Newsletter – 6th
October 2023
Modern electoral registers updated to 2023 NEW
1910-15 Land Valuation
for Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire NEW
Save on Ancestry DNA
tests SALE AROUND THE WORLD
How to manage someone
else’s DNA test
Is that my ancestor in
the census?
Is that my ancestor
in the baptism register?
How to join the
LostCousins Forum
Review: The Irish
Convict RECOMMENDED
The LostCousins
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Modern
electoral registers updated to 2023
For
most of the past week Findmypast’s invaluable UK
Electoral Registers & Companies House Directors record set has been unavailable
– and now I know why, they’ve been adding 12 million records to bring it up to
date to 2023. There are now over 124 million records, covering every part of
the UK, as well as the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands.
It’s
important to remember that one of the downside of a modern record set like this
is that some information has been redacted – anyone who has opted out from the
published electoral register is missing. But the opt-out started after 2002,
and even after that date many people didn’t bother, didn’t care, or simply didn’t
know. The registers that Findmypast have used go back to 2002, so provided the
person you’re looking for hasn’t moved home – and these days people don’t move
as often as they used to – it doesn’t matter that you don’t have the
confirmatory information for later years.
If
I want to check whether someone has moved home a good way is to put their
postcode into Google, and click the RightMove link, which is often the first
one. This lists the properties in that postcode which have been sold at any time
in the last quarter of a century – it even gives the sale price, as reported to
the Land Registry. Of course, if the person you’re looking for was in rented
accommodation in 2002 the fact that the property hasn’t been sold doesn’t help –
on the other hand people who rent tend to move more frequently (just like our
ancestors), and with each move there’s a chance that they’ll appear on the
Electoral Register, even if only for the first year.
Common
surnames can be a problem, but because you can usually see the names of other
people in the same household it’s a bit like looking at the census, and you can
usually figure it out (the GRO marriage and birth indexes sometimes help).
Note:
although you might manage to locate some of your distant relatives through the
electoral register, bear in mind that they are unlikely to be as interested in
family history as you are – indeed they might have no interest whatsoever.
1910-15 Land Valuation for Bedfordshire &
Hertfordshire
TheGenealogist
have now completed the ‘Lloyd George Domesday Survey’ for Bedfordshire and
Hertfordshire with the addition of records covering 1100 square miles – an area
greater than that of a small country.
Completed
between 1910-1915 the maps and records are extremely detailed – it’s a resource
that’s not only useful for family historians, but also for local historians,
and those who are interested in house history. Indeed, when I moved to my
current home in 1997 one of the first things I did was visit Essex Record Office
to look at their copy of the survey, mainly out of curiosity – but you never
know what you’re going to discover, do you?
The
Essex records still aren’t online, but TheGenealogist now have 2 million
records which cover all the boroughs of Greater London, plus Bedfordshire,
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Oxfordshire and Middlesex – you won’t
find them at any other site. These early 20th century records
dovetail neatly with the 1911 England & Wales Census (which is also online
at TheGenealogist) and the 1921 Census (which is currently only available at
Findmypast).
Other
land records at TheGenealogist include 19th century tithe maps and
accompanying records – most of which are only online at their site – and their Map
Explorer offers a unique
opportunity to draw together records from different periods, including census
records. You’re probably familiar with the technique of overlaying maps from
different periods - TheGenealogist takes it to a different level by adding pins
that you can click to find out about specific locations and properties. Even if
your ancestors, like mine, lived in anonymous hovels that don’t merit a pin of
their own, you can still get a better perspective on the places where they
lived. When I visit the towns and villages where my ancestors lived the few
older properties that remain are usually vastly outnumbered by modern houses,
flats, shops, and offices – so I learn very little from driving or walking
around (I might as well use Google Street View). In practice the historical
information that Map Explorer draws together is often far more relevant –
though it works better for some locations than others.
SPECIAL OFFER
To
celebrate this latest release, TheGenealogist are offering their Annual Diamond
Subscription – their top subscription – for just £109.95 with a lifetime
discount. You’ll also get a 12 month subscription to Discover Your Ancestors
online magazine plus 2 digital books to help broaden your research (said to be worth
£44) - that’s a total saving of over £74! Please this link
to visit the site and find out more – then if you do decide to take advantage
of the offer you’ll also be supporting LostCousins.
Note:
the term ‘lifetime discount’ means that so long as you subscribe continuously
you’ll pay the same discounted price – but of course you can cancel your
subscription before it renews should you wish.
Save on Ancestry DNA tests SALE AROUND
THE WORLD
Most
people only take one DNA test – so it’s important to ensure that you take the
right test, which for those of us who are researching our family tree is
Ancestry’s DNA test. Don’t be fooled by other companies who market a so-called
Ancestry test, because you won’t be getting the same thing. Yes, all autosomal DNA
tests are quite similar – because they use the same technology – but a DNA test
in isolation tells you very little about your ancestry, it’s only when your results
are compared with the results of others who have tested that you’ll get meaningful
results.
What
are those ‘meaningful results’? Not the ethnicity estimates, which most of us
would be wise to ignore, but the matches with genetic cousins. The more matches
you have, and the more reliable those matches are, the more useful your DNA
will prove, not just now but for the foreseeable future. Because Ancestry has by
far the largest database of genealogical DNA tests it would be unwise to buy a
test unless the data could go into Ancestry’s database, and be compared against
the 23 million or so people who have already tested with Ancestry.
If
you test with any other company you won’t have that option - for a whole range
of reasons, including accuracy and privacy, Ancestry does not allow test
results from any other companies to be uploaded to their database. If
you test with another company – as I, and many other early adopters, did – you’ll
almost inevitably end up buying the Ancestry test in the end. I got a lot of
experience by being one of the first to test, but gaining that experience was
expensive, relatively complicated, and time-consuming. DNA doesn’t need to be
difficult – but it will be if you don’t follow my advice.
Tip:
although different companies use the same technology, they don’t all test the
same bits of DNA – there may be quite an overlap, but you’re still getting a
less reliable result when your DNA is compared against the DNA of someone who
tested with a different provider.
Because
the Ancestry DNA test is a little more expensive it’s a good idea to buy it
when there’s a sale on, and right now Ancestry have a DNA sale in the UK, the
US, Canada, and Australia/New Zealand – the countries where more than 95% of
the people reading this newsletter live. Autosomal tests – including the
Ancestry test – are suitable for everyone whatever their gender, because
everyone inherits autosomal DNA from both of their parents. Ancestry DNA kits
don’t have an expiry date, and unlike some other sites you don’t need to decide
who’s going to be testing at the time you place your order.
Tip
: you might not be the best person to test – if you’re fortunate enough to have
two parents living then they would be the best people to test (unless their parents
– your grandparents – are still around). Although we inherit all of our DNA
from our parents, we only inherit half of their DNA, and while you get exactly
50% from each parent it’s a random 50% - so two siblings can have very
different DNA. Identical twins are, of course, the exception.
Please
use the relevant link below when you place your order – then there’s a good
chance that your purchase will support LostCousins, and it won’t cost you a
penny more. And after you’ve placed your order? You can start working through
the simple, straightforward steps in my DNA
Masterclass right away – even before the kit turns up in the post!
UK: AncestryDNA® is only £59! Offer ends 23rd Oct.
AUS/NZ: Early Gifting! Save up to $59 on AncestryDNA®. Terms Apply.
Canada: Early Gifting! Save up to $65 on AncestryDNA®. Terms Apply.
US: AncestryDNA® is only $59! Offer ends Oct 15.
Tip:
if the link doesn’t seem to work first time, please log-out from your Ancestry
account and click my link again.
How to manage someone else’s DNA test
One
of the great things about DNA is that the cousins we know can help us enormously
without doing a thing – other than providing a saliva sample. They don’t even need
to be interested in their ancestors – though no doubt some will be intrigued to
know what you are able to discover.
However,
one thing they will need to do – perhaps with a bit of help from you – is register
with Ancestry. If you’re the one who will be analysing the results and corresponding
with matches they won’t need a subscription of any kind – but they do need to
understand how their DNA will be used, and provide their consent.
They’ll
also need to give you access to their results so that you can view their list
of matches, and manage their test (if they don’t want to correspond direct with
matches). This isn’t difficult, but it’ll help if I set out the process for you
in advance – by all means print out a copy for your cousin, or have this
article beside you as you talk them through it on the phone.
First
of all the person who tested needs to log into their Ancestry account, and
click DNA in the main menu that runs across the top of the screen. This will display
a dropdown menu:
Click
the top option (Your DNA Results Summary), then look at the top right
corner of the next screen for the Settings icon:
Click Settings then look
for Visibility and Sharing on the next screen (it’s near the bottom of
the page, so won’t be visible until you scroll down):
This
example is from my own DNA settings, and you can see that I have shared my test
with 4 other Ancestry users – all of them people I trust. To invite someone to view
your DNA results click the > symbol at the end of the line, then
click the blue Invite button that appears:
Nearly
at the end – but this is the most important bit!
To
invite someone else to view your DNA results you must either enter their email
address or their Ancestry username. I recommend using their email address as
there may be several people with similar usernames.
The
final decision is the level of access that you give. Viewer allows
another person to view DNA matches, but it doesn’t allow them to make notes
against the matches – so it’s quite restrictive. In most cases Collaborator
or Manager will be more appropriate – Collaborator is a good
choice when two cousins are going to be working together, but if the person who
tested doesn’t want to be actively involved it is better for them to appoint
their cousin as Manager of their test.
IMPORTANT:
only the Manager or the Owner (ie the person who tested) can
download the raw DNA results. For a detailed comparison between the different roles
follow this link
to the Ancestry site, or refer to the table below:
Tip:
if you’re trying to persuade one of your DNA matches to share their results
with you, why not send them a link to this article? It’s what I do – making the
process easy and explaining it step by step removes some of the obstacles that
might discourage them from co-operating. This is particularly important if the
other person is new to family history, so that you will be ‘in the driving seat’.
Is that my ancestor in the census?
One
of the great advantages of working with the British censuses from 1841 onwards is
that we see households, rather than individuals – so we’re less likely to pick
the wrong family by mistake.
But
what if there’s an error in the census – or rather, we think there’s an error
in the census? I’m talking about the situation where the only household that
seems to fit isn’t a perfect match, and might not even be a near match – but it’s
nevertheless the closest we can find.
When
you’re faced with a situation like that, a good way to resolve the uncertainty
is to assume that it isn’t the right household. After all, if it’s a
different family that census entry surely won’t be the only evidence of their
existence – they will probably appear in other censuses, and there will be
civil registration records too. But if, after a thorough search, we can’t find
any other evidence of their existence – there’s a very good chance that it
really is the family we were looking for in the first place.
Is that my ancestor in the baptism register?
We
can use a similar process of elimination when we’re trying to find our ancestor’s
baptism. Let’s suppose we can only find one person with the right name who was
baptised around the right time in the area where we believe our ancestor to
have been born – however, we know from experience that not all children were
baptised in the parish church, not all baptisms were registered, and sometimes
entries were incorrectly recorded.
How
can we prove that the baptism entry we’ve found relates to someone other than
our ancestor? We can check whether they died as an infant (as a worryingly high
proportion of children did), or in childhood. We can look for their marriage;
we can look for their burial; we can check to see whether they were mentioned
in any wills. If, after diligent searching, we’re unable to find any evidence at
all that is inconsistent with the hypothesis that the baptism is of our
ancestor, it becomes much more likely that the hypothesis Is correct.
Reading
an article and learning about a useful technique is a good start, but unless
you put what you’ve learned into practice you might as well not have bothered. (You
wouldn’t believe how many people who tell me “I’ve read your DNA Masterclass”
but aren’t actually following the simple steps set out there!)
There’s
an English saying “All mouth and [no] trousers” which is often used to describe
someone who talks the talk, but doesn’t walk the walk. So just to prove that I
do actually use the techniques I write about in this newsletter and in the
Masterclasses, here’s an example from my tree….
20
years ago I was looking for the baptism of my great-great-great grandmother Elizabeth,
who I believed was the daughter of a German immigrant, John Jacob Keehner
(originally Kühner) and his wife Sarah. Their 6 younger children were baptised between
Christmas 1794 and 1805 at the parish church of St Mary Magdalene in Bermondsey,
Surrey on the south side of the River Thames, about a mile to the east of
London’s iconic Tower Bridge (though, of course, the construction of Tower
Bridge didn’t start until 1886). Although the parish registers held at the
London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) were the very first to go online at Ancestry,
this watershed event was still several years away, so my information came from
painstaking inspection of microfilms at the LMA. When my 3G grandmother died of
strangulated hernia in November 1850 – just a few months before the 1851
Census, which might have revealed her birthplace – she was shown as aged 57,
both in the death register and in the burial register, so it seemed likely that
she was born in 1793.
In
those days FamilySearch was the best source of information from parish
registers, and I found the baptism of an Elizabeth Keener in Mitcham, less than
10 miles from Bermondsey, on 10th February 1793. Her mother wasn’t
named (in common with other baptisms in that parish) and her father was shown
as Jacob Keener, not Keehner, but since her sister Sarah was shown as the
daughter of Jacob Keenar when she was baptised at Bermondsey the following year
there was only a small discrepancy (indeed, the family surname was spelled in
several different ways before the ‘Keehner’ spelling was finally settled upon).
Even now, with registers for London and Surrey online, I am unable to find any other
possible baptisms. Pretty convincing, eh?
©
Surrey History Centre, Surrey County Council. Used by kind permission of
Findmypast
It
certainly was convincing, and I and countless other descendants added the
baptism to our trees. But there was a possible fly in the ointment, one that
only surfaced when Surrey registers went online:
©
Surrey History Centre, Surrey County Council. Used by kind permission of
Findmypast
This
burial at Weybridge was troubling – although Weybridge was 27 miles from Bermondsey,
it was only 18 miles from Mitcham. Findmypast have transcribed the surname as
Keene, but Ancestry – who were the first to put the Surrey registers online –
transcribed it as Keener. Since I had already established that there were no
other baptisms that matched my ancestor, this was a bit worrying.
There
might not be any other Keener baptisms, but if I could find a Keene baptism that
fitted with the burial I didn’t need to worry. And there was an Elizabeth Keene
who was baptised at Weybridge – the only trouble is, that baptism was in 1795,
two years after the burial. The parents of that child were Samuel Keene
junior and Anne, so I looked for other baptisms to that family – but I was disappointed
to discover that they had a son who was born in June 1793, since that reduced
the chance of them having an infant daughter, and even though I went back through
the register to the January 1791 I could find no baptism for an Elizabeth Keene.
In
fact, in the years 1791-1793 there were no Elizabeths baptised at Weybridge,
and that got me thinking – what if daughters were less likely to be baptised
than sons? Or if their baptisms were less likely to be recorded in the
register, for some reason? A quick search revealed that of 73 children baptised
during that period only 31 (42.5%) were female. As many of you will know, between
1783-1794 Stamp Duty was charged on baptism, marriage, and burial register
entries – so there was certainly an incentive to delay baptisms in the hope
that the unpopular tax would be abolished, or to baptise a child, but ask the
vicar not to register it. Weybridge was and is a prosperous area, but even so
there would have been servants and tradespeople to service the needs of the
posher inhabitants.
A
nice theory, but when I carried out a similar analysis of Weybridge baptisms
for 1788-1790 I found that the pendulum swung the opposite way – far more daughters
than sons had been baptised. It just goes to show how important it is to look
critically at evidence, even when it seems to support our hypotheses!
However there was one interesting discovery: I noticed that on 11th
February 1790 an Elizabeth Keene had been born to Samuel and Anne – probably not
Samuel junior (both Samuels seem to have married Annes), though that doesn’t
matter. But would a child of 3 be described as an infant? These days we’d call
them a toddler, but even if that term was in use in the 18th century
I’ve never seen it in a parish register. Following the procedure set out in the
previous article I looked for a burial for this child, and for a marriage. Other
than the 1793 burial there were none that fitted where the spelling of the
surname was Keene, but there were some Elizabeth Keens who married (though not
at Weybridge). That line of investigation was inconclusive, but not discouraging.
My
final investigation was into handwriting: if the character which the Ancestry
transcriber had interpreted as an ‘r’ was merely a flourish at the end of the preceding
word there might be other examples. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to find any in the
Weybridge register, nor did I spot an example where the letter ‘r’ at the end
of a word had been written in the same way. I went back to the 1793 baptism entry:
note the letter ‘e’ at the end of “was buried the”. It has the same upward curl,
but not the downward stroke – I reckon the difference between the two is
accounted for by the character that follows, and therefore that the infant who
died was Elizabeth Keene, and not my 3G grandmother Elizabeth Kee[h]ner.
But
if you would like to add your comments please post them on the LostCousins Forum
rather than writing to me – that way you can share your contribution with LostCousins
members, as well as finding out what others have to say on this topic (and many
others). It'll save me a lot of time, too.
How to join the LostCousins Forum
Whether
you need technical help with a genealogy program or website, or are
looking for research advice, the LostCousins
Forum is a great place to visit. But whilst some parts of the forum are
open to all, there are also areas which are exclusive to forum members – and,
of course, only forum members can post comments (or view attachments).
Almost
anyone reading this newsletter could qualify for membership of the forum, but first
you must contribute to the LostCousins project to connect family historians
around the world who are researching the same ancestors – not by paying a
subscription fee, but by adding relatives to your My Ancestors, because
that’s the only way you can connect with your ‘lost cousins’, or them with you.
When
you log-in at LostCousins go to your
My Summary page and check what your Match Potential is. If it is
1 or more then you’ve already qualified for membership of the LostCousins
Forum, and can register using the Coupon Code you’ve been allocated – there’s
also a link to the forum in case you can't remember the address (although FORUMS.LC
should be pretty easy to remember!).
If
your Match Potential is below 1 it indicates that you haven’t entered
sufficient information for even one of your cousins to connect (assuming
average luck – there’s no doubt that some members are luckier than others).
Even starting from 0 you could get over the threshold in under an hour – provided
you focus on the 1881 Census, which is the one that your cousins are most
likely to have used. Of course, if you haven’t found your relatives on the 1881
Census yet it’ll take longer – but it’s something you ought to be doing anyway,
especially if you’ve taken a DNA test, or are considering doing so.
Tip:
although the page is called My Ancestors, the most important people to enter
are your ancestors’ siblings and cousins – because ALL of your living relatives
are descended from collateral lines (or branches, as I generally refer to
them). And it doesn’t matter if your ancestors left the British Isles long
before 1881, because they will have left many relatives behind – and it’s their
descendants who are your British cousins.
I’ve just finished
reading The Irish Convict, the latest instalment in the Jayne Sinclair
series of genealogical mysteries from the prolific author MJ Lee – I found it
very enjoyable, but then I’m a family historian, so I would!
Like
the convict of the title Jayne finds herself spending more time in Australia
than she had originally anticipated – though in her case it’s because she
arrived just as COVID-19 took hold. Unlike the convicts who were transported
she hasn’t had to work – she has been taking it easy for the past 6 months,
staying with her stepfather Robert and his wife Vera at the palatial home of Harry,
Vera’s recently-discovered brother. And she doesn’t have any plans to start
work again until she gets back to England – whenever that is.
However,
when a potential client phones her up out of the blue, she’s intrigued by the
story of a successful businesswoman in late 19th century Australia.
So was I – it reminded me of A Woman of
Substance (can it really be nearly 40 years since that appeared on our screens?).
But
did Annie Kelly reinvent herself? When Jayne starts trying to check the
information she has been given, it doesn’t seem to add up. Is the Bible really
a family heirloom, or was it acquired second-hand? And who is the mysterious ‘D’
whose beautifully penned letter was found in its pages – is the Annie he refers
to related in some way to the Annie she is researching, or is it another red
herring?
There
are two threads to this novel – one takes us through the 19th
century events which are the basis of the mystery, the other focuses on Jayne’s
exploration of the past through the records that have survived – her 2020
vision of what happened 170 years earlier. As the story progressed I was
introduced to some Australian record sets that I wasn’t familiar with, and
learned some techniques that will help me investigate the many Australian
branches of my own tree. But it doesn’t come across as homework, it’s a good
story well told – one that left me looking forward to the next book in the
series.
At
the launch price of just £2.99 (in the UK) for the Kindle version this book is
a luxury that you can afford (apologies to the heirs of the late great
Cyril Lord – click here if you haven’t
got a clue who or what I’m talking about!). The prices in other countries are similarly
attractive, and remember – you don’t need a Kindle to read a Kindle book.
However,
the previous books in the series are all available in paperback, so I’ve no doubt
that there will be a paperback version of The Irish Convict before too
long. Either way, please use the relevant link below to place your order so that
you can support LostCousins without having to pay a penny more.
Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com Amazon.ca Amazon.com.au
This
week we learned that a theatre in Norfolk has uncovered the only surviving stage
on which William Shakespeare stood. I must admit I’d only thought of
Shakespeare as a playwright, but it seems that the first theatrical reference
to Shakespeare (in 1592) relates to his on-stage performance. The evidence that
Shakespeare performed at St George’s Guildhall in Kings Lynn is somewhat shaky,
but it is certainly the oldest working theatre in the UK, with a heritage that
goes back to 1445.
You
can read more in this BBC News article – and
then make up your own mind about the veracity of the claim.
If
you enjoy Duck confit you’ll be delighted to know that once again Tesco
are offering 3 packs of 2 duck legs for £10 – I’ve cooked up some and put the
rest in the freezer. I don’t often cook gourmet meals, but this is one that’s
so easy!
I
also found an unexpected bargain at the same supermarket – I’ve long eschewed McVitie’s
digestive biscuits in favour of Tesco’s own brand, which are less than half the
price, but after reading reviews I’ve switched to Mrs Molly’s (which I think is
also a Tesco brand) which taste even better and cost even less at 55p for a 400g
pack.
Finally,
if anyone has been put off buying an electric car by the stories in the press,
let me tell you about my experience as the owner of a Niro EV for more than 3
years. First of all, so long as I don’t drive at motorway speeds all the time I
can get more than the 281 miles between top-ups that the manufacturers
claim. Secondly, because of the generous range I’ve never had to charge the car
anywhere other than at home, so even now the cost is just 7p a mile, and that’s
without taking advantage of the special tariffs for EV owners. Thirdly, the environmental
cost of the batteries has been grossly exaggerated – when they eventually need
replacing (probably in about 15 years’ time in my case) the existing batteries
won’t get thrown on the scrap heap, they’ll be recycled as powerbanks for homes
with solar panels (Tesla are already doing this). Fourthly – I don’t yet know what
it’ll cost to insure next year, but in 2023 it was just £270 for
fully-comprehensive insurance (based on 5000 miles a year).
Best
of all, it’s a wonderful car to drive – especially for someone like me who last
bought a new car in 2003 with help from Gordon Brown’s scrappage scheme (so was
new to most of the modern gadgets). It accelerates quicker than any of the sports
cars I owned when I was younger (though it’s not nearly as fast as some EVs), and
I love the way that I can recharge the battery by lifting my foot off the drive
pedal (which means I rarely have to use the brake). So don’t believe the
doom-mongers in the press who insist on sticking to fossil fuels – they’re
talking out of their exhaust!
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’ll be back again soon with more news from the world of
genealogy, plus the usual eclectic mix of tales and tips. In the meantime,
please do add to your My Ancestors page – every direct ancestor or blood
relative you add now will count towards this year’s competition!
Peter Calver
Founder, LostCousins
© Copyright 2023 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?
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