Newsletter – 7th November 2025
Cost of wills to increase by 966% BREAKING NEWS
Military records free at Findmypast ENDS THURSDAY
Wartime records free at Ancestry ENDS WEDNESDAY
Scottish land controversy resurfaces
TheGenealogist completes WW1 Casualty Lists NEW
Did your relative join a ‘Pals’ battalion?
Intriguing new subscription at Findmypast – will it suit you?
Save 25% at the British Newspaper Archive
2031 Census Consultation launched
The LostCousins newsletter is usually published 2 or 3 times a month. To access the previous issue (dated 1st November) 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):
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Cost of wills to increase by 966% BREAKING NEWS
When the cost of post-1858 wills dropped by 85% from £10 to £1.50 in July 2019 it was a very pleasant surprise – and I suspect that, like me, you’ve ordered all the wills you want. At least, I hope you have….
From Monday 17th November the cost is going up by 966%, from £1.50 to £16, a price that – according to paragraph 5.16 of the explanatory memorandum published by the government – is closer to the actual cost. Frankly, whether it is or whether it isn’t will depend entirely on whether someone else has ordered the will in the past 6 years, ie since the service went digital – if they have, then I doubt it costs more than £1.50 to process the order but, if they haven’t and the document(s) need to be located and digitized, then £16 is a much more realistic figure.
Note: allowing for inflation over the past 6 years the £10 charge prior to July 2019 is approximately equivalent to £14 today. For comparison, the GRO charges £8 for a PDF copy of a register entry which is always a single page: a will I ordered earlier this year comprised 17 pages.
Some people will see this swingeing increase as a response to the almost universal rejection of the Ministry of Justice’s plans to digitize all of the wills and destroy the originals. Whether or not this is the case, the best thing we can do right now is fill any gaps in our collection of post-1858 wills!
Military records free at Findmypast ENDS THURSDAY
Most of Findmypast’s 60 million military records are FREE from 10am (London time) on Friday 7th November until midnight on Thursday 13th November – it’s an opportunity to find out more about your relatives who served, especially during the Great War.
Tip: don’t assume that just because some of the record sets can also be found at other sites that there’s nothing new to find – I might never have found my grandfather’s WW1 records if it hadn’t been for Findmypast.
Please use the relevant link below so that Findmypast know that you’re a reader of this newsletter – it gives me more bargaining power when it comes to negotiating exclusive offers for LostCousins members!
You’ll need to log-in to Findmypast to be able to search the records, but I’d be surprised if there is anyone reading this who hasn’t previously signed up with Findmypast. If you’ve forgotten your Findmypast password that’s not a problem – you can reset it – however if you’ve changed your email address, and don’t have access to the old address, you may need to register anew.
Tip: you won’t be asked to provide payment information – unless you click ‘Free trial’. Although it’s well worth taking up the opportunity of a ‘Free trial’ if you’re not familiar with the Findmypast site, you only need to log-in (or register) in order to access the free records.
Wartime records free at Ancestry ENDS WEDNESDAY
Until midnight on Wednesday 12th November Ancestry are offering free access to their enormous collection of records from the era of the two World Wars – you’ll need to log-in (or register if you haven’t done so previously) but you won’t be asked to provide payment details unless you attempt to access records or images which are not part of the offer.
The World War 2 records are likely to be of particular interest, but please note that the new Military Services Records collection is currently only about 10% complete, and that some information in the records has been redacted, eg details of children:
UK, Military Service Records, 1939-1959 NEW
Westminster, England, World War II Records, 1939-1945 NEW
UK, Selected Smaller Units Service Records, 1921-1959
UK, World War II Army Casualty Lists, 1939-1945
UK, World War II Royal Artillery Tracer Cards, 1939-1948
UK, World War II Women's Land Army Index Cards, 1939-1948
UK, World War II War Diaries, 1939-1946
Scottish land controversy resurfaces
ScotlandsPeople have just released records which list over 16,000 crofters and cottars on Scotland’s estates across the Highlands and Islands. The information was collected in connection with the Napier Commission, a public inquiry set up to investigate crofters’ claims of unfair treatment by landlords following the Highland Clearances (which you read about here).
You can search the records at ScotlandsPeople here – searching is free, but each record you view costs 2 credits. You can also view the Napier Commission returns free of charge here, but they are indexed only by location (not name) whilst the images themselves are dimmed, and watermarked.
Coincidentally, this week the Scottish Parliament voted on the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill, which aims to reduce the concentration of land ownership – currently 40% of rural land in Scotland is in the hands just 421 owners (including individuals, companies, and trusts). You can find out more in this BBC article.
TheGenealogist completes WW1 Casualty Lists NEW
With the addition of 1,090,293 new Casualty List Records from the First World War, covering the period 8th April 1918 to 4th March 1919, TheGenealogist have completed their coverage of the War Office Casualty Lists – now totalling more than 4.5 million entries.
Amongst the latest additions are Second Lieutenant Clive Staples (Jack) Lewis of the Somerset Light Infantry – better known as C S Lewis, author of the classic Narnia tales. You can see his entry in the Casualty Lists in this online article.
Please bear in mind that casualties may have been reported several weeks after the event: for example, the death of my great-uncle Herbert Calver at Ypres on 27th January 1916 was not reported until 14th February.
Note that you may find two entries for soldiers who were wounded, and later died from their wounds, or who were reported missing, and later confirmed dead. For example, Sgt J Sturdy of the 8th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment was reported missing on 2nd November 1915, but confirmed dead on 14th February 1916.
Did your relative join a ‘Pals’ battalion?
When the Great War began Britain was the only major power involved not to have a large army supported by conscription – and it was soon realised that if men were given the opportunity to serve alongside their friends and colleagues they would be more likely to volunteer.
This page on the website of the Imperial War Museum lists just some of the battalions that were raised. Many of the Pals battalions did not see action until the Battle of the Somme, which began on 1st July 1916 – on the IWM site you can see photograph of smiling soldiers of the 10th Battalion, East Yorkshire Regiment (Hull Commercials) taken just a few days earlier. Little did they know what was to come…. on the first day of the battle there were over 57,000 British casualties and nearly 20,000 British soldiers died.
If members of your family served in one of those battalions you can contribute information here, on the Findmypast site (no subscription is required).
1st July 1916 – considered by many to be the worst day in British military history – was also the day that my grandfather, Harry John Buxton Calver, was found fit for service in the British Army.
© Crown Copyright Image reproduced by courtesy of The National Archives, London, England and Findmypast
At just 5ft 8in he was short by today’s standards, but he was 2in taller than the average British soldier in WW1. The minimum height for recruits was 5ft 3in, but later in the war this requirement was relaxed (see the next article).
Conscription in Britain didn’t commence until the passing of the Military Service Act, which was passed on 27th January 1916, and came into force in 2nd March 1916. It applied to single men between 18 and 40 years of age.
Although married men and widowers with children were initially exempt, a second act passed on 25th May 1916 removed this exemption with effect from 24th June 1916.
My grandfather must have had mixed feelings. On the one hand his only surviving brother, Herbert, had been killed at Ypres on 27th January 1916, the very day on which the first conscription legislation had been passed – so he might well have wanted to avenge his brother’s death.
On the other hand, his wife had just given birth to her second child – my father – and this must have been quite a concern, because after the birth of her first child my grandmother had spent 8 months as an inmate of Essex County Lunatic Asylum (presumably with post-natal depression, although that wasn’t recorded).
It was only when I was writing this article that I noticed that my father’s medical examination had taken place in Warley, about 12 miles from his home in Seven Kings. Is it a coincidence that Warley was also the location of the lunatic asylum – surely there must have been several recruiting centres closer to his home? If you look closely you’ll see that the form is stamped ‘ILFORD’ in the right-hand corner – this is probably where he attested.
I’ve been unable to find any evidence that my grandmother had been readmitted to the asylum – the surviving records are held at Essex Record Office – but as some were burnt or damaged by water in a fire prior to being deposited at the ERO it’s possible that the relevant records have been lost, or are awaiting conservation.
Although my grandfather passed the medical examination on 1st July 1916, his army service didn’t begin until 26th January 1917, so I wonder whether he was allowed to defer his call-up so that he could be at home with his wife and their new baby during those crucial first few months?
What will you notice for the first time when you take another look at your ancestors’ military records?
You may have noticed that the army medical form reproduced above shows my grandfather’s first name as Henry, rather than Harry. It’s an understandable error – Harry was a pet form of Henry, but in this case Harry was the name that appeared in the birth register.
You may have noticed another anomaly – the birth certificate shows him as Harry Buxton John, whereas all other records show ‘John’ before ‘Buxton’. My late father was quite taken aback when I showed him the certificate.
Buxton was my great-grandmother’s maiden name, but it doesn’t really belong in my tree – Emily Buxton was the illegitimate daughter of Sarah Buxton née Hunt, whose husband John Buxton had died three years earlier. Sarah Hunt was also illegitimate, but that’s a story for another day….
When the war began
recruiting offices were flooded with men wanting to enlist, and in September
1914 the minimum height was raised from 5ft 3in to 5ft 6in to control the
numbers. But by October the flood had dwindled, so the minimum was lowered to
5ft 4in, and again to 5ft 3in in November.
More soldiers were needed, so the War Office came up with the idea of ‘bantam regiments’ comprised entirely of men between 5ft and 5ft 3in in height – although their officers were of normal stature.
This archived page from the BBC Gloucestershire website tells the story of five brothers who died in the Great War, three of whom had enlisted in the 16th Cheshires, one of the bantam battalions.
You can also read more about the bantam battalions in this BBC article from 2015.
Was justice served?
Have you been following Findmypast’s podcast series about true crimes? There are 12 episodes so far, all of which you can find here – and each one is supported by a portfolio of clippings from the British Newspaper Archive.
Intriguing new subscription at Findmypast – will it suit you?
I noticed this week that Findmypast are not only offering a choice of annual, quarterly and monthly subscriptions, they’re also offering a pay-monthly annual subscription. There’s no doubt that times are hard, so it’s good to have as many options as possible.
Shorter subscriptions tend to be more expensive, but annual subscriptions normally require a big up-front payment. The new pay-monthly annual subscription is a compromise which won’t appeal to everyone, but it could be just perfect for you.
To check out the full range of subscriptions and prices just click the relevant link below, then press the big yellow View options button – you might be pleasantly surprised!
Save
25% at the British Newspaper Archive
You can currently save 25% on subscriptions to the British Newspaper Archive website, the world’s biggest online collection of British and Irish newspapers, with over 97 million pages (and more added every week).
Just follow this link, enter the code NOV2525 in the box labelled Have a promo code?, then click Apply.
Bear in mind that you can access the same newspapers with a Findmypast Everything subscription, and if you’re a family historian that may well be the better option. Check out the cost here.
Until 20th November Ancestry.co.uk are offering DNA tests for £39 plus shipping (the full price is £79 plus shipping, although I don’t suppose many people pay full price for anything these days!).
DNA tests are almost half-price in Australia and New Zealand – down from $129 to just $69 plus shipping, the lowest price I can remember. There’s also a sale at Ancestry.ca with $50 off the standard test.
The Ancestry test remains the one that I recommend – partly because their database is far larger than any of their competitors, which means you’ll get far more useful matches with genetic cousins, but mainly because of the clever way that they integrate their vast collection of family trees in order to save you time and effort.
Please use the relevant link below so that there’s a chance that LostCousins can benefit should you make a purchase:
UK & IRL: Save up to 50% on AncestryDNA®. Terms Apply.
AUS & NZ: Save up to $65* on Ancestry®! Terms Apply.
Canada: Save now! Up to $75* off AncestryDNA®. Terms Apply.
2031 Census Consultation launched
I’ve just discovered that on 28th October the Office for National Statistics launched a consultation into the 2031 Census for England & Wales – you’ll find it here. Responses will be accepted up to 4th February 2026, so I will take a close look and get back to you with my thoughts in a future newsletter.
You’ll probably recall that back in July I revealed that Amazon.co.uk were ‘selling’ the Kindle version of The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland for £0 – a bargain compared to its previous price of £260.
It was never clear why the price had been slashed, or why the price cut only applied in the UK, though I speculated that it might be something to do with the public funding provided to the project.
But, for well over 2000 readers of this newsletter, it probably didn’t matter – because they were able to secure a free copy thanks to my tip (as, no doubt, did many readers of Who Do Think You Are? magazine, which also publicised my discovery).
Sadly the price has now gone back up, not all the way to £260, but to £216.66 – which puts it well out of reach for most people. Nevertheless, I suppose you could argue that I’ve saved LostCousins members about half a million pounds, which would make it the biggest saving of any tip in the 21-year history of this newsletter!
On Saturday I rushed out my first newsletter of November so that readers in the UK could take advantage of another Kindle bargain – 35 of the books in the Tracing Your Ancestors….. series published by Pen & Sword were on offer at just 99p.
At any given time there are usually a few of the books in the series which are discounted, typically about 5, but 35 is by far the highest number I’ve ever seen. Around 1700 of the 99p bargains had been purchased up to 5th November, with the biggest sellers being Tracing Your Nonconformist Ancestors, with 123 copies, and Tracing Your Poor Ancestors (119 copies).
Both of those Kindle books have now gone back up – to £4.99 and £3.99 respectively – but there are still 25 other books in the series discounted to 99p so, if you are in the UK, my advice is to follow this link and take your pick!
Tip: you don’t need a Kindle to read Kindle books – just a computer, a tablet, or a smartphone. And for every 99p book you buy, LostCousins will benefit to the tune of 3p.
I wish I could find similar offers for readers outside the UK, but I can’t – because I’ve no way of knowing what the prices of Kindle books are in other countries. So, if you spot some similar bargains on your local Amazon site, do please let me know so that I can share them with readers in your home country!
This is where any major updates and corrections will be highlighted - if you think you've spotted an error first reload the newsletter (press Ctrl-F5) then check again before writing to me, in case someone else has beaten you to it......
I hope you’ve found this newsletter useful – I’ll be back with more news later in the month.
Peter Calver
Founder, LostCousins
© Copyright 2025 Peter Calver
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