Group report

This is an article published in the Summer 2018 newsletter ….

In pursuing Genealogy, one never knows what might suddenly be discovered even though it is all buried in history. The internet has played an incredible part in enabling research to be undertaken at a touch of a button from the comfort of our homes. By contrast, I well remember trips up to London to visit Somerset House and later St Catherine’s House as well as the records office where one would systematically wade through huge volumes to find details of births, marriages and deaths, or strain the eyes peering at endless reels of blurry microfilm images.

Modern technology has enabled our members to trace their ancestry back to at least the 17th century and some even earlier. But it is not just a case of adding another name and some dates. We study their occupations, their geographical movements and the social conditions in which they survived. In addition, there has been the opportunity to find lost cousins through the family history websites and more recently through DNA tests and some of our members have had the most enjoyable reunions even as far as Australia. There seems to be an instant rapport with persons that you’ve never met before with the only link being that you share some common ancestors. There is no doubt that blood is thicker than water!

Paul Chapman


Go to the Family history 2 group page