The British Library is to 'harvest' billions of web pages, blogs and e-books in a bid to preserve and document the nation's 'digital memory'.
For centuries, the library has kept a copy of every book, pamphlet, magazine and newspaper published in Britain.
It will also be bound by new regulations to harvest the entire UK web domain to document current events and record the country's burgeoning collection of online cultural and intellectual works.
The British Library, which has invested £3million in the project during the past two years, plans to collect the material by conducting an annual trawl of the UK web domain - every website ending with '.uk'. It will harvest information from another 200 sites - such as online newspapers or journals - on a more regular basis, as often as once a day.
There's more on the British Library website. What do you think? Is it a great idea to document modern day life in this way?
TheGenealogist has just added another 10 million individuals to their collection of Death Transcripts - this brings the total to over 68 million records, and takes the transcripts now back to 1880!
These transcripts can be used with a tool that lets you search across all the Birth, Marriage and Death transcripts, with built in SmartSearch technology, automatically showing the partner's full name where available, and enabling you to find potential parents from a birth, potential children to a marriage and potential birth records from a death record. To find out more and see how the SmartSearch works go to TheGenealogist website.
If your family history involves tracing relatives from Scotland, it could be worth reading up on some advice and guidance from a recognised expert. Scottish Genealogy by Bruce Durie is the comprehensive guide to tracing your family history in Scotland, and is written by one of the most authoritative figures on the subject.
The work is based on established genealogical practice and is designed to exploit the rich resources that Scotland has to offer.
All people who claim Scottish ancestry will find something in this book to challenge and stimulate. Informative and entertaining, this updated edition is the definitive reader-friendly guide to genealogy and family history in Scotland. It's currently available at Genealogy Supplies at a reduced price so well worth a look.
Discovering the gravestone of a long lost ancestor can be a big event for the family history researcher. There can be so much information to be learned from the wording on the gravestone.
You can learn a lot by reading your ancestor’s gravestone. Sometimes, though, a genealogist will arrive at the cemetery and find that the gravestone they were hoping to read is covered with overgrown plants or weeds and other debris. However, the attempt to clean off the gravestone must be carried out with the utmost care as damage can easily be accidentally done.
Genealogists need to realise that gravestones, especially really old ones, are fragile and easily damaged. Don’t let your excitement about finally locating your ancestor’s grave, make you accidentally damage it in your haste to read the lettering!
To summarise, gentleness is the key. You are going to have to be patient when cleaning off a gravestone. Much can be achieved by using a soft sponge that has been soaked in just cold water, stay clear of the chemicals and other cleaning products! The gravestones are composed of minerals and salts, adding chemicals can often cause a chemical reaction that will erode the stone faster than if you just left it alone. A little bit of careful scrubbing can ease away the dirt and grime that has collected on the headstone.The clear finished result will be worth it, especially if you are then able to read a list of your ancestors to add to your records!
At the recent Who Do You Think Are? Live event, Family History Social met up with Margaret Roy from Malvern Family History Society. She mentioned the launch of her new book 'Striving for the Goal'. It commemorates the Centenary of West Kirby Grammar School on the Wirral through the eyes of a former pupil, Evelyn Roy, who attended in the 1920s. Using the diaries and memorabilia of her husband's aunt, Margaret has provided a unique snapshot of school life in the North-West in the 1920s.
The book is priced at £5.50 + 85p postage & packing. To order or for more information, please contact Margaret at [email protected]
New book from Margaret Roy - 'Striving for the Goal'
There's so many free resources and help and advice online to take advantage of, it's handy when you hit those brick walls to have other genealogists to run ideas by or to possibly find useful information that helps you break down those brick walls. One forum that offers some good advice and guidance is Roots-Forum which offers advice, discussion areas and generally all things genealogy related. Sign up and get involved here.
This week in 1834, 6 Dorset agricultural workers were sentenced to 7 years imprisonment and transported to Australia for forming a trade union and swearing an oath of secrecy. Led by George Loveless, a Methodist lay preacher, they were convicted in a rigged trial and transported to Australia. As the workers struggled to survive in dire economic conditions when the power belonged to all the landowners, protests had started to increase and the ruling classes felt their power base threatened and wanted to stamp it out.
In a very unfair trial, the 6 men were convicted and sentenced to 7 years imprisonment and transported to Australia.
The 'Tolpuddle Martyrs' transportation records are available on TheGenealogist, there's more details here. After a determined protest back in Britain, they were eventually pardoned and allowed to come back in 1837.
Do you have any ancestors that were convicted around this time and sentenced to be transported to Australia or New Zealand? Have you found their transportation records from the 1700 or 1800s? We'd love to hear your stories!
Archaeologists in London have discovered a lost burial ground during excavations for the new Crossrail project in London which might hold the bodies of some 50,000 people who were killed by the "Black Death" plague more than 650 years ago.
A scene of the Black Death
Thirteen skeletons, laid out in two careful rows, were found 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) below the road in the Farringdon area of central London during construction of the £16 billion pound Crossrail project.
Historical records had indicated the area, described as a "no man's land", had once housed a hastily established cemetery for victims of the bubonic plague which killed about a third of England's population following its outbreak in 1348.There's more on the BBC website
As a new Pope is elected in Rome, it's interesting to look back in time to see how things were reported many years ago. The Illustrated London News is one of a number of publications that allow the family historian to really get a feel for events and how they were perceived in previous years.
As the selection of Pope Francis I makes headline news around the world, we've taken a look at how the passing of a previous Pope and the arrival of a new Pope was reported in the 1800s in the UK press.
We find an article on the new Pope (Pope Pius IX) in the July 11th edition of the Illustrated London News, 1846.
Article in the 1846 Illustrated London News
The death of Pius IX was reportedly widely with an extensive tribute.
Funeral of Pope Pius IX
Leo XIII then became Pope following the death of Pope Pius. Headline news in 1878 as the front cover below shows.
Pope Leo XIII elected in 1878
The whole papal selection process was described in detail in 1878, highlighting how traditions have stayed in place throughout the centuries.
The process of creating a new Pope
From the arrival of the cardinals to the issuing of white smoke, to the packed Saint Peter's Square near the Vatican, it is a glimpse into the past and traditions.
For a number of editions of the Illustrated London News in the 1800s, please visit www.TheGenealogist.co.uk
