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Archive for August, 2009
Problems with Internet Explorer 8
Friday, August 28th, 20091901 census – missing pages from piece 336
Friday, August 28th, 2009We’ve discovered that a number of pages for piece 336 of the 1901 census were missed during scanning. As a result, both the images and transcriptions for these pages are currently missing from the site.
Rest assured, we’ve identified which pages are missing, and we are working to get these added.
Please bear with us while we correct the problem.
1851 and 1881 census image issues
Friday, August 28th, 2009We’ve identified some issues affecting a small number of our recently scanned images:
• Certain 1851 census images are displaying multiple census pages – when you view an image extra pages may appear next to or above the one you’ve asked for, which may mean the image is slow to load.
• Certain 1851 and 1881 census images have been cropped too closely and are missing the census reference numbers (RG, piece, folio and page numbers), although you can still view the references on the transcription page.
We’re sorry for any inconvenience these anomalies may cause. Both of these issues will be fixed soon.
1881 census - 1.25 million images added
Friday, August 28th, 2009We’ve just added a full set of images for the 1881 England and Wales census – that’s over 1.25 million images for nearly 29 million individuals that are now ready for you to search.
The transcription of the census has been available for some time, but until now the images were not. As part of a mammoth project we’ve scanned each census return at high resolution and matched it with the corresponding transcription, making the images fully searchable.
See your ancestors on the new 1881 census images now
Find out more through the census images
Transcriptions are an invaluable research tool, but it’s always best to check a transcription against the original census return, to verify its accuracy and to get a feel for the original document.
The images will also reveal details of your ancestors’ neighbours, and you may well find that they had relatives who lived nearby. You can use this new information to compile a list of possible friends and acquaintances, and to build a better picture of the area and times in which your ancestors lived.
Surf the censuses worry-free with an Explorer
It’s free to view 1881 census transcriptions but it costs three PayAsYouGo credits to view an image. Explorer subscribers, however, can access all of our 1841-1901 census images and transcriptions at no extra cost. The Explorer subscription gives you the freedom to view the records without worrying about your credits depleting.
Report 1881 census transcription errors
With the images in place it’s now possible for us to check transcriptions against the original returns and correct any errors. You can now report 1881 transcription errors in the same way as on the other censuses, using the ‘report transcription change’ button found at the top of the transcription or image.
A treat for Tennyson-lovers
Thursday, August 20th, 2009An exhibition to mark the bicentenary of Poet Laureate Lord Alfred Tennyson’s birth has opened at his former home, Farringford House, on the Isle of Wight. Tennyson moved into the house in 1853, remained there for the rest of his life, and immortalised it in a poem to his friend Rev F. D. Maurice.
During Tennyson’s 39-year tenure, islanders were treated to regular visits from notables ranging from politicians, painters, and authors, to scientists, and even royalty. Benjamin Disraeli, Charles Darwin, Lewis Carroll, Giuseppe Garibaldi, and the Queen of Hawaii were Tennyson guests at one time or other.
The 1861 census provides an early glimpse at Tennyson’s idyllic Isle of Wight home, where he was living with his wife and two sons. The other occupants – a tutor, gardener, page, nurse, cook, housemaid, parlour maid, and a kitchen maid – give some idea of the opulent lifestyle the family enjoyed (click the image to enlarge).
Farringford House on the 1861 census
On the 1891 census an 81-year-old Tennyson is described as a peer of the realm, and his one-year-old grandson, Lionel (a future England cricketer) is now part of the household.
Farringford House on the 1891 census
Lord Tennyson would die just a year later. A search of the findmypast.com records reveals he was a shareholder in the Great Western Railway, and we discover that his wife, Emily, and eldest son, Hallam, acted as executors.
Lord Tennyson on the Great Western Railway Shareholders index
Our last glimpse at Farringford House is on the 1911 census. Lord Hallam Tennyson (who has inherited his father’s title) is the head of the household. The other residents are his wife Lady Audrey Tennyson, and seven servants. In the years that followed Farringford House became a hotel, and still serves that purpose today.
Farringford House on the 1911 census
The ‘Tennyson at Farringford’ exhibition runs until 9 September at Farringford House.
The mystery of Kim’s missing grandfather
Wednesday, August 12th, 2009This week it’s the turn of the actress Kim Cattrall to take part in Who Do you Think You Are?. Though the actress is best known for her roles as Americans, she was actually born in Liverpool and raised in Canada.
The family’s journey to Canada can be found on findmypast.com’s Passenger Lists. Kim is seen at three months old travelling with her sister, Cherry, and her mother Shane (listed as Gladys on official documents) in November 1956.
Kim Cattrall on the Passenger Lists
Kim’s father Dennis had travelled several months earlier in April, when Shane was pregnant, so Kim was on her way to meet her father for the first time.
Kim Cattrall's father on the Passenger Lists
Kim’s family have remained close to their Liverpudlian roots and Kim has returned many times over the years. This time Kim is on a mission to solve the mystery surrounding her maternal grandfather George Baugh.
George married Kim’s Grandmother Marion Thomas in 1928. The event can be found in findmypast.com’s birth, marriage, and death indexes.
Kim Catrall's grandfather's marriage
However, George walked out on his wife and three daughters when Shane was eight – leaving the family in poverty – and was never heard from again. The only clues Kim has are a photograph and a newspaper article from the 1980s, which mentions her grandfather’s sister.
Shane and her sisters are desperate to know what happened to their father, but will they like what they find? Is Kim’s prediction that ‘I think it’s going to end in tears’ going to be right? Watch BBC One tonight at 9pm to find out.
Brand-new version of the 1901 census completed
Tuesday, August 11th, 2009A brand new transcription of the 1901 census, complete with newly scanned high-quality images, is available on findmypast.com. We’ve just added the final 24 counties and other UK territories – which comprise over 5.6 million new records – so you can now search the census in full.
Search the complete 1901 census for England and Wales now
The new additions are:
England:
Cumberland
Devonshire
Durham
Northumberland
Westmorland
Worcestershire
Wales:
Anglesey
Brecknockshire
Carnarvonshire
Cardiganshire
Carmarthenshire
Denbighshire
Flintshire
Glamorganshire
Merionethshire
Montgomeryshire
Monmouthshire
Pembrokeshire
Radnorshire
Other:
Guernsey and Adjacent Islands
Isle of Man
Jersey
Royal Navy at Sea and in ports abroad
New images, new transcriptions
Although the 1901 census has been available for some time, we’re confident our new transcription is the most accurate online and will reveal many individuals whose names have been wrongly transcribed by other websites. And in accordance with our commitment to providing the best images, all of the images have been re-scanned to a high quality.
If you’re unable to find your family on other versions of the 1901 census, then it’s well worth trying on findmypast.com. Remember, it’s free to search the census – you’ll only pay to view images or transcripts.
Search our new transcription of the 1901 census with high-quality images
Every census available soon
The completion of the 1901 census brings us a crucial step closer to a full set of 1841-1901 England and Wales censuses. The 1851 census – the only remaining incomplete census – will be available in full within the next few months, and a full set of high-quality 1881 census images will be added to the transcriptions already available. We’ll tell you about these and other exciting developments, as they happen.
Unfilmed 1851 census records available now
Friday, August 7th, 2009We’ve just added transcriptions and reconstructed images for around 180,000 individuals – available online for the first time – which have been retrieved from severely damaged 1851 census pages.
The records for the Manchester, Chorlton, Salford, Oldham and Ashton-Under-Lyne registration districts were water damaged many years ago due to flooding.
As a result many were too fragile to be filmed or no writing was visible, but a 14 year project by the Manchester and Lancashire Family History Society (MLFHS) has recovered information from around 82 per cent of the damaged records.
The reconstructed images follow the same layout as the originals, and where relevant include details of neighbouring households.
Read more about the restoration project
Search the reconstructed images and transcriptions for the first time now
brightsolid acquires Friends Reunited Group
Thursday, August 6th, 2009You may have read in the news today that findmypast.com’s parent company, brightsolid, has bought Friends Reunited Group, which includes the Friends Reunited and Genes Reunited websites. We’re delighted to confirm that this is true.
We’re really excited by this development. In the future there will be opportunities for us to provide enhanced services for the customers of findmypast.com , 1911census.co.uk and the Friends Reunited websites.
For now the websites will continue to be run independently so if you have any queries regarding accounts on Genes Reunited or Friends Reunited, please contact their Customer Support Teams as usual.
David delves deep into dark Scottish history
Wednesday, August 5th, 2009Actor and comedian David Mitchell has always had a passion for the past. He studied history at Peterhouse, Cambridge and one of his earliest projects after graduating was a show about the First World War. This makes him a relatively well-placed subject for hit genealogy series, Who Do You Think You Are?, on which he appears tonight at 9pm on BBC One.
David already knew he had paternal Scottish ancestry, and that the Mitchells were wealthy sheep farmers. Part of his quest on tonight’s show is to discover whether they were involved in the notorious Highland Clearances: one of the darkest chapters in Scottish history.
During the Clearances, which took place in the nineteenth and late-eighteenth century, wealthy land owners cast tens of thousands of men, women and children from their homes, so they could use the land for more profitable large-scale sheep farming. Tenants who refused to leave saw their houses burnt to the ground and were removed by force, at the point of a musket or sword. They were pushed out towards the coast, where they lived in barren plots of land (or crofts), and were expected to sustain their communities by fishing. The result was widespread destitution and starvation, and ultimately the destruction of the Highland people and their culture.
Some of those affected sought a better life across the Atlantic or Pacific Ocean. Details of their hopeful journeys towards strange new lands can be found in the earlier part of the official Passenger Lists. These late nineteenth-century migrants were the forebears of countless native citizens living in those countries today.
The Clearances, which occurred in several waves, are among the most contentious issues in Scottish history, and still divide opinion today. We’re eager to discover whether David Mitchell’s ancestors played a part, and we’ll be tuning in tonight to find out.
David’s Scottish ancestors
With the help of our sister-site ScotlandsPeople, we decided to do some pre-emptive research, and track down the Mitchells on the censuses.
David’s family owned the same farm, Ribigill in Tongue, Sutherland, for three generations. We found them living there on every available census (apart from in 1871, when they were living elsewhere). In 1901 the head of the household was William Mitchell, a widower living with four grown-up children and two servants:
If, like David, you have Scottish forebears, why not search for them online today?