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Start Your Family Tree Week: competition information

Read on for all you need to know about our Start Your Family Tree Week competition and how to enter…

How to enter

To enter findmypast.co.uk’s festive family history challenge prize draw, answer a question posted on the findmypast.co.uk blog every day between 26 December and 1 January, and then send all seven answers together in one email with the subject line ‘Festive challenge’ before midnight on 10 January 2011 (UK time) to competition@findmypast.co.uk, including your name, postal address and daytime telephone number.

First prize

• A day tracing your family tree with famous genealogist, Else Churchill at the Society of Genealogists in London – using the resources of the SoG and looking at aspects of their research. The prize includes return travel by train to London from within the UK and two nights’ accommodation in London for the winner and a guest
• 1 free membership of the Society of Genealogists in their centenary year
• A From You to Me personalised journal from www.fromyoutome.com
• Nick Barratt’s Guide To Your Ancestors Lives from Pen & Sword books
• 1 pair of tickets to Who Do You Think You Are LIVE show at Olympia, February 2011
• 12 month subscription to Family Tree Magazine
• 12 month subscription to BBC Who Do You Think You Are Magazine
• 12 month subscription to Your Family Tree magazine
• Celebrating 25 Years of Family Tree Magazine bookazine
• A photo scanner from Pandigital
• 1 photo album and set of sample pockets from www.my-history.co.uk to help with conserving documents and old photos
• 1 copy of Glorious Britain – from www.francisfrith.co.uk
• 1 copy of I Remember When – from www.francisfrith.co.uk
• A framed print (medium in either B&W or Sepia) from www.francisfrith.co.uk – photo is the winner’s choice from the products online
• 7-generation family tree chart from BBC Who Do You Think You Are Magazine
• 3 month subscription voucher to findmypast.co.uk

Second prize

• 1 free membership of the Society of Genealogists in their centenary year
• 1 pair of tickets to Who Do You Think You Are LIVE show at Olympia, February 2011
• A From You to Me personalised journal from www.fromyoutome.com
• Nick Barratt’s Guide To Your Ancestors Lives from Pen & Sword books
• 12 month subscription to Family Tree Magazine
• 12 month subscription to BBC Who Do You Think You Are Magazine
• 12 month subscription to Your Family Tree magazine
• Celebrating 25 Years of Family Tree Magazine bookazine
• A photo scanner from Pandigital
• 1 photo album and set of sample pockets from www.my-history.co.uk to help with conserving documents and old photos
• 1 copy of Glorious Britain – from www.francisfrith.co.uk
• 1 copy of I Remember When – from www.francisfrith.co.uk
• A framed print (medium in either B&W or Sepia) from www.francisfrith.co.uk – photo is the winner’s choice from the products online
• 7-generation family tree chart from BBC Who Do You Think You Are Magazine
• 3 month subscription voucher to findmypast.co.uk

Third prize

• 1 pair of tickets to Who Do You Think You Are LIVE show at Olympia, February 2011
• 12 month subscription to Family Tree Magazine
• 12 month subscription to BBC Who Do You Think You Are Magazine
• 12 month subscription to Your Family Tree magazine
• Celebrating 25 Years of Family Tree Magazine bookazine
• A photo scanner from Pandigital
• 1 photo album and set of sample pockets from www.my-history.co.uk to help with conserving documents and old photos
• 1 copy of Glorious Britain – from www.francisfrith.co.uk
• 1 copy of I Remember When – from www.francisfrith.co.uk
• A framed print (medium in either B&W or Sepia) from www.francisfrith.co.uk – photo is the winner’s choice from the products online
• 7-generation family tree chart from BBC Who Do You Think You Are Magazine
• 3 month subscription voucher to findmypast.co.uk

Other runner-up prizes
Ten other runner-ups will each be allocated a bundle of prizes from the following list by findmypast.co.uk:

• 1 ticket to a day course at the Society of Genealogists, London: ‘Family History for Beginners and Refreshers’ with Geoff Swinfield on Saturday 5 March 2011.
• Society of Genealogists‘ publications
  • 1 x My Ancestor was an Agricultural Labourer by Ian Waller
  • 1 x My Ancestors were Londoners by Cliff Webb
  • 1 x My Ancestor was an Apprentice by Stuart Raymond
  • 1 x My Ancestor was in Service by Pamela Horn
  • 1 x My Ancestor was in the British Army by Chris and Michael Watts
• A free start your family history beginners session at the Society of Genealogists with community officer Ashley Young who can help anyone start using computers and get the most from free online resources at the SoG, such as findmypast.co.uk and other online family history sites usually available on pay per view or subscription
• 4 x 12-month subscriptions to Family Tree Magazine
• 11 x Celebrating 25 Years of Family Tree Magazine bookazine
• 4 x 12-month subscription to Your Family Tree magazine
• 4 x 12-month subscription to BBC Who Do You Think You Are Magazine
• 7-generation family tree chart from BBC Who Do You Think You Are Magazine
• 1 photo album and set of sample pockets from www.my-history.co.uk to help with conserving documents and old photos
• 20 x set of sample pockets from www.my-history.co.uk
• A photo scanner from Pandigital
• Family history books from Pen & Sword
  • 2 x Tracing Your Army Ancestors
  • 2 x Tracing Jewish Ancestors
  • 2 x Tracing Pauper Ancestors
• 6 x copies of Glorious Britain from www.francisfrith.co.uk
• 6 x copies of I Remember When from www.francisfrith.co.uk
• 2 x framed print (medium in either B&W or Sepia). Photo is the winner’s choice – the winner will be provided with a promotional code to get 100% off their chosen product online at www.francisfrith.co.uk
• How to Trace Your Ancestors Using a Computer for the Older Generation by Jim Gatenby

Competition terms & conditions

All entrants must be over the age of 18.

The first entry opened with correct answers to all seven questions will win first prize, the second entry opened with correct answers to all seven questions will win second prize, the third entry opened with correct answers to all seven questions will win third prize. The other runner-up prizes will be allocated in no particular order to the next 10 correct entries opened.

Prizes are not transferable and no alternatives will be offered. No purchase is necessary.

First prize includes return travel by train from within the UK for the winner and one guest and two nights’ accommodation in London based on two people sharing a double or twin room. Only the winner’s family history will be researched.

Winners of a framed print from Francis Frith will be provided with a promotional code to get 100% off their chosen print (medium in either black and white or sepia) online at www.francisfrith.co.uk

Winners of the From You to Me journals will be provided with a code to get 100% off of the cost of the personalised journal. The winners must pay for postage but From You to Me will fully refund this.

All winners will be notified by email. Names of all the winners will be published on this blog on 21 January 2011.

Over 14,000 new Warwickshire parish baptisms and burials published

We have just published 14,105 new parish baptism and burial records for Warwickshire on findmypast.co.uk

The Rugby Family History Group provided findmypast.co.uk with these records, working in association with the Federation of Family History Societies.

Here are further details about each set of records:

Search for your Warwickshire ancestors now in our parish records collection.

Over 22,000 new Dorset parish records published

We have just published 22,989 new parish records for Dorset on findmypast.co.uk: 1,533 baptisms, 8,084 marriages and 13,372 burials.

The Dorset Family History Society provided us with these records, in association with the Federation of Family History Societies.

The table below gives details of each set of records:

Find your Dorset ancestors in our parish records collection.

For better or worse? Unusual names in our marriage records

Following last week’s launch of our fantastic new marriage records search, MarriageFinder^TM, we’ve found some interesting names in our records. They just go to show that when taking a partner ‘for better or worse’, an embarrassing married name doesn’t put everyone off…

Here is a selection of the names we found in the records:

• Holly Oakes
• Eileen Dover
• Hazel Nut
• Queenie King
• Mona Lott
• Jean Pool
• Joy Rider
• Lily Pond
• Anita Bath
• Candy Barr
• Kerry Oakey

Keeping up with the Mary Christmases

It seems that a large number of Marys have continued the Christmas theme with their name and married someone with the festive surname, Christmas. There are over 50 Mary Christmases in our marriage records – the earliest recorded Mary Christmas married in 1837 in Alton, Hampshire, losing the maiden name of Cannon.

Where for art thou?

We’ve discovered a pair of real star-crossed lovers in the marriage records: in 1971, a Romeo married a Juliet in Lambeth, London. We also found the marriage records of Oscar Fingal Wilde and Constance Lloyd in Kensington, London in 1884, Jude Law and Sadie Frost in Westminster, London in 1997 and Kate Winslet and Jim Threapleton, in Reading, Berkshire in 1998.

With this record I thee wed

Our research found that the most popular county to get married in was Lancashire, with 11.66 million records listed between 1837 and 2005. London followed closely behind with 11.62 million.

The five most popular towns to be married in were:

1. Birmingham, Warwickshire: 1,656,516 records
2. Manchester, Lancashire: 1,127,584 records
3. Sheffield, Yorkshire: 988,541 records
4. Leeds, Yorkshire: 980,207 records
5. Bristol, Somerset: 899,885 records

Our marketing manager, Debra Chatfield (pictured), said:

“As the first company to publish birth, marriage and death records online, findmypast.co.uk has always been committed to making family history research more accessible. This brand new way of searching the marriage records is a major breakthrough in family history enabling people to find their ancestors’ marriages more quickly and easily than ever before by using our revolutionary new tool MarriageFinder^TM. Thanks to initiatives like this, family history is more popular than ever and we hope that we can help even more people to start uncovering their family’s past.”

Debra Chatfield, findmypast.co.uk's marketing manager

When you search our marriage records, MarriageFinder^TM will match up your ancestors’ records, providing you in many cases with one definite marriage match, or a list of possible matches.

The launch of these records represents the latest development in our project to fully name index our birth, marriage and death records. We launched the birth records in July 2010 and the death records will follow in early 2011.

Search our marriage records now to find your ancestors’ marriages.

Start Your Family Tree Week: 26 December-1 January

The Christmas period is one of the most popular times of the year for people to research their family history. With the family gathered around for the festivities, it’s the perfect time to quiz the older generations on what they remember about the family, and get the youngsters inspired too.

That’s why findmypast.co.uk is launching Start Your Family Tree Week this Christmas. From 26 December to 1 January make sure you visit findmypast.co.uk for a week of fantastic special offers and guides to help you start your family tree. Make the most of your time off to get down to some serious research.

Every day during Start Your Family Tree Week there will be some very special offers available on findmypast.co.uk, including:

• A getting started guide
• Easy to download family tree charts
• A guide to interviewing your relatives
• Help with getting your relatives online
• Competitions and prize draws
• Discounts and free trials
• Tips and advice
• Free downloadable family history tools and software

A festive family history challenge you won’t want to miss

We’re also setting you a festive challenge during Start Your Family Tree Week. Each day on findmypast.co.uk’s blog, we’ll post a competition question for you to answer. Make sure you visit the blog every day – you’ll need to answer all the questions correctly to be in with a chance of winning our prizes.

We have a huge Christmas hamper full of amazing prizes to give away, including:

Your family history researched by a professional genealogist, tickets to Who Do You Think You Are? LIVE show in February 2011, subscriptions to BBC WDYTYA magazine and Your Family Tree magazine, scanners, family history books and subscriptions to findmypast.co.uk

Keep an eye on our blog for details of how to enter the challenge coming soon.

Other websites taking part in Start Your Family Tree Week are: GenesReunited.co.uk, Eneclann, my-history.co.uk, www.yourfamilytreemag.co.uk and whodoyouthinkyouaremagazine.com

Supporting Start Your Family Tree Week are: the Society of Genealogists, the Federation of Family History Societies, Pen and Sword Books, BBC Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine, Your Family Tree magazine and Family Tree Magazine.

Look out for December's issue of Discover My Past England magazine

The December issue of Discover My Past England magazine goes online on Thursday 9 December.

This 42-page A4 issue is packed with special features and how-to guides to connect you with your English Heritage, including:

• Every picture tells a story! – Victorian family albums
• English marriages – top online resources
• Find your firemen forebears!
• Secrets of our ancestors’ diaries
• A mine of information – records from the coal industry
• Spotlight on Lancaster
• Expert Q&A
• Family history newsround, library and events

Find out more about Discover My Past England

Look out for December’s issue of Discover My Past England magazine

The December issue of Discover My Past England magazine goes online on Thursday 9 December.

This 42-page A4 issue is packed with special features and how-to guides to connect you with your English Heritage, including:

• Every picture tells a story! – Victorian family albums
• English marriages – top online resources
• Find your firemen forebears!
• Secrets of our ancestors’ diaries
• A mine of information – records from the coal industry
• Spotlight on Lancaster
• Expert Q&A
• Family history newsround, library and events

Find out more about Discover My Past England

Over 13,000 new Warwickshire parish baptisms published

We have just published 13,078 new parish baptism records for Warwickshire on findmypast.co.uk

These records are for the parish of Southam and cover the period 1540-2010. Pam Batstone and Mary Williams provided us with these records.

Our parish records collection provides an unprecedented level of access to the content of England and Wales parish records. Family history societies and other organisations and individuals provide us with these records to create this comprehensive collection.

Search for your Warwickshire ancestors’ baptism records now in our parish baptisms.

Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine Christmas offer

Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine is packed full of expert advice for family historians. Every month you will get useful tips on how to uncover more about your ancestors’ lives and get further with your research.

This Christmas, the magazine is offering new subscribers their first five issues for only £5 if you sign up by direct debit.

Click here to find out more and take advantage of this great offer.

Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine Christmas offer

Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine is packed full of expert advice for family historians. Every month you will get useful tips on how to uncover more about your ancestors’ lives and get further with your research.

This Christmas, the magazine is offering new subscribers their first five issues for only £5 if you sign up by direct debit.

Click here to find out more and take advantage of this great offer.