Who Do You Think You Are? Encyclopedia of Genealogy: The definitive reference guide to tracing your family history
(This edition does not include illustrations.)Covering all access levels, from the new beginner to the more experienced researcher, the Encyclopedia of Genealogy is a comprehensive master class in solving the mysteries of your personal heritage.Beginning with advice on the very first steps, before providing a detailed explanation of the range of sources you will encounter when trying to flesh out your ancestor's lives.The Encyclopedia is divided into sections, each a fascinating standalone reference article so that you can easily pick and mix the relevant information according to the route your journey through your family history takes you.The Encyclopedia of Genealogy guides you through:• Getting started, including research planning, sources, how to construct a family tree and working online• Going further, combining historical context (from military history to migration and family secrets) with practical advice on sources• Troubleshooting the most common problems such as common surnames and missing ancestors• Surname databases• Use of DNA such as DNA profiling services• Organisational tools such as designing a website and information about software and community projects.Everything you need to bring alive your family tree.
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WHO
DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?>â¢
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF
GENEALOGY
THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO TRACING
YOUR FAMILY HISTORY
NICK BARRATT
Contents
8: Wills and Probate Documents
Section Three: Areas of Family History
9: Military Ancestors: The British Army
10: Military Ancestors: The Royal Navy
11: Military Ancestors: The Royal Marines
12: Military Ancestors: The Royal Air Force
13: Occupations: The Merchant Navy
16: Occupations: Factories, Foundries and Mills
17: Occupations: Travel and Communications
18: Occupations: Farming and Agricultural Labourers
19: Occupations: Professional Classes â Private Sector
20: Occupations: Professional Classes â Public Sector
21: Occupations: Trades and Crafts
24: Family Secrets: Poverty and Lunacy
25: Family Secrets: Illegitimacy and Adoption
26: Family Secrets: Bigamy and Divorce
27: Family Secrets: Criminal Ancestors
28: Social History: Working Further Back in Time
Section Four: Troubleshooting Guides
Chart 1: Army Service Records, First World War
Chart 2: Army Service Medals, First World War
Chart 3: Early Army Service Records
Chart 4: Naval Service Records
Chart 5: Merchant Seamen Service Records
Chart 6: Royal Marine Service Records
Origins and Meanings of Popular Surnames
Congratulations. By picking up this book, you have just taken your first step on a unique journey into your past, one that will gradually reveal lost generations of your family that you never knew existed; their place in history; and the path that has led you to stand here today, reading this. Thousands of others have started a similar voyage of discovery in recent years, each on a personal mission to reveal who their ancestors were, and what their lives were like.
One of the driving forces behind this phenomenon is the hit BBC TV show Who Do You Think You Are?, where every week a celebrity investigates their ancestral roots. Essentially a social history of Britain and its wider role in the world, the programme has stimulated millions of people to challenge their memories from school that history was a dull, academic subject and explore the past from a fresh perspective â that of their own relatives, rather than the politicians, generals and royals that tend to populate our textbooks. As a result, history becomes real, living and relevant; itâs a personal journey into the past, with your own relatives as the tour guides. Events that you might once have read about in a textbook suddenly take on a new meaning once you realize that your ancestors were there as eye witnesses or even participants. The most exciting thing of all is that everyone can trace their family tree â itâs not the exclusive preserve of those with privileged blood lines or aristocratic roots, but something that each and every one of us can do.
So why start looking into your familyâs history? Traditionally the press have given genealogy a rather negative image. Indeed, one commentator was moved to write that family history was âself-indulgent navel gazingâ. What utter nonsense! There are so many reasons why it is important to look into your familyâs background, leaving aside the sheer joy of discovery that makes it such an addictive pastime. Perhaps the most important reason for starting is that you are going to discover more about yourself and your family, and gain a real understanding about where you have come from, who the main people were that shaped the fortunes of your family, and how small decisions in the past have had a knock-on effect over the years. In essence, every one of us is the living embodiment of the strands of personal history woven by our ancestors, all of whom contributed in some way to making us who we are today. In turn, their struggles to survive in a variety of changing conditions allow us to gaze into wider British social history, and ask questions about how we fit in. What was our class or cultural background? How did we fare in some of the great social upheavals in the past, such as the Industrial Revolution? Each generation faced a new challenge, and you can revisit these moments in time through your investigations.
âEvery one of us is the living embodiment of the strands of personal history woven by our ancestors.â
There is another important reason to set out on this voyage of discovery, namely to preserve these links with the past, which â once broken â are very difficult to repair. This is why, as you will see, you should always talk to your elderly relatives and record their stories, anecdotes and knowledge. It is a sad fact of life that we often take an interest in our past when it is no longer possible to talk to those who played such an important part in shaping it. Yet it is not just about preserving the past; by looking into your familyâs background, you will be creating a legacy that can be passed on to future generations â children, grandchildren and those still to come. This is especially important in the digital age, when we are no longer creating the treasured artefacts that we now look for and preserve as keepsakes from years gone by â photographs, letters and postcards. Our means of communication â email, text, mobile phone â are instantly disposable unless we take active steps to preserve them, so it is just as important to record our thoughts and feelings now, or future generations wonât have the material to hand to understand us, or the people that made us who we are.
