13 January 2022
Workhouse death brings on 1921 census blues
MUCH joy tempered by bouts of shock and sadness. Such is the lot of family historians everywhere. Something I can well attest to after recent foraging in the foliage of my family tree. Anyone joining this global corps of addicts soon learns that tracking down their ancestors is a long plodding journey. One beset by… Continue Reading
13 January 2022
Workhouse death brings on 1921 census blues
6 December 2021
Shock to find you’re not who you think you are
11 July 2021
Baffled by Hadrian’s Wall and a mystery postcard
27 July 2020
Lighthouse death a legacy of family’s maritime links
23 May 2020
Down to the pub for Gramp’s jug of beer
A CLICHE it maybe, but the saying that “everything old is new again” is one that has stood the test of time. As reliable as ever as each generation “discovers” something that was commonplace to their parents or grandparents. It rushed to mind as today’s papers splashed on the “innovative” ways public houses were coping… Continue Reading
2 April 2020
It may be just a small point to you …
18 August 2018
Memoir dilemma: knowing when to stop
As the saga of the postcards continues I have at last struck some sort of common thread. And it’s all about horses. Not all that deep and meaningful but at least it is a consistent theme extending over several of these messages of long ago. For once during my trawl through these newly discovered… Continue Reading
Family history never ceases to surprise and delight. It is an endless journey into the unexpected. Skeletons leap from cupboards and sudden contacts from hitherto strangers breath life into people who so far have been mere names clinging precariously to the family tree. This week, emails from out of the blue have unearthed another bag… Continue Reading
End of content
End of content
Receive my ‘Read. Write. Run. Repeat.’ newsletter
Regular updates of my reviews and commentary direct to your inbox.
27 August 2020
Family history writes its own mysteries
TRACING one’s ancestors is akin to joining Poirot as he unravels the threads of an Agatha Christie mystery. Except that the little Belgian detective eventually provides acceptable answers. Not so with family history. So many detours and distractions. So many loose ends. So much that is left unexplained. Such was the case when on the… Continue Reading