Friends of the family?

Unusually, my story begins at the end with the perplexing death certificate of my great grandfather William Taylor. William died aged 71 in May 1938, in Gosport, Hampshire, and the death was registere

Family history research can, as we know, take us down many paths with surprising outcomes but I would never in my wildest dreams have thought that it would result in my cousin and I standing on a foot

There are many occupations described in historical documents or censuses that almost no one is gainfully employed doing any more. People my age may remember certain jobs that have gone by the wayside.

The term ‘Merseyside’ was coined around the end of the 19th century. In the county reorganisation of 1974 it became the official name for the area that encompassed the boroughs of Birkenhead, Bootle,

Exploring the tangled roots of a family tree is rarely straightforward. What begins as a search for dates and names often unravels into something far more. A bit like rummaging through an old attic –

This is one in a series of articles; the intention is to provide an overview of useful family and local history records in existence, covering the period 1066-1485. Each article can be enjoyed as a st