YOUR FREE RECORDS

It’s time to plan your family history adventure...

I think now more than ever, I’m grateful to have

Family Tree – looking forward to the future

Over to evolve the 35 to years best it’s meet

Major archive milestone

The Arolsen Archives in Bad Arolsen, Germany, has announced it

Join MyHeritage in the fight against Coronavirus

The science team at MyHeritage is working to identify a

Family history in the spotlight with new TV ad

Family history website FindMyPast have invited TV viewers to think

MEDIEVAL ST JOHN’S COLLEGE LIBRARY TREASURE GOES DIGITAL

A 13th century illuminated manuscript that has been in St

Free access to digital records at The National Archives

The National Archives has announced that it is offering free

COLOUR YOUR PAST

With almost 11 million photos coloured since MyHeritage launched its

‘Lost’ World War II landing craft rediscovered

A wartime landing craft mysteriously lost at sea during World War II has been discovered by a team of marine scientists and technicians at the School of Ocean Sciences, Bangor University, and nautical archaeologist Dr Innes McCartney

Australian Genealogist Keith Johnson elected a Fellow of IGRS

High profile Australian genealogist Keith A Johnson, AM, FSG, FSAG, FRAHS, has been elected a Fellow of the Irish Genealogical Research Society

Lockdown unlocks house history potential

The UK lockdown has seen a surge of interest in

New metada group aims to preserve family memories for future generations

The Family History Metadata Working Group (FHMWG) was launched at

NEWS

63,990 new burial transcripts from the parishes of Restalrig Churchyard

Family Tree index

Thanks to the hard work of reader Sophie Pigott you

NEW INSIGHT INTO POSSIBLE DNA MATCHES

MyHeritage has announced a refresh for all the data on

NEW NORWICH RECORDS AVAILABLE ON DECEASEDONLINE

Burial records for Rosary and Earlham Cemeteries, comprising thousands of deaths in Norwich, have been added to the DeceasedOnline website

Take the #StoryOfOurStreet challenge!

Family historians from around the world are invited to get

Explore the lives of entrepreneur ancestors

TheGenealogist has recently released over half a million property records for Kingston upon Thames, Hook and Malden, allowing researchers to find out more about ancestors who ran a business in these areas

The family historian’s essentisl reading list

From diaries, and researcher Kim Cook reflects on the factual books as historians, would so useful for learning about the historical background getting a truer for, our ancestors’ lives

THE RAF OF SUMMER 80 YEARS AGO

Geoff Simpson reflects role the RAF through the summer 1940, from Dunkirk to the Battle of Britain, and draws on letters of the time for poignant insights

Your DNA Workshop

In every issue of Family Tree, DNA adviser Karen Evans

Twiglets

Diarist Gill Shaw charts the rollercoaster ride of researching her family history

HOW TO PLAN A SUCCESSFUL ARCHIVES VISIT

You don’t need to be an ‘expert’ genealogist to visit a local or national archive, but it can be a bit daunting if you’ve never been before. Yet some simple planning should make it a pleasurable experience, and hopefully a satisfying way to dig deeper into the lives of your ancestors

RESEARCHING THE HISTORY OF A ROAD

Discover the history on your doorstep as you learn how to research the very road you live on, with Adele Emm

Celebrating Brunel’s most famous ship

It is 50 years since SS Great Britain, Brunel’s pioneering iron ship, was brought back to Bristol for restoration after being scuttled in the Falkland Islands for more than three decades. Nicola Lisle recalls the glory days of this magnificent vessel

Archives Masterclass

Alison Spring presents a guide to getting the most out of an archive visit, from what you need to know you leave the house, to how best to use your day

How to explore The National Archives’ Research Guides – and why you should

Even if we’re not able to get to The National Archives (TNA) right now, there is a huge amount to explore and enjoy online in the Discovery Catalogue. Read on for the Family Tree beginner guide to tracking down the records you wish to find at TNA with Helen Tovey. With 1,000 years of history and digital downloads to study at home, The National Archives’ website has so much to offer

Join the Family Tree Academy & become a skilled family historian

The Family Tree Academy is specially created to help you discover more about the records, resources and research skills you need to become the best genealogist you can be! Read on to find out how join in with Family Tree Academy challenges

Tracing every last lead for my tree

Debbie Lloyd has been tracing her Lloyd history for decades. Here she gives a glimpse of the twists and turns in her family tale, some of the puzzles solved, and the mysteries that will still keep her hunting for clues long into the future

A Soldier’s Story

Dunkirk and D-Day are both iconic dates in history. And

The Twins: the SOE’s brothers of vengeance

We all know how the war turned out, and in

Children at War 1914-1918

Looking at the experiences of children on both sides of

The Titanic and the City of Widows it Left Behind: The Forgotten Victims of the Fatal Voyage

Growing up, Julie Cook heard family tales about the bravery

An Uncommon Slave

The concept of an ‘imagined biography’ is a new one

Vintage Roger

Based on a collection of five years’ worth of letters

Finding Your Scottish Ancestors: Techniques for Solving Genealogy Problems

Whether you’ve only just discovered Scottish ancestors in your lineage

Jeopardy of Every Wind

From a frightened nine-year-old fleeing the Great Fire of London

COMING ALIVE

Geoff Wicks weighs up speculation and recorded facts to get a better feeling for and understanding of his maternal grandparents’ lives

Your questions answered

With our experts Jayne Shrimpton, David Annal, Emma Jolly, Chris Paton and Mike Sharpe

The lunch hour genealogist

Being busy mean you have to neglect your favourite hobby, you can still learn in your lunch Squeeze just 60 minutes of family history into your daily routine and you’ll soon start to your tree blossom. It’s time to tuck into Rachel Bellerby’s genealogy treats

DIARY DATES

In the light of Covid-19, the majority of events that we had all looked forward to attending this summer have been cancelled. To try and help you keep busy, learning and entertained, ‘Diary dates’ will be taking a bit of a different format this issue, with a round-up of online courses, exhibitions and webinars to enjoy from your own home

Your LETTERS

Family history, served up with a delicious slice of serendipity

The family snap that heralded better times ahead

As the world continues to face the challenges of Coronavirus, Diane Lindsay reflects upon how our ancestors endured and moved on from difficult times