‘marriage records solved the mystery’

QMargaret Woodhall (née Smithson), born c1827 Liverpool (according to the 1851 census), was the sister of my great grandfather, James Murray Smithson, born c1835 in Edinburgh. Their father was William

We all know that transcription errors can get in the way of research, but sometimes they creep in in the oddest of ways. Like most family historians, I like to have the three main dates for my direct

Puzzles fascinate me, so when I discovered that my father was adopted I longed to know more of the story. The quest began in 1989 before the Web, and has involved determination, heartache, slammed doo

Dear Simon, The history of Pitman shorthand told by Angeline Wilcox in the July edition of Best of British (Write on Time) evoked so many memories. I was amazed to learn that Isaac Pitman actually cre

Jenny Lucas, 76, from Kent, is a retired professional golfer. She was 54 years old when she discovered that she had a twin sister, Helen. For many years, I considered myself an only child. With cousin

When I was aged 10, the farmers used to come round the schools to pick volunteers to work on the farms during the summer holidays, mainly to help bring in the harvest. The country was still building u