Genealogy and Family History

[NineTails20]

If you're currently delving into your family history, making your family tree, or just thinking about doing it, welcome!

I took an Ancestry DNA test, and have since discovered my father and his side of the family. Also that my mother is descended from Scottish royalty.

I'm a lovely mix of Irish, Scottish, Welsh, English and Northwestern European!

 

[smellsofbiscuits]

Personally I'm not keen on handing over DNA samples to a private company but each to their own. If you have your birth certificate, your parents and your grandparents then you can start to piece together your family tree. Census records are also super helpful for this.

I'm thinking of dipping my toe into researching the history of buildings. Too many skeletons in my family to tackle whilst some members are still alive

 

[NineTails20]

Personally I'm not keen on handing over DNA samples to a private company but each to their own. If you have your birth certificate, your parents and your grandparents then you can start to piece together your family tree. Census records are also super helpful for this.

I'm thinking of dipping my toe into researching the history of buildings. Too many skeletons in my family to tackle whilst some members are still alive

Main reason why I did the DNA test was because I knew nothing about my dad; he and mum split when I was a baby, and mum came back to Ireland with me. Plus, I don't really speak to my mum's side of the family, so there's that.

 

[smellsofbiscuits]

Main reason why I did the DNA test was because I knew nothing about my dad; he and mum split when I was a baby, and mum came back to Ireland with me. Plus, I don't really speak to my mum's side of the family, so there's that.

Fair enough. I have a similar backstory but will go digging once aforementioned family members are dead. Still wouldn't hand over my DNA though.

 

[Warpaint]

Didn't the DNA things end up being a scam?

 

[Rita Chevrolet]

I started my journey two years ago on Ancestry and its taken me all over Europe, in some cases I got back to a viking called Frosti in 330AD and also a Roman senator who lived in Carthage in 139BC!!! Most of the discoveries come from my maternal grandfather where he is descended from all sorts of royals from all over Europe like Charlemagne, William the Conquerer, the Capetian royal lineage, all sorts of French royals, Flemish, Goths & Visigoths, Saxons, three lots of different Vikings, kings of Scotland and Wales, Brian Boru of Ireland & Anglo-Saxons Not forgetting the Lombards, Hungarians & Ukranians, the Popes and 6 Saints

I wish he were still alive so I could show him all this stuff I discovered but I know what his answer would be

"Thats all very well " he'd say "So why am I skint then?" delivered in his broad Sheffield accent;

 

[Hairylairy]

I started my journey two years ago on Ancestry and its taken me all over Europe, in some cases I got back to a viking called Frosti in 330AD and also a Roman senator who lived in Carthage in 139BC!!! Most of the discoveries come from my maternal grandfather where he is descended from all sorts of royals from all over Europe like Charlemagne, William the Conquerer, the Capetian royal lineage, all sorts of French royals, Flemish, Goths & Visigoths, Saxons, three lots of different Vikings, kings of Scotland and Wales, Brian Boru of Ireland & Anglo-Saxons Not forgetting the Lombards, Hungarians & Ukranians, the Popes and 6 Saints

I wish he were still alive so I could show him all this stuff I discovered but I know what his answer would be

"Thats all very well " he'd say "So why am I skint then?" delivered in his broad Sheffield accent;

Wow, how did you manage to go back that far, furthest back I've gone is late 1700s, just keep hitting brick walls

 

[fluffyglitterbug]

Wow, how did you manage to go back that far, furthest back I've gone is late 1700s, just keep hitting brick walls

I’ve gone back as far as the 1500s on one side - found out my ancestors had a cat meat shop in Islington (which is still a butchers to this day!)

I only discovered my biological dad and his family recently so that’s my next project.

I’ve found some really good tips and tricks on here about digging further back so that’s my next project! I’m not sure I’ll get very far on my dad’s side as they’re all Irish and I understand a lot of records were burnt

 

[Hairylairy]

I’ve gone back as far as the 1500s on one side - found out my ancestors had a cat meat shop in Islington (which is still a butchers to this day!)

I only discovered my biological dad and his family recently so that’s my next project.

I’ve found some really good tips and tricks on here about digging further back so that’s my next project! I’m not sure I’ll get very far on my dad’s side as they’re all Irish and I understand a lot of records were burnt

Yes in Ireland, the 1901 & 1911 census are available but most census records prior to that were destroyed in a fire

 

[smellsofbiscuits]

Yes in Ireland, the 1901 & 1911 census are available but most census records prior to that were destroyed in a fire

There's currently a project to identify duplicate records and retrieve information held elsewhere. More info here: https://www-irishtimes-com.cdn.ampp...1922-fire-astounding-historian-says-1.4104963

 

[NineTails20]

I started my journey two years ago on Ancestry and its taken me all over Europe, in some cases I got back to a viking called Frosti in 330AD and also a Roman senator who lived in Carthage in 139BC!!! Most of the discoveries come from my maternal grandfather where he is descended from all sorts of royals from all over Europe like Charlemagne, William the Conquerer, the Capetian royal lineage, all sorts of French royals, Flemish, Goths & Visigoths, Saxons, three lots of different Vikings, kings of Scotland and Wales, Brian Boru of Ireland & Anglo-Saxons Not forgetting the Lombards, Hungarians & Ukranians, the Popes and 6 Saints

I wish he were still alive so I could show him all this stuff I discovered but I know what his answer would be

"Thats all very well " he'd say "So why am I skint then?" delivered in his broad Sheffield accent;

I look at the Stuarts and Plantagenets in my tree and think "But I live on a bloody council estate, how did that happen?"

I’ve gone back as far as the 1500s on one side - found out my ancestors had a cat meat shop in Islington (which is still a butchers to this day!)

I only discovered my biological dad and his family recently so that’s my next project.

I’ve found some really good tips and tricks on here about digging further back so that’s my next project! I’m not sure I’ll get very far on my dad’s side as they’re all Irish and I understand a lot of records were burnt

Almost all of the Church of Ireland records, wills and other such records went up in flames when the Four Courts was set on fire during the War of Independence about 100 years ago. The Irish Genealogy site is pretty good, as is the National Archives in Dublin.

 

[Herefortheteeeee]

What resources do you all use?

 

[Rita Chevrolet]

Wow, how did you manage to go back that far, furthest back I've gone is late 1700s, just keep hitting brick walls

Generally speaking if you can get back beyond the early 1700s when the first compulsory censuses were introduced for everybody, rich and poor, then you'll probably be onto something.

Before the first census it was rare to find details of anybody apart from the local dignitaries or those attached to the Church I suppose because the ordinary folks were not considered worthy enough to be recorded apart from the odd marriage or baptism, but if you can get back beyond this first Census the chances are you will be onto something. I discovered that as Ancestry begins to fizzle out at that date you can try a Google of the name because IF theres a chance the person is someone of note then somebody else has probably done all the excavations already and you can pick it up from there. If this is the case it will come up as a Geni Profile or another of the heritage sites, however if you come across someone who is historically known then there will be all sorts of records to have a browse through. My journey began on Ancestry and is now a historical act of love

 

[AngryBird]

Just done a small section of genealogy for my dad's side and got back to 1370. Via a Scottish ancestor who was associated with Royalty. I was thrilled to find they had a castle (now derelict) but the family fortunes were lost in the 1500s. Hence our bog standard living from then on! It was really fun finding all that out and I'm now Instagram pals with a lady who shares that same ancestor.

 

[NineTails20]

Google, Find A Grave and occasionally Wikipedia are of help, especially if you hit Medieval nobility. If you have American ancestry, you've hit a small jackpot, because they keep really good records. German records are good as well, but as with a lot of Medieval records, the writing can be difficult to decipher.

I FINALLY managed to trace back a bit further on my mother's paternal line; our surname is originally from Kilkenny. And it's said that it came about due to a Viking Dublin Prince who settled the area in the 9th century.

 

[Rita Chevrolet]

Just done a small section of genealogy for my dad's side and got back to 1370. Via a Scottish ancestor who was associated with Royalty. I was thrilled to find they had a castle (now derelict) but the family fortunes were lost in the 1500s. Hence our bog standard living from then on! It was really fun finding all that out and I'm now Instagram pals with a lady who shares that same ancestor.

I was rather fortunate with what I found but as I said before I found it all rather bizarre when I realised that in fact my grandfather's ancestors had gone to England alongside William the Conquerer in 1066 and earned their estates for that very reason (I think offhand its about 18 or so who were acknowledged as being with Duke William) and here I am back living in the Land of those same ancestors! I'd come Home without even realising it at the time!

Its also fascinating to think that with today being Bastille Day here that there are probably more descendants of the original French nobility over there in the UK than there are here now, seeing as those pesky peasants went and guillotined most of them who'd not already escaped across the Channel

 

[Kim Mild]

Everyone who searches their ancestors seems to find nobility or people of importance.

 

[NineTails20]

Everyone who searches their ancestors seems to find nobility or people of importance.

That's true; most Europeans can trace back to Charlemagne and/or William The Conqueror.

 

[AngryBird]

Everyone who searches their ancestors seems to find nobility or people of importance.

Nope. My partner has exhaustively done his family tree (thousands of people)and virtually everyone for centuries is within a 10 mile radius from a tiny handful of villages. All mostly poor agricultural workers. One fella made it to Australia. One as far as Bristol. It's hard to go really far back with his, the records are just not there beyond a certain point.

 

[Rita Chevrolet]

My paternal grandfather's line stops when the Census info ends - his family were Romany so obviously they were not inclined to be on record for anything unless they HAD to be and spent their lives on the move from one area to another.

Another odd thing is that my maiden name is French from up near Calais and likely to have crossed the Channel with William as many men went with their Lord to fight at Hastings. That Lord was on my other grandfather's Tree so when my parents got married it was almost like a full circle - two families of different status from the same town joined 880 years later; Strange