Newsletter 30th
March 2021
Another source for the 1939 Register BREAKING NEWS
Last chance to save
on Ancestry DNA UK ONLY ENDS WEDNESDAY
MASTERCLASS: Tracking
down pre-1837 baptisms and marriages
The LostCousins
newsletter is usually published 2 or 3 times a month (though this is the fourth
issue in March). To access the previous issue (dated 20th March) click here; to find earlier articles use the customised Google search between
this paragraph and the next (it searches ALL of the newsletters since February
2009, so you don't need to keep copies):
To go to the main
LostCousins website click the logo at the top of this newsletter. If you're not already a member, do join - it's FREE, and you'll
get an email to alert you whenever there's a new edition of this newsletter
available!
Another source for the 1939 Register BREAKING
NEWS
As
I was finalising this newsletter I received a press release
from The Genealogist which revealed that they have become the fourth site (after
Findmypast and Ancestry) to make available a transcription of the 1939 Register, which is a surprisingly
useful source of information.
I
haven't had a chance to try it out yet, but one thing I
do know is that having different ways to search, and different sites to search
at, greatly improves the chance of finding elusive relatives!
You
can find out more here;
for general information about this unique 'census' see the special 1939 Register
Edition of this newsletter.
Note:
unlike Findmypast and Ancestry, The Genealogist does not have images of the register pages,
This wasn't immediately apparent from a quick glance at their press release (which was all I
had time for before the newsletter 'went to press'.
Last chance to save on Ancestry DNA UK ONLY
ENDS WEDNESDAY
Thanks
to DNA I'm tantalisingly close to knocking down one of
my most frustrating 'brick walls' and after almost 20 years spent fruitlessly
searching the surviving records it seems like a minor miracle.
But
DNA isn't a miracle, it's science, and just as science
is helping the world to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic, we can use science to
help overcome the blockages in our family tree. Of course, sometimes those
blockages are of our own making, rather like the container ship that veered off
course and blocked the Suez Canal but even then science
can bale us out, provided we open our minds to the
possibilities.
Until
Wednesday 31st March researchers in the UK can save 25% on Ancestry DNA and the
good news is that you don't need to say who'll be
testing when you place your order, so you don't have to decide now who is going
to test nor do you have to limit yourself to a single test kit (the shipping
charge works out less when you order more than one).
Please
use the link below so that LostCousins can benefit from your order (note that
if you are logged-in at Ancestry you'll need to
log-out first):
Ancestry.co.uk
(UK only) Ancestry DNA reduced from £79 to £59 (plus shipping) ENDS 31ST MARCH
Note:
if you can't see the link it's because your browser is
hiding it (a particular problem with Firefox); if you dont want to change your
settings the simplest solution is to view the newsletter in a different
browser.
I'm
not a Facebook fan, but I couldn't help mentioning this post,
which shows part of the birth certificate for a child was born at a bus stop. Were
any of your family members born in an unusual location and, if
so, what was shown on their birth certificate?
From
this week it's once again legal to get married in England,
but no more than 6 people including the happy couple and the witnesses can attend.
And if you want to entertain your guests all 4 of them to a wedding breakfast
you'll have to do it outside, in a private garden.
I'm very pleased to be able to share with you a
good news story about family graves from LostCousins member June:
"I
dont know if anyone else will be interested in my experience of how I came to
be the owner of two graves? It all came about when I was researching my great
grandmother Sarah (Sissy) Stapleton later Gamblin nee Ord b. 1873 and her
father my x 2 great gfather Stephen Tate Ord b. 1842 in Westoe now part of
South Shields.
"Stephen was an
engineer who moved from County Durham to Portsmouth in Hampshire. I knew a lot
about them but not where they were buried, so I wrote to Portsmouth County
Council. They advised me Stephen & his wife Mary nee Robson were buried in
Kingston Cemetery Portsmouth along with Stephens mother and gave me the grave
details. The Council also told me that Sissy and her 2nd husband Oliver Gamblin
were also buried in the same cemetery along with their little girl Beatrice. I
knew she had died of measles complications aged 5 years in 1917.
"Apparently
there used to be a headstone many years ago but like a lot of cemeteries it was
taken away and broken up (not laid down) for safety reasons, so nothing marked
the plot. They also explained that it was their policy if unable to contact the last known person in
their books, they had the right to take any action required. Of course,
everyone had passed
away or moved away by 1965. The other remarkable fact they told me was that lairs
are not owned forever according to Portsmouth City Council and could be reused
at any time if they run out of space in the cemetery.
"The
reason this happened to my relatives' headstones was because there were no
living relatives the council knew of to pay for any repairs.
"It
so happened that my own mother died in 2007 and left me a small legacy. I
decided to use the money to purchase the two lairs and have headstones erected.
It was a simple process, the purchase was done through Portmouth
City Council and
I then contacted a small company in Portsmouth who made headstones. They were
able to apply for the necessary approvals, we agreed on a design and wording,
and they then made and erected the headstones for me, also taking the enclosed
photographs.
"Whilst
not everyone would wish to do the same as me, I am very glad
I was in a position to do so. I have lost count of the number of times I have
stood in a cemetery and looked at a piece of grass with no indication of who is
buried below and feeling sad.
"Whilst
visiting Sheffield with my husband a few years ago we decided to go to the
cathedral church where I knew at least 4 of his relatives were buried. On a
busy public street just outside the church boundary many many headstones had
been used to make a pavement and an area for parking cars on!
"The
stones were all face up so, for instance, Jeannie Brown who died in 1860 had a
4 x 4 parked on her headstone. Inside the church boundary all the headstones bar
a dozen late 1700s ones had been used to make footpaths. Considering the
church grounds are used as a shortcut from one street to another there are
people treading over them constantly. I was appalled and wrote to the church
and the council only to be told it was a decision that had been made jointly.
Arrogantly they said they were only headstones, what mattered was that the
actual graves were still there.
"Maybe
I am being too sensitive but the above decision made
by them shows a total lack of respect and is perhaps indicative of attitudes
now adays. Or am I being too cynical?"
Have
you had a similar experience to June? Have you saved your ancestors' graves? Rather
than writing to me, please post your thoughts and suggestions on the
LostCousins Forum in the Latest Newsletter area there everyone will be
able to read them.
MASTERCLASS: Tracking down
pre-1837 baptisms and marriages
Researching ancestors who lived in England & Wales
is usually fairly straightforward until we get back to
1841, the date of the first census, and 1837, the year that civil registration
began. But then it becomes much tougher, for a number of
inter-related reasons. In this Masterclass I'm
going to first talk through the problems, and then explain how you can overcome
them.
Why we need to use different techniques
When we're researching after 1837
we can refer to the GRO indexes, which (in theory at least) list everyone who
was born, or married, or died in England & Wales. Once we get to 1841 we can also refer to censuses which (again, in theory)
list everyone in the country on a certain night. Best of all, those indexes and
censuses are available online, so anybody anywhere can get access to them.
But before 1837 we don't have
either of those available to us - prior to the introduction of civil
registration parish registers are by far the best sources of early information
(and often the only surviving documents that name our ancestors).
Most people were baptised, most of those who have descendants alive today got
married, and the one thing you can be sure of is that they eventually died, in
which case they'll almost certainly have been buried
somewhere.
However, even though the vast
majority of parish registers have survived, at least from the 17th
century onwards, they're scattered across the nation rather than held
in a central store. In most cases the original registers are held by the county
record office, which means you cannot go to any one record office - not even
the National Archives - and expect to find all the baptisms for (say) 1797.
Indeed, even if you visit the repository of the registers
you're seeking the chances are you'll only be able to view them on microfilm
and microfilmed entries can be hard to decipher.
Many registers have been transcribed, often by
volunteers, and in some cases the transcriptions have been made available
online. However you can't just go to one website and
search through every parish register that has ever been transcribed, because
some transcriptions are available at one site, some at another - and even if
you have the time to visit them all, many of the transcriptions are only available
at subscription sites, so you may not be able to access them. Furthermore, some
of the transcriptions are only available on CD ROM or on microfiche - usually
through family history societies - and many registers have still NEVER been
transcribed.
Faced with such a different situation some faint-hearted
researchers just give up - research pre-1837 is so different that they are
scared to even try. Some try, but fail - either
because they don't fully understand how best to make use of the available
resources, or because they don't realise just how much is available to them. And
then there are those who pick an entry simply because it's
the only one they can find or because the website they use has 'hinted' that its
the entry they're looking for.
Because of the way that records are scattered across
the country, across the Internet, and across different media, it's tempting to adopt an unfocused "where shall I try
next" approach. Now, I'm not a professional
genealogist, but one thing I do know is that professional genealogists always
search logically and methodically, and above all they record where they
have searched and what they have searched for. In the days
when I was still able to provide one-to-one research help to every member I'd frequently be told "I've searched everywhere"
yet when pressed they couldn't tell me which parishes they'd searched, which
periods the searches covered, or even - in some cases - precisely what surnames
and spellings they looked for.
Start by gathering evidence
First collect all the evidence that indicates - no
matter how obliquely - where and when your ancestor is likely to have been
born. Sources of information will often include early censuses, marriage
certificates, and death certificates - all of which can be helpful,
but can also be misleading.
The fact is, many people didn't
know where they were born, so often the birthplace they gave when the
enumerator came round is the place - or one of the places - where they grew up.
Similarly, some people didn't know how old they were -
they might have known when they were born, but that isn't the
question on the census form. It asks for their age, and not everyone was capable of subtracting one year from another,
particularly if the years were in different centuries.
Remember too, that it was the householder who was
responsible for completing the form (or supplying the information to the
enumerator) - the ages and birthplaces of adopted children, stepchildren, servants and visitors are particularly likely to be incorrect.
Find out what's available online
When I began researching my family tree there was very little information available online only one England
& Wales census and not a single parish register. Most research had to be
carried out at local record offices, or at the Family Records Centre in London,
which opened in 1997 and closed just over a decade later. (Those who started
before I did have memories of visiting St Catherine's House, Alexandra House, or
Somerset House; some recall making appointments to inspect parish registers when
they were still held at the church.)
These days there is a wealth of records online,
including parish registers from many areas. But whilst most of the registers
that are online (and many that aren't) have been
indexed there is no single source you can go to, and many of the registers and
indexed transcriptions are behind paywalls. It's therefore
very tempting to search a handful of sites and ignore the others.
Beginners especially are often tempted to take the
first entry that fits and add it to their tree, even if the name is such a
common one that a comprehensive search would throw up dozens of alternatives.
The most blatant errors are usually made by those whose knowledge of geography
is limited by their inability to look at a map!
FamilySearch
A good place to start your search is the FamilySearch
website it's free, but you will need to register. At
one time the International Genealogical Index (IGI) at FamilySearch was the key
source for family historians, with more parish register entries than all other
websites added together. However, over time the IGI gained a poor reputation because
of the way that transcribed entries from registers were interspersed with entries
from Bishop's Transcripts, and more dangerously entries submitted by
individuals that usually had no documented source, and in some cases seemed to be
no more than conjecture.
When the FamilySearch site was relaunched around a
decade ago the IGI temporarily disappeared, although for a while the old site
was still accessible if you knew how (as readers of this newsletter did!). When
it returned it had been completely transformed the entries had been split between
Community Indexed (those added as part of an organised transcription
project), and Community Contributed (added by individuals). Subsequently
the indexed entries were split into individual record collections, but you can
still search them by following this link.
If you don't find the entry
you're seeking in the IGI it's usually because the register that contains the
entry hasn't been transcribed and included in the index. Although FamilySearch
has at some point microfilmed most of the surviving parish registers, only about
half have been transcribed and indexed - so half the baptisms and marriages you're looking for won't be in the database at all (note: hardly
any burials for England & Wales are included in the IGI).
How can you find out which entries are included?
The simplest way is to refer to Steve Archer's site (which
covers Scotland and Ireland as well as England & Wales). As well as listing
the years of coverage by parish and by event the site also gives the relevant batch
numbers - searching by batch number is not only a great way to limit your
search to a specific parish, it's a great way to overcome transcription errors
or entries that have been recorded incorrectly by the clergyman who conducted
the service (when you omit the person's name you'll get a listing of all the
entries in the batch).
What should you do if the parish you're
interested in is included in the IGI, but you still can't find the entry you're
looking for despite searching through the relevant batch (in case there has
been a major transcription error)? This suggests that the event didn't take place where you think it did, or when you think
it did - or it didn't take place at all (not all children were baptised, and
not all baptisms were recorded in the register, especially between 1783-94 when
Stamp Duty was charged).
Find out which other parishes are nearby
There are at least two ways to do this. One is to use
a 'parish locator' (such as the free ParLoc program)
to get a list of all the parishes around the town or village where you believe
your ancestor to have been born or married. In the country you might use a 5 mile radius, but in London that could give you a list of
100 or more parishes - so a radius of 1 or 2 miles might be more appropriate.
Tip: the nearest parish church may have been in a
different parish - the size and shape of parishes varies enormously.
Another option is to use the maps at FamilySearch -
start with the parish where you had expected to find the baptism or marriage,
then use the Radius Search (found on the Options tab). For example,
when I was looking for the baptism of my great-great-great-great-great grandfather,
who married at Fornham St Martin in Suffolk in 1763 I
got these results:
It was quite sobering to discover that there were 28 parishes
within a 5 mile radius of Fornham
St Martin. I eventually found the baptism I was looking for in a parish that
was 9 miles away there were 84 other parishes which were closer, a daunting
number if the only resources available were a microfiche reader and a drawerful
of microfiches.
If you haven't been able to find the baptism or marriage you're looking for in the IGI this strongly
suggests that it's recorded in a register that isn't included in that index, so
you should go back to Steve Archer's invaluable website to find out which
parishes aren't included in the IGI for the relevant period - and theyre the
ones to focus your attention on.
Tip: many FamilySearch records will also be found at
Ancestry and/or Findmypast; similarly Findmypast have
provided FamilySearch with indexed census transcriptions. Being able to search
the same records at multiple websites can be useful, but
be careful not to pay for records that you could get for nothing elsewhere!
Although you can search all of
the transcribed parish register entries with a single search from the
FamilySearch home page, you won't find any records that are only present as
unindexed images. It's therefore essential that you're
aware of the unindexed images at the FamilySearch site that
may be of relevance to your research.
To find out which records FamilySearch has for a
particular country, click on the map that you'll
find here.
The list of records is divided into two sections,
transcribed records (which may or many not include
images) and image-only records. A camera icon indicates which of the
transcribed record sets have images associated with them, but this doesn't necessarily mean you'll be able to view those
images, as some which have a key next to the camera - are only available
within an LDS Family History Centre or affiliated library (such as the Society
of Genealogists Library).
As regular readers of the LostCousins newsletter will
know, sometimes there can be images available which are available to all users
of the FamilySearch site, but are hard to find. The best way to find out what
records are available for a particular parish is to carry out a Catalogue
search.
Tip: an often overlooked feature of the new
FamilySearch site is the 'wiki', which provides information about
individual parishes, often including details
of online sources of register transcriptions and/or images at other sites
(follow this link to see an example). I find that the
easiest way to find a parish within the wiki is to use a Google search, for
example 'familysearch wiki great barton'.
Another site worth trying is the Online Genealogical
Index.
Another free site with a large collection of
transcriptions is FreeREG - at the time of writing it had over 25 million baptisms, nearly
8 million marriages, and over 18 million burials in its database. However, they're not evenly spread across the country: some counties
are very well catered for, but others less so - however it's fairly easy to see
what is and isn't there. Other volunteer-led projects include the Online Parish
Clerk sites: they don't exist for every county, but the counties with by far
the best coverage are Cornwall, with over 3.5 million parish register
entries last time I checked, and Lancashire with around 10 million records.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries the contents
of some parish registers were published as books, and your best chance of
finding them is through sites such as the Internet Archive, another free site, where a search
for (say) 'Kent parish registers' brings up a long list of registers that have
been printed in book form and digitised for all to see (you'd pay to see some
of these records as subscription sites!). Another similar site is Google Books -
inevitably there is a big overlap between the two.
A straightforward Google search is always worth
trying, as quite a few individuals have transcribed parish registers and posted
the results on their own websites, and some record offices have information
that you can search free online, for examples Hertfordshire has a range of records
including a marriage index, whilst Medway Archives have posted registers for
their part of Kent online (not transcribed, but at least they are at your
fingertips - and free).
Subscription and pay-per-view sites
An increasing number of parish registers and/or
register entries are becoming available online at Ancestry and Findmypast. When
I first wrote on this topic in February 2010 there were NO register images
available at either site, but now you can search Bexley,
Birmingham, Bristol,
Derbyshire, Dorset,
Gloucestershire,
Lancashire,
Liverpool,
London,
Manchester,
Norfolk, Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire,
Somerset,
Surrey,
Sutton,
Warwickshire,
Westminster,
West
Yorkshire, Wigan, Wiltshire,
and most of Wales
at Ancestry, and Cheshire,
Devon,
Hertfordshire,
most of East Kent,
Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Plymouth
& West Devon, Rutland, Shropshire,
Staffordshire,
Warwickshire, much of Yorkshire,
and most of Wales
at Findmypast. Ancestry also have parish registers for Jersey,
and a selection from Cornwall,
whilst Findmypast who used to have Westminster
register images, still have a complete transcription of the registers.
Note that there is relatively little duplication -
archives generally license their records on an exclusive basis, at least for
the first 5 or 10 years, which is why most serious researchers end up
subscribing to both of the two big sites (though not
necessarily at the same time). Many public libraries, especially in England,
have a subscription to Ancestry or Findmypast, sometimes both - so it's worth checking what's available in your area.
Tip: many cities and metropolitan boroughs have a
record office which holds the registers for their area, so that, for example,
the Lancashire collection at Ancestry doesn't include
records for every town that was originally part of the county. However Findmypast's Cheshire collection does include
Stockport, and also Warrington - which is now in Cheshire, but was previously
part of Lancashire.
Although there are no images, the National
Burial Index at Findmypast has over 16 million entries from England &
Wales, and most of the entries are pre-1837. Findmypast also has an extensive
range of transcribed parish records thanks to their relationships with the
Society of Genealogists and the Federation of Family History Societies.
Durham Records Online has 3.5 million
transcribed records from County Durham and Northumberland. The Joiner
Marriage Index has over 3 million marriage records from over 5000
parishes in 35 counties.
Essex Record Office offer online access to
most of their parish register collection through Essex Ancestors - and whilst
the subscription is quite steep at £95 a year (the cheapest subscription is £20
for one day), the quality of the images is excellent; many Essex wills are also
included. Essex Ancestors do not provide an index to their register entries,
but Ancestry have indexed
the Essex registers (and link to the images on a pay-per-view basis). If you
have an Essex Ancestors subscription this article
explains how to use it alongside the Ancestry transcription.
Society of Genealogists library
Many of the largest collections of transcribed records
held by the Society of Genealogists are available online to members: these
include Boyd's Marriage Index, which has particularly good coverage in some of
the counties (eg Suffolk
and Essex) that are least well represented in the IGI; for a PDF list of all the online collections click here. Many of the records, including Boyd's Marriage Index are
also available through Findmypast.
The Society of Genealogists has many more records in
its library, including an amazing collection of records on CD ROMs and
microfiche collected by family history societies and other organisations. In August 2017 an enormous collection of microfilms which were
previously held by the LDS London Family History Centre was added. Non-members
can use the SoG library on payment of a fee, which
ranges from £5 for 2 hours to £18 for a full day - more details are
available here.
Family history societies
Many family history societies have transcribed parish
registers and headstone inscriptions, and often these are made available as CD
ROMs or digital downloads; some have online indexes (usually only available to
members), others have a lookup service.
Record offices and archives
When you're within striking
distance of the relevant record office there's no substitute for visiting in
person - but check first what's available online so that you don't waste your
time there looking up records you could just as easily (or perhaps, more
easily) have searched from the comfort of your own home. When I was beginning
my research I wasted a lot of time searching parish
registers that had already been indexed for the IGI - I should, of course, have
focused on the unindexed parishes.
Many record offices and archives will do research on a
paid basis - a typical charge is £30 per hour, which sounds a lot but in my
experience is usually money well spent. However independent researchers usually
charge much less, and some record offices will provide a list
(especially if they don't offer a research
service themselves). Please bear in mind that the
inclusion of a researcher on the list is not necessarily an endorsement of that
researcher, but local knowledge can be invaluable.
The importance of the Register of Banns
One of the key reasons we search for the marriages of
our ancestors is to find out the maiden names of our female ancestors (of
course, if they gave birth after 1837 you'll usually
find this information on the birth certificate). If the couple lived in
different parishes, which was not unusual, they had to decide which one to
marry in - and typically it would be the bride's parish that was chosen. This
creates a slight problem, because unless she survived until the 1851 Census we won't know where she was born (and even then, it wouldn't
necessarily be the parish where she was living at the time of her marriage).
Fortunately the banns register often comes to our rescue. Most people married
by banns, rather than by licence, and if the couple lived in different parishes
the banns would necessarily be read out in both, and so would be recorded in
the Banns register for both parishes. However, there are not
nearly as many banns registers available online as marriage registers - you're more likely to have to have to pay a visit to the record
office.
Non-Conformists, Catholics, and Quakers
Between 1754 and June 1837 Non-Conformists and
Catholics couldn't legally marry in their own
churches, so discovering that your ancestors married in their local parish
church doesnt mean that they belonged to the Church of England. Nor does
finding out that your ancestors were buried in the parish churchyard not all chapels
and meeting houses had their own burial ground. The religious census of 1851
found that as many people attended Catholic or Non-Conformist churches as
attended the Church of England, although attendance and allegiance are not the
same thing.
The best source of Catholic registers is Findmypast
you can see what they have to offer here.
Many Non-Conformist registers were sent to the General Register Office in the
19th century and ended up in the National Archives key sources include Ancestry,
The Genealogist,
and Findmypast.
Using the GRO's new online birth indexes
In November 2016 the General
Register Office made available online indexes of births and deaths which
include additional information. In particular, the mother's maiden name is now
shown in respect of births from 1837 onwards, which not only makes it easier to
locate the right birth entries, it might enable you to
knock down a 'brick wall' without purchasing the relevant certificate(s). Though
your ancestor might have been born before 1837, she might have a younger
sibling who was born afterwards.
And finally
..
Remember that people didnt stop
baptising their children when civil registration commenced in July 1837, and
most married in church even after they had the option of marrying in a register
office.
Note: although this Masterclass relates to records
from England & Wales, many of the techniques described can also be applied
to research in Scotland, Ireland, and other countries.
When
LostCousins started in 2004 with a few hundred members I could not only respond
to every email personally, but also offer research assistance. As the
membership expanded into the thousands and tens of thousands it became
impossible to provide one-to-one assistance to everybody, yet I was determined
to respond to every email myself as I still do today.
Note:
some of you may recall receiving emails which were apparently authored by other
members of 'The LostCousins Team', such as Robert Peters but I must confess
that there was no 'team', and that Robert Peters and his colleagues were Bunburys, a concept with which devotees of 'The Importance
of Being Earnest' will be familiar. (Apparently Bunbury was so important to the
storyline that according to this 1978 article Wilde came to
refer to the play as 'Bunbury'.)
The
solution I came up with was to condense everything I knew about a key topic
into a Masterclass there are now 10 in all so that, instead of having to
write to me and wait for a response, members could use the relevant Masterclass
as a guide. Even the most experienced researchers can use the Masterclasses as checklists,
to make sure that nothing has been overlooked.
In
general it's not a good idea to ask someone for help
unless you've been through the relevant Masterclass and followed the advice
that you found it implies that you consider that your time is more valuable
than theirs. Of course, the reverse is usually the case
...
I'm all for recycling, but I aim to reuse as much plastic packaging
whether it is ultimately recyclable or not. You'd expect
me to reuse glass jars as a committed jam maker they're an essential tool of the
trade but reusing plastic seems even more important given the pollution of
the environment that plastics can cause.
Some of the frozen foods I buy come in resealable
bags, and these are ideal for storing my own leftovers in the fridge and
freezer. Other food bags can be used in the preparation of meals, perhaps
lightly coating vegetables in oil and spices before roasting, perhaps tossing
meat or fish in a seasoned flour.
Yoghourt pots are great for seedlings, so I pass
them on to my wife, who is the head gardener but later in the year we'll use them to gather fruit from the hedgerows.
If you've got some recycling
tips that you'd like to share, please post them on the LostCousins Forum.
The first article has been amended to reflect that The Genealogist
only has transcripts of the 1939 Register pages, and not images.
There's lots more that I would have liked to have included in this
issue, however there simply isnt space. But don't worry, I'll be back soon with my first newsletter of April
until then stay safe, and make sure you have the vaccine when it's offered!
Peter Calver
Founder, LostCousins
© Copyright 2021 Peter Calver
Please do NOT copy or republish any part of this newsletter
without permission - which is only granted in the most exceptional
circumstances. However,
you MAY link to this newsletter or any article in it without asking for
permission - though why not invite other family historians to join LostCousins
instead, since standard membership (which includes the newsletter), is FREE? To
link to a specific article right-click on the article name in the contents list
at the top of the newsletter.