Genealogy mistakes to avoid #5 - Not keeping a research log
The Scottish Genealogy Blog
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1y ago
This is one I think we will all be guilty of. We’re hunting down an ancestor, looking here, there and everywhere. We search newspapers on Findmypast then head to ScotlandsPeople and Ancestry making all sorts of searches; then we have to stop. We’re right in the middle of our research and we have to put the dinner on or go to bed! When we come back to our research we can’t remember what we’ve searched already and end up doing it all again.  I like to keep a simple research log. It doesn’t have to be complicated. You could write it in a notebook, use a spreadsheet or make a simple Google ..read more
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Genealogy mistakes to avoid #4 - Ignoring the occupation
The Scottish Genealogy Blog
by
2y ago
When trying to match our family up with the records it can be a real challenge when they have common names and lots of cousins in the same parish also have the same names. It can be a real tangle.  Sometimes we’re so focused on the names we forget about the occupation. Although people did sometimes change their occupation, it’s fairly unlikely that a married man would change occupation from a stone mason to a shoemaker. Both of these occupations would require an apprenticeship. Our ancestors would have served as an apprentice as a teenager and perhaps into their early 20s before they got ..read more
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Genealogy mistakes to avoid #3 - Not looking at a map
The Scottish Genealogy Blog
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2y ago
When we’re hunting for our family they can move from place to place. In fact, agricultural labourers may have moved every 6 months. It may not be too surprising that we find our ancestors have moved but where have they moved to? Does it make sense? We might try to match up a family from Huntly, Aberdeenshire, Scotland with a family in Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland. If you are not familiar with Scottish geography this may seem OK, but checking the map will show you the great distances involved and reveal that it would not be an easy journey. Nothing is impossible, but make sure you are connec ..read more
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Genealogy mistakes to avoid #2 - Not looking at the next page
The Scottish Genealogy Blog
by
2y ago
I was looking at a passenger list the other day. The first time I looked at it I thought I had read all the information. Later I went back to review it and realised there was more information on the next image. The relative in Scotland was listed on the second page! If you can, always look at the page before and the one after to make sure you have come to the end of the record. It’s a good habit to get into. On ScotlandsPeople you will usually be charged for looking at the next page but if your family is split over two pages in the census you can ask for a refund. If they are at the top or b ..read more
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Genealogy mistakes to avoid #1 - Don’t assume anything.
The Scottish Genealogy Blog
by
2y ago
Let’s say you find your family in the census, a husband, wife and three children. From 1851 in Scotland you will be told how each person relates to the head of the house; usually the husband. Therefore you will be told that the woman is the wife of the head and the children are his children; that’s right, his children. It would be easy to assume that all the children are biological children of both the husband and the wife but the census will not tell us if that’s the case or not. Of course, they often will be, but keep digging and find documents to support this.  Of course, in the 18 ..read more
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Did your ancestors work the land?
The Scottish Genealogy Blog
by
2y ago
If your ancestor was a farmer, shepherd or agricultural labourer you may be able to find information in estate records.  Families who owned large estates would need their own records. These might record who were their employees, or who rented their farms. These records can be useful when you are researching your family history. For example, it’s not unusual for a farm to be rented by generations of the same family. This can be crucial information for periods when there are no census records or there are gaps in church records. Valuation Roll, Annan, Dumfriesshire, Scotalnd (1896-9 ..read more
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Robbie Collins - an Eccentric Vendor
The Scottish Genealogy Blog
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2y ago
Today we have another story from John B. Drylie’s book, “Worthies of Dumfriesshire” "Poor Robbie Collins, who was known far and near as a vendor of stationery and smallwares, was buried in Troqueer Churchyard in March 1830. Although he had no secret hoard like Wull Steenie [I will tell you more about Wull in another post], his books and clothes, when turned into money after his death, sufficed to lay his head decently in the grave, even to leave a balance, which was handed to the treasurer of the Kirk session, so that in one respect he was on a par with miser Wull, and though a pauper himself ..read more
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Lawrence Murphy — what a chancer!
The Scottish Genealogy Blog
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2y ago
‘Worthies of Dumfriesshire and Galloway’ was written by Jon Drylie and published in 1908. It is similar to other publications of the period, giving a biography of various characters in the area. Today’s story is that of Lawrence Murphy aka, ‘Tarry Larry’. The challenge for us as family historians is to separate fact from fiction. Some research shows that Larry died in April 1902 in Dumfries Poorhouse. His age is recorded as 101; is this correct? I started doing some digging and on Findmypast I discovered Lawrence Murphy in the Merchant Seaman records. We’re told that he first went to sea as ..read more
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Why did you start tracing your family tree and why would you encourage others to start?
The Scottish Genealogy Blog
by
2y ago
Here are five 5 reasons I think people should ask about their family history this weekend; there are many more I am sure! Want to make a start? Use our free guide to help you get started: https://www.scottishindexes.com/learningdetective.aspx  One It’s a great puzzle! Great fun. As you learn more it’s as if your jigsaw gets bigger and bigger. There are more pieces to find and more puzzles to solve. Some are easy; some are more challenging. If you love puzzles you will love family history! Is there a family mystery you want to uncover? Two It helps you understand your relatives. As yo ..read more
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Lost loves and failed relationships: what happened in the past when a relationship went wrong and children were involved?
The Scottish Genealogy Blog
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2y ago
Whether married or not, if a man left the mother of his child because their relationship broke down this left the mother in a difficult situation.  In the census we often see grandchildren living with their grandparents while the mother is working away from home, perhaps in domestic service. When you find children living with their grandparents, dig a little deeper to work out who they all are. In Scotland, at one time most children took the surname of their father whether their parents were married or not. After 1855 however, the child would usually be registered under the mother’s s ..read more
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