine in her docs so far, and I'm not 100% settled on her parents yet), to his 'Kate', who is similarly always 'Kate' everywhere that he's found. It seems like a sound logical progression, but our DNA holds us closer (around the 4th cousin range), so there is an interesting thing to investigate there, because on our side at least, there's a possible sideways, double-related thing going on in this area of the tree, so that also requires some closer investigation.

There was also the very cool finding of all 4 of my grandparents (for the first possible time) in the 1921 census, and more information on their families (especially one GGF's extremely cool job!).

As with other years, my enthusiasm is high again. What remains to be seen is how much time there will be for genealogy & family history this year among other work. I still would rather be a slow and steady genealogist for the most part, than rush, because I know where that gets me (and we're not one of those families who can dash something off and it just works. Some of us, me especially, are cursed when it comes to anything administrative).

26th January was my 4 year blogiversary. Since I didn't do my customary look forward and back recently, I figured it's best to look cumulatively across the whole lifetime of the blog and see what's still outstanding, plus I have a couple ideas of directions I want to take the research this year if time allows.

Previous & New Targets (Oldest to Newest):	2022 and beyond...
Update the paper tree when all the online ones are fixed	Yeah, that's probably a never-never task, though I did at least design a frame I could keep it in, so that we could wall mount it and still have access to make updates, so that might be somewhere in the next couple years' projects.
Sit Licensing Exam	Still working at that. Fingers crossed!
The 'Bad Billy' Book Solve the Spencer-side mystery NEW: I want to aim for at least one post a month this year, but it's a compassionate goal, so I'm totally claiming this one for January (because who's to say we're not part Timelord anyhow?!). Push forward with the DNA side of things. Try and place some more relatives.	That second draft didn't work out either. I did, with the help of a lovely researcher in Australia, and a very helpful gentleman at 'Trove', plug one or two holes in the story, but really, what's needed at this point is: I either need to come up with an Edition 1 and just get it done, or I need to find some (legitimate!) way to access the Windsor Castle Archive and look over a particular document that exists only there. It feels like one of these is more achievable than the other, but in all honesty, I'm not sure which just now. Still no nearer on that one. Hopefully something gives somewhere soon. I've learnt that despite the best of intentions, I'm not great at follow through on the consistent blog challenges (not least because the platform shouts at me and makes threats at me periodically, and I don't have a clue how to placate it), so compassionate goals are going to have to be the order of business. That said, claiming this one, I have 1 out of 12, so that's 8.3% success, right? ...Ever an optimist! I also have a few ideas up my sleeve for future posts, but if anyone has some fabulous inspiration they want to share (with credit of course), I'd love to hear them! I've learnt over the lifetime of the blog so far, that coming up with something that would be interesting to anyone outside of our family (and in all honesty, sometimes only the fellow genealogy-nut relations) is the biggest challenge. I am currently working on a non-traditional version of the Leeds method to try to crack some of spouse's DNA matches, so perhaps there's a post in that, if it won't bore the pants off people? I currently have all 32 3rd-GGPs identified, so locating relatives up to 4th cousins is doable, and in most cases, there's a fair chance at placing a 5th cousin (though of course, our twin factor on certain lines does create some interesting effects). Out of 64 4th-GGPs though, I currently only have a firm handle on 40, plus 2 halves, so that makes the 6th cousin range a little more spotty, which is a shame when most of my matches coming up are smack-dab in that range. If we're talking 'faerie wand' type year, I'd love to firm up and figure out who the other 22 and 2 halves are.

So, that's about the shape of it at the moment.
How about you? How's your new calendar shaping up for this year's genealogy adventures?
x

Spring Weddings!

As it turns out, today is a special day.

Do you have that happen when you're researching? - You're sat looking at a random ancestor and the date corresponds with something that happens in their life too?

I wonder if anyone has ever worked out the odds of that? - I know I wouldn't want that job. Coo, just think of the variables!

For me, I'm more struck with how often it seems to happen.

Today, of course is no exception, but it started yesterday.

Yesterday was one of those days that just reinvigorates the spirits and just gives a little fan to your genealogy flame. 

Out of the blue I was contacted on facebook by a woman with a mutual surname of interest (LOMBARDI - for those not in the know, Lombardi is to Italian Genealogy, pretty much what Smith is to English. ...only unlike Smith, there aren't really many folks looking into disentangling the family lines). 
She encouraged me to return to a facebook group and ask for some more help (since I've been sat stewing on that particular brick wall on paper for about 18 months and with DNA since roughly last October).
That led me to encountering a lovely lady named Faith, who was able to dig somewhere out of the bowels of Antenati, not only THE document to smash that brick wall, but documents to make light work of the next 2-3 generations too. 
It was a great day!

In the back of my head though, I still felt a little guilty. I've been mulling on a blog post for a while, but an approach would not be easy. Firstly, because I couldn't think of a way to tie a few things together, but then also because of a key issue of the moment.

Ten days ago my sister and her boyfriend of ten years got married, so I knew that I wanted this month's post to be a tribute to that. After all, why celebrate, track and record what went before if we don't equally celebrate the now and the yet-to-come?

Just one problem. Sis is a school teacher and in this digital day and age, we have to be particularly careful about anything online that relates to her, so unfortunately I can't share with you loads and loads of photos though it was a really beautiful wedding - very them. Right down to the ground though.

However, she did look amazing ...and this is my baby sister - and anyone who has a baby sister knows how ridiculously proud you always are of them, so while I acknowledge and celebrate my bias, I do want to show you this one shot that one of their guests was able to snap (it feels weird not to credit them, but we can't risk an accidental reveal) this lovely shot which should be safe:

Isn't she a beautiful bride?!

The skirt was her own and our Mum made the bodice piece for her. I saw the look on his face when she came in. It was all very much worth it.


I needn't have worried though. Inspiration struck this morning.

April 16th has always been a bit of a seminal date in my mind anyhow. Ever since we moved to the first house our parents owned on 16th April 1986 (while Mum was expecting my baby sis who just got married!).

Being only little at the time, lots of my memories jumble around that couple of days, but one of the handy little side effects has been that I've never forgotten that Mum and Dad's own wedding anniversary is the next day:

Keith S Laity & Ann Riches

17th April 1976

Central URC, Sheffield, Yorkshire

Marvellous - two events, both marriages, in the one month. On the way to a blog post I guess, but still...



...and then this morning I received a batch of messages on MyHeritage.
I don't know if anyone else gets this periodically or if I'm just the lucky one, but every now and again, I'll log in for something, typically after a few quiet weeks and find a string of messages from folks that I never got alerts about.
On this occasion this morning it's letting me have a clutch of messages dated back to mid-February. 

Among them, there was one from a lady I'd been speaking with back around Valentines day. She'd reached out because we have a DNA match of some flavour between about a third cousin point to something vague out from there (originally it was 3rd-5th, but oddly on there, as they've brought in all the awesome new features over the last several months, that guide has got to being a bit less handy than it was I reckon).

Anyhow, she and I match about 3% of our DNA and crucially, she also has a match with my mother, but not with my female second cousin who also tested (that side of our family having very handily placed identical twins along the line that really helps with narrowing the field!).

So we set out looking for a match around about second great-grandparents - fourth great-grandparents in the first instance. There was nothing immediately obvious, but we did seem to share a common surname: Brown.

The only problem was, 'our' Brown was Sarah and she was my Mum's 5th (and therefore my 6th) great grandmother. Given the shared DNA, that's really a couple generations out for a straight <any degree of> cousin relationship, but it does give us clues that we possibly descend through siblings. At that point though, all I had on Sarah's upward family group was a father's name: Thomas Brown. 
I don't know if you've ever tried looking for entries for a Thomas Brown, or a Sarah brown for that matter - or, indeed, for a Sarah Brown daughter of Thomas (or vice versa) in England, but if you ever have two-three hours to kill and no paint to watch dry...

I had thought the trail gone cold since we couldn't at that point be sure, but then, through the two messages that arrived this morning (which would have been the next day had we received them sequentially), it turns out that her nearest Brown ancestor, Grace Brown, also had a father Thomas, for whom the dates looked good.

A few hours on, across multiple platforms, and it looks as though we have a strong contender. What's even more astounding is, it was 273 years ago TODAY that Thomas Brown, the possible father of the sisters we seem to descend from, married Mary Frith.

Sadly there is no extant document currently publicly available online that covers their marriage, but they are indexed in the Nottinghamshire, England, Extracted CoE Parish Records, 1538-1837:

Thomas Brown & Mary Frith 

16 Apr 1745

Farnsfield, Nottinghamshire England.

He was 26, she was 24.

Now how's that for a coincidence?! ...and as himself just pointed out, my horoscope for today did say to look out for surprises in love. I'd say that qualifies.

So there we have it. Three different couples from the same family, over a span of 273 years, all choosing an early April wedding.

There must be something in the air!

Happy Birthday Great-Grandma!

On Wednesday, 9th December 1891, Dorothy Hawley was born in Codnor, Derbyshire. She was the fifth of the six children of John James Hawley and Elizabeth Waterfall. 

She was the youngest daughter to survive and the youngest child to survive overall after her baby brother Fred was run over by a bus in the blackout during World War II. 

This is the earliest photo I have of her. I suspect that it was taken around the time of her marriage to Robert William Dawson, which happened in September of 1918. 

He would later tell his granddaughter "She had jet black hair".

Just over 15 months after their wedding, on 1st Jan 1920, she gave birth to identical Twins.

Olive was the elder twin and weighed two and a half pounds, then came Edna weighing two pounds. The two tiny newborns slept together, nested in a drawer.

May Queens' Handover 1936
Incoming Queen Appleblossom (Edna) left
Outgoing Queen Anemone (Olive) Right

In January of 1948, aged 57 she became a Grandmother for the first time. She would have three more Granddaughters before the end of 1952.

Seven Great-Grandchildren followed (5 girls and 2 boys) between 1973 and 1986.

I am the sixth of seven Great-Grandchildren and the last that she would meet personally.

This was the day we first met at Edna and Douglas' house 22nd Jan 1983.

She was 91.

She died on Wednesday 1st May 1985
in Mountsorrel, Leicestershire (where Olive lived), at the age of 93.

Edna passed away that Friday, aged 65.

Her descendants today include 

one more Great-Grand-daughter,

9 Great-Great-Grandsons

and 6 Great-Great-Granddaughters.

Happy 126th Birthday Grandma Hawley

Incidental Happy Birthday...

Don't you just love when you're playing around in your tree and you suddenly come across something that matches the current date?

A very happy 109th birthday to my first cousin, once removed, Florence May Morris, wherever she may be.

Florence was born in Brinsworth, Yorkshire on this day in 1907.

Wherever you are, I hope you have a lovely day! xx

March Relative Focus - My Maternal Grandfather

The one thing I'm suddenly realising about the writing challenge, is that there are so many to choose from. 

Ah. Yes, in fact a quick bit of tomfoolery with the calculator reveals that were I to never add another relative to the tree (yeah, like that's ever going to happen!) and simply tell about one relative at a time, it would take us from now until mid November of 2101.

...at which point, I'd be rapidly approaching 119 and we'd all be sick to death of the whole thing!


I might then, broaden the 'Write about at least one relative a month' and see where it leads us.


March though, in my mind, is always the month that 'belongs' to my Maternal Grandfather.

This is Grandad in August 1986 at his home in Darnall, Sheffield (that's me walking up the backs of my Uncle and Father - by request I hasten to add!). 





There are several key dates for him that fall in March:


                   4th - Got Engaged (1945)

                   7th - His Death (1992)

                   30th - His Birthday (1916) 
       Meaning he would have been 100 this year!





So yes, today is the 71st Anniversary of Grandad's engagement which fell on Sunday, 4th March 1945 - just 65 days before VE day.


In recent months, I inherited Grandma's engagement ring from my Mum . It's been more emotionally intense than I anticipated having it. Grandma died when I was only 28 months old, so a lot of my memories of her include her hands (sometimes, even more than her face) and it can be oddly peculiar, but at the same time nice, to catch sight of my own hands and be flooded with a memory.

You can bet your life I've been wearing it today!

Grandma's & My Engagement rings.

Nails courtesy of my lovely friend Trish:
https://trishmarickovich.jamberry.com/us/en/shop/products/butterfly-bliss#.Vtn6GH2LTcs

...and a slightly closer one that shows the detail a little more clearly (apologies for it being slightly blurry:

This family group shot is circa 1942.

Grandad is on the right hand end of the back row and Grandma is on the Right hand end of the front row.

Also pictured, from Left to right are:
Back Row 
My Great Aunt (Grandma's Twin), My Maternal Great Grandfather - Robert William DAWSON
Front Row
My Maternal Great Grandmother - Dorothy HAWLEY, Robert's sister Florrie WARD

Grandad made a very beautiful entry in his diary for 4th March 1945 describing the evening as "the best night of my life", describing how they went for a walk together and he asked her (he'd already spoken with her Dad)  and how happy her saying yes made him. After, they'd returned to her house for tea and her parents were there, together with her twin sister and various relatives.

They went on to marry on September 8th of the same year at Burngreave Congregational Church.