Family History Research
Ancestry® to digitise Hampshire RO archives!
December 12, 2021
County Council agreement with Ancestry® set to make 500+ years of historic records available online Anyone with Hampshire roots anywhere in the world will be able to learn more about their ancestors thanks to an agreement between Hampshire County Council and Ancestry®, a global leader in family history. Read the official announcement here. As part of […] – read more…
Tips for Research – Dates
April 17, 2020
You may find this information helpful in your research: 1. Regnal Years Regnal years are calculated from the date that a monarch ascends the throne; some documents will show this rather than the actual year. An example is Victoria ascended the throne on 20 June 1837. A document dated 20 October Vic 30 would equate […] – read more…
Headley village booklet now available
September 14, 2019
Headley, (VB104) is a large parish reduced in size by the creation of Grayshott in 1901, the creation of Whitehill civil parish in 1929 and the creation of Bordon ecclesiastical parish in 2002. Headley is 4 miles north of Liphook and 8 miles south of Farnham – read more…
Protestant Dissenters Burials Grounds
August 22, 2019
There is an interesting insight into the use of separate burial grounds for dissenters written onto the first page of the burial register for the Christchurch Independent Church that is in reference RG4/399. – read more…
Discord in Marriage
February 10, 2019
Interesting little snippets from some of the old newspapers include brief advertisements where husbands have declared that they will not be responsible for their wife’s debts. One item from James LINDSAY appeared in the Hampshire Chronicle printed on 4th September 1820. He said that he would not be answerable for any debts incurred by his […] – read more…
Poor Law Union Gazette – 2
July 14, 2018
Another interesting entry appeared in the Poor Law Union Gazette on 25 April 1857 naming Lewis POSNER, formerly of Southampton, who the Southampton Union would like to get their hands on. – read more…
Winchester Independent Register – RG4-726
June 11, 2018
The registers for the Independent Chapel start in 1716 and many entries contain useful details. The spelling of the names written here are exactly as they were written into the register. Different ministers conducting the baptisms decided to record different items of information in addition to the dates and names. – read more…
Poor Law Union Gazette – 1
March 29, 2018
Newspapers are a very good source of information on some of our ancestors but they rarely give such detailed information on individuals as that found in the Poor Law Union Gazette. – read more…
Don’t Always Believe It
January 31, 2018
The tendency is to accept what appears in official documents as being correct. As usual there are always exceptions to the rules and in genealogy there can be quite a few. – read more…
Portsmouth Independent Orange Street Register
January 2, 2018
Mixed Independent details in Portsmouth v.2 Orange Street Independent register Many interesting entries appear in the 1785 to 1837 Independent register for the Orange Street chapel. Some entries include the address where baptisms took place while others have additional details. An example was Octavius Henry JACKSON who was born on 6 February 1829 and […] – read more…
Odiham School Teacher
February 26, 2017
Teacher at a private school in Odiham around 1900 Ellen Valentine James HGS member Peter GODWIN’s Great Aunt was Ellen Valentine JAMES. She was the youngest of three sisters and was born on St. Valentine’s Day 14 February 1869 in Notting Hill. Her parents were Henry George JAMES who had married Ellen MOREY in the […] – read more…
A New Partnership for HGS
November 29, 2016
HGS are delighted to announce a new partnership with well-known Genealogy company ‘The Genealogist’ (S& N). All the remaining data from our parish register transcripts for Hampshire, will now be online with The Genealogist (S & N) and FHS-online. FHS-online has been developed together with S & N to offer Family History Societies the […] – read more…
Hampshire Centenarian
November 12, 2016
Born in Meonstoke in 1916 and shortly to celebrate her 100th birthday Edith Cavell SMITH Edith a twin was born on 17 November 1916 in Meonstoke and was baptized there in St Andrew’s church on 14 January 1917. Her twin brother was Lloyd George. They were named after the WWI nurse Edith CAVELL and Prime […] – read more…
Uncle Tom of Portsmouth
October 7, 2016
Looking through old bits and pieces can prove rewarding Gordon Brine Many older HGS members will remember my husband Gordon BRINE who unfortunately died on 8 May 2007. As often happens at these times documents, photos and other memorabilia get put away. These tend to become forgotten over the years. Sorting through some of Gordon’s […] – read more…
“Lost” an Ancestor before 1837
August 30, 2016
Have you an ancestor you cannot find before 1837? Have you thought that they may be non-conformists? Ancestry have scanned the non-conformist registers handed to the authorities in 1837. – read more…
Beginners Guide to Family History
March 11, 2013
A few tips to get you started tracing your family history, as your research unfolds, you will soon evolve into an expert detective, as you follow different trails and lines of enquiry. – read more…
Commonly Used Family History Abbreviations
January 5, 2013
Abbreviation Meaning AGRA Association of Genealogists & Researchers in Archives BMD Birth, Marriage and Death Certificates CE Church of England CRO County Record Office FFHS Federation of Family History Societies FHS Family History Society. A county based organisation set up to promote the research of Family History and Genealogy. FHS’s Family History Societies, see FHS […] – read more…