Local and national events of the time put your family story into a wider context
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NORTHERN ROOTS: Caithness Family History Society's regular column on genealogy
We all have our own favourite ways and places of recording details of our family tree research.
There are facilities on most online search sites such as Ancestry.co.uk and Find my Past. These are convenient in terms of capturing the information as you find it, on these sites. Software packages abound, most of them working in a similar way in that as you enter the data the information is sorted into family groupings and most of these programs will then provide an option to print your family tree in various diagrammatical forms.
A booklet that has been very popular with family researchers locally is The Family Record: a workbook. Caithness Family History Society bought in a quantity of these and they are available for purchase at £4 from our publications officer – a useful tool.
Some more technologically adept people have created their own methods of recording and presenting the data.
I would argue, however, that most if not all of these programs and recording tools are strong on date capture and the production of diagrammatical trees but less creative in capturing the social history that surrounds the bare facts.
What was happening at the time can be very enlightening in making your family tree more of a history rather than just an exercise in “How far back can I get?” or “How many sixth cousins I have”. Local and national events and activities of the time put the family situations into a wider context and can, in many cases, explain why people lived in certain places and why they moved, either forcibly or through choice.
The family Bible was for many the place to record births and one enterprising farmer was way ahead of his time in linking the births of his children to local events.
Most of these programs are strong on date capture and diagrammatical trees but less creative in capturing the social history that surrounds the bare facts.
A report in the John O’Groat Journal of July 27, 1865, explains: “In a recent work on Family Registers, it is stated on authority that an honest farmer, in the parish of Watten, had adopted a very original and curious mode of registering the births of his children. The blank leaf of the Bible, as it ought to be, is the register; but instead of the birth being recorded, the event is marked by a reference to some notable occurrence or other that took place in the parish on or about the time. He records them in this manner: 'Wir’ Betty was born on the day that John Cathel lost his grey mare in the moss. Jemmie was born on the day they began mending the roof o’ the kirk. Sandy was born the night my mother broke her leg, and the day before Kitty gaed awa’ wi’ the sodgers. The twins, Willie and Margaret, was born the day Sandy Bremner biggit his new barn, and the verra day after the battle of Waterloo. Kirsty was born the night o’ the great fecht on the Reedsmas, in Harlan, atween Peter Donaldson and a south country drover, forbye, the factor raised the rent that same year. Anny was born the night the kiln gaed on fire, sax years syne. David was born the night o’ the great speat, and three days afore Jamie Miller had a lift frae the fairies.’”
Now, there’s an idea for all you family historians.
Our research does not need to cease during these lockdown days but Caithness Family History Society (CFHS) has, in line with the guidelines, postponed its regular series of evening talks. These will resume once it is save to do so.
CFHS is a membership organisation and welcomes new members at any time. Membership applications and other information is available at caithnessfhs.org.uk
