Have just been doing some family history, well it started whilst looking for something else in Photo Gallery on my lap top, when I came across saved items from Baptism and Burial records in Plymouth for the middle of the 19th century to do with my great grandfather, one James Runnalls. The same Christian names were used for at least 4 generations, James or William as far as I could see.
To the 1901 census, where there was a house number and street rather than a house name, to Google maps and found the house in West Hartlepool. Victorian property, bay window, although no sash windows now. How great to see the house where my grandfather lived. My mother said her grandparents moved around a lot, (can see that from my researches), shortly after West Hartlepool they came to Richmond (Surrey). I've found at least two addresses in Richmond where they lived, don't need to rely on Google for these as I can go and see them.
It is lovely to that the records line up with information given to me by my mother, such as the fact they called their houses Holmleigh, that is recorded on their 1911 census return. My mother used to make lampshades, we have a mirror with a hammered pewter surround she designed and executed, boxes she painted and decorated, she knitted, embroidered, we learnt to crochet together and I am sure her talents were from her paternal grandmother.
Photograph of my great grandparents taken in 1920s, I think somewhere in Essex.
At some point I need to pull all this information together, put all the BMD and other records in a file with information given to me by my mother when I was young.
I love family history - it's great when you get a breakthrough.
ReplyDeleteI am totally addicted to family tree research. Assorted members of my family had already done a lot of research, particularly on my mother's side and I have spent hours searching the Ancestry website finding yet more information (censuses are great, aren't they?)
ReplyDeleteThen last year Sir Bruin's mother died and we found a number of death certificates among her possessions so I have started researching a whole new family. It's great! Some of Sir B's family were from Suffolk, so we have already had several outings looking around places where they used to live. It is no wonder I have so little time for blogging.
Fascinating! And I love the facial expressions on your great grandparents. They look happy, calm and serene, so "settled" - in spite of moving a lot.
ReplyDeleteWe've done a lot of research - especially of my husband's family and enjoyed looking for places from the census. It was really exciting to find a grave for his great-great-grandparents in a lovely cotswold town and track some others around the country. Keeping it all organised is a bit of a nightmare though!
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