ESM's QuickLessons A DearMYRTLE Genealogy Study Group Lesson 6 and The Research Plan

Hilary Gadsby

QuickLesson 6: Mindmapping Records    
Elizabeth Shown Mills, “QuickLesson 6: Mindmapping Records,” Evidence Explained: Historical Analysis, Citation & Source Usage (https://www.evidenceexplained.com/content/quicklesson-6-mindmapping-records : accessed 17 April 2016).        

Based on the Settlement Examination I referred to in Lesson 5 I have created a Mindmap showing where I will go next in the research for this ancestor and her ancestors using the information found in the document.

If it is easier to view this link will open in another window My Mindmap.
By looking at what I have found in this document I can create a plan of where to search for further records that will confirm and expand upon what was found in this one record.

The Research Plan: Two-step Next Steps?
Elizabeth Shown Mills, "The Research Plan: Two-step Next Steps?" Evidence Explained: Historical Analysis, Citation & Source Usage (https://www.evidenceexplained.com/quicktips/research-plan-two-step-next-steps : accessed 17 April 2016).

The key element to my research from the map I have created is to find out more about the identity of Mary Eley mother of Louisa Richards. If I was to find more in some of these records I would have to determine her maiden name. I briefly discussed where I have got with my research in my previous post.

The research process requires a step by step approach and not fully analysing the results at each stage can lead us to jump to the wrong conclusions.

I was fortunate that Mary married Edward Eley using her maiden name and this marriage was the only one in the register that would fit the information obtained from the Settlement Examination. If she had married someone with a more common name in this area the search would have been less straightforward.

Where next for Twile?

Do you want more of your family to be involved in creating Family History for future generations?

Whether it's taking pictures, writing stories, or just sharing experiences, we are all creating our own family history everyday. 

The younger generation use social media to interact with each other and some even use it to keep up with their families. 

If you use Facebook you will see numerous photographs every day. Some of these are of milestone events weddings, christenings, birthdays and other special occasions. 

Would you like to save these for your descendants to see or share them with family who live away? 

Some members of the family may be reluctant to share in such a public arena and would prefer a more private place.

Twile was created so families can share there experiences and knowledge about the family in a fun interactive way and everyone can add their own part of the story. 

It uses timelines and is very visual great for engaging the younger generation. 

There are also ways of incorporating historic events within your timeline to show how these evnts may have affected your family.

Why not try their 30 day free trial.

I wrote a post in February so take a look if you have not read it and read some of the Twile blog to find out more.

The Twile team (in red) of Paul Brooks, Kelly Marsden and Caroline Brooks at the Find My Past Stand at Who Do You Think You Are Live 2016

Earlier this week I posted about my experience at Guild Conference and WDYTYA Live. Paul Brooks was at both conference and show and was explaining how Twile works and asking whether there is anything they could do to make the website work for those doing surname studies. I must admit I was not sure how it might work.

The team have been busy since Rootstech trying to respond to the suggestions they received from those likely to use the site to build and share their family history.

I could write about the discussion of what is to come but instead I will share with you an interview I conducted with Paul in the hall at Who Do You Think You Are Live.

Here is the link to my interview.

Caroline Brooks talking to a member of the Find My Past team

ESM's QuickLessons A DearMYRTLE Genealogy Study Group Lesson 5

Hilary Gadsby

QuickLesson 5: Analyzing Records    
Elizabeth Shown Mills, “QuickLesson 5: Analyzing Records,” Evidence Explained: Historical Analysis, Citation & Source Usage (https://www.evidenceexplained.com/content/quicklesson-5-analyzing-records : accessed 30 March 2016)

For this weeks lesson I would like to refer you to an earlier post which includes a transcription of a record I found when I visited the archives in Southampton, Hampshire, England.

I had contacted the archives before I visited as I had been looking for a bastardy record for my 2xgt grandfather. The baptism record, that I had received a copy of from my aunt, showed that Stephen was the illegitimate son of Stephen Buckle and Louisa Richards and was christened in 1827 at St Michael's Church in Southampton. 

When I received the baptism record I could have left it at that as I had the name of the father recorded. However even though I had this information I had heard of bastardy records and hoped that I might learn more. I have still not used these records in my research yet.
Fortunately for me the settlement examinations for this time period had been indexed and as Louisa Richards appeared in this index I looked at the record transcribed in the aforementioned post.
Understanding of why a record was created is important and may lead us to discover more.
Why were they asking about where the mother was born, and had worked. In this document there is also reference to the grandparents. To fully appreciate what information is contained in this document we need to know more about settlement and how the parish of settlement is determined. Why were they trying to determine a parish of settlement?
The analysis of this document reveals many details about the early life of my ancestor and creates many questions. 
I refer you to my preferred reference source for more information about settlement
Herber, Mark D. Ancestral trails : the complete guide to British genealogy and family history. Stroud: Sutton, 2004. p 345-349.
Questions posed by this document were touched upon in this earlier post and some of these can now be answered by further research. Discovering the marriage of Edward and Mary revealed her maiden name. Her christening revealed her father's name and the Christian name of her mother this led to marriage of the parents. Records for Jersey are difficult to find but I discovered a transcription online so a trip to the beautiful island of Jersey is now required. I may have discovered more about Thomas Richards but I need to discover what military records are available for this period. I believe he may have been involved in the Napoleonic wars as I found a record for his regiment.
Thorough research involves more than analysis of documents. Context and understanding of what may help your research ensures that everything is looked at in the context of when and where the record was created.