An Evidence timeline for Sarah Larkin…

My 8th great-grandmother, Sarah Larkin (mother of Mary Mount who married Robert Beake in November 1689), presents a fascinating case study, as there is no direct evidence for her birth or baptism, and even the names of her parents. Having been born about 1649, during a turbulent period in English history in which church records ceased being kept in many parishes, she's one of many for whom key parish register entries are missing, including marriages, baptisms and burials.

writingmypast.wordpress.com

Original vs. transcribed records

Whenever possible, always work from original records rather than transcriptions or indexes, because transcribed records can contain errors such as - Misread handwriting (eg 'Ann' transcribed as 'Amy') Incorrect dates or ages Misspelled surnames Omitted notes or marginal annotations Misinterpreted occupations or places Indexing mistakes that make records difficult to find Original documents can also provide important context that a transcription often leaves out, such as -

smallstepsintogenealogy.co.uk

A catch-up post…

I'm baack! It's been a busy few weeks leaving me little time (or energy) to do any serious writing. First up, in late June, was our older niece's wedding in Vancouver. It was a beautiful day (despite the forecast) and a wonderful celebration. a few days later, Sean and I set out on a road trip to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan to celebrate my mum's 90th birthday.

writingmypast.wordpress.com

Don’t ignore online repository hints…assess them…

In a recent Substack post, genealogist Paul K Graham reminded us that "Yes, Online Family Trees are Sources", referring us at one point to Thomas W Jones BCG article "Perils of Source Snobbery”. In a similar vein, I want to "talk" about the source hints generated by the major online genealogy repositories, the hints so many online forum users tell others NEVER to use, because "they're never right" or "it's lazy".

writingmypast.wordpress.com

Serendipity – when two ancestral lines converge

In my in-depth research into my 8th great-grandmother, Sarah Larkin, I came across a relationship that took me completely by surprise. The discovery itself was quite by accident as the surname in question isn't an unusual one in the area I'm researching, so I hadn't even considered a family connection to be a possibility. Serendipity indeed. What was this discovery? Sarah Larkin's older sister, Mary (my 9th great-aunt), married my 8th great-grandfather, Richard Knowler (click image to enlarge):

writingmypast.wordpress.com

echoes-of-kin-genealogy.com

Savage House’s filth and farce are closer to the real bawdiness of the 18th century

Dirt, sex and faeces abound in 18-century literature.

theconversation.com

OB-GYNs release their own vaccine schedule, rejecting RFK Jr.'s meddling

Thirteen other medical groups have already endorsed the independent schedule.

arstechnica.com

New citizenship rules leave Canadian archivists overwhelmed

New citizenship rules have many Americans rushing to prove they have Canadian ancestors — leaving Canadian archivists scrambling

canadianaffairs.news

WikiTree Sourcer now cites from FMP newspaper clippings…

Just a quick post this week as I've had lots going on, including some mostly sleepless nights because of our elderly kitty. It's good news, however - the WikiTree Sourcer now creates citations from FindMyPast's newspaper clipping sharing pages, like this one I clipped for an article I recently found: WikiTree is a world tree, similar to the FamilySearch Family Tree.

writingmypast.wordpress.com

The Forgotten Black History of How Memorial Day Started

Historians like the Pulitzer Prize winner David Blight have tried to raise awareness of freed slaves who decorated soldiers' graves in 1865

time.com

Gathering all the elements of a Proof Argument

Following on from my previous post about my Sarah Larkin project and my decision to write a proof argument, I've spent time each evening working on building Sarah's timeline on Ancestry and entering information into Family Historian. Given Sarah lived close to 80 years, married twice, had 8 children, and was mentioned in a variety of family documents, it's painstaking work.

writingmypast.wordpress.com

An intricate project with many parts…

My research into Mary Mount's mother, Sarah, has become even more complicated that I first thought. In building out Sarah's family, I uncovered an unexpected connection, a sister who married four times, and a raft of wills and administrations which helped me put it all together. There are so many moving parts that I have to remember Annie Lamott's advice (actually, her father's) to take them…

writingmypast.wordpress.com

The Life and Times of John Edwin Barnes

This is the latest and recently updated biography of my great-grandfather, John Edwin Barnes. It’s always good practise to periodically review and revisit your work and I have included here s…

chiddicksfamilytree.com

This week's crème de la crème - April 25, 2026 - Genealogy à la carte

Some of the bijoux I discovered this week. Blog postsDigitize New York Milestone: One Million Scans on New York Genealogical and Biographical Society Blog. Irish Land Commission’s Keane Index Cards No...

genealogyalacarte.ca

Sunday Morning Genealogy Fun — Who Is Your Ancestor #50

Randy has us looking at a male ancestor this week: 1) Who Is Ancestor #50 in your Ahnentafel list? What were his birth date and place, his parents, death date and place, spouse's name, marriage date and place, and how many children they had, and which of his children do you descend from? 2) Share your information about #50 (or other) ancestor…

writingmypast.wordpress.com

Teresa on Genealogy by Aryn

Thanks for this resource. I'm putting together my own blog post about transcription and will include this one in the list of resources.

open.substack.com