Category Archives: Tracing

Findmypast Reveals The Greatest Political Leaders With Irish Ancestry

Findmypast has announced that John F. Kennedy has been voted the greatest political leader with Irish ancestry, ahead of Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama. Che Guevara, the Latin American revolutionary who also had Irish roots, ranked fourth.

The online poll of over 4,000 Americans and Britons was conducted by YouGov for the genealogy site findmypast.com and its Irish partner, findmypast IE.

“The most surprising people turn out to have Irish ancestry,” says Cliona Weldon, spokesperson for findmypast.ie, which marks its first birthday this month.

The findmypast poll asked respondents in the U.S. and UK to pick from a list of 10 political leaders who had won prominence in countries beyond Irish shores – in short, in the Irish diaspora.

This diaspora, consisting of Irish emigrants and their descendants, is estimated to include over 80 million people worldwide, including some 40 million Americans.

While Obama and JFK polled similar percentages with U.S. and UK respondents, averaging 12% and 25% respectively, Reagan polled nearly four times as many votes in the U.S. (35%) as in the UK (8%). Indeed, he would have topped the poll based on U.S. votes alone, while the UK alone ranked him third behind Obama.

Obama, who only discovered his Irish roots in 2007, is just one of at least 13 U.S. presidents to have had Irish ancestry. Indeed, the only one of the last six to have lacked them was Bill Clinton, who tried to atone for the fact by once informing a St Patrick’s Day gathering that: “I feel more Irish every day!” Other countries to have boasted notable leaders with Irish ancestry include Canada, Australia, France, Spain, Mexico, Chile, Peru and Israel.

Che Guevara, the Argentine-born radical who helped lead the revolution in Cuba, may be best known today as an icon of Latin American rebellion but he traced his ancestry to Galway, Ireland in the 1740s.

JFK and Reagan both traced their roots to the great wave of Irish emigration that began in the mid-19th century, coinciding with the great Famine.

By then, Obama’s Irish forebear, Falmouth Keaney, had already been in the U.S. for eight years, after migrating from Moneygall in Co. Offaly in 1850. Keaney was Obama’s maternal great-great-great grandfather.

About findmypast.ie:
findmypast.ie is the world’s most comprehensive Irish family history website, providing easy-to-search, online access to some of the most significant Irish records that have ever been made available, including extensive BMD records.

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Findmypast.ie helps to reveal Dracula was Irish not Transylvanian

findmypast.ie has conducted research on Bram Stoker’s family tree which sheds new light on how he created the gothic horrors of Dracula.

Count Dracula, the Transylvanian nobleman and daddy of all vampires, was originally Irish rather than Transylvanian, according to new research by the family historian who previously traced Barack Obama’s Irish roots, Fiona Fitzsimons.

Dracula is the title character of the 1897 Gothic horror novel by Bram Stoker, the Irish writer who died 100 years ago, on April 20, 1912.

Many historians have wondered how Stoker, a one-time Dublin civil servant and chum of Oscar Wilde came to imagine the gothic horrors of Dracula and now, new research into Stoker’s family tree by the genealogy website findmypast.ie provides the answer. The new findings are the fruit of months of research by Fiona Fitzsimons, a director of findmypast.ie and the historian who last year identified Obama’s closest living Irish relatives, enabling the U.S. President to meet them on his state visit to Ireland.

Bram Stoker turns out to have been of an old family with a glorious history. His direct ancestor, Manus “The Magnificent” O’Donnell, once ruled much of Ireland and led a rebellion against Henry VIII.

“We have discovered that Bram Stoker could trace his own direct family line back almost 1,000 years,” said Fitzsimons. In short, his own lineage turns out to have been remarkably similar to Dracula’s.

Fitzsimons added: “Stoker did not use overtly Irish references in Dracula, but his main theme is taken from Irish history – the history, we now learn, of his own family – recast in the writer’s imagination.”

Although the Stoker family on Bram’s father’s side were of humble stock, it was already known before now that Bram’s mother Charlotte was descended from the Blakes, a landed Irish family.

What Fitzsimons has now discovered, with the help of land records found on findmypast.ie, is that Charlotte also descended from the O’Donnells, one of Ireland’s greatest families, with one of its oldest recorded lineages.

The story goes back farther still; from 561 A.D. the O’Donnell lords were the hereditary keepers of the psalter (holy book) of St Columba, revered in Ireland as the patron saint of poets.

These objects remained in the O’Donnell’s keeping until 1843, when they were given to the Royal Irish Academy. Their donation received wide press coverage and was a cause célèbre.

Fitzsimons said: “Our research has proven links between the writer’s family, the oldest surviving Irish manuscript in existence, and one of the greatest treasures held in the National Museum of Ireland. The manuscript book and its reliquary provide evidence that Stoker’s O’Donnell family could trace their direct lineage back more than 1,300 years to 561 A.D.”

Fitzsimons believes the true inspiration for Dracula was Manus the Magnificent, Stoker’s direct ancestor.

This is not to say that Manus was either a vampire or a tyrant, since he was neither, but he was a feudal leader with great power over much of the country and hisheroics in gory battle are just as likely an inspiration for Dracula as any historical figure.

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Findmypast.co.uk Publishes Crew Records From The Titanic For The First Time

New analysis from findmypast.co.uk of the records of those on board the Titanic when it sunk suggests it could have been doomed from the start according to sailor superstitions.*

Six maritime myths rang true on that ill-fated day of 15th April 1912, including the presence of women, priests and red-heads on board the ship, according to the most comprehensive set of Titanic passenger and crew records launched online at findmypast.co.uk, a leading family history website.

Debra Chatfield, family historian at findmypast.co.uk, commented: “The records going live indicate sailor superstitions were wholly ignored on the Titanic’s doomed departure from Southampton. Throughout history sailors have been proverbially superstitious, but I bet few ever believed the ‘unsinkable’ Titanic would succumb to superstition. It leaves you wondering whether the cumulative effect of women, priests, dogs, barbers, flowers and red-heads on board – all commonly held superstitions among sailors – angered the sea so much it steered her towards her ill fate.”

The Unlucky Six Sailor Superstitions are:
– Women on board – 353 female passengers
– Dogs near tackle – 5 dogs reported rescued
– Priests on board – 5 men of religion
– Cutting hair on board – 3 barbers
– Flowers – 2 crew members with flower tattoos
– Red-heads – 2 on board; one crew member & the infamous Violet Jessop

Maritime birth, marriage and death records in association with The National Archives and White Star Line Officers’ books, are being launched online for the first time at findmypast.co.uk, sitting alongside the Titanic Passenger Lists and Merchant Navy recordswhich are already available to view.

Janet Dempsey, Maritime Records Specialist at The National Archives, commented:
“Death At Sea was an occupational hazard for those who made their living on the water but this rarely deterred mariners. Many who survived the Titanic went on to serve throughout the First World War and some even into WW2. The BMD registers really illustrate just how hard life was at sea even for those men and women who served on luxury liners that were just not expected to sink. With death so common place it was hardly surprising that seafarers were a superstitious lot.”

And still, 100 years on from the sinking of the Titanic, Brits are as superstitious as ever, especially when it comes to seafaring. One in eight (12%) is aware of the myth around un-christened ships bringing bad luck – something speculation famously claims about the Titanic – while the most well-known superstition for a third of Brits (31%) is an unbroken bottle during the christening of a ship.

Today’s Brits call on a number of superstitions for good luck and safe travel when embarking on a trip. Avoiding travel on Friday 13th takes the top spot (6%), followed by carrying a lucky charm such as a coin (4%), spring cleaning the house before travelling, and wearing a lucky item of clothing (2%).

Debra Chatfield concluded: “We can’t lead our lives based on myth and superstition, whether travel-related or otherwise, but in hindsight when considering the tragedy of the Titanic, it certainly is an eerie thought.”

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Findmypast.co.uk Publishes Westminster Parish Records Online

findmypast.co.uk, a leading UK family history website, has published online for the very first time parish records held by the City of Westminster Archives Centre. The Westminster Collection at findmypast.co.uk comprises fully searchable transcripts and scanned images of the parish registers, some of which are over 400 years old.

The 1,365,731 records launched cover the period 1538-1945 and come from over 50 Westminster churches including St Anne, Soho, St Clement Danes, St George Hanover Square, St James Westminster, St Margaret Westminster, St Martin-in-the-Fields, St Mary-le-Strand, St Paul Covent Garden.

Debra Chatfield, family historian at findmypast.co.uk, said: “The Westminster Collection is one of the largest regional parish record collections we have ever published online and contains some truly wonderful gems. Family historians, wherever they are in the world, can now search this historical goldmine and uncover the fascinating stories of their London ancestors.”

The launch marks the start of a painstaking project to preserve digitally the City of Westminster Archives Centre’s collection, and sees the first tranche of its baptisms, marriages and burials go online. The remaining records are set to go live over the coming months, along with cemetery registers, wills, rate books, settlement examinations, workhouse admission and discharge books, bastardy, orphan and apprentice records and charity documents.

Adrian Autton, Archives Manager at Westminster Archives commented: “The launch of the Westminster Collection is of huge significance making Westminster records fully accessible to a global audience. This resource will be of immense value to anyone whose ancestors lived in Westminster and to anyone wishing to study the rich heritage of this truly great city.”

The records can now be searched free of charge by visiting the Life Events (BMDs) section at findmypast.co.uk, and then selecting parish baptisms or marriages or burials. Transcripts and images can be viewed with PayAsYouGo credits, vouchers or a full subscription to findmypast.co.uk.

The new Westminster Collection at findmypast.co.uk joins a growing resource of official parish records from local archives, including Cheshire Archives & Local Studies, Manchester City Council and Plymouth and West Devon Records Office, with many more in the pipeline and due to go live in the coming months. In addition over 40 million parish records from family history societies can be found at findmypast.co.uk in partnership with the Federation of Family History Societies.

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Findmypast.co.uk To Publish Canterbury Cathedral Records Online

findmypast.co.uk, a leading UK family history website, has announced that it has been awarded a contract by Canterbury Cathedral Archives to publish historic records from the archive online. The first phase of the Canterbury Collection project will see an online version of the parish registers of the historic Archdeaconry of Canterbury, to be published in the coming weeks at findmypast.co.uk.

An estimated 270,000 images containing over a million entries will be published on the website, covering parish churches from a wide expanse of East Kent, including:
– the city of Canterbury
– the towns of Faversham, Wye and Elham
– Thanet
– towns along the east Kent coast stretching from Whitstable in the north round to Hythe in the south

The launch has been timed to coincide with the temporary closure of Canterbury Cathedral Archives for refurbishment, so that family historians and local historians can continue to enjoy access to these fascinating records until the Archives reopens in autumn 2012.

From the initial online launch in February, visitors to the findmypast.co.uk website will be able to browse through the scanned pages of the parish records to search for their ancestors. At the same time, findmypast.co.uk will start to transcribe the records, with a view to creating an index and making them fully searchable on the website later this year.

Paul Nixon, Content Licensing Manager for findmypast.co.uk, said: “We’re really looking forward to seeing these invaluable records from Canterbury Cathedral Archives go live on findmypast.co.uk, strengthening the site’s position as the natural home for UK parish records.”

Canterbury Cathedral Archivist Cressida Williams, added: “Working with findmypast has provided us with a wonderful opportunity to expand access to these records to a worldwide audience. This resource will be a great asset for anyone with an interest in the history of this part of Kent.”

The Canterbury Collection will join an impressive array of UK parish records at findmypast.co.uk, including records from Manchester Archives, Cheshire Archives, Plymouth & West Devon Record Office and Welsh Archives, in addition to over 40 million parish records from family history societies throughout the UK in partnership with the Federation of Family History Societies.

Anyone wishing to be notified when the Canterbury Collection becomes available can register online at findmypast.co.uk to receive a newsletter.

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Findmypast.ie announces 1.2 million Irish Petty Session Records now searchable online

findmypast.ie, the Irish family history website, has launched the Petty Sessions Order Books (1850-1910) online for the first time, one of the greatest untapped resources for those tracing their Irish roots.

The original Petty Sessions records are held at the National Archives of Ireland were scanned by Family Search and have now been transcribed and made fully searchable by findmypast.ie. They cover all types of cases, from allowing trespass of cattle to being drunk in charge of an ass and cart. These were the lowest courts in the country who dealt with the vast bulk of legal cases, both civil and criminal. This first batch of entries contains details of 1.2 million cases, with most records giving comprehensive details of the case including: name of complainant, name of defendant, names of witnesses, cause of complaint, details of the judgement, details of a fine if any, and details of a sentence passed down if any. Another 15 million cases are to follow throughout 2012.

This first batch of records is particularly useful for areas of the country for which family history records are notoriously sparse such as Connaught and Donegal.

The reasons for cases being brought before the Petty Sessions Court are incredibly varied, but unsurprisingly the most common offence was drunkenness, which accounted for over a third of all cases. The top five offences tried before the courts were:
Drunkenness – 33%
Revenue/Tax offences – 21%
Assault – 16%
Local acts of nuisance – 5%
Destruction of property – 4%

The nature of these cases was significantly different from those in England. Figures show that the rate of conviction for drunkenness was three times greater, four times greater for tax offences, 65% higher for assault, and twice as likely for “malicious and wilful destruction of property” than that of our nearest neighbours*.

The records are full of the minor incidents which are representative of the vast majority of cases which were brought before the Resident Magistrates. For example, Michael Downey of Athlone, Co. Westmeath was charged with being “drunk while in charge of an ass and cart in a public area” and Pat Curley of Cloonakilla, Co. Westmeath who was charged with causing “malicious injury to a bicycle”.

Brian Donovan, Director of findmypast.ie, commented: “These court records open up a unique window into Irish society in the 19th century. Most families interacted with the law in one way or another, being perpetrators or victims of petty crime, resolving civil disputes, to applying for a dog licence. The records are full of the trauma and tragedy of local life, as family members squabbled, shop keepers recovered debt, and the police imposed order. These records help fulfil our mission to provide more than just names and dates, to get to the stories of our ancestors’ lives.”

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Findmypast.ie Launches Family Tree Builder

findmypast.ie has become the first Irish family history website to offer its users family tree builder software, greatly enhancing its offering to Irish family history enthusiasts.

One of the most important elements in researching family history is the ability to form a visual representation of the years of hard work and research. Findmypast.ie’s free online application allows users to easily create a family tree from scratch and add some of 10 million records now available on findmypast.ie to their existing research.

When compared to using traditional software, findmypast.ie’s web-based program presents many advantages such as allowing users to access the latest version of their family tree from any computer and share their family tree with invited members of their family or fellow researchers. Some of the main features of the software include:
– Add, edit, update and delete relations
– Add partners, parents and children
– Members can view their immediate family, ancestors, descendants or whole family tree

This is merely the first step in findmypast.ie’s development of a fully integrated family tree program on which users will be able to store photos and historical references, helping to preserve the story of their ancestors. Future features will also include greatly enhanced social functionality, such as the ability to search other users’ trees and inviting other users to collaborate on a tree.

Cliona Weldon, General Manager of findmypast.ie, comments: “Our family tree building software is equally adept at helping the novice family historian and experienced genealogist alike to store all the names on their family tree in one place. We’ve made the web based program as easy to use as possible and most importantly it’s free.”

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Findmypast.co.uk Reveals Unusual Discoveries From Cheshire ‘s Local Records

Findmypast.co.uk has announced several unique discoveries found in the newly available local records from Cheshire. Workhouse records, parish registers, bishop’s transcripts and electoral registers from Cheshire went online for the first time ever recently in what findmypast.co.uk has titled ‘The Cheshire Collection.’ The collection is a series of over 10 million historic records provided by Cheshire Archives and Local Studies, covering over 350 years of history.

Some of the most interesting findings contained within The Cheshire Collection include:

– Lewis Carroll’s baptism was in Daresbury on11 July 1832
– An earthquake hit Cheshire on 18 March 1612
– Ancestors of James Bond actor Daniel Craig sold coal and were iron moulders

An unusual occurrence revealed in the records was the ‘peculiar marriage’ between Daniel Broadbent and Martha Cheetham in Mottram-in-Longdendale on 9 March 1780. Daniel was 23 and Martha was 83 years old. However, fate soon intervened to part this unlikely couple with the Mottram registers for the following year showing that Daniel Broadbent of Hattersley was buried on 30 May 1781. Furthermore, on 6 May 1776, 105 year-old George Harding married Jane Darlington, 75, at St Oswald, Chester.

These unusual marriage records show that, in the 18th century, one could find love at any age. However, the records also reveal a darker side of Cheshire’s past, telling several tales of death from the plague.

In 1625 the UK was hit by an outbreak of the plague which killed 35,000 people. Malpas in Cheshire was badly affected and the online records reveal harrowing accounts of those who were killed by the disease. One such example is that of Richard Dawson of Bradley, whose story, found among The Cheshire Collection, goes as follows:

“…being sick of the plague and perceiving that he must die at that time arose out of his bed and made his grave and caused his nephew to cast straw into the grave… and went and lay him down in the said grave, and caused clothes to be laid upon and so departed out of this world… he died about 28th august, this much I was credibly told.”

Family history records from the ancestors of Daniel Craig and the discovery of the Cheshire earthquake surprised Debra Chatfield, marketing manager at findmypast.co.uk. She commented: “These records make it possible for family historians and local history researchers to delve as far back as 1538, unearthing all sorts of unusual finds quickly and easily at their fingertips. Who would have known that Cheshire was hit by an earthquake in 1612 or that James Bond’s ancestors sold lumps of coal?”

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findmypast.ie Aims To Help The Diaspora Discover Their Irish Roots

Findmypast.ie, the world’s newest family history site, is aiming to provide the 80 million people that are part of the Irish Diaspora with the easiest possible way of researching their Irish roots.

Findmypast.ie is a joint venture between brightsolid, the Scottish based experts in the digitisation of precious records who own and/or operate a family of sites including findmypast.co.uk, ScotlandsPeople.gov.uk as well as the Friends Reunited Group, and Eneclann, an award-winning Trinity College Campus Company based in Dublin. In 2009 Eneclann made it their objective to digitise what they felt was the greatest untapped Irish genealogical resource, The Landed Estate Court Rentals. They approached brightsolid online publishing with their proposal and from this, findmypast.ie was born.

Launched in Dublin in May by the Irish Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht Jimmy Deenihan, the new site aims to increase its current collection of records from almost 10 million to over 50 million within the next 12 months, making it the world’s most comprehensive online database for Irish family history research.

At the launch Brian Donovan, Director of findmypast Ireland, commented: “This is a major achievement. By teaming up with findmypast.co.uk and brightsolid, we are bringing Irish history to life for millions. These remarkable records are available online to researchers and family historians all over the world for future generations. We are committed to publishing family history records which provide more than simply names and dates, instead describing what your ancestors did and how they lived.”

One of the most significant set of records available on findmypast.ie is the Landed Estate Court Rentals records. Up until now, the biggest problem with the Landed Estate Court rentals has been access. Although used by professional Irish genealogists, the microfilm records stored at the National Archive of Ireland were difficult to use unless the name of an ancestor’s landowner was known.

With the permission of the National Archives and an agreement to allow free access to the digitised images in five years’ time, the 100,000 microfilm images were taken, digitised, indexed and placed online at findmypast.ie.

The critical information contained in these catalogues are the rentals, especially the lot descriptions. The details often include:

– Names of tenants
– Map reference
– Yearly rent in pounds, shillings and pence
– Day rent is due: labelled as “Gale days”
– Size of plot: in acres, roods and perches
– Length of tenure
– Observations

Previously, the amateur family historian would have been content to discover names and dates associated with their ancestors, but genealogists have now found new windows into the past. The Landed Estate Court records are an example of this as they provide not only names and dates but key facts about ancestors’ lives. These land and estate records include information on where they lived, who they lived with, what their lodgings were like and what the area in which they lived was like.

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findmypast.ie Publishes Irish Prison Registers Online

findmypast.ie has launched the Irish Prison Registers 1790-1920 online for the first time, an untapped resource for those tracing their Irish roots.

The original Prison Registers, held at the National Archives of Ireland, cover all types of custodial institutions, from bridewells, to county prisons, to sanatoriums for alcoholics. They contain over 3.5 million entries, spread over 130,000 pages, with most records giving comprehensive details of the prisoner, including the name, address, place of birth, occupation, religion, education, age, physical description, name and address of next of kin, the crime committed, the sentence, dates of committal and release/decease.

The registers offer a real insight into 18th – 19th century Ireland and present evidence of a society of rebellion and social confrontation, where rioting and assault of police officers were everyday occurrences. They also reveal the rampant poverty and destitution that many faced, with the theft of everything from handkerchiefs to turnips.

The reasons for incarceration cover all types of crime but the most common offence was drunkenness, which accounted for over 30% of all crimes reported and over 25% of incarcerations. The top five offences recorded in the registers are:

– Drunkenness – 25%
– Theft – 16%
– Assault – 12%
– Vagrancy – 8%
– Rioting – 4%

The nature of these crimes was significantly different from those in England. Figures show that the rate of conviction for drunkenness and tax evasion was 3 times greater, and the rate of both destruction of property and prostitution were double what they were for the same time period in England.

The records are full of individuals who were arrested for very minor offences. For example, a record from the Cork City Gaol Court Book lists an arrest for Giles O’Sullivan (26), with no education and no previous convictions, on the 30th of March 1848 for being “a dangerous and suspicious character”. Other examples of the heavy hand of the law can be seen in the case of John Cunningham from Finglas (21) who was arrested for “Washing a car on a thoroughfare” and young Christopher Doyle (14) arrested “for being an idle, disorderly rogue and vagabond”.

With the Irish population averaging 4.08 million each year for this time period and over 3.5 million names in the records, it would suffice to say that almost every family in Ireland was touched by these records, as offenders, their relatives or victims of crime.

Brian Donovan, Director of findmypast Ireland, commented: “These records provide an invaluable resource for anyone tracing their Irish ancestors as during the period covered almost every household in Ireland had a convict in their family. These records provide such a wealth of information that they are sure to shock and surprise almost anyone looking for the missing links in their Irish family tree.”

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findmypast.ie Launches Online Irish Family History Forums

findmypast.ie has announced the launch of one of the first online forums solely dedicated to those researching their Irish family history. The forum is an online community for the Irish diaspora to discuss everything from researching Irish family history and Irish geography, to success stories and what it means to be Irish. Free to all registered users, it represents the findmypast family’s first foray into community based chat.

Recognising the inherent difficulties involved in looking for Irish ancestors, the forum gives amateur and professional family historians alike the opportunity to ask their questions to like-minded researchers across the globe. This will enable members to benefit from the experience gained from those who have previously hit brick walls in their research and overcome them.

Brian Donovan of findmypast Ireland and long-time member of the Irish genealogy community commented: “The findmypast.ie forum is another indication of findmypast’s dedication to providing the world’s best platform for researching your Irish family history. I wish there had been an option like this available to me when I first started in genealogy.”

The forums are divided into six different message boards, and any registered user can start a new discussion on the boards. It also allows users to add responses to topics which have already been posted by other users. The six message board topics include General Discussion, Using the Records, Tracing Specific Ancestors, Places and Geography in Ireland, Your Finds and Success Stories and What Does it Mean to be Irish?

The forum on findmypast.ie allows users to keep track of discussions and posts they’ve created or contributed to, which enables them to keep up with any discussions they are involved in. Users can also watch discussions which interest them but they are not involved in so that they can go back and read it at any time.

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Findmypast.co.uk’s Merchant Navy Archives Reveal Photos Of UK ‘s Forgotten ‘Fourth Service’

Findmypast.co.uk has announced one million 20th century Merchant Navy Seamen records are now online for the first time ever.

The launch saw records of crew members of UK merchant ships from 1918 to 1941 made available online, including rarely seen photos of the mariners. This is the first time that many relatives will be able to see what their seafaring ancestor looked like and also learn more about the people who made up Churchill’s ‘fourth service’.

However, when asked what the Merchant Navy was, 54% of the British population couldn’t answer correctly, even though almost 90% have heard of them. This is a sad fact considering the Merchant Navy was integral to putting Britain on the trade and industry world map and were named by Churchill as Britain’s ‘fourth service’.

The navy records provide fascinating details about each individual mariner. The most complete records have extremely detailed descriptions, including hair and eye colour, height, and distinguishing marks such as tattoos.

The shocking gap in Britain’s general knowledge is highest amongst the younger generation – just 26% of those aged under 35 know what the Merchant Navy is, compared to a wiser 64% of over 55s. Many will therefore be surprised to learn that the Merchant Navy consists of all seagoing UK vessels with commercial interests and their crews.

So it may be a shock to many that at various points in the last millennium, Britain had the largest merchant fleet in the world. The workforce on these vessels was a casual, ‘jobbing workforce’ so in any one year as many as 1.5 million people could be employed in the Merchant Navy, meaning many people are likely to find ancestors in these records.

Debra Chatfield, Marketing Manager at findmypast.co.uk, commented: “This is the first time the UK Merchant Navy Seamen records, with their fascinating images of the mariners, have been made available online. Many people aren’t sure what the Merchant Navy is, even though a large proportion of the UK population will have Merchant Navy seamen in their ancestry. Hopefully these records will help fill the gaps and people will enjoy learning about what life was like for the brave, seafaring merchants who helped the island nation of Britain prosper.”

The Merchant Navy Seamen records are the only set of their kind available online and have been published in association with The National Archives. The military records show that the seamen who made up the Merchant Navy not only came from the UK, but from every continent, with large numbers from across the English-speaking world (notably the Maritime provinces of Canada), from the West Indies and Sierra Leone, and from Scandinavia, Somaliland, China and Japan. There are even some seamen from landlocked Switzerland.

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Findmypast.co.uk Launches More New Records And Lowers Prices

Findmypast.co.uk, a leading UK family history website, has been adding to its existing collection of over 40 million parish records for England & Wales dating back to 1538.

The company has launched over 18,000 baptism, marriage and burial records from London & Kent dating from 1825-1871, covering the parishes of Greenwich and Rotherhithe.

These follow hot on the heels of 79,842 parish records from Gwent (formerly Monmouthshire), spanning the years 1634 to 1933, which were also published on the site recently. These records cover the parishes of Chepstow, Shirenewton, Bedwellty, Beaufort, Mynddislwyn and Risca. Monmouth workhouse baptisms and burials are also included. Gwent Family History Society are providing these records on findmypast.co.uk as part of an on-going project between findmypast.co.uk and the Federation of Family History Societies to publish more parish records online, making it possible to trace back ancestors long before the start of civil registration in 1837.

20,000 burial records from the St Mary parish of Lambeth for 1819-1838 were also published online at findmypast.co.uk, supplied by East Surrey Family History Society, along with 128,000 burial records for the years 1802-1846 from the East Kent Burial Index.

Findmypast.co.uk has also announced the lowering of its prices, with full, annual subscriptions to the website, which allow access to all the historical records on the site, and annual foundation subscriptions both now cheaper than ever before. Both include the complete 1911 census for England & Wales.

Paul Yates, Head of findmypast.co.uk said: “We’re committed to making family history as affordable as possible, while still ensuring that we continue to deliver a steady stream of fascinating, new family history records to our customers every month.”

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findmypast.co.uk Publishes Over Half A Million British Militia Records

Findmypast.co.uk, the leading family history website, has published the records of over half a million men who served in the British militia, the precursor to the UK’s Territorial Army. The Militia Attestation Papers, covering 1806 to 1915, were made available online for the first time to coincide with British Armed Forces Day on 25 June 2011.

The records colourfully portray what the British militia looked like, detailing the height, weight, chest size, complexion, eye colour, hair colour and distinctive marks of each recruit. Arthur Wilson’s distinguishing marks included an acrobat and dots tattooed on his left forearm. Similarly, Albert Smith, born in India, was recorded as having teeth that were ‘defective but enough for mastication’.

Debra Chatfield, marketing manager at findmypast.co.uk, commented: “These records provide rich insight into our past and show how the everyday man, such as your local shopkeeper, found himself fighting for his country. In the absence of photographs, these records can help you imagine what your ancestors looked like, containing details which are largely unavailable elsewhere. Our easy to use website means you can unearth even more fascinating and detailed information about your ancestors at the click of a mouse.”

Like today’s Territorial Army, the militia was made up of men who held everyday jobs, but took part in military exercises and on occasions fought for their country. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, these typically included shoemakers, woodchoppers, butchers, bakers, coal miners and millers.

The Militia Attestation Papers are the only set of their kind available online and have been published in association with The National Archives and in partnership with FamilySearch. The records show that the soldiers who made up the militia during that period hailed not only from the UK itself, but also from around the world. Some recruits had been born in Italy, Ceylon, South Africa and even as far away as Australia and New Zealand.

David Rencher, chief genealogy officer at FamilySearch added: “The publication of the Militia Attestation Papers fills another critical gap in the family historian’s toolkit. The digitisation and indexing of this rich collection will make it easy to find the regiment an ancestor served with and also when and where he was born. Family historians will quickly realise the value of this information, particularly when the record of an ancestor’s birth has been elusive or impossible to find elsewhere.”

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Genes Reunited Releases Ship Passenger Records Online

Genes Reunited, the family history website, has announced that people will now be able to view passenger lists online. The lists include people onboard ships departing British ports for long-distance voyages across the world from 1890 to 1960.

The passenger records offer a range of information from simply the passenger’s name and age, to much more detailed information; the departure and destination ports, the ship’s name, date of travel as well as actual descriptions of the passengers themselves, such as, UK address, year of birth, marital status, occupation and nationality. Through these records it is possible to find some truly unique information about ancestors who voyaged overseas.

As well as the range of detail that can be found in these records, there are also some famous names which can be discovered, in particular Hollywood royalty such as a two year old Elizabeth Taylor, a 56 year old Alfred Hitchcock, a 22 year old Audrey Hepburn and finally a four year old Olivia Newton-John who was on her way from London to Australia.

The passenger records cover the period of mass migration to Australia between 1947 and 1960 when an estimated 710,000 people travelled there from Great Britain. This ‘golden age’ of migration to Australia was prompted by the launch of the Government’s ‘Ten Pound Pom’ scheme to encourage Britons to emigrate to Australia and enhance the nation’s skilled workforce driving its economy forwards.

Similarly to today, the records reveal a high number of retirees also travelled to Australia to spend the rest of their lives in the sun, with 17,385 retirees emigrating from the UK during the 1950s. Furthermore, 140,511 housewives travelled to Australia in the same decade. The records also show that there were 58 divorcees and 215 widowers listed who may have journeyed to the country to make a fresh start.

Rhoda Breakell, head of Genes Reunited, commented: “The wealth of passenger list records now available on Genes Reunited is an invaluable resource for people tracing relatives they believe may have left the UK from 1890 onwards. The passenger records may very well provide a missing link for many family historians who have hit a brick wall in their research, as well as helping those outside of the UK to trace back to their British and European heritage.”

The easily-searchable and user-friendly database on the family history site will enable would-be genealogists and family historians alike to view digitised images of the original ship passenger records online, which contain over 1.1 million pages, listing the 24 million passengers who travelled on long-distance journeys from UK ports.

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Tracesmart Reports Increase In Demand Following Hit ITV Show

Tracesmart has announced an increase in the number of people utilising its leading data services as the ITV series ‘Long Lost Family’ inspires people to get in touch with missing relatives.

Presented by Davina McCall and Nicky Campbell, ITV’s hit series ‘Long Lost Family’ pulls at the nation’s heart strings as it gives those who are desperate to become reunited with their loved ones, a chance to find them.

With just one more episode left, the show has encouraged people across the country to get in touch with long lost relatives. Since the program was broadcast, Tracesmart has experienced a surge in their online people searching service. The company’s facility is also referenced in the show’s website help and advice page.

Founded in 1999 by a leading tracing expert, Tracesmart has been instrumental in reuniting thousands of lost family members and friends. One example of a family Tracesmart has recently helped reunite is brother and sister Peter and Rose Smith*.

The siblings were separated when Peter was only six months old. Peter was unaware of his sister’s existence until 1962 when she contacted him by letter. They remained in touch for many years, but Rose moved to Botswanna with her husband and they lost contact again.

Using Tracesmart’s electoral roll data, Peter was able to trace Rose and her family, who had later returned to live in England, and they had an emotional reunion earlier this month after 45 years.

Commenting on the link with ‘Long Lost Family’, Owen Roberts, Tracesmart’s Head of Public Relations, said: “Our people searching tools have proved an invaluable resource to families and friends trying to reunite. The link with ITV’s ‘Long Lost Family’ strengthens our position as one of the UK’s leading provider of consumer intelligence services, and we will continue to develop our products and services to help people reconnect.”

Tracesmart has gone from strength-to-strength, and has recently launched ‘Living Relative Search‘ in conjunction with Ancestry.co.uk, which helps people search for their living relatives. This year, the company is also launching a powerful brand new people search website ‘Peopletracer’, which currently powers Living Relative Search.

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Findmypast.co.uk Makes Birth Records Even Easier To Search

Findmypast.co.uk, leading UK family history website, has launched an easier way to find the births of English and Welsh ancestors online. The company has re-indexed over 100 million birth records dating from 1837 to 2006.

Findmypast.co.uk’s fully re-indexed birth records make finding ancestors much simpler and includes: search results in the form of a list of individual names; the ability to search the complete 1837-2006 set of birth records in one go or by one or more counties at a time; new high quality images; smart search features including variations of a name; records of children unnamed at registration; and searching by mother’s maiden name at the same time to help find the most elusive births.

With this new resource now available, findmypast.co.uk has uncovered some interesting facts about the births that were registered between 1837 and 2006: 10 babies named Fish Fish born between 1840 and 1883, bizarrely, all in Lancashire. The list includes one Fish Fish Fish born in Blackburn in 1864; Just five Ringos were registered in 1964 and 1965, compared with 2,414 Georges, 36,877 Johns and 56,170 Pauls; six Dick Turpins were registered between 1854 and 1916; four Maradonas were registered in 1986, the year of the infamous ‘Hand of God’ goal; eight Peles were registered between 1970 and 1972, following the footballer’s 1000th goal in 1969.

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Findmypast.co.uk Begins Publishing Chelsea Pensioners’ Service Records

Findmypast.co.uk publishes online Chelsea Pensioners’ British Army Service Records 1873-1900, providing colourful insights into the lives of ordinary ranking soldiers born in the UK and worldwide.

Leading family history website findmypast.co.uk has published online for the first time nearly half a million military service records of men who were pensioned out of the British Army between 1873 and 1900 and who received a pension administered through the Royal Hospital at Chelsea. Findmypast.co.uk has been working in association with The National Archives for nearly two years to scan, transcribe and publish these records online.

Known as “WO 97” at The National Archives, the first tranche of these records are now available to search online at findmypast.co.uk for the first time ever. Once complete, the entire collection will comprise over 6 million full colour images of the service records of soldiers in the British Army in receipt of a pension administered by The Royal Hospital Chelsea, and who were discharged between the dates 1760 and 1913. Many of the soldiers listed will have served in some of Britain’s most significant wars, including the Battle of Waterloo, the Crimean and both Boer Wars.

The details that can be found in these records are invaluable to family and military historians, providing a rich and colourful story of people’s family history, with a level of detail that is hard to find in any other historical records. The information could include the soldier’s date and place of birth, name and address of next of kin, height, hair and eye colour, distinguishing features such as tattoos, rank and regiment, occupation before joining the army, medical history and when and where the soldier served.

Debra Chatfield of findmypast.co.uk, said: “The Chelsea Pensioners British Army Service Records are a rich resource for family historians. For each soldier you’ll find a minimum of 4 pages of information, including a physical description and details of other family members such as dates of their baptism and marriage. These fascinating, detailed records enable you to find out so much about your soldier ancestors, even including what they looked like, long before the invention of photography.”

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Tracesmart launches the 2010 Electoral Register

The end of the calendar year is the period when local authorities make available their amassed edited Electoral Registers, and again Tracesmart is at the forefront following the announcement that they have already started incorporating the newly released 2010 data into their extensive catalogue of consumer information. As one of the UK’s leading data specialists, Tracesmart maintains its position and reputation by ensuring the data they hold is the most up-to-date possible, providing their clients with access to the latest information obtainable.

The UK electorate populate two registers which are collated by local authorities. The first is the full Electoral Register, which is utilised to facilitate local and national elections and is also employed by credit reference agencies. The second is the edited Electoral Register which holds the data of those individuals who did not ‘opt-out’ whilst completing their registration form. This list is held in the public domain and is commercially available. Tracesmart utilises this information, along with previously accumulated data, to provide identity checks, data cleansing and tracing solutions to the nation’s businesses and industries.

Tracesmart Corporate has a diverse and constantly growing legion of companies employing their online facilities to trace people, and verify individuals as part of fraud prevention procedures. Edited Electoral Register records provide indispensable information for both identity checks and tracing exercises, as they contain names and addresses of UK citizens; key information needed to identify or locate an individual.

Commenting on the release of the newly uploaded Electoral Register data, Paul Weathersby, Tracesmart’s Technical Director, remarked, “Once again, Tracesmart leads the way in delivering Electoral Register information. We have uploaded millions of new records to our system in a very short period and they are already fully searchable. We pride ourselves on this rapid integration which guarantees our customers early access to the best data available.”

Loading of the 2010 edited Electoral Register data into Tracesmart’s systems will continue throughout December and January; it is anticipated that the edited register will be fully integrated by the end of January 2010.

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2010 Electoral Roll now available at Tracesmart

In addition to the Christmas festivities, the end of the year brings with it a period when local authorities make new Electoral Roll data available. As in previous years, Tracesmart lead the way, as they have already started incorporating the newly released 2010 data into their people search facility.

As the most up-to-date yearly snapshot of the UK’s adult population, the Electoral Roll is at the core of Tracesmart‘s people search service. There are two versions of the electoral database produced each year, the full Electoral Roll and the edited. Tracesmart utilises the edited version, together with a variety of other datasets such as directory enquiries and birth, death and marriage indexes, to make it as easy as possible for individuals to find relatives and friends.

Ensuring their customers have access to the most up-to-date data available has always been one of Tracesmart’s fundamental principles and loading Electoral Roll data at the earliest possible time is a key part of this ethos. Paul Weathersby, Technical Director at Tracesmart, explained further,

“Every year since Tracesmart formed, we have aimed to load the new edited Electoral Roll records earlier than the previous year, and ahead of our competitors. This year is no different and I am pleased to say that we have loaded new Electoral Roll records earlier than ever before, ensuring our customers have access to this important data at the earliest possible juncture.”

Now is the perfect time for Tracesmart customers to utilise the new 2010 electoral data within their searches as it can be used in an address search to update contact details in readiness for posting Christmas cards, gifts and party invites. Alternatively it can be used to locate relatives in time for a Christmas family reunion.

Commenting on the release of the newly uploaded Electoral Roll data, Owen Roberts, Tracesmart’s Communications Manager, remarked, “We hope the newly added Electoral Roll data will help make more reunions possible. Our researchers are already using it to great success and I am confident that the new data will benefit those gearing up for Christmas, who are looking to be reunited with loved ones.”

Tracesmart has added millions of edited Electoral Roll 2010 records onto their system and will continue to do so throughout December and January. It is anticipated that all of the edited Electoral Roll records for 2010 will be loaded by the end of January.

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