Midland Ancestors

Kenilworth: Natural Daughters and Deserted Children ...
2026-07-08 19:30 - 21:30 (Europe/London) | Kenilworth Centre, Abbey End, Kenilworth, CV8 1QJ, Abbey End, Kenilworth, CV8 1QJ, United Kingdom
… with Summer Refreshments
Natural Daughters and Deserted Children: Jane Austen, Maria Edgeworth and Eighteenth-Century Illegitimacy
Speaker: Dr Kate Croft
Jane Austen and Maria Edgeworth were among the most popular authors of the early 1800s. Today, Austen is widely remembered for her witty, romantic novels, while Edgeworth has faded from mainstream readership. Yet both writers tackled controversial themes, including the issue of illegitimacy. This talk examines how Austen and Edgeworth portrayed illegitimacy in their fiction and how their work challenged dominant views about “fallen women” and their children. Edgeworth was the daughter of Lunar Society member, Richard Lovell Edgeworth.
Dr Kate Croft is a researcher and lecturer at the Centre for West Midlands History, University of Birmingham, and has talked to us before about the Wives and Daughters of the Lunar Society, and about the adventurous Sabrina Sidney.

North Staffs: Research
2026-07-06 19:30 - 21:30, 2026-06-01 19:30 - 21:30, 2026-05-11 19:30 - 21:30, 2026-04-13 19:30 - 21:30 | North Staffs, St. John's Centre, Newcastle Road, Stoke on Trent, Staffs, ST4 6QD, United Kingdom

Birmingham: Tracing Your Irish Family History
2026-07-04 14:00 - 15:30 | Birmingham & Midland Institute, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B3 3BS, United Kingdom
Tracing Your Irish Family History
Speaker: Paul Wilkins

Join local genealogist Paul Wilkins for expert tips on uncovering your Irish ancestors. Learn what records are available online and how to navigate the challenges of tracing Irish family history.
Paul lectures across the West Midlands and writes for Who Do You Think You Are and Family Tree magazines—don’t miss this chance to learn from a true expert!

Family History Centre Open Today
2026-07-04 10:15 - 13:45 | Birmingham & Midland Institute, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B3 3BS, United Kingdom
The Family History Centre is available for members on Saturday 4th July (from 10.15 – 13.45) when a guest speaker (Paul Wilkins) is due to attend the Birmingham Group meeting.
To take advantage of this facility, members must book their place with Caroline by email c.mason@midanc.uk beforehand.

Wolverhampton: The Extraordinary Story of Sabrina Sidney
2026-06-24 19:30 - 21:15 | West Midlands
Sabrina was at the bottom of the eighteenth-century pile; female, abandoned and illegitimate. But then she was found chosen from one of the Thomas Coram Foundling Hospitals to become an Apprentice Wife: the subject of a unique experiment in education and matrimony undertaken by a gentleman named Thomas Day.
Friend to some of the men who powered both the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution, such as James Watt and Erasmus Darwin, Day believed the answer to society’s ills lay in education. A practical, rational and purposeful education that would breed up a new generation of Enlightenment wives. Sabrina would epitomise this education and in so doing, would become Mrs Thomas Day.
Presenter: Kate Croft
Members and Visitors alike are welcome to join Wolverhampton group for this fascinating tale of the real life Pygmalion.

Doors open at 7.15 p.m. for a 7.30 p.m. meeting start.

Heraldry Group Meeting
2026-06-23 19:00 - 21:00, 2026-05-26 19:00 - 21:00, 2026-04-28 19:00 - 21:00, 2026-03-24 19:00 - 21:00 | Birmingham & Midland Institute, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B3 3BS, United Kingdom
Why not come along and learn how to interpret the various coats of arms in stained glass windows, church monuments, etc, and discover who married who, together with their family history.

Stourbridge Group - Visit to National Memorial Arboretum
2026-06-16 19:30 - 21:30 | Stourbridge, St. Peter's Church Hall, Pedmore, West Midlands, DY9 0SW, United Kingdom
Visit to National Memorial Arboretum

Birmingham: Pigs Take Precedence (New Street in 1817)
2026-06-06 14:00 - 15:30 | Birmingham & Midland Institute, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B3 3BS, United Kingdom
Pigs Take Precedence (New Street in 1817)
Speaker: Paulette Burkill

In Handsworth Historical Society’s collection is a ten-page booklet, published for some of her friends in January 1877 by someone we know only as LB of Bromsgrove House, Aston Manor, with her memories of New Street sixty years earlier in 1817, when she was only twelve. This illustrated talk takes us up one side of the street and back down the other side, with its fascinating mixture of shops, businesses, hotels and private houses, so difficult to imagine today.
Paulette has been Secretary of Handsworth Historical Society (formed 1952) since 1986 and now looks after the majority of their archives at home after the Society relinquished their 47 year tenancy of Handsworth Old Town Hall in January 2025, as they could no longer afford the upkeep. She also helps with enquiries to the Society.

Family History Centre Open Today
2026-06-06 10:15 - 13:45 | Birmingham & Midland Institute, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B3 3BS, United Kingdom
The Family History Centre is available for members on Saturday 6th June (from 10.15 – 13.45) when a guest speaker (Paulette Burkill) is due to attend the Birmingham Group meetings.
To take advantage of this facility, members must book their place with Mark by email m.thursfield@midanc.uk beforehand.

Stourbridge Group - The Magic of Glass
2026-05-19 19:30 - 21:30 | Stourbridge, St. Peter's Church Hall, Pedmore, West Midlands, DY9 0SW, United Kingdom
The Magic of Glass
Speaker: Dr Kate Round

In ancient times glass-making was viewed as mysterious and magical, it was alchemy, and referred to as ‘The Art Feat and Mystery of Glass’. Sand subjected to high temperatures became jewel-like material that could be moulded into vessels, magic indeed!
It has clever physical properties, it can easily be recycled and it does not deteriorate with age or use. The chemical properties of glass make it versatile and at the ‘cutting-edge’ of technology.
This talk looks at the colourful world of glass, how is made and how we can change it physically and chemically to suit its use. From bottles to bridges, optical glass to architecture; oven-ware to radiation shields, and from bending light to bendable glass.

Dr Kate Round

London: Group Visit to the The National Museum of Computing
2026-05-17 10:30 - 17:00 | The National Museum of Computing, Block H, Bletchley Park, Bletchley, MK3 6EB, United Kingdom
Group Visit to The National Museum of Computing
The National Museum of Computing is an independent charity. It houses the world’s largest collection of functional historic computers and World War II machines.
The venue is a museum situated adjacent to the main Bletchley Park complex and is an independent museum with its own separate entrance and admission fee (currently £15, with some concessions). Their website is tnmoc.org.
There is a car park (Postcode MK3 6DS), but the site is only a short walk (less than 15 minutes) from Bletchley train station. Trains run from London Euston and typically take around 53 minutes. Tell the person at the entrance barrier you want to visit the Museum of Computing in Block H for directions.
It is home to the world’s largest collection of working historic computers and is recognised as one of England’s top 100 “irreplaceable places”. It houses the functional historic computers and World War II machines, including Enigma, Lorenz, the working Turing-Welchman Bombe, the rebuilt Colossus (the world’s first electronic computer), and the WITCH (the world’s oldest working digital computer).
The Museum enables visitors to follow the development of computing from the ultra-secret pioneering efforts of the 1940s through the large systems and mainframes of the 1950s, 60s and 70s, and the rise of personal computing in the 1980s and beyond.
We will meet at the museum, but we need to know in advance who will be coming as the museum needs to know numbers to ensure there are enough volunteers present, and to arrange a steady flow through the museum. So please let Brian know if you are interested in coming by the 15th April using this dedicated email brian.events@techie.com.
Proposed outline itinerary

Arrive around 10:30 am when the museum opens.
Purchase a ticket at the entrance: current adult day ticket is £15.00
Meet in the cafe (with shop and toilets) for a brief introduction
11:00 am: Start the visit in the Bombe Gallery with a 30-minute talk and demonstration about the WWII code breaking machine (If you arrive after the 11:00 talk has started do not worry as the talks will be held at several other times during the day)
11:45 am: Move to the Tunny Gallery and then the Colossus Gallery for a 45-minute talk and demonstration of the Lorenz code breaking machines together with the world’s first electronic digital computer.
12:30 pm: Lunch break in the cafe (hot and cold drinks and snacks available) or bring a picnic and eat outdoors (weather permitting)
After lunch have a free-flow visit around the rest of the museum
Volunteer guides will be available to tell you about the collections
Other galleries to see include:

The first-generation gallery – early valve-based computers and the WITCH computer
The large systems gallery – mainframe computers
The pop-up gallery – temporary mini exhibitions
The software gallery – the evolution of computer programs
The PC gallery – personal computer advancements
The Internet gallery – the internet’s history and impact
There are also cabinets in the corridors displaying items such as slide rules and calculators

5:00 pm: The museum closes

Kenilworth: ABM plus "Extraordinary Lives of Ordinary People"
2026-05-13 19:30 - 21:30 | Kenilworth Centre, Abbey End, Kenilworth, CV8 1QJ, Abbey End, Kenilworth, CV8 1QJ, United Kingdom
Extraordinary Lives of Ordinary People
Speaker: Helen Lloyd
An introduction to oral history, with audio extracts from the speaker’s recordings of Birmingham life stories, and discussion of the pros and cons of oral history in a whistle-stop tour through the twentieth-century.
Helen worked in radio for much of her life, including many years as a freelance reporter for the BBC Radio 4 programme, Women’s Hour. She has recorded and edited life stories for many oral history projects, including the BBC’s Millenium Oral History Project, “The Century Speaks”, Birmingham Central Library’s Millennium project and Digital Handsworth, amongst others …
See website: www.oralhistoryconsultancy.co.uk

AGM and Study Day Programme
2026-05-09 10:00 - 15:30 | Birmingham & Midland Institute, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B3 3BS, United Kingdom
AGM and Study Day Programme
BMI, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, B3 3BS
Saturday 9th May 2026
10.00 – Doors Open & Registration
10.30 – Presentation: The History of Medicine. Dr Mike Jenkins
Exploring the origins and evolution of medicine and the health
challenges experienced by our ancestors, as well as the innovations that have supported and led to modern medicine.
Speaker: Dr Mike Jenkins, a hospital doctor and General Practitioner of 40 years standing who is now a keen amateur historian.
11.30 – Coffee Break
12.00 – Annual General Meeting – Relevant documents are on the 2026 AGM page in the Members Area.
12.30 – Lunch
14.00 – Presentation: Education or Evangelism? The Early Adult Schools
and Brotherhood Movement in the West Midlands. Mr. Andy Vail
The 19th-century adult school movement was a significant philanthropic and social initiative designed to provide literacy, education, and social improvement to the working class. Initiated primarily by Quakers, these schools became crucial in fostering community, self-improvement, and social life outside of public houses.
Speaker: Mr. Andy Vail has a Modern History postgraduate qualification from the University of Birmingham, and is a member of various history societies.
15:00 – Closing Words by the President
The Reference Library and Family History Centre in the
Kingsley Norris Room will be open during the lunch break.

Wolverhampton: The Forgotten Staffordshire Workhouse
2026-04-29 19:30 - 21:15 | Wolverhampton, The Terry Harding Room, Perton Civic Centre, Church Road, Perton,, Wolverhampton, Staffordshire, WV6 7PD, United Kingdom
In Victorian England, the question haunted every parish: what should be done with the poor? The answer, in 1834, was the workhouse — a place meant to provide food, shelter, and discipline… but remembered today for something far darker.
Hidden among the lanes of Trysull, the Seisdon Union Workhouse served the surrounding villages — from Wombourne to Tettenhall, Pattingham to Kinver. Built in 1860, it stood for decades, shaping countless lives — and then, somehow, slipped quietly from memory.
Join the Wolverhampton group as we learn about the stories of those who lived and worked behind its walls — and rediscover a forgotten chapter of Staffordshire’s social history.
Presenter: Andrew Sloane
Doors open at 7.15 p.m. for a 7.30 p.m. meeting start.
Plenty of FREE parking at our venue. Members and Visitors are welcome.

Family History Centre Open Today
2026-04-25 10:00 - 14:00 | Birmingham & Midland Institute, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B3 3BS, United Kingdom
The Family History Centre in the Kingsley Norris Room is available for RQG Conference delegates during their lunch break and for any other Midland Ancestors members on Saturday 25th April from 10 am – 2 pm (not the usual opening times)

RQG Conference 2026
2026-04-25 09:00 - 17:00 | Birmingham & Midland Institute, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B3 3BS, United Kingdom
Register of Qualified Genealogists Conference
Please join us at the Birmingham & Midland Institute on Saturday 25 April 2026
for our family history conference ‘Exploring the Past, Embracing the Future’.
Keynote Speakers:
Professor Rebecca Probert (University of Exeter) – Researching bigamy through family history records
Dr Sophie Kay (Khronicle®) – Ethics and You: a people-centred guide to genetic genealogy
Professor Julia Laite (Birkbeck, University of London) – How family history can change the way we think about history (and the world) plus morning and afternoon sessions on a wide range of topics – DNA and genetics, AI tools for genealogy, family history projects and research.
Tickets are available via
https://rqg-conference-2026.eventbrite.co.uk/

Our conference is open to everyone, including non-members.
Further details:- 2026 RQG Conference

The Family History Centre in the Kingsley Norris Room will be open from 10am to 2pm.

Stourbridge Group - "Oh, What a Bostin War"
2026-04-21 19:30 - 21:30 | Stourbridge, St. Peter's Church Hall, Pedmore, West Midlands, DY9 0SW, United Kingdom
“Oh, What a Bostin War”
Speaker: Quintin Watt

“Oh, what a bostin war!” – Mobilisation & Recruitment in the Black Country in 1914This illustrated presentation examines the military reaction to the outbreak of the Great War in the Black Country. Were people really excited to have a ‘pop at the Kaiser’? Did thousands of eager young men immediately ‘rush to the colours’, afraid they might miss out on all the fun? Why did they really join up? What are the myths and what was the reality?

'First Steps' in Family History
2026-04-18 10:00 - 16:00 | Birmingham & Midland Institute, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B3 3BS, United Kingdom
At our Family History Centre, B.M.I., Margaret Street, Birmingham. B3 3BS.
The day is an in-person event full of research topics – open to anyone wanting to learn from experienced researchers how to use best practice for greater results or simply to use it as a refresher.
A follow up ‘Further Steps’ on-line event will appear later in the year.

Gareth, Mark and Kim will be hosting the day with tuition, tips and advice on how to research your family history.
The day is open to anyone first starting out on their journey, but also to members who simply want to refresh their knowledge.
Linda and Susan will be in the Family History Centre to answer questions on our resources available to assist your journey.
Please contact Kim Walker – General Secretary (or 0121 236-8977 option 2) for further information and to book a place.
Whilst the event is free, donations are always welcome.

Birmingham: FamilySearch Full-Text Search
2026-04-11 14:00 - 15:30 | Birmingham & Midland Institute, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B3 3BS, United Kingdom
FamilySearch Full-Text Search
Speaker: Janet Summers
‘Using a step-by-step guide, Janet will demonstrate how this method broke through her own research “brick walls” by locating copies of probated wills.
This presentation expands on the article Janet wrote for the Midland Ancestor published in June 2025 Vol. 20 No. 10 page 589 – Family Search Full-Text – A Research Game Changer?’

FamilySearch.org has billions of historical records that have been digitized, but only a portion of these record images are currently searchable. A full-text search for historical records uses artificial intelligence (AI) to transcribe images into text so they can be fully searched. This automated search will find information almost instantly, saving hours of manual searching. Using handwriting recognition software, FamilySearch.org can convert an image of text into a machine-readable format. This gives you the ability to search the full text of these records before they are even indexed.

London: "Titanic– The Midlands’ Connection"
2026-04-11 11:00 - 13:00 | London Family History Centre, 64-68 Princes Gate, Exhibition Road, London, SW7 2PA, United Kingdom
“Titanic– The Midlands’ Connection”
A talk by Andrew Lound.
Although the towns of Belfast and Southampton claim the Titanic as their own, over 70% of the ship’s interior was manufactured in the Midlands. Based on his own
research Andrew tells the story of the Midlands’ industrial work on the ship and the fate of the local passengers. A dramatic presentation delivered in full White Star Line Uniform, using images, audio and numerous props. Climb aboard and experience the voyage of your life.
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

Family History Centre Open Today
2026-04-11 10:15 - 13:45 | Birmingham & Midland Institute, 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B3 3BS, United Kingdom
The Family History Centre is available for members on Saturday 11th April (from 10.15 – 13.45) when a guest speaker (Janet Summers) is due to attend the Birmingham Group meeting.
To take advantage of this facility, members must book their place with Caroline by email c.mason@midanc.uk beforehand.

Kenilworth: No meeting this month
2026-04-08 19:30 - 21:30 | West Midlands

Wolverhampton: War As Seen Through Artists and Poets
2026-03-25 19:30 - 21:15 | Wolverhampton, The Terry Harding Room, Perton Civic Centre, Church Road, Perton,, Wolverhampton, Staffordshire, WV6 7PD, United Kingdom
Tonight’s presenter, Craig Denston, will be visiting Wolverhampton group again to share with us his research into the various Artists and Poets who have been influenced by their experiences to express themselves through their works. Join us to hear more.
Doors open at 7.15 p.m. for a 7.30 p.m. meeting start. Plenty of FREE parking at our venue.
All members and visitors are welcome to a meeting that promises to be interesting and thought provoking.

Stourbridge Group - William Morris and Nuffield Empire
2026-03-24 19:00 - 21:00 | Stourbridge, St. Peter's Church Hall, Pedmore, West Midlands, DY9 0SW, United Kingdom
William Morris and the Nuffield Empire
Speaker: Max Hunt

William Richard Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield (10th October 1877 – 22nd August 1963)

William Richard Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield was an English motor manufacturer and philanthropist. He was the founder of Morris Motors Limited and is remembered for establishing the Nuffield Foundation, the Nuffield Trust and Nuffield College, Oxford, as well as being involved in his role as president of Bupa in creating what is now Nuffield Health. He took his title from the village of Nuffield, Oxfordshire, where he lived.
William Morris, Lord Nuffield, was born in fairly humble circumstances in the St Johns area of Worcester in October 1877. His entry in the baptismal register of Hallows Church gives his father’s occupation as clothier, though he was in fact clerk to a local firm. While William was still a child, the family moved to the Oxford area when his father took up the position of farm bailiff to his father-in-law at Brasenose Farm.
In 1913, William was able to rent, for a modest sum, the premises of the old Oxford Military College at Cowley; as part of the deal, he also rented, and began to live in, Temple Cowley Manor House. His first car, the Morris Oxford, was produced in 1913 using an engine bought in from White and Poppe in Coventry. A light 10 hp vehicle, it retailed at £175. He then looked to the example of Henry Ford in the USA to see how to build bigger, more powerful machines, in 1913-1914 ordering 5,000 engines from Continental Motors in Detroit. In 1920 he built the Cowley works on the old parade ground of the military college.
