Genealogy Chat

How do people manage to get back to, say, the 1300s??! Through IGI Ive managed to get back to 1600s on one line only, athough I havent personally checked all of it. But what next? Its always interesting hearing how far people have got back to, and any interesting stories.

Old Crone Holden has been using manorial records to take her tree backwards. Pre 1538 there are virtually no parish registers, so you have to use other means. I have some very unpleasant ancestors who took their quarrels to court. Life expectancy was short, children often lost a parent and had a very raw deal with step-parents. I have one instance where a woman is trying to get her inheritance (basically house furnishings) off her step brother. So you get the parents names and a rough idea of the family. (he said, not unreasonably, that he was very young when his step mother died and had no idea which items had been her first husband's possessions) Usually you have to be fairly wealthy to be traceable back through the period of the Wars of the Roses. These had quite as bad an effect upon record keeping at the Civil War did in the 1600s. There were things called visitations in the tudor & stuart periods, when the heralds went round and tried to establish whether people were entitled to bear arms. They did this by asking people what they remembered of their family history. As you might expect, some of the results are extremely suspect. Men are fathers at 6, women bear children at sixty. Sometimes three generations span 200 years. Inquisitions Post Mortem (the king trying to find out whether he could make money out of a death) will give a man's heir and his approximate age on his father's death. But you can find out very little about women unless they came from extremely important families. To be sure you have the right family, you really need not only names, but land ownership. There might be several men of the same name, quite possibly brothers, but the description of land is likely to be unique.

Hi, The IGI is not at all reliable for my families, I have found so many errors that I rarely use it now. I traced my family back to the 1400s using will and Manorial records. If the surname is unusual it is not too difficult. Some records are in Latin so that can be 'interesting'. Gwynne

Follow the teaspoons I have a will of an ancestor died 1623 listing all her possessessions. [The latin underneath says that this will was proved at Stowe on 17 September AD 1612 before Thomas Ridley the relevant official of George, Archbishop of Canterbury, and the executrix was duly sworn]. The Will of Katherine Hope (Arnolds Wife) 1623above 2 In name of God Almighty the sixth day of May in 3 the yeare of our Lord one thousand six hundred and 4 twenty three I Katherine Hope of Week Resington 5 in the County of Gloucester wydow beinge sick 6 in body but whole in mynde and of good and perfect memorie 7 thanks be to God herein do make and ordaine this 8 my last will and testament in manner and forme 8 followinge. First I bequeath my soule into the 9 hands of Almighty God my Creator of whom 10 I received it trustinge assuredly to be saved onely 11 by the merits death & passion of Christ Jesus my 12 saviour and redeemor and my body to be buried in 13 the Church Yard of the p(ar)yshe of Week Resington 14 aforesayd. 2nd concerning the disposinge of such 15 worldly goods as God of His goodness hath lent unto 16 me which I must leave behind me unto the world 17 I give and bequeath unto my sonne Gyles Hope 18 my Table boorde in the Hall together with the 17 frame & the forme thereunto belonging together 18 also with the chayre there. It(e)m I gyve & bequeath 19 more unto the sayd Gyles my sonne one Pock of 20 Bees and my Iron baine. It(e)m I give & bequeath 21 unto my sonne Peter Hope my great Chest 22 in my lodginge chamber, one flocke bed with a bolster 23 and coverlett one twilly cloath, & one payre 24 of sheetes. It(e)m I gyve & bequeath more unto the 25 sayd Peter my sonne my biggest coffer & one 26 bedstead. It(e)m I gyve & bequeath more unto the 27 sayd Peter my sonne, one drink barrell & one 28 open barrell, one dowe kiver, one milk kiver 29 my biggest brasse potte, my biggest brasse kettle 30 one pewter platter, one pottinger, one broach, one 31 payre of handyrons. It(e)m I gyve & bequeath 32 more unto the sayd Peter my sonne two Pocks 33 of Bees. It(e)m I gyve & bequeath unto the 34 sayd Peter my sonne and unto Arnold 35 Shepheard & Marie Shepheard all my 36 Corne and powlse to be divided betwene them 37 in three p(ar)tes that is to say two p(ar)tes thereof 38 to remayne unto the sayd Peter my sonne 39 & the other thirde p(ar)te unto Arnolde Shepeard 40 & Marie Shepeard to be divided between 41 them equally. It(e)m I gyve & bequeath unto 42 Katherine Hope my God daughter my youngest 43 Cowe, one pewter platter, one pottinger & one 44 boorde cloathe. It(e)m I gyve & bequeath unto 45 Arnolde Shepeard one payre of sheetes 46 & one twilly cloath. It(e)m I gyve & bequeath 47 unto Mary Shepeard my best brasse 48 potte, & one brasse kettle beinge the last 49 of my three brasse kettles, one drink barrell 50 one open barrel one pewter platter one pottinger 51 one brasse candlestick, one bed bolster one co------- 52 one twilly cloath, one pair of sheetes, one Co-------- The page was 53 and one Pocke of Bees. It(e)m I gyve & bequeath severely 54 more unto the sayd Mary Shepherd discoloured at 55 one peticote, one pillowe, one --------- ----------- this point 56 with blewe, one payre of squares, one -------- obliterating the 57 one whyte apron, one co--------------------------- ends of the lines. 58 boorde cloath, one smocke & one --------- 59 It(e)m I gyve & bequeath more unto Mary Shepheard 60 one milke kiver, one wollen Twine, one fryinge 61 panne one payre of wool cardes & one payle. 62 It(e)m I gyve & bequeath unto Margarett the 63 wyfe of Richarde Bridge one bowltinge 64 which & two Pockes of Bees. It(e)m I gyve and 65 bequeath more unto the sayd Margarett my 66 daughter my best garment my best Peticote 67 my cloak one dubble cauchion one p(ar)telett 68 one smock peticote one round caushon 69 & my best hatte. It(e)em I give & bequeath 70 unto Katherine Bridge my God daughter 71 my biggest brass kettle savinge one & 72 my best brasse kettle savinge one, one pewter 73 platter, one brasse chaffingedyshe one cowe 74 & one sheete of linnen cloth. It(e)m I gyve 75 & bequeath more unto the sayd Katherine 76 Bridge my God Daughter one payre of 77 squares, one p(ar)telett, one apron, one pillowbere 78 one whyte towell, one drink barrell & 79 one open barrel. It(e)m I gyve & bequeath 80 to Anne Shepheard one hatte for 81 the ladies, one peticote, one dubble cauchon 82 & one smocke. It(e)m I gyve & bequeath unto 83 Katherine Hope my Godchild one pewter 84 platter, one pottinger & one boorde cloathe 85 All the rest of my goods by this my last will 86 & Testament not given nor bequeathed 87 I gyve & bequeath unto Peter Hope 88 my sonne whom I make & ordaine my sole 89 Executor of this my last will and Testament 90 In wittness whereof I have hereunto 91 sett my hande & seale. Dated the day 92 & yeare beforewritten. 93 Wittnesses hereunto 94 William Hill by me Katherine 95 Richarde Bridge Hope

It's not all about uncommon names, I have a Colwood family, and that's unusual, but can't get past 1800 with them, but with another branch I;ve got back further.

Hi Tom, I take your point I'll amend that to unusual names with lots of money and property. Gwynne

I have one line where I cannot get the parents baptisms of Thomas Foster born in 1846. I know what his parents were called and I know what both his grandfather's were called but other than the 1851 census I cannot find anything further at present. His parents were Elizabeth Marshall and William Foster and the grandfathers were Thomas Marshall and Joseph Foster. So blooming common that I can't figure out who they are!

Luck has to play a huge part. My father's family goes back to Dorset.... a church fire in the 1700s destroyed the registers and the bishops transcripts are too scrappy to be of use. Other paternal lines with their exceedingly common surnames pile into Hampshire and have the bad taste to die before 1851. Very poor people tend to leave records, so do the very rich, but if a main series of records is missing, then you may never be able to breakdown that brick wall.