Family Tree News 20 January 2013

Just wanted to say ‘thank you’ to Terry F and to Lucy for your kind feedback this week. It is really rewarding to receive such praise from you. I have updated my family tree testimonials page with your kind comments.
- Jane

Family Tree News 12 January 2013

Angela – thank you so much for your lovely letter. It was really kind of you to take the time out to write to me to let me know how happy you are with your family tree results. It has been a while since I last updated my family tree testimonials page so I thought I would type up your letter and add it to the page. Thank you so much for writing, and best of luck with finding descendants in Wiltshire!

Jane

Family Tree News 01 January 2013

2013 is upon us already! I'd like to wish you all a very happy and prosperous New Year.

Back in November Mr J Ashfield contacted me regarding a family member who was tragically killed in the Coventry Blitz during WW2. Mr Ashfield kindly donated several photos for the website, along with details of the incident.

I am very grateful to Mr Ashfield for sending me all this info, and I have now included them in the Coventry Blitz Resource Centre. Follow the link to read more about Harry Clarke.

Family Tree News 23 December 2012

Was able to update the Dictionary of Old Occupations this week. I would like to thank Richard for getting in touch regarding the occupation of Drowner, which has been added along to the site along with a lengthier definition for Water Meadow Drowner.

Also, David C provided some useful information about the occupation Oliver Smith, a definition of which has now been added to the site. Many thanks to both Richard and David for contacting me and sharing useful information with us genealogy enthusiasts.

Christmas is practically upon us as I write, and I would like to send my best wishes to all my customers. It has been a pleasure to work with you all during 2012 and I look forward to continued family tree research projects in the new year.

Family Tree News 08 December 2012

In the news this week an interactive map is available both online and as an app. The map shows the locations of German bombs dropped on London during The Blitz. From an educational perspective this is a valuable resource. It is startling to see how densely bombs fell upon individual streets and homes. It highlights what a miracle it is that the city survived.

You can access the site here. There is also a BBC news article on the subject available here.

If you are interested in the WW2 Blitz I have lots of information about it on my own family researcher website.

Family Tree News 01 December 2012

Attention family tree researchers! The December 2012 issue of the Coventry Family History Society Journal is out now – Volume 9, number 4. Some really interesting local and family history in there this quarter, such as a great article about City College Coventry, the Freemen's Guild and some memories of the local library service in the sixties. Oh, and how lovely to see one of my winter photos adorning the cover of this issue!

Family Tree News 18 November 2012

Was able to add research findings into the deaths of a further six people sadly killed in the WW2 Coventry Blitz. You can find their details on the Coventry Blitz Resource Centre. The names of the people added are:

• Herbert George Harrison
• Lydia Ann Harrison nee Checklin
• Emily Harritt nee Meakin
• Cyril Herbert Glenister Hartup
• Daniel Harvey
• George Leonard Harvey

Family Tree News 10 November 2012

I have not had much opportunity to update the website over the last month or so because I am working hard on assorted family tree projects for Christmas. I did find time for a short update this week though. With thanks to Gerry H for getting in touch ref his grandfather's occupation, I have added a short definition for Blast Furnace Slagger to the Dictionary of Old Occupations.

I had an enquiry from Anna M regarding her great great grandfather's occupation of Rubber Spreader, dating back to the last quarter of the 19th century / first quarter 20th century and possibly linked to India. If you have any useful information related to this old occupation it would be great if you could get in touch, and I'll pass it back to Anna.

Family Tree News 14 October 2012

This week I found time to research a couple more victims of the Coventry Blitz – two members of the Bradnick family - and added their details to the Blitz Resource Centre.

Christmas is on the horizon once again. Doesn't it come around quickly! I have taken a lot of orders from people commissioning family tree research projects to complete for Christmas which will become Christmas gifts for loved ones. Sadly, this means I am now fully booked with regards to large projects with a Christmas deadline.

However, if you are interested in commissioning a family tree project as a Christmas present for someone in your family then why not consider purchasing one of my family tree gift certificates ? It means you can give the certificate to the lucky recipient on Christmas Day, and I can work on their family tree either with them or with yourself in the New Year. Contact me for further details.

Family Tree News 30 September 2012

On Friday, BBC Coventry and Warwickshire radio station did a piece on tracing your family tree. They featured a mixture of people about to begin researching their ancestors and some who had been doing it for a while. I joined in briefly with the broadcast too, as an advisor.

If you are about to get started on your family tree, you can find more tips on my website at http://www.familyresearcher.co.uk/family-tree-information/researching-your-own-family-tree.html

Family Tree News 09 September 2012

Alan B contacted me this week with a helpful suggestion to add the tasteful old occupation of Coprolite Digger to the Dictionary of Old Occupations. I was able to add a lengthy definition to the dictionary. Many thanks to Alan for getting in touch.

Family Tree News 02 September 2012

Thanks to Sue WM for getting in touch regarding two 1851 census occupations not listed on my site. I have added a definition for Marine Rope Dealer.

Am currently seeking info for Sue regarding the occupation of 'Grocer Biscuit Agent'. Please drop me a line via my contact form if you have any helpful info about this occupation.

With thanks to Terry who got in touch in August I have now added Pike Helve Maker, Spade Tree Turner and Spade Tree Maker to the Dictionary of Old Occupations.

Family Tree News 30 August 2012

Braved the torrential rain this week to visit Birmingham. Have begun the initial research work in my spare time which may lead to me producing a new free online resource regarding the WW2 blitz on Birmingham. It feels natural to expand my site about the Coventry Blitz to include neighbouring Birmingham.

This local history research project is another big commitment and will take some time to bring to fruition. You may want to check back over the coming weeks and months if you are researching ancestors from the Birmingham area or are interested in second world war history.

Sadly the downpour made taking good quality outdoor pictures nigh on impossible, hope to fare better on the next research trip!

All the best
Jane Hewitt

Family Tree News 09 August 2012

Did you know you can get my Dictionary of Old Occupations in the US as well as in the UK? If you are in the US it is available in Kindle format as well as other formats.

I have been helping some reviewers set up a new music related website which launched a couple of days ago. If you fancy a break from genealogy then head on over to their all-new Rock Hard Reviews website for an interesting read. I see they have been kind enough to acknowledge my help on the site - thanks guys!

Family Tree News 02 August 2012

Finally managed to make the time to update the Coventry Blitz Resource Centre with new information:

• Added a photo of the epitaph for Fred Barratt, kindly supplied by family member Kirsten. Much obliged Kirsten, and apologies for taking way too long to do this.
• Added extra detail for Samuel Stewart.
• Added additional details for Ethel Austin, kindly supplied by her niece Irene.
• Added new data for John Brown, Phyllis Brown, William Brown, George Buckenham / Buckman and Sidney Buckler.

Very special thanks to Anita for sending me such lovely flowers. It has been fantastic to have been doing research work for you for so long, and it does feel a bit sad to have finally reached the end. It has been thoroughly worthwhile, even if I will miss it!

Family Tree News 01 July 2012

I was able to add another couple of old census occupations to my online dictionary today. Thanks to Verity H for the information kindly provided about her ancestor's occupation listed as Bone Cutter in the census, and Ian P for getting in touch regarding Colliery Hangers.

Also spotted a line about my website in the June 28th newsletter from Cyndi's List. Not sure who submitted my Dictionary to their general resources page for occupations - I didn't - but it's lovely to see it deemed worthy of inclusion.

Family Tree News 24 June 2012

Wish I had spotted it in time! Sadly I missed out on the opportunity to attend "The Great British Story – Ancestors in the Archives" at the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum yesterday. Sounds like there was a lot going on and I would have loved to have been there, but I didn't see any publicity for the event until too late. On the plus side, I managed to put in about 10 hours of family tree research yesterday so it was still a productive day!

Family Tree News 6 June 2012

Looks like the June edition of the Coventry Family History Society Journal will be out soon. You can read highlights of the contents by looking at the official website. I had a sneak peak at the cover today, and am delighted to recognise the cover photo on the June edition of the Journal – it's one I donated showing the Cook Street gate, part of the old Coventry City Wall.

Family Tree News 26 May 2012

Coventry Cathedral was in the news this week. It's been fifty years since the consecration of the new cathedral built following the blitz. Terrific to see the Archbishop of Canterbury and Princess Anne attending to celebrate the cathedrals golden jubilee. Brilliant that local schoolchildren got involved too. Click here for more info.

Family Tree News 12 May 2012

A couple of readers got in touch this week with queries about old census occupations they found. I was able to add definitions for closely related jobs to my Dictionary of Old Occupations: Composition Frame Carver and Dressing Case Maker.

Family Tree News 6 May 2012

I realised that it has been a long time since I updated my family tree testimonials page. Over the years I have received such nice feedback from so many people regarding my genealogy research that it makes my work feel very rewarding. I have collated a selection of comments and feedback from customers and added them to the testimonials page.

To all the customers who have taken the time to write to me saying such nice things – thank you all so much! Researching family trees for you has given me a lot of satisfaction over the years and I really appreciate your positive feedback.

Family Tree News 12 April 2012

Special thanks to Darren Bird for his support and donation, which enabled me to research the following names: Harold Cain, Desmond Callaghan, Lucy Callagher, Thomas Camp, Ethel Campbell nee Eaton, and Kenneth Campbell. You can find their details published on the Coventry Blitz Resource Centre pages on www.familyresearcher.co.uk.

Family Tree News 01 April 2012

Demand for new family tree research projects has been very high over the last couple of weeks. Apologies to anyone I could not fit in straight away, I am currently working hard on several research projects and hope to catch up with demand soon.

I see London Road Cemetery has been in the news again this week. Following on from concerns about the way the communal grave had been tarmaced over a little while ago, which some people said made the area resemble a car park, the latest news story was about the digging up of pathways / roadways in order to squeeze in more graves. It seems that the council fenced off six ancient routes and got as far as digging up one route which dates back to 1837.

Glad to hear that the destructive work in this Victorian Cemetery has stopped now following a petition handed in by the Friends of London Road Cemetery. Councillor Foster was quoted expressing concern that families with loved ones buried at the cemetery (such as myself and my husband!) did not know anything about this issue until metal fences were put up. I think it would be good to see the Council working more closely with the Friends group in future.

Family Tree News 11 March 2012

The latest Coventry Family History Society journal will be out any day now, you can see some of the highlights on www.covfhs.org.

Thanks this week to Peter S for getting in touch regarding the old occupation of Sawer, which has now been added to my website.

Malcolm C is asking for information about the following census occupations: Keu, Shambler, Tignar Impostor, Bersar, and Mueman. If you have come across anything useful regarding these occupational titles then please get in touch and I will feed back to Malcolm. Bersar may be a spelling variation of Bursar.

Julie G-F is looking for information related to the old occupation Silks Man, which she found in the 1841 Ayrshire census. She believes it to be related to flour mills in Liverpool around that time, and is looking for info about her ancestor's occupation and about the locations of Liverpool flour mills in the 19th century. Again, if you can help then please get in touch with me via my family tree contact form and I will feed back to Julie, as well as adding anything useful to the website to help fellow family tree enthusiasts.

Family Tree News 04 March

February was a busy month researching family trees, and March looks set to be the same. I have been ordering lots of certificates, so no doubt will be receiving a mound of old records through the post soon!

Thanks this week to Abby for donating a family photo and sending me details of her relatives who lost their lives in the Coventry Blitz. The photo and details for Margaret and Frederick Clare have been added to the Coventry Blitz Resource Centre.

Family Tree News 16 February 2012

Computers - who'd have them? Suffered from a bit of ICT pain over the last 10 days due to my computer failing to start. Turned out both motherboard and some of the memory had died after working perfectly for years. Still, back up and running now and grateful that (a) didn't really lose any research time, and (b) my backup procedures all worked fine.
Have added a couple of Old Occupations to my site: Farm Grieve, which I came across on a census return recently, and Billy Spinner which was suggested to me by Angela N. Thanks for getting in touch Angela!

Family Tree News 22 January 2012

Thanks this week to Neil K for getting in touch regarding an old occupation called Bower of Cows. It has been added to the Dictionary of Old Occupations. If you have any evidence to share about this occupation in 19th century Scotland it would be great if you would get in touch with me.

Family Tree News 15 January 2012

I was contacted this week by a family member requesting details about her relatives from the Oldfield family who were killed during the air raids on Coventry during the WW2 Blitz years. I researched details of these five family members (Edward, George, Harriet, Louisa and Mabel Oldfield) free of charge, and also added it to the Coventry Blitz Resource Centre, which I have built up over several years.

It’s a great place to look if you are studying history or researching your family tree and had relatives living in the Coventry area during the 1940s.

Family Tree News 2 January 2012

2012 is here and I will be resuming research work tomorrow. The other day I was contacted by a chap who works freelance for the BBC's Who Do You Think You Are magazine. He asked me to write a few words for a feature he is working on, which I was happy to do. He said my website gets a mention in the article – what a lovely way to start the New Year!

Family Tree News 10 December 2011

Two more website updates this week. Many thanks to Andy for providing useful info about his family member Alfred Kershaw who worked at a Jewellers in Spon End and was killed during the Blitz. Also, I would like to thank Megan for sharing her memories of war-torn Coventry. Follow the link to read her story.

On a different note, I thoroughly enjoyed reading the latest issue of the Coventry Family History Society which is just out. Head on over to http://www.covfhs.org/ if you are interested in joining up.

Family Tree News 03 December 2011

Have you considered purchasing one of my family tree gift certificates as a splendid Christmas gift for a loved one? These can be cashed in after Christmas Day to commence research into the family history of the lucky recipient. Contact me for details.

Between now and Christmas I am working hard completing existing research projects for Christmas presents, so if you wish to place an order now I will be happy to start work for you in January.

Thanks to Barbara B from Austrailia who got in touch regarding the old occupation of Tripe Boiler. My husband has now added it to the Dictionary of Old Occupations.

Thanks also to the various people who sent me info this week regarding the Coventry Blitz. I will add these to the site shortly.

Family Tree News 27 November 2011

You may have heard me on BBC local radio earlier this week. I was on Bob Brolly’s show discussing the importance of learning about history and whether it should be taught in schools with the same prominence and English and Maths. I had a nice time, Bob is friendly, cheery sort of chap though I am not sure he was convinced to change his opinion! Thanks for having me on the show Bob, it was a pleasure.

Family Tree News 20 November 2011

Have been very busy researching family tree projects for everyone over the last couple of months. In the run up to Christmas I am focussed on making sure that all the family tree gifts are ready, and 2011 certainly has been a busy year! To make this happen less time has been available for updates to the various resources on my website, in case you are wondering why my updates have been slower recently.
Author Trevor Harkin has been in touch regarding recent resurfacing work at the site of the Coventry Blitz memorial at London Road Cemetery, which is the location of the mass grave of blitz victims.

An article in the local newspaper bore a headline about the resurfacing work "Mass grave for Coventry blitz victims turned into 'car park'". From what I read and from the photo it appears the site has been tarmaced over. The article goes on to say that the new surface is already crumbling with chunks breaking away at the edges. This all seems out of keeping with the location and significance of the memorial, where we honour the memory and sacrifice of the fallen.

Family Tree News 25 October 2011

Whilst trawling through census records this week I came across an old occupation called Bullion Pearler. Seems to be a misspelling of Bullion Purler, referring to the sort of decorative trim we see today at the bottom of sofas. An unusual specialist occupation which I have added to my Dictionary.

The new 2012 version of Family Tree Maker is out. This year’s update builds upon the enhancements found in the 2011 version with improved reports and the new Tree Sync feature for synchronising your family tree data with Ancestry.

Family Tree News 16 October 2011

The annual Blitz Remembrance Service is fast approaching. It will take place at 3pm on Sunday 13th November at London Road Cemetery, Coventry. I would like to thank Coventry Bereavement Services for letting us know the details.

The busy season is upon me once again, and I am now working on family tree projects as Christmas gifts for loved ones. We did, however, find time this week to update the website in response to a couple of queries from people who looked me up in Yellow Pages or similar because they had difficulty using the email links on my site. I now have a new web page on the site which provides two different ways of getting in touch with me online regarding family tree research.

Family Tree News 09 October 2011

Looks like a new 2012 version of the excellent Family Tree Maker will be available on or around October 14th. Early information indicates there may be three versions: Deluxe, Platinum and World editions. More info about these soon.

Family Tree News 25 September 2011

Hope you are enjoying series 8 of Who Do You Think You Are? This week we have UK daytime TV celebrity Richard Madeley finding out about the part his great grandfather played in fighting between New England colonists and Native Americans in Rhode Island.

I should like to thank Peter who got in touch last week with a correction in the data about his half sister Gretna Edwina Elliot on my Coventry Blitz Victims pages. As is often the case families have more accurate historical information than official records, so many thanks Peter for the update.

Also, author Jayne Shrimpton has been in touch this week with news about her new website. Jayne is an expert at dating old family photos and has written two great books on the subject.

Family Tree News 11 September 2011

Thanks this week to Sally M, who got in touch regarding details about her Great Uncle in a page on First World War burials in the Coventry At War section of my site. It is great when people share more accurate family history info than provided by public records. I am more than happy to update data, or include related anecdotes or photos that family members wish to share.

The Dictionary Of Old Occupations had a significant update this week. About 20 census occupation definitions have been added to the site, and some existing definitions updated. We are very grateful to Richard W who sent me a list of occupational titles and descriptions from the Barnsley area (many of which were mining related) which he researched for publication in his local Family History Society journal. After checking into all these my husband and I were delighted to write up some dictionary definitions and share all this additional info with you via my site.

Last reminder - For those living nearby there are still a few hours left to head into Coventry and enjoy the Heritage Weekend events!

All the best
Jane Hewitt

Family Tree News 03 September 2011

Ingrid B sent me some information about the old occupation of Pitcher, and Spike M emailed with info about the old occupation of Tisserand. Having checked these out both have been added to the free online Dictionary of Old Occupations. Many thanks to both of you for getting in touch.

Ingrid was initially prompted to get in touch after hearing the term Pitcher on a TV show, where it was used to describe a type of porter who carried meat goods into market overnight. If anyone has evidence to confirm this then it would be great if you got in touch so we can expand the definition.

Also of note this week is that Colin Water’s excellent reference book 'A Dictionary of Old Trades, Titles and Occupations' has just been released as a Kindle ebook. It makes a great alternative to my own work – it is bigger but somewhat pricier. As I have mentioned before, the only reason I do not own a copy myself is so that it did not influence my own work.

Family Tree News 31 August 2011

The Coventry Family History Society website has had a facelift. I am biased of course (I helped a bit) but I think the new look and feel are great! Check it out here: http://www.covfhs.org/.

We currently have a small backlog of old occupations to process. Am aiming to review these shortly (i.e. in the next week or two) and confirm their accuracy before adding them to the site. Thanks to everyone who sent me info to expand the old occupations definitions.

Family Tree News 21 August 2011

In response to a query from Liz I am for looking evidence regarding the old occupation of Plod Weaver, possibly spelt as Plodweaver. My current thinking is that this is a textile industry occupation (obviously), but the query is whether 'plod' refers to a person operating a loom via their feet, or whether it is a spelling variation on ‘plaid’, describing the fabric.

This occupational title may be a regional term. Liz found it in parish registers for Gt Harwood, LAN near Blackburn. Please get in touch with me if you have any information to share regarding Plod Weavers. If we can crack this one it will help Liz out, and can also be added to my Dictionary of Old Occupations to assist fellow family tree enthusiasts.

Secondly, many thanks to Anita for the lovely flowers she sent me after we researched her husband's family tree as a present for his birthday. The flowers were a wonderful surprise and look beautiful.

Family Tree News 14 August 2011

Phew! Having returned from a summer holiday I am now back at work and busily researching a variety of family trees. Of specific interest this week I have been going through late 19th century workhouse records for one particular family. Even though a couple of registers were missing I was able to fill in the missing information by looking at the Indoor Relief books.

I would like to thank Ingrid B for supplying me with a couple of suggested additions to the Dictionary of Old Occupations. Whilst doing some volunteer work for FamilySearch, Ingrid came across occupational titles Schoolmistress and Furnace Tender in census records. These have been added to the site, along with Schoolmarm and Schoolmaster.

I have also performed a lengthy spell-checking exercise across http://www.familyresearcher.co.uk/. Some classic typos from my original family researcher site back in 1995 had somehow been carried forwards, but have finally been sorted. Not an easy task when there are thousands of names and archaic job titles being incorrectly flagged up as errors!

For those interested in local history, Coventry Heritage Weekend is not far off. There will be lots of interesting and educational things to see. On Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th September. Heritage Weekend provides a rare opportunity for the general public to visit some of the historic buildings in the city free of charge and is well worth checking out. The Old Grammar School will be open for the first time since 1995, and on Sunday there will be a re-enactment of Mary Ball’s trial. She was a convicted poisoner and became famous (or should that be notorious?) for being the last woman in Coventry to be hanged.

Family Tree News 17 July 2011

It has been a while since I last updated the website because I have been very busy researching family trees for people. I notice an increasing number of Wikipedia entries are citing my website as references within their encyclopaedia articles; these are very welcome as it is nice to be helping people in this way.

I made a little time this weekend to add two occupational definitions to the site. Firstly, in response to a query from Jessica I researched and added a lengthy definition of Zinc Worker, and secondly, I would like to thank Geoff J-Brett for the information he supplied regarding the use of Datallers in coal mining. This has been added to the Dictionary of Old Occupations.

All the best,
Jane

Family Tree News 26 June 2011

Found a lovely review of my Family Researcher website this week. Head on over to Illiana Ancestors to see what Joan Griffis has to say about some of my free family tree and blitz research resources.

Thanks for your kind words Joan. And I know what you mean about the spellchecker – mine just could not cope either!

Went to the Coventry Archives this week. As I have said previously, it is great to see them open again, and really helpful as I needed to look up historical Workhouse records. Not everything is back to normal yet, in that some shelves are still bare but the records are safe in the vault and available on request. I suspect they are being cautious due to recent vandalism which resulted in broken windows.

Family Tree News 20 June 2011

Many thanks to the Questionable Content Team at Lulu.com for their quick response. I was delighted to find that Lulu’s service was helpful and swift in regards to the issue of the counterfeit version of the Dictionary of Old Occupations which my husband quickly spotted and reported.

I suppose I should see it as flattery that people rip off my work from time to time and pass it off as their own, whether it be website content or otherwise. Just glad I have help on hand to diligently search for and deal with these incidents so that I can focus on family tree and historical research without all these distractions myself! I do feel sorry for anyone taken in by perpetrators though.

Finally, there was a good piece in the Coventry Telegraph this week regarding the reopening of the history centre, and a list of some of the valuable and fascinating old documents they hold – such as a charter from King Henry III, King Edward III and a letter from Anne Boleyn. Great to see things are back to normal, I will be popping in any day now.

Family Tree News 19 June 2011

Family Tree News 12 June 2011

Good news! The Coventry Archives, aka the Coventry History Centre re-opened on June 9th after having been closed for repairs since before last Christmas. Opening hours for the Archives are 10:30 to 3:30 Tuesday to Saturday.

This week I have been working on a variety of photo family trees for people. It is interesting to see what the ancestors you are researching actually look like. Compared to a traditional family tree document, I often find that a photo family tree has that bit of extra magic, particularly when I unearth old photographs from 70+ years ago. Do remember to ask about photo family trees if you wish to commission me to research your family tree.

Family Tree News 5 June 2011

I have been focussing on researching more details about victims of the Coventry Blitz recently, and publishing the findings on my family tree website this week. If you have the surnames Gaskine, Gibbons, Gillespie or Golder in family trees you are researching then these may be of help.

Family Tree News 29 May 2011

Family tree research has certainly been keeping me busy this week! I found time to add details about members of the Copeland, Cotton and Coulter families to the Coventry Blitz Resource Centre. I was also able to add another photo of a Blitz victim – Alan Hiscocks – kindly supplied by Trevor Harkin

I had some good news this week; Barnes and Noble are now selling my Dictionary of Old Occupations too. So, if you are a family tree researcher with a Nook then this may interest you. You can find my ebook by searching for either for 'old occupations' or 'Jane Hewitt' on their site, or from this link http://bit.ly/lE1p3R.

Family Tree News 15 May 2011

Author and historian Trevor Harking kindly donated some photographs of victims of the Coventry Blitz who went to Bablake School. If you are researching Farren, Fraser or Worrod family trees then these may be relevant to you.

Trevor has a new book out about the April 1941 air raids on Coventry. I have always been impressed with Trevor's work, and would encourage anyone interested in WW2 or local history to seek out a copy.