Category Archives: Family History

Book Launches, Blogs, Being Online and Breaking Free

by thehistoryinterpreter

Sorry for the long silence. It isn’t that nothing much has been happening, rather that life has been hectic, mostly in a virtual way. Firstly I need to say that this blog has been listed in the top 100 Genealogy blogs site. So, thank you to the compilers for that. Do go and check out the other great blogs on that list.  I am at number 131, so not sure how that works (maybe it is a bit like the ‘100’ years’ war) but I am grateful for the mention, especially as I ramble on about things as well as genealogy. I also have no idea who moved North Devon to New Brunswick – it wan’t me.

I’ve been Zooming away across the globe, chatting family history to anyone who will listen, including a great session with my ‘down-under’ genealogy friends from Talking Family History and several sessions both as speaker and as host for Devon Family History Society, including a breaking down brick walls session for a bumper audience of close to 200. Bit of a shame therefore that my magic wand appeared to have gone awol but we did make some inroads into a few tricky genealogical problems. My own history interpreter sessions are being well received. These continue through to the end of the year and there’s plenty of opportunities to join in the fun, so do take a look what’s on the programme.

I’ve also left home, not once but twice. For someone who hadn’t even been for a walk or to a shop since mid-March, it did feel a bit odd. Two trips of 300 miles each way with the caravan, so effectively taking our own room, in order to sit at a social distance from the two twigs on my family tree. Definitely worth it though and it is surprising what fun you can have from the opposite ends of a garden.

On the book front, what I hope are the final edits on a school text book that I was commissioned to write are done. Now it is all systems go for the appearance of Sins as Red as Scarlet in 32 days’ time. I am expecting about 40 boxes of the same to be deposited on my driveway any day now. The troops are assembled read to lug them into the house. Where they are going once I get them in the house, is a logistical problem of mammoth proportions that is still to be resolved. I also have to make space for potential socially distanced visitors. Maybe we can use boxes of books as a barrier. People have been very kind and relieved me of copies of my other books in a last-ditch attempt to make more room but ………. .

I have been writing the talk for launch day – 29 August. You are welcome to come and join me as I describe the family, social and local history research that underpins Sins as Red as Scarlet. Here I am reading a few extracts on cover/title reveal day. To be in the virtual audience on 29 August, 2pm British Summer Time, you just need to contact me and a few days beforehand, I will let you have the link to the Zoom presentation. There is also an offer available for those who pre-order the book.

3d and Kindle

And there’s more. If all goes to plan, the audio book of Barefoot on the Cobbles produced by the awesome Circle of Spears Team will also be available from 29 August. Plenty of excitement here therefore although I now have to bite the bullet and try to remember how to upload the file for those who might want to order a Sins ebook, or to order from outside the UK. As usual, I issue a plea for those in the UK to order directly from me, my publisher or an independent book shop. Not only do you get a better quality book, rather than print on demand but it helps reduce my pile.

In other matters, I have discovered how difficult it is to  Zoom quiz when your other team members have Whats App and you don’t and despite living in the C17th, I am hazier about English Civil War battles than I should be. Fortunately, this did not feature in the above mentioned text book. I’d much rather concentrate on all the lovely social history than the political stuff.

Mostly about going Virtual – Isolation day 93

by thehistoryinterpreter

With all the awfulness that is going on at the moment, I am sure this should be a deep and meaningful commentary on current affairs. It isn’t. Not because I don’t feel strongly about things. Not because I don’t care. I am an historian. I should have something to say. Not least about what some claim is the erasing of our history. Indeed I do have thoughts and opinions, it is just that they are not yet fully formed and putting them into words requires more emotional energy that I have at the moment. So I am sorry if this seems a bit like I am burying my head in the sand and ignoring world events but just for now, I am retreating back into the everyday, whilst I process everything.

There haven’t been many posts lately because, to be honest, most things are just jogging along in much the same way as they have for the past few weeks. The weather has turned a bit and the garden has reached a plateau. Plenty of baby blue tits to watch but not much else to report. So far, the relaxing of lockdown restrictions has not made any difference to my life, so I remain here in my own little world, making contact online. I have been invited to do several online presentations and have attended a lovely school reunion and several Devon Family History Society meetings. I took part in Crediton Literary Festival, talking about Remember Then, which was fun and there is also a YouTube video of me, with a very croaky hay fever voice, reading from Barefoot on the Cobbles. I will be reading for Exeter Authors’ Coffee Time Sessions on Thursday at 12. I have decided to run my own series of family/social/local history lectures, as well as provide a four week continuation of the family history course that I ran for Crediton library. There are still spaces if anyone is interested in any of these.

Tomorrow is the cover/title reveal for novel #2; so anyone who has been waiting for more news will learn more of what it contains. I am attempting to read some extracts from the book at 11am via Facebook Live. That’s another whole new learning curve. Now to create my ‘set’, which so far involves some red material, a sprig of bay and a noose …….hmmmm.

Capture

A Post for VE Day – Isolation Day 56

by thehistoryinterpreter

As an historian I want to mark today. As a family historian, I want to think about members of my family who experienced the Second World War first-hand, both those who were members of the armed forces and those who stayed at home running essential services, or bringing up children alone, often in fear and poverty. I am happy to mark today as the anniversary of the day that hostilities ceased in Europe. If I am honest, I am less comfortable with the whole ‘victory’ thing. It is a little like saying we are glad the enemy are dead. Much as I abhor Fascism in all its forms, I am very much aware that no one ‘side’ is wholly good or bad and the views of the ordinary soldiers, the ones who suffer, are frequently not those of their leaders. In war there are no winners.

So if you haven’t already un-followed me, here is my tribute to the members of my family who endured the Second World War.

My family is tiny, of the male descendants of my great grandparents on all four sides, only my father and two uncles were of an age to serve in World War 2. In addition, one of my grandfathers served in the Home Guard. My mother, who was twenty when the war ended, should in theory have been obliged to do some kind of war work. It has never been entirely clear to me why she didn’t. She worked as a book-keeper but I am not sure how that might have been considered to be essential. Perhaps she had some secret task that I am unaware of but I think that’s unlikely. Maybe, although she was liable for call-up from February 1944, the call never came. The only other female descendant of my great-grandparents to be of an age to serve, was my mum’s cousin Olive and she was in uniform.

My father, Cyril Albany Braund, was a cinema projectionist in peacetime. Cinemas were closed for the first fortnight of the war, in an attempt to prevent crowds gathering in public places but were re-opened as a boost to morale and a way of spreading edited news. With the extension of the call-up in May 1940, Cyril joined the Royal Air Force Reserve on 4 July, together with his close friend Eric (John) Golding. Cyril was now Gunner 1351715. By February 1941, Cyril was on a gunnery course on the Isle of Man, with the RAF Regiment. This was followed by a spell guarding airfields in Coventry. Initially attached to 2785 Squadron, early in 1943, Cyril was a member of 2731 Squadron at Docking in Norfolk. On the 5th of May that year, the squadron moved to Langham Regimental Training School. The next month saw periods spent in Great Sampford, Essex and at Catfoss in Yorkshire.

By the June of 1943 Cyril was with 2859 Squadron, which appears to have been newly formed, perhaps in the May. On 1 July, he was on board the troopship Francinia in the Clyde, about to embark for the Mediterranean. They docked first at Algiers and then in Malta. The convoy was attacked whilst in Malta but sustained no damage. They then proceeded to Sicily, where they were based at San Francesco airfield and were soon to come under fire once again. 2859 Squadron had a concert party and it is almost certain that Cyril, being a keen singer and pianist, would have participated. The climate began to take its toll and it was not long before malaria was diagnosed amongst the men. Cyril is known to have suffered from malaria but we don’t know when he was first taken ill.

In September 1943, the squadron moved to Falcone and it was there that they received the news of Italy’s capitulation. The concert party were still performing and were now calling themselves the Flak-Astras. After two weeks at Falcone, the squadron was moved to mainland Italy and arrived in Foggia in October. It was here that malaria claimed its first life amongst the squadron. After a five day journey, the squadron took up residence in Capodichino, Naples. Its role was to guard the airfields in the area. In May 1944 the squadron boarded the HMT Orontes at Naples and disembarked at Greenock. They then took the train to Sutton Bridge in Lincolnshire.

On 19 July 1944, Cyril was admitted to Queen Victoria’s Hospital in Herne Bay, Kent, before being transferred to the Municipal Hospital in Canterbury, where he spent three weeks, almost certainly suffering from malaria. By the time he rejoined his squadron, they were at Sibson in Cambridgeshire.

By the spring of 1945, with the end of the war in sight, Cyril was one of 34 other ranks and 3 SNCOs who were transferred to the army. His discharge document describes him as being ‘of very good character with a satisfactory degree of trade proficiency’. The following day, Cyril reported to Personnel Transit Station, Weeton, Preston in Lancashire for service in the territorial army. At interview the PSO observed, ‘Above average intelligence, bright, pleasant and alert. Has quite good ability all round and is keen to do well in the army. Should prove capable’. Cyril’s application form stated that he had a provisional driving license, that his sporting activities included football, cricket, swimming and a little boxing and that his hobby was sketching.

Cyril became part of the Royal Army Service Corps battalion of the Wiltshire Regiment with a new service number, 14005098, and began gunnery training at Warminster, Wiltshire, where he met my mother, who was visiting her cousin Olive, who was also stationed at Warminster. Cyril then spent a month on a senior NCO’s training course before being sent to Bally Edmond, Rostrevor, County Down, Ireland as a gunnery instructor. His regular letters to my mother survive for this period, much of which seems to have been spent peeling potatoes and singing in a choir.

Once the war was over, Cyril remained in the army, as a sergeant with the Department of National Service Entertainment, working with ENSA, resuming his civilian trade as a cinema projectionist. He returned to Naples and helped to set up a cinema at Pomigliano. He was stationed at Lammie Camp during the early part of 1946, working as chief projectionist at the Odeon Cinema in Naples. He was formally transferred to the army reserve on 23 August 1946, with effect from 6 November. His reference reads ‘This NCO has proved himself a capable worker and [has] given consistently good service in the Cinema Division. He is a qualified projectionist and is keen hardworking and reliable. An efficient and valued NCO.’

A photograph survives of Cyril’s brother Leonard in uniform but I know nothing about his service. The third brother, Stan, worked on the railways with their father, so he was in a reserved occupation and he served with the Home Guard. My grandfather Albany Braund was also in the Home Guard. He never claimed the medal to which he was entitled. I was able to do so on his behalf after he died.

Albany’s Defence Medal
Cyril’s Service Book
Albany Braund
Stanley Arthur Braund
Leonard Braund
Cyril’s Medals
Cyril Albany Braund
Cyril Albany Braund

Top: Albany Braund and his medal. Cyril’s Service Book

Middle: Stan on the left and Leonard on the right

Bottom: Cyril and his medals

Books, Games and 34 years of Family History Teaching – Isolation Day 42

by thehistoryinterpreter

So, in the week when we saw the leader of the free world advocate drinking bleach (here is a tip – don’t) what has been going on in the bottom left hand corner of England? The days roll on but today, after two years and 80,691 words, I think I might just have ‘finished’ novel number two. Of course, ‘finished’ doesn’t actually mean finished at all. Now comes all the hard work of editing, tweaking, lurching between being quite pleased with it and thinking it is all total rubbish. It is a sense of achievement nonetheless. I have also seen the first rough ideas for the cover, which is very exciting. I will now reveal that the sub-plot involves a character undertaking genealogical research. I was heard to say that there probably wouldn’t be a novel three but I have just bought a book that might help with a germ of an idea.

I have been updating my beginners’ family history course, ready for presenting it online to a full group, organised by Crediton Library in May, which is apparently Family History Month. I am still struggling with days of the week. Please don’t expect me to remember month names, let alone special designations for those months. It was a bit of a shock to realise that I taught my first family history course thirty four years ago. Techniques and methods of accessing records have changed beyond all recognition since then. The sources and the excitement are unchanged however. My early courses were illustrated with large posters and overhead projector acetates. I advocated, purchasing International Reply Coupons (remember those) and wearing skirts in case you offended an elderly relative that you were interviewing (that was the women of course). Now I am that elderly relative! Online databases and DNA tests were the stuff of science fiction. I am not convinced that it has all been change for the better. I miss the meticulous research that has, in all too many cases, been replaced with a grab it all quick and never mind checking to see if it is plausible, let alone true, attitude. Of course, many modern researcher are scrupulous about verifying the evidence and citing sources and long may that continue. In comparison to those days in the 1980s, so much can be done from the comfort of home and with luck, reasonable trees can be built in months not decades.

On the family front, we have tried playing Monopoly online. It was not an unqualified success. To begin with, neither party had traditional Monopoly. Well I had a traditional board but couldn’t find the corresponding cards and money. So I was using the deluxe version, with renamed streets and allowances for inflation and my opponents had a superheroes Monopoly. ‘I’ve bought Thor’. ‘Where’s that?’ ‘Regent Street.’ ‘I don’t have a Regent Street’. ‘Third green one along’. It was a laugh a minute and I was swiftly bankrupted.

The garden has come on apace. We now have a fully re-instated path, well the weed inhibitor is laid but we will have to wait until replacement chippings are available. We have recycled as many old chippings as possible but the new path is longer than the old path and many of the original chippings have long since disappeared.

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I am gearing myself up for tomorrow’s #twopointsixchallenge when, in lieu of a marathon that I was never going to run, I will be doing a 26 minute workout, 26 minutes of gardening and offer 26 people the opportunity to have 2.6 hours of genealogical research in return for a donation to my chosen charity. I have not yet reached 26 takers for this so there is still time – I will give you until midnight my time on 26 April.

Stay safe – until next time.

My Own Take on the Marathon #TwoPointSixChallenge

by thehistoryinterpreter

Even with my daily dose of Joe Wicks, I shall never run the London Marathon (other marathons are also inaccessible). Many charities rely on donations from those taking part in the London Marathon, which was scheduled for 26 April but cannot now take place. In order to compensate for the loss of funds, a number of people are taking up ‘at home’ physical challenges and are seeking donations. A number of possible challenges are suggested. I can now manage a 26 minute workout without too many ill effects (thanks again Joe) and I’ll add on 26 minutes of gardening.

The idea is that the challenge should be something energetic but I thought I’d play to my strengths. Therefore I will also offer 2.6 hours of free British genealogical research (or provide a 2.6 hour consultation) for each of the first 26 people who donate to this charity and contact me before the 26th April 2020 with proof of their donation. I am not specifying the size of the donation but it would be nice if it had a 2 and a 6 in it! Bear in mind though that this is nearly 70 hours of work if 26 people respond and may take me months to do all 26. This is of course limited to what I can do from home.

The charity I have chosen is The Calvert Trust Exmoor. This is a small Devon charity who provide adventure activities and holidays for individuals and families with disabilities.

Here is Edward enjoying his time there last summer.

Calvert Trust (25)

Zooming About – Isolation Day 29

by thehistoryinterpreter

There has not been a post for a while because, let’s face it, one day is pretty much like another. Day whatever it is (29 apparently) of staying at home and I am beginning to wonder how I ever found time to go out. Thankfully, I am gradually finding that I am getting a few things done now but I do still have 52 things on my ‘before the end of April’ list (like that’s going to happen). Sadly, there are a few more that haven’t even made it to the list.

So, what have I been up to since we last met? I have joined in with the millions (literally) around the world who do daily PE with Joe Wicks. Not for me the namby-pamby seniors’ workouts, oh no, this is the full on half an hour school PE session. Yes, I am probably certifiable. I should explain that, although we do walk a fair bit on holiday, I am not really an exercise sort of a person. I have never been to a gym, or for a run [edit – I have been reminded that once a year for getting on for twenty years, I have indeed run 5k as part of Race for Life – for which I have done zero training] and my idea of a successful school PE lesson was to hide my kit sufficiently well to be told to tidy the PE store. After day three of the enthusiastic Joe I could barely move. I persevered. I can now grit my teeth, get to the end and not feel any adverse effects. I am treating this a bit like essential medicine. Genetics mean that I am already at higher than average risk were I to catch COVID-19, so I really do owe it to myself to try and put my slightly dodgy heart and my lungs in the best possible shape in case I do succumb. I do still feel like the whole thing is a bit of a penance though.

Zoom has taken over my life. There were several meetings last week, including chatting to nearly 100 genealogists, predominantly from Australia and New Zealand and writers’ group get togethers. Having climbed the Zoom learning curve, I have now arranged to take two sets of regular family/local history meetings online and organised a virtual two day one-name society reunion for May. I’ll let you know how it goes.

The garden has been duly attacked. Of the ancient seeds I planted a couple of weeks ago, only one sort has germinated. I now have a glut of woad. Hmm, that will come in useful if we are inside long enough to run out of clothes. Actually, outgrowing them is probably more likely, despite Joe. Some new flowers and veg seeds have also been planted. I don’t really have sufficient room but fingers crossed. The trees are coming into blossom and there are blue tits (one of whom thinks it is a woodpecker – long story) and sparrows in the nesting boxes. It is a positive aspect of being at home that I can see the garden at the nicest time of year.

DSCF0507

We had another family sock wearing meet up, lobsters .v. Amelia Earhart and the grandchildren have been showing me their Easter gifts. One of our number had to confess to not having his socks accessible but we managed to include him using the wonders of technology. It is surprisingly difficult to photograph your own feet – especially when they are hovering in front of a laptop.

The NHS clapping in our village gets louder each week. This week I broke out the replica C17th drum in order to join in.

Drum

The piano is progressing, the Cornish not so much. I have very very very nearly finished novel number two. I estimate there will be about another 2000 words to go. Then for the edits. Today’s clue is that it includes the (true) story of an errant clergyman with a chequered past.

Happy Easter!

Pruning the Family Tree and other adventures – Day 19

by thehistoryinterpreter

I, like many others in these strange times, am finding it difficult to concentrate, least of all on what I should be doing. After a couple of totally unproductive days. I revisited a branch of my family tree that has been virtually untouched for over forty years. Before you scoff, bear in mind how difficult research was then. No digital images, no indexes, just trawling through page after page of original parish registers in archives. In fact, much of this was done by another trusted researcher. It is only now that I have got around to going over the earlier generations and verifying the information. Or in this case not verifying it. I come from a long line of Bishops. Not actual bishops you understand but people with the surname Bishop. This included four successive generations of chaps called Christopher.

It seems that the original researcher was pretty hot on baptisms and marriages. She also spent ages doing in-depth research in churchwardens’ and overseers’ accounts in which they feature, all good stuff. What she failed to do was to attempt to kill these guys off. First, I discover that the lady who held the distinction of being 9x great granny, Annes (or Agnes) Maddick, died before alleged 8x great granddad was born. Cue the substitution of Jane Thorne, second wife of 9x great granddad Christopher Bishop I, in the role of 9x great granny. Oh hang on, here was a burial of a Christopher Bishop just two weeks after the supposed baptism of 8x great granddad Christopher Bishop II. Clearly ‘my’ Christopher Bishop, who married Mary Bowman and went on to have yet another Christopher (lacking in imagination these Bishops), was not only not the son of Christopher and Annes but not the son of Christopher and Jane either. In the absence of probate material for Devon, I doubt if I will ever be able to be conclusive about my 9x great-grandparents on this line but never mind, I’d rather have a shorter tree that was accurate.

I have also undertaken the biannual excavation of the flies’ graveyard that is the shelf round my conservatory where the ‘walls’ join the roof. This involves much precarious balancing on window sills and is not to be recommended. Said shelf contains many historic ornaments, all of which have to be taken down and wiped in order to remove the fly pooh. What is it about flies and conservatories? The warmth I suppose. I maintain that I leave the cobwebs there (and believe me there are plenty of those) for six months in order to catch the flies. Are you convinced?

After over a week of ‘block’, I have just written some more of novel number two. Still scheduled for launch in August, even if it can only be a virtual launch of a digital version at first. It is so nearly finished. Probably about 4000-5000 words left to write. Today’s clue. Although the characters in the modern strand inhabit a rather different version of 2020, there are references to COVID-19.

Oh and the Cornish? Still not got beyond dydh da I’m afraid but a helpful book arrived in the post today.

And a pretty sunrise from my bedroom window (December 2017), just because I can.

19 Dec 2017 1 (2)

 

Day 11 Fruit and Veg, Toilet Rolls, Genealogy and other Isolation Issues

by thehistoryinterpreter

Today is day 11 for us. I am rapidly going to lose track of how many days it is and I certainly have to stop and think about the day of the week. The last few days have brought some highs and lows.

First positive was the discovery of one and a half toilet rolls. Ok, so they were in the almost never used outside toilet and covered in cobwebs but someone in the household is willing to use them. Actually, we have sufficient toilet rolls but the absence of any online shopping slots in the next three weeks is worrying. I do have a slot booked for two weeks’ time but very little of my potential order is currently available. I was feeling quite down about this yesterday morning but first our wonderful community shop, run by volunteers, delivered a few essentials such as bread and milk and then a massive box of fruit and veg arrived, ordered by Rebecca in lieu of Mother’s Day flowers. Under current circumstances, better than any flowers, there might have been a tear or two. A parcel arrived from BeingEdward for Mother’s Day. I Skyped to say thank you. He has been making resin jewellery with his mum. He had given me a necklace with half a heart shape and was very excited to show me that he was wearing the matching other half, cue more emotion.

DSCF0492

DSCF0493.JPGI am eternally grateful for ‘online’. I’ve helped Edward lay out a family tree. I managed to access Zoom for the first time to chat with other genealogy types and used Skype to meet with my authors’ group. I think Martha, Lucy and I are planning a family music recital later in the week. On the downside, I have a totally unintelligible communication from the US tax people, or possibly from Amazon, relating to my meagre Amazon sales to the US. I fill in my own UK self-assessment forms with ease. This is unintelligible, as is the website it directs you to. It seems I am a ‘non-resident alien’ (that may explain a lot) and I may need to visit my US Embassy for a tax form – like that’s going to happen. Or I can write to Illinois, ditto at present – not going to make a non-essential Post Office visit. So now I am worrying about being hauled off to some federal prison for non-payment of taxes.

Thanks to my co-isolatee, my lawn has been mown and even the shed is looking tidier. We planted some seeds. They are pretty antique but archaeologists have got Roman seeds to grow right? I spent an hour cancelling various aspects of our planned holiday to Ireland – hopefully we will be able to go next year instead.

I dropped in on #AncestryHour on Twitter. The lovely Daniel of Daniel’s Genealogy has interviewed me. Ah there’s another new novel clue for you – it does mention #Ancestryhour. I am still finding it very difficult to concentrate on anything, particularly writing and everything is taking longer than usual. Nonetheless my new One Place Study booklet is finished and with beta readers. You cannot imagine how long it took me to get Word to behave so that the pages that I wanted to have numbers did and that they were the correct numbers.

I am starting to get to know my next batch of students for my Writing and Telling Your Family History Course. I feel some of them may have more time than usual to devote to this. Still time to sign up if you want to join the merry throng – it starts on Tuesday – providing any of us can actually remember when Tuesday is!

Of Plagues, Pianos, Books and Surviving 2020

by thehistoryinterpreter

It is difficult to know what to write at the moment. Do I grit my teeth in ‘keep calm and carry on fashion’? Do I write uplifting stuff? Do I list all the adverts that are turning up on my social media feeds, most of which are for cleaning products at grossly inflated prices, or items that feed upon my fear? ‘Protect yourself from all known germs for thirty days by wearing this magic (very expensive) virus disinfection card round your neck’. Really? In their desperation people will clutch at anything. There are always those who are quick to capitalise. Our baser survival instincts are kicking in and baser they certainly are. I’ll admit it, ‘My name is Janet and my bathroom cupboard contains more toilet rolls than usual’. Not a crazy amount but yes, more than usual and I did panic buy two tins of carrots the other day. I am not stockpiling but I am replenishing larder and fridge more often than I might. I am wondering just how long I could manage without going out or having anything delivered. Current thinking is probably about four weeks, maybe longer with rationing, I do need to lose weight. My diet would be odd but I would not starve. I don’t use bread or milk, which helps.

I am lurching between making an effort to do things as normally as possible and just wanting to lock the door for three months. I’ll be honest, mostly I just want to lock the door. Normally, I am not one to panic but this, this is unprecedented. I think of my worldwide circle of friends, my neighbours, many of whom are in the vulnerable groups and yes, I do wonder who will make it out the other side. I like to think I’d be calmer if I wasn’t (just) within the higher risk age group, if I didn’t have what is referred to as ‘a pre-existing condition’ but maybe I’d still be scared. Events, from the village weekly coffee morning to Rootstech London, are being cancelled and I am relieved that the decision is being taken out of my hands; I don’t need to weigh up how risky my attendance might be. Like most people, I’d really like to skip the next few months and wake up to a saner world.

In other news and you’d be forgiven for thinking there is no other news. Every conversation, every news bulletin, every social media post seems to be about nothing else but there really is other news.

I’ve recently started having piano lessons. I have had lessons before, for a year, when I was seven. That was a very long time ago and my fingers were not so stiff then. After three lessons, I can stumble my way through classics of the 60s and 70s like Streets of London and Let it Be. Just don’t try to sing along unless you sing very slowly. Next on the bucket list might be learning Cornish, although I am reminded just how awful I am at any language but English.

The various writing projects are making progress. It may be as well that it looks like I will be home for a month when I expected to be in Ireland on holiday. This will give me some breathing space. My new one-place studies booklet is pretty much finished and the one-place course, which will see its first airing in September, is coming on. Pharos are already taking bookings. The novel too is nearly done. The clue for today is that it includes a chapter set in a plague outbreak that occurred in 1646. I have re-written that chapter with a much greater understanding of the sheer terror that my characters would have felt. As I haven’t put up many posts lately, I’ll give you another clue. The modern strand is set between June and September 2020. This is causing some problems! I am too locked into that time span to change it. Things are occurring daily that mean I need to alter sections; when I wrote most of it there was no corona virus. I need to go to press in June. There will come a point where there will need to be an author’s note, explaining why my characters’ experiences may not mirror reality and I’ll just have to go with it.

One thing I am not worried about is my ability to hibernate. I can find plenty to do without leaving home. I am very relieved that I have a garden. I would struggle if I could not get outside, particularly in the summer. I think of all the projects that might get done in a month’s isolation, tidying, decorating, reminding myself how to spin, writing up more branches of my family history. Incidentally, if you are thinking of using self-isolation to turn your family history notes and files into some sort of story and would like some inspiration and motivation, there are still a couple of space on my online Writing and Telling your Family History course which starts on 31st. It is a five week course but it will give you enough suggestions to keep you busy whilst the world calms down.

Look after yourselves my friends. Remember it is ok to be scared. Talk about it. Self-isolate but don’t be isolated. We need to care for our mental as well as our physical health. We are fortunate that we have the technology that allows us to support each other without meeting face to face.

Bluebells 2

Because we all need beautiful flowers right now

Who am I Related to?

by thehistoryinterpreter

As regular readers will know, I am comparatively new to the convoluted ‘excitements’ of Ancestry DNA matches. I’ve been having a little play. If you have nothing better to do, you might see how your matches compare. You probably won’t all read to the end so I will put today’s new novel hint at the beginning – #5 It contains a modern strand. The novel also has the beginnings of its own webpage now. This post is probably for those who like fiddling with numbers and charts. If that’s not you, please go and use your time more wisely and stop reading now.

So, back to the DNA. I have, according to Ancestry, two 3-4th cousin matches, 316 4th-6th cousin matches and as of this minute, 35,218 5th-8th cousin matches. I have looked at all those with common ancestors (allegedly 86 people although a couple have some incorrect trees). I have also checked all those that match at 16cM or more and all the shared matches of these people, plus a random selection of others. That’s over 2000 matches in all. So far, I have identified precisely how I am related to 78 people. The DNA that I share with some of these individuals is a little as 6cm. I am also more closely related to some than ancestry believes. Thanks to shared matching, I have an additional 237 matches, where I can tell which branch of the family is likely to be responsible for the link, although not the precise details of how we are connected.

I am very far from being a DNA expert, so please do tell me if all this is total nonsense. Anyway, I thought it might be fun to consider how my matches are distributed amongst different branches of my family and to speculate on why not all my great great grandparents are equally represented.

My paternal grandfather’s paternal grandfather

The Braund family from Devon and Cornwall can be traced back to the 1680s. 28 of my identified matches relate to this branch of the family and I know precisely how 20 of them relate to me. The closest relations are two 3rd cousins once removed, with whom I share 35 and 20cM. Most are 6th cousins but I do have a 7th cousin (who matches at 11cM) and a 7th cousin once removed (with 15 shared cM). I have not ruled out being related twice over with some of these individuals. In fact, in one case, I know I am.

My paternal grandfather’s paternal grandmother

The Nicholls family, also from Cornwall, can be traced back the 1630s. They yield just six matches, only one of which I can precisely identify. This is a 4th cousin once removed (a 20cM match).

My paternal grandfather’s maternal grandfather

The Bishops, another west country family, are responsible for a whopping 104 matches, most of whom have no trees or private trees. The 12 for whom I have precise details of how we are related, vary from a 3rd cousin once removed, who only shares 12cM of DNA, to several 6th cousins, one of whom shares 14cM.

My paternal grandfather’s maternal grandmother

The Buckinghams and their forebears come from Cornwall. I have 39 matches that I have identified as relating to this branch, three of whom have a known place on the family tree. These range from a 5th cousin (21cm) to a 6th cousin (11cm). The closest relative shares 43cM of DNA (precise relationship unknown).

This quarter of my family is responsible for nearly 60% of my identified matches. There are obviously a number of factors at work here. Firstly, as I have not inherited an equal amount of DNA from each grandparent, I am less likely to have matches with those whose DNA is more diluted in my make-up. Perhaps I have a higher proportion of west-country DNA (although Living DNA’s ethnicity estimate suggests not). In addition and probably more significantly, the south-west branches are likely to be linked to a higher proportion of emigrants, therefore there will be more residents of the USA amongst the wider family. Given the much higher number of US citizens who have tested, this is bound to have an impact. Also, by using shared matches to identify likely group members, there is a snowball effect.

My paternal grandmother’s paternal grandparents

What about the other three quarters of my ancestry? My paternal grandmother’s quarter is the poorest yield for DNA matches, with none for her father, the Hoggs from Northumberland and just two 4th cousins (19cM shared) for her paternal grandmother. I believe that this is largely because these lines are more difficult to trace, not just for me but for other researchers too. The Hogg line hits a brick wall in 1804. Therefore matches on these lines are probably hidden within the many hundreds of matches for whom I cannot identify a common ancestor. Of course, I cannot ignore the possibility that Mr Hogg may not actually be my genetic great great grandparent.

My paternal grandmother’s maternal grandparents

The Howe and Stratford lines from Buckinghamshire (with 7 matches, 4 of which are identified), give me one of my closest matches, a third cousin, yet we share just 27cM. It looks as if this grandparent is under-represented in my DNA, another possible reason for fewer matches. So, fewer than 3% of my matches come from my paternal grandmother.

My maternal grandfather’s ancestors

On my mother’s father’s side we hit the problem of endogamy; with the Smiths and the Seears intermarrying in three successive generations. This means that I am related to most of my matches in more than one way, making meaningful analysis difficult. I do have 46 matches in this line, five of whom can be located on my family tree. I have one matche to my Norfolk great great grandparent, Anne Bulley, a 4th cousin sharing 18cM of DNA). This again is a difficult-to-trace branch. Despite this, 15% of my matches relate to my maternal grandfather.

My maternal grandmother’s ancestors

Finally, to my maternal grandmother’s line. The Sussex Woolgars are well documented and can be traced back to the C15th, so perhaps it is not surprising that there are 23 relatives on this branch, ranging from a 4th cousin (with only 6cM shared) to a 6th cousin sharing 17cM. Six of these can be precisely identified.

On the virtually impossible to trace Cardell line I have two matches. These support my speculation as to the ancestry of my brick wall ancestor but more is needed.

The Essex Dawsons and Bowyers can be traced back to the 1650s, again giving potential for plenty of matches and there are 47 of them, of which I can pinpoint the exact relationship for 16, all of whom are 4th– 6th cousins. Thus, this grandparent gives me 23% of my matches, not far from her fair share.

In summary then, this is the percentage of matches that each grandparents is responsible for:-

Paternal grandfather 60%, paternal grandmother 3%, maternal grandfather 15%, maternal grandmother 23% – sorry, I know that adds up to 101% – blame rounding up/down.

Ancestry have just announced their Mother’s Day sale. Shall  take the plunge and get a daughter to test, so I can do all this for her paternal ancestry as well?

* My only connection with any DNA testing company, is as a customer. I have received no concessions, free gifts or financial inducements from any of them.

And just because I can, one of my favourite family photos, colourised by MyHeritage and then enhanced by me.Colourised Philip James and Percy James Woolgar c 1896