The Queen
I must begin by pausing for a moment to remember her majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Most of us will only ever remember having one monarch. When she came to the throne, she promised to dedicate her life to the service of this country as long as she lived, which she did, despite the fact that she was also a wife and a mother. The funeral, I thought, befitted the death of a well-loved monarch, lots of pomp and ceremony but also allowed the ordinary people of this country to pay their respects. May she rest in peace.
The Birmingham Local and Family History Fair
Thank you to everyone who came along to see us at the Fair at the MAC in Cannon Hill Park. It was so nice to meet up and chat to people again. This is what family history is all about.
Coffee Morning – Tues 25th Oct. 11:00 am
Phil has arranged a coffee morning in the Theatre Bar at the BMI, all welcome. If you would like to come, please let Phil know as I shall be on holiday from next week (AGAIN).
FORTHCOMING TALKS – Change to programme
LONDON – 1 October – Meeting cancelled
With most of members travelling by train, due to the proposed train disruption, this meeting has been cancelled. The proposed talk will be rescheduled for next year.
BIRMINGHAM – 5 October 2pm – 4pm The Chatterley Whitfield Explosion by Ann Simcock – Zoom only
Again due to a proposed rail strike, the meeting will be on Zoom only with a change of topic.
Full details are available on our website
NORTH STAFFS – Monday 3rd October at 7.30pm – Research Evening.
BROMSGROVE – 11 October at 7.30pm – The Unknown Soldier. Speaker: Ron Gallivan
KENILWORTH – Wednesday, 12 October at 7.30pm – ‘Family Networks in Elizabethan England’ talk given by Cathryn Enis, Honorary Research Fellow at the College of Arts and Law, University of Birmingham
STOURBRIDGE –Tue 18th October @ 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm
Members open evening for discussion and help with your research. Bring your tablet or laptop along if desired.
WOLVERHAMPTON – Wed 26th October @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
History of Surgery by Kevin Goodman
Further information on all these events is available via the Calendar on the website or in the yellow programme booklet.
Family History Beginners Course
Tue 18th October @ 2:15 pm – 4:45 pm
This is a FREE five week course, held at Perton Library, on Tuesday afternoons beginning at 2.15 p.m.
Places are limited and booking is required. To book a place please call the library direct on 01902 755 794.
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
SoG lunchtime talks
Wednesday 12 Oct 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM BST Live online
Caroline Mason will be talking about the Family History Centre and what you can expect to find in it.
Members of Midlands Ancestors can attend for a registration fee of £1.50.
There are loads of free talks available on the SoG website under Events. If you are a football fan of Chelsea Football Club (boo, hiss), there is a talk by Rick Glanvill, the Club’s historian on 16 November. hrrp://www.sog.org.uk/events
Friday 11 November 6:00pm – 10:00pm GMT and Saturday 12 November 10:00am – 6:00pm GMT – Really Useful online Family History Show
Organised by the Family History Federation
Full details can be found on www.fhf-reallyuseful.com
North of Ireland Family History Autumn School 2022 series beginning on 13th October
“Starting out on Irish Family History”. Two session class covering useful Irish records and resources.
For more information go to http://www.nifhs.org/courses
The British Association for Local History (BALH) is holding a Regional Conference in Taunton on Saturday 22nd October on ‘Unusual Sources for Local History’
The conference programme and booking information can be found here: https://www.balh.org.uk/taunton2022
The Victorian Society (Birmingham and West Midlands) are holding a Day School on Leisure and Learning at the BMI on Saturday 29th October.
Tickets and further information are available from https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/the-victorian-society-birmingham-amp-west-midlands
The Oxfordshire Family History Society Family History Fair is at Woodstock on 1 October.
Further information can be obtained from https://www.ofhs.uk/events/event/fair2022
Normally I go on behalf of the Society, but not only does it always clash with my wedding anniversary, this year I will be away on holiday. If any of our members living down that way would like to attend on behalf of the Society, please let me know. We can arrange something for next year.
The same applies to any Fairs/Events that you feel that the Society should attend, please get in touch.
Whilst on the point of Events, Genuki and the Family History Federation run an online list of events held by various organisations throughout the UK and some from abroad. To view the list go to: http://geneva.weald.org.uk/doku.php?id=list
There is also a lot of information on various Society events on the Federation website, https://www.familyhistoryfederation.com/
Can I also point out that I do try and take out the hyperlinks to the various websites, sometimes not successfully. These links only work when you are viewing through the Internet and as I send out my newsletter personally, they will not work.
The National Archives – 5 October 7.30pm.
Black Ancestry for Beginners: The Guide to Tracing Your Roots
A Black ancestry masterclass led by specialist Paul Crooks. Learn how to find your own forebears using public records, and how to navigate the potential challenges.
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/black-ancestry-for-beginners-the-guide-to-tracing-your-roots
Member request
Member Martin Larner has found a leather bound photo album in amongst his parent’s effects. He does not believe it belongs to his family. Inside the inscription reads: “This album together with a lady’s satchel was presented by the clergy, superintendents, teachers & scholars of St John’ Sunday schools Wednesbury to Miss Brown, The Red House, in recognition of her kind & valuable help for many years in the Sunday Schools of the Parish.
March 1887
It contains 34 photos, mainly clergy, but some ladies & children, mostly Birmingham Area. Includes Peter Hoskin, Vicar of St James’ Wednesbury, also Rev Geo Crossley, Vicar of Brandon on the Hill Leics. etc.
Martin would like to return it to someone who could make use of it if possible. If you can, contact me and I will put you in touch.
North Staffs Group
Rob Carter of our North Staffs Group has asked for help photographing headstones and internal monuments of churches in the North Staffs area. This has been an ongoing project of Rob’s for many years, but it is not something he can do on his own. If you are able to help, Rob can be contacted on Robcarter@hotmail.com.
Save the Date – 14 May 2023:
The Society celebrates its 60th anniversary next year and it has been suggested that we hold a lunch event. The Tally Ho Conference Centre, Edgbaston has been booked, but nothing further has been decided. I will give you further details in due course.
Wednesday 5 October – Library Duty
If you were planning on going into the Family History Centre on Wednesday next, could you ring and check first to see if it will be open. Unfortunately we have the ‘perfect storm’. Both librarians are unable to attend and, so far everybody I have contacted is also unable to make it. It does not help that there may be another train strike.
After Christmas we know we will be down at least one if not two librarians, so we could do with more relief volunteers. If you feel that you are able to help out, please let me know.
Jackie
