London: “Genetic Hide and Seek: Exploring Missing Ancestor Mysteries with Autosomal DNA”

Important update: This event has been expanded to two talks.

11:00: “Genetic Hide and Seek: Exploring Missing Ancestor Mysteries with Autosomal DNA”

A talk by Dr. Sophie Kay.

Missing ancestor mysteries’ in our family tree – those perplexing blanks where an individual has defied identification in historical records – can seem like an
insurmountable challenge. Yet if that missing ancestor lies within the most recent 6-7 generations of your pedigree, your autosomal DNA may hold the answer. This session will equip you with a clear strategy for tracing missing ancestors using autosomal DNA, no matter which provider you’ve tested with. Using a real-life case study, we’ll walk through a four-step process for identifying an unknown forebear from genetic matches, and showcase some handy tools you can use along the way. Whether you’re hunting down a single mystery ancestor, or are an adoptee looking to reconstruct a significant portion of your biological family tree, this strategy will keep you on course. It’s time to make sense of those DNA matches and realise their problem-solving potential!

The talk will be followed by the group AGM and a further talk by Dr. Sophie Kay, www.khronicle.co.uk

Note:- The planned buffet has now been postponed so please bring along your own lunch. Tea, coffee and biscuits will be available as usual.

14:00: “What’s That Job?: An occupational history talk”

A joint talk for Lancashire FHHS and Cumbria FHS.

Butcher, baker, candlestick maker: some occupational terms are an instantly recognisable part of our social fabric. When we find these familiar jobs in our family tree, we usually have a good sense of the kind of work involved and the industry we need to understand if we’re to discover more. But what if you encountered a labbet amongst your ancestors? A lumpman? Or a water gilder?

Far more than a mere cross-checking point between record sets, occupations yield rich insights into an ancestor’s daily existence, social status, and role within their local community. In this talk, we’ll delve into a range of resources and strategies for demystifying unfamiliar occupations. We’ll see how sound occupational research is about more than just understanding a job title – and how it can bring an evocative picture of ancestral life and fascinating research leads along the way!

Meetings will be held at the LDS Hyde Park Family Search Centre, 64-68 Princes Gate, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, SW7 2PA. Doors open 10.00; talks start 11.00.

We will have the research facility largely to ourselves for the day of our meetings so will not be restricted on time. We will be able to take coffee and tea into our meetings as well as sandwiches.

If you download and install a Chrome extension on your laptop (which uses the building Wi-Fi), you can search records, use commercial websites for free and download images directly to your laptop after our meeting. In effect, with the Chrome extension, your laptop has the same premium access as the PCs in the FamilySearch Centre. This access only works, of course, if you are within the building on Exhibition Road since it is dependent on the building Wi-Fi address. Ask a member of staff about this if you are interested.

Underground stations: South Kensington (District, Circle and Piccadilly Lines).

Buses: 14, 49, 70, 74, 345, 360, 414, 430, C1