‘wills and dna testing smashed my welsh brick wall’

Q I can’t find any information about my great grandfather, William Smith (1871–1907), before 1893. In the 1901 census, he declares himself to be William Thompson, a “Traveller CT”, born in Scotland. H

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 –

Two baby boys born out of wedlock four months apart. One grew up to be Thomas Tonge, my 2x great-grandfather. The other, William Smith, sadly didn’t fare so well. Last month, when I came across the ba

Further to Dr Mike Esbester’s article “The Reign of the Railway” in the October issue, may I add another angle to the fascinating story of our railways and what they can tell us about family history –

Sitting on the sofa next to my dad as he tapped away on Ancestry, I was instantly drawn to the mass of names, dates and places. The colourful graphics caught my eye and I couldn’t possibly resist. I a

Reins in hands, three young sisters ride the coils of an enormous blue snake. Waving a rattle and smiling happily, the fourth, a baby, is held around her plump middle by its tail. Passers-by dive out