Welcome to the Family History Social

TheGenealogist has released an important new collection of historical legal records, adding over 1,000,000 names from a wide range of court and equity sources. The new release brings together material from Chancery, Exchequer, Star Chamber, Court of Requests and Duchy of Lancaster records, covering cases that can reveal family relationships, property disputes, debts, inheritances, occupations and places of residence. Newly released titles include: Calendar of Chancery Proceedings, Bills & Answers: 1625–1649 Calendar of Chancery Cases During Reign of Queen Elizabeth I 1558-1603 Exchequer Deponents: 1559–1695 List of Proceedings in the Court of Star Chamber 1485–1558 List of Proceedings in the Court of Requests 1509–1603 Courts of Requests for the City of London, Southwark, Palace Court &Tower Hamlets, 1831 Ducatus Lancastriae (Duchy of Lancaster) – Calendar to Pleadings: 1503–1603 These newly released legal records open a window into disputes, petitions and everyday conflicts that brought your ancestors before the courts. Covering a wide range of jurisdictions including Chancery, Star Chamber, Exchequer and local courts, they typically record bills, answers, depositions and pleadings that can reveal relationships, occupations, property ownership and even personal disputes. Mark Bayley, Head of Online Content at TheGenealogist, said: “This latest release adds over a million names from a remarkable range of legal records, helping researchers uncover details that would otherwise remain hidden in historic court papers. For those facing a brick wall, they offer a powerful and often overlooked source.” This release strengthens TheGenealogist’s growing collection of specialist records for those researching English ancestry in depth. Read more about Chancery Records and the information they contain here: https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2026/chancery-proceedings-the-equity-papers-that-put-people-property-and-quarrels-on-the-page-8968/

TheGenealogist today announced a major expansion of its fully searchable National Probate Calendar with the release of the years 1880 to 1899, extending this essential source for uncovering ancestors’ details, family relationships, and social history across late Victorian Britain. As with earlier releases, TheGenealogist has transcribed every field within each entry, allowing researchers to search far beyond a name alone. Users can pinpoint the right person by filtering on spouse, occupation, place of death, residence, executor details and more, making it far easier to distinguish between people who share the same name, or where spellings vary between records. This new addition comprises 1,097,915 searchable probate records and names 2,596,550 individuals. Alongside the deceased, the index captures executors and other named parties, which can reveal close relatives, married daughters under a new surname, in-laws, business partners, employers, employees and trusted friends who might otherwise be missed. Probate Records frequently include an address, occupation or status, the date of death, the court where probate was granted and the value of the estate, to which TheGenealogist has added the value in today’s terms. For family historians, these details can unlock new leads, confirm identities and provide a clearer picture of an ancestor’s circumstances at the end of their life. TheGenealogist’s Head of Content, Mark Bayley, commented: "Many researchers overlook probate records, but they can shed light on the details other records miss, often naming the people who mattered most in someone’s life. By transcribing every field, our keyword search helps you jump directly to the record you’re after, and often to a new branch of the family." Among the individuals found within these newly released records is William Morris, one of the most notable designers of the Victorian era. Researchers can explore his entry in the probate records and learn more about his life and legacy in this accompanying article: https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2026/william-morris-8935/ To explore the new National Probate Records collection, visit TheGenealogist.co.uk/wills.

TheGenealogist expands MapExplorerTM with detailed 25-inch-to-the-mile Ordnance Survey maps and new LiDAR layers TheGenealogist has enhanced its MapExplorerTM historic map overlay with the addition of large-scale 25-inch-to-the-mile 1890-1914 Ordnance Survey (OS) maps, alongside a brand-new LiDAR mapping layer, giving family historians sharper ways to pinpoint where ancestors lived and understand the landscapes that shaped their lives. The 25-inch OS maps are among the most detailed historic maps available for genealogy, showing features often missing from smaller-scale mapping: individual building footprints, property boundaries, yards, alleys, small lanes, wells, schools, chapels, mills, sidings, and other local landmarks. When used in MapExplorer’s overlay view, researchers can compare these fine-grain historic details against other map layers and modern geography to locate ancestral homes and communities with far greater accuracy. The Shambles in York, showing the detail of the new Historic Map Layer vs the previously available 1:10,000 scale map Additionally, the newly released LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) maps bring another dimension to local history research. LiDAR reveals the shape of the ground beneath vegetation and modern land use, helping users spot historic earthworks, trackways, field systems, quarries, embankments, cuttings, and other “hidden” features, particularly valuable for rural research, lost buildings, and places where the visible landscape has changed. “By adding 25-inch OS maps and LiDAR layers to MapExplorer, we’re giving researchers new ways to connect records to real places, right down to individual buildings and the landscape around them,” said Mark Bayley, Head of Online Content at TheGenealogist. The 25-inch-to-the-mile OS map layer and LiDAR maps are available now within MapExplorer at TheGenealogist. Read about these new additions and how they can help reveal the landscape your ancestors knew here: https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2026/lines-across-the-landscape-8934/

TheGenealogist has expanded its Devon Parish Register collection with the release of records containing almost half a million names, helping family historians trace ancestors across a wide sweep of the county from the 1500s through to 1837. The newly added records cover baptisms, marriages and burials across a range of parishes, from Exeter to coastal Branscombe and inland moorland parishes. These records can be especially valuable for bridging gaps before civil registration and for building out earlier family trees. New Devon Parish Registers now available on TheGenealogist: Ottery St. Mary 1601–1837 Widecombe-in-the-Moor 1560–1837 Colyton 1538–1837 Exeter 1561–1837 Halberton 1605–1837 Hartland 1558–1837 Branscombe 1539–1812 Parracombe 1597–1836 “From the high granite tors of Widecombe-in-the-Moor to the historic streets of Exeter, these records capture the true breadth of Devon life,” said Mark Bayley, head of online content at TheGenealogist. “By adding these records to our Devon Parish Register Collection, we’re giving researchers a way to follow their Devonian ancestors through centuries of change” These new Devon parish registers are available now to search on TheGenealogist as part of its ever-expanding Parish Record Book Collection. Edward Davy in the new Devon Parish Registers at TheGenealogist Within these new records is Edward Davy, a pioneer of the early telegraph. Read his story here: https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2026/new-devon-parish-records-reveal-the-relay-man-8907/

TheGenealogist has today announced a significant update to its 1939 Register collection, adding 185,396 individuals from newly opened records. Most of these additions relate to people born in 1924 and 1925, further strengthening one of the most important resources for tracing families in 20th-century Britain. Created at the outbreak of the Second World War, the 1939 Register provides a vital snapshot of the civilian population, capturing names, dates of birth, occupations and addresses at a key moment in modern history. For many researchers, it helps bridge the gap between earlier census returns and later post-war records, offering new routes to confirm identities, locate relatives, and place families in a precise time and place. The update will be of interest not only to family historians but also to social historians and those looking to better understand the everyday lives and circumstances of well-known figures and the communities in which they lived. “This update opens the door on nearly two hundred thousand more lives in 1939, giving family historians a much better chance of finding relatives who were previously hidden by privacy rules,” said Mark Bayley, head of online content at TheGenealogist. “For many of us, the 1939 Register is the bridge between the past and people we still remember, revealing the addresses, households and details that bring family stories to life.” Born in 1925 and found in the 1939 Register is Ernie Wise, one half of the iconic comedy partnership Morecambe and Wise. Read the related article exploring Morecambe and Wise here: https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2026/eric-morecambe--ernie-wise-8866/ The updated 1939 Register records are available now at TheGenealogist.

TheGenealogist has released a major new addition to its early marriage collections, publishing more than 100,000 newly added entries from seven counties and national ecclesiastical sources. Covering the 16th to 19th centuries, the update helps researchers trace couples and family connections in periods and places where parish registers can be incomplete, damaged, or missing. Newly released record sets include: London & National - Marriage Licences at the Faculty Office (1543–1869) Durham Marriage Bonds (1664–1674) Lancaster Marriage Bonds (1734–1738) Leicestershire Marriage Licences (1570–1729) Somerset - Bishops of Bath and Wells Marriage Allegation Bonds (1670-1755) Surrey Marriage Licences (1673–1770) Sussex Marriage Licences, Deaneries of Chichester, Pagham and Terring (1582–1730) This release significantly broadens TheGenealogist’s coverage of pre-civil registration marriage material. For many researchers, these records fill essential gaps where parish registers are incomplete, illegible or original entries have not survived. Understanding Marriage Licences and Marriage Bonds Before civil registration, marriages in England were normally preceded by the calling of banns on three Sundays in the home parish of each party. However, couples who wished to marry more quickly, or outside their home parish, could apply for a marriage licence. This was a formal legal permission issued by an ecclesiastical authority such as a bishop, archdeacon, or the Archbishop of Canterbury’s offices at Lambeth and the Faculty Office. The process generated several types of documents: Marriage Licence: A certificate permitting the couple to marry without banns. It does not always survive in the archive, but the supporting paperwork often does. Marriage Allegation: A sworn statement made by one spouse (usually the groom) declaring there was no lawful impediment to the marriage. Allegations often record ages, occupations, marital status (bachelor, widow, etc.) and places of residence. Marriage Bond: A financial guarantee, usually provided by the groom and his bondsman, promising to pay a sum of money if it were later found that the marriage was unlawful. Bonds frequently include valuable genealogical details and help confirm identities where multiple individuals share the same name. A Rich Resource for Researchers Mark Bayley, head of online content at TheGenealogist, commented: “The hardest marriages to find are the ones that happened quickly, quietly, or away from home. Marriage Licences were often obtained for exactly those situations, and they can provide the missing evidence that links generations together.” These new records are available to Diamond subscribers and can be found within the “Parish Record Books” collection on TheGenealogist. Thomas Weelkes in the newly released Calendar of Sussex Marriage Licences on TheGenealogist Featured Article: Read the story of famed composer Thomas Weelkes, who used a marriage license for a speedy wedding and can be found in these new records: https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2025/the-unruly-genius-of-an-english-renaissance-composer-8855/

Available online for the first time, discover properties, owners and occupiers across Sussex, with linked books and maps

TheGenealogist today announces the release of Sussex Lloyd George records in partnership with The National Archives, bringing together the Valuation Office Survey field books (“Lloyd George Domesday”) and georeferenced historical maps for Sussex in a single, searchable resource.

This significant addition allows family and local historians to pinpoint where ancestors lived or owned property in Sussex in the early 1910s, then click straight through to the corresponding survey book entry for details such as ownership/occupancy, property description and assessed value.

 

Bateman’s Kiplings Sussex Home

What’s included

• 269,211 Occupiers, Owners & Organisation

• Georeferenced historical maps that link properties to the exact location on the ground

• Owner and occupier details, addresses, plot numbers and descriptive notes (where recorded)

• Map-to-book and book-to-map links for seamless research across records

Among the newly released entries is Rudyard Kipling, whose Sussex home appears in the records. To mark the launch, TheGenealogist has published an accompanying feature article exploring Kipling’s connection to the county and how these records illuminate his footprint in Sussex.

“From the Downs to the Weald, this addition reveals Sussex in remarkable detail. You can explore a county of independent smallholders, traders, and householders rooted to their place.” said Mark Bayley, Head of Content at TheGenealogist.

Working with The National Archives, TheGenealogist continues to expand access to this landmark property survey for England and Wales, rolling out county coverage with both digitised books and linked, layered maps.

Why this matters

• Place your ancestors on the map: Identify the precise plots where families lived or held property.

• Context at a glance: Understand neighbourhoods, land use and changing streetscapes in the years just before the First World War.

• One-click discovery: Move effortlessly between a mapped property and details of the owner and occupier.
  
  
  

The Sussex Lloyd George records are available now to TheGenealogist’s Diamond subscribers.

Don’t miss out!

For a limited time, you can subscribe to TheGenealogist for just £118.95

Not only will you get a lifetime discount, but you'll also receive a 12-Month Subscription to Discover Your Ancestors Online Magazine - a total saving of over £75!

Explore these new records and start your genealogical journey today with TheGenealogist by claiming this offer here: https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/MGBLGD925

 

Offer expires 31st December 2025.  

TheGenealogist is pleased to announce the release of a fascinating collection of historic occupational records for medical and nursing professionals, opening new research opportunities for family historians.

These newly added publications cover doctors, surgeons and nurses from the mid-19th to mid-20th century and contain nearly 200,000 names. Researchers can now explore details such as qualifications, training, addresses and career histories, invaluable for building a fuller picture of an ancestor’s life.

Included in this release is Sophia Jex-Blake, one of the most influential figures in British medical history. As the first female doctor to practise in Scotland and a leader in the fight for women’s access to medical education, her entry sits alongside those of thousands of other medical professionals from the era. Read her story here: www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2025/from-victorian-roots-to-medical-pioneer-8732/.

[ Sophia Jex-Blake in the newly released Medical Records ]

Mark Bayley, Head of Content at TheGenealogist, says:

“These directories provide a detailed snapshot of the lives of medical professionals, from the pioneers who broke barriers to the everyday practitioners who served their communities. For family historians, they offer an  invaluable source of biographical detail that can bring your ancestor’s story to life.”

The new records are available now to all Diamond subscribers at TheGenealogist.co.uk.

The new records include: The Medical Register 1897; The Medical Register 1906; The Medical Register 1939; Medical Directory for Ireland 1856; Register of Nurses for Scotland 1947; Register of Nurses for Scotland 1948.

TheGenealogist has just added a substantial new release to its growing collection of historical records, making over 330,000 names available from a variety of wills and probate sources across England and Scotland. These valuable records are great for historians trying to push their tree back, with records spanning 500 years from the 14th century up to the 19th century. They provide a remarkable glimpse into the lives, legacies, and legal affairs of past generations.

Among the notable figures in this collection is George Buchanan (1506–1582), the Scottish historian, humanist scholar, and tutor to King James VI. His testament appears in the Commissariot Record of Edinburgh (1514–1600), offering researchers a direct connection to one of the great minds of the Scottish Renaissance.

[ George Buchanan shown in the new records on TheGenealogist ]

Read more about George Buchanan’s fascinating life in our latest article, “The Scholar Who Tutored a King and Defied a Queen”: https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2025/george-buchanan-8698/

The new collections now available to search on TheGenealogist include:

• Archdeaconry of Cornwall Wills and Administrations 1569-1699

• A Calendar of Wills, Gloucestershire 1541-1650

• Calendars of Lincoln Wills 1320-1600 (covering Lincoln, Leicester, Rutland, Northampton, Huntingdon, Bedford, Buckingham, Hertford, and Oxford)

• Wills and Administrations Preserved in the District Probate Court of Lewes 1541-1652 (covering East Sussex)

• Dougal's Index Register to Next of Kin, Heirs at Law, and Cases of Unclaimed Money

• Commissariot Record of Edinburgh, Register of Testaments, 1514-1600

• Commissariot of Inverness, Hamilton & Campsie Testaments, 1630-1800

• Abstracts of Probates and Sentences in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury 1620-1624

• Prerogative Court of Canterbury Wills Index 1653-1656
  
  

These records are fully searchable and form part of TheGenealogist’s ongoing effort to bring hard-to-access historical documents into the hands of family historians, academic researchers, and local history enthusiasts.

Mark Bayley, Head of Online Content at TheGenealogist, said:
"These records span centuries of history, from the 1300s through to the early modern era. Whether you're uncovering humble tradespeople or historical figures like George Buchanan, this collection can help you push your tree back before the time of parish records."

Available now to all Standard and Diamond subscribers, these wills and probate collections are part of TheGenealogist’s commitment to preserving and sharing the stories of the past through original records, expertly indexed and easily searchable online.

S&N are excited to announce the release of RootsMagic 11 UK Edition, the latest version of the award-winning genealogy software that helps you discover, document, and share your family history.

RootsMagic 11 builds on the already impressive features, with a user-friendly modern interface, smarter editing, and powerful new tools. A new Life Summary panel puts every key event and family connection in one view, while unified tabs for sources, notes, and tasks make editing seamless. Advanced search now gives customisable results, builds rules-based groups and exports to Excel/CSV, while the new innovative AI Prompt Builder lets you create reusable templates that auto-fill with a person’s details for ChatGPT or your favourite AI. 

With new proof status options, improved reports, MacOS ARM support, and dozens of refinements, RootsMagic 11 gives genealogists more clarity, control, and flexibility than ever before.

What’s New in RootsMagic 11?

Improved Navigation

Find what you need faster. Clear, labelled view buttons and per-screen menus keep only the right commands in reach. The redesigned side panel has clear headers and quick-access icons for streamlined viewing and editing at a glance.

A life story at a glance

The new Life Summary puts a single view of a person’s key life events and family connections into the spotlight, while making it easy to add, edit, rearrange, or manage relatives. It gives you Events, Family, Notes, Sources, Media, and more at your fingertips.

 

[ The new RootsMagic 11 interface showing the easier navigation at the top and Life Summary on the left ]

 

Smoother Editing

RootsMagic 11 brings everything for a person into one place. New Sources, Tasks, and Notes tabs allow you to view and edit information across the board with powerful filters and inline edits. A new ‘Proposed’ proof status, along with clear visual icons, ensures your research reasoning is always transparent and easy to follow.

More Powerful Search Capabilities

Searching has been enhanced so you can now view each match’s Life Summary directly in the results, jump straight to editing, print or export instantly, and even turn any search into a rules-based group with a single click.

Impressive AI Prompt Builder

Create smart templates (such as ‘Write a memoir,’) which can be reused time and time again with the AI of your choice. Draft narrative biographies, obituaries, and more using selected details from your database, with options such as preferred output format. It’s not AI doing your research; it’s AI helping you write and explore ideas more efficiently.

 

 

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New Features & Updates at a glance:

Modern Interface – Clear view buttons, streamlined menus, redesigned side panels, and a new Life Summary panel with all key events and family connections in one place.

 

Smarter Editing – Unified tabs for Sources, Notes, and Tasks let you edit everything for a person from a single screen.

 

Stronger Search – Customizable results, export to Excel/CSV, built-in Life Summaries, advanced rules, and instant rules-based groups.

 

AI Prompt Builder – Create reusable templates that auto-fill with person details, ready for ChatGPT or your favourite AI.

 

Proof Support – New “Proposed” proof type plus clear icons for proven, disproven, and disputed evidence.

 

Better Reports & Printing – New relationship charts, proof filters, and enhanced explorer tools.

 

Other Enhancements – MacOS ARM support, improved lists, clearer alerts, theme contrast options, and more.

 

 

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RootsMagic 11 UK Edition is available now from the RootsMagic UK store at: www.RootsMagic.co.uk