Count Down Blogging A-Z - April Challenge 2012

Hosted by Tossing It Out this looks to be a great challenge. Here are the details

It is still not too late to join. 

I spent several weeks contemplating whether to have a theme or a random sent of posts. I eventually decided on a theme and have written all my posts in advance. That way I can spend the time reading other's posts and perhaps gaining some inspiration for next year! That said, I already have an idea for next year, I just need to be able to remember it!

This year's theme is based loosely on a trip I have planned for later in the year.....So watch this space!

Weekend Cooking - 25 Family Style Lemon Recipes Edited by Linda Pogue

I love citrus foods, oranges, lemons and limes, but lemons are my favourite. So I was pleased to discover this e-book collection of Family Style Lemon Recipes recently.

There is a nice mix of sweet and savoury  - beverages, breads, sweets, biscuits, desserts, main and side dishes as well as party foods and snacks.

There are no pictures in the e-book, but the layout is clear concise. Ingredient's and then numbered points for the cooking method.  The recipes look fairly straight forward and easy to put together.

Immediate favourites are Lemon Tuna Salad, Lemon Shrimp (served with parmesan rice), Lemon pork chops and always a favourite of mine, Lemon chicken. I usually make Lemon chicken using a whole chicken cooked in the oven, but here is a different version:

Lemon Chicken - Slow cooked in a crockpot

3 and a half pounds of chicken pieces
1 teaspoon crumbled dry leaf oregano
2 cloves garlic minced
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup of chicken broth or water
3 tablespoons lemon juice
salt and pepper
2 cups cooked instant rice

1. Wash chicken, pat dry and season to taste with salt and pepper
2. Sprinkle half of garlic and oregano over the chicken
3. In a frying pan, brown chicken on all sides in butter
4. Move chicken to crockpot
5. Sprinkle with remaining garlic and oregano
6. Add broth or water to frying pan and stir to loosen the brown bits
7. Pour the broth into the slow cooker
8. Cover and cook on LOW for 7-8 hours
9. Add lemon juice an hour before serving
10. Skim fat from juices and pour into a serving bowl
11. Thicken juices and add to the cooked rice
12. Serve chicken with rice

Taking part in Weekend Cooking hosted by BethFishReads

Postcard Friendship Friday - Manor Farm, Wanborough circa 1915

This is the Manor Farm at Wanborough that my Grandfather would have known. My Butcher family farmed here until 1930 when the moved across to Guildford to farm at Manor Farm Onslow Village.

Part of my Guildford & District Collection.

Submitted as part of Postcard Friendship Friday hosted by The Best Hearts are Crunchy 

52 Weeks of Abundant Genealogy - Week 13 - Local Societies

• Week 13. Local Societies: Local genealogical and historical societies are the lifeblood of genealogy. Members and volunteers give their time and money to preserve local history and promote family history. Tell us about a local society for which you are thankful.  

This week's prompt runs from Sunday 25th March until Saturday 31st March 2012

I think it is fair to say that one of the reasons I was so inspired to undertake a one place study was because I had received such a welcome to my interest in my ancestral parish.

On the day I chose to visit Puttenham it was a beautiful sunny day, not a cloud in the sky.I hadn't specifically planned to visit; it was one of those get up and draw the curtains back and then make a decision based on the weather kind of days.

Having arrived in Puttenham, which is only 5 miles from my home town and where I lived at the time I went first the Church. I had a wander round and then sat at one of the pews simply enjoying the tranquillity of it all. There was a visitor's book just inside the door so I decided to leave a comment. I then flicked back through the pages in case anyone else had left a message. I noticed other people had, but no one obviously researching the names I was. Either they had not said or my names of interest were not listed.

Inside the porch was a list of the contact details and addresses of the various church members, church warden and vicar and the person who ran several of the village groups - mother and toddler and knitting circle. I jotted down the name of the church warden and wondered if it would be okay to knock at their door? I left the church and wandered down the street to the address. Yes, I did say Street, because essentially that is the main road in Puttenham, although a spread out rural parish.

Having arrived at the door, I knocked with some hesitation and momentarily hoped that the church warden had gone shopping, but she answered the door. I explained that I had been to the church and called on her really on a whim. She invited me in and said she would ring the chap who ran the local history group. In a few minutes she was back and walking me down the road to his address.

The welcome and hospitality that I subsequently received, not just on that visit, but on other visits was tremendous. The local history group was twinned with the neighbouring parish of Wanborough which was where my Grandfather was born in 1908. I spent the new few years, whenever introduced to someone by this chap as "This is Julie, she's related to the Budd's", at which point, everyone present would nod. The Budd's were not wealthy landowners, but humble people who appeared at fairly rapid rates in the Poor Law bastardy records!

Puttenham is not unique. I have received very similar responses in other areas of research and not just those in my native Surrey. Now, as soon as my research establishes a link to a new parish I always do a quick Google search and see if there is a local history society, or group.  Even large towns have Societies. I have been a member of the Guildford Society for quite a few years, and even though they are more about preserving the town than the genealogical aspects of it, it is a good way to keep in touch and read the journals.

Carnival Of Genealogy 116 - Picture/Story for Women's History Month.

This pretty young woman is my Great Great Aunt, Emma Jane Harris, although she was born to her parents just before they married!

Emma Jane was born on the 1st November 1864 in Puttenham Surrey the daughter of Henry Harris and Caroline Ellis who were to marry on 3rd December 1864 and raise together a family of 10 children.

Emma married her cousin, William Arthur West in 1897. William was a soldier who had seen service in the Zulu Wars in which he had lost his first wife and young babe.
So I can imagine the emotions felt by both Emma and William as they married.

They were blessed with two children, a son, William James born in the military town of Aldershot in 1898 and Clara in 1901.

By the time of the First World War, William Arthur had left the services and had set up a newsagents business in Stony Stratford on the Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Borders. His son William James though, followed in his father's footsteps and joined the Army. I am sure that both his parents were proud of their son and the contribution he was to make. We know that prior to his departure to France he had his portrait taken and his mother treasured it. As it appears as a pendent in the following photograph.

Sad to say that amongst that proud parental feeling was deep sadness, as their only son paid the ultimate sacrifice. This is such a sad photograph, and Emma has such a haunted look. I simply wish I could move into the photograph and give her such a hug, but alas that is not to be.

It seems completely correct that I end this post with a photograph of Emma's only son, who died, aged just 20 years, only two months before the end of the First World War.

Carnival of Genealogy is hosted by Jasia at CreativeGene

Weekend Cooking - Chicken & Vegetable Pasta

A few weeks ago I simply could not face the thought of shuffling around the supermarket with my bad back, so got organised and shopped on line and had the shopping delivered. All was good, until it arrived and I realised that I had ordered, and been sent the wrong size chicken portions.

Faced with a pack of boneless chicken breasts marked as mini, I did concur that they were indeed mini. Some quick thinking and I pulled together the following, which hubby said was delicious.

1. George Foreman the chicken breasts
2. Cook some vegetables - I cheated and used two bags of the ready prepared cauliflower, carrot and broccoli
3. Cook some pasta shapes
4. Make a cheese sauce
5. Drain pasta
6. Serve chicken and vegetables onto the pasta 
7. Pour over cheese sauce and a few stands of grated cheese.

Cheese Sauce  - all into a saucepan!

1. One and half tablespoonfuls of plain flour
2. Around 2oz of butter
3. 1pint of milk (or half milk and half water)
4. Salt and Pepper
5. Add to the hob and stir furiously
6. Add grated cheese  - depending on how cheesy you like it!

Taking part in Weekend Cooking hosted by BethFishReads

Simple Pleasures - Because I like it!

A contact via Facebook shared this with me last week. I can not provide the copyright, but I pass it along here, simply because I like it and it makes me smile!

Curious Customs

I have been catching up on my reading and came across an interesting article on the BBC website - Concealed Shoes: Australian Settlers and an old superstition.

In order to ward off evil spirits, shoes were placed within the confines of the property. One point raised by the article is that there was four themes connecting the items recovered. They were England, fear, youth and ignorance.

• England - concealing items within property had been in existence since the 17th Century. So it does seem obvious that settlers continued the practice.
• Fear - In early times, child mortality was huge and as such parents were terrified of loosing their children to illness. Many of these illness were attributed to evil spirits.
• Many of the items found belonged to children. The belief being that youth had the advantage of being able to defend against evil spirits
• Many believed that God went to Church. Most were poorly educated and were drawn to superstition.

Further reading into the Concealed Garments Project is available HERE. The project was set up in 1998.

What is interesting is that these are the customs and superstitions that our ancestors lived under. It helps us build a further dimension to the social and domestic lives of our ancestors.

100 Word Challenge - Week 35

Joining the weekly 100 words challenge for Grown ups. This week the prompt is to use the following prompt with no more than 100 words.

......the red box...... 

As he lifted the red box and placed it on his desk he was shacking a little inside. He knew that as he later opened the red box and subsequently read from the papers inside he would absolutely have made his mark in history. He would either be labelled the chancellor who made history or the one who damaged his career in the time it took to read the details. Either way, he was reading what he believed was absolutely the best thing to do. To be the best, you must do the right thing. There was no turning back.

Taking part in the 100 word Challenge for Grown Ups – Week #35

21st Century Organised Family Historian - Week 10 - Quick and Dirty Way to Start Organizing Photos

Continuing the weekly thread organised by Michelle at The Turning of Generations. 

Over recent years we have organised our physical photograph albums and collection. The major job now is scanning and making digital copies of those photographs and then making a CD of the photos. The last stage in the process is to upload a copy to Flickr.

In the digital age, we always download our photographs to our laptops and external hard drive. We then make a CD of them and then upload a copy to our Flickr album. 

We can make choices with Flickr whether or not to make our photographs available for general viewing or making it private. I do make a digital copy of photographs sent to me by friends of their children, but I always make the file a private one, so that only myself and my husband can see them. 

21st Century Organised Family Historian - Week 9 - Organize Heritage Photos

Continuing the weekly thread organised by Michelle at The Turning of Generations. 

About 4 years ago I sorted through a series of boxes in the loft space of all the photographs we have. The photograph collection was made up of - 

• All my photographs prior to marriage
• All my husband's photos prior to marriage
• All our photographs taken since marriage

All my genealogical photos were already sorted and housed separately. We also had a collection of photograph albums that held specific holidays. The rest of the photographs were still in the paper envelope and outer bag that you collect from the photograph store.

All the envelopes were then dated and a note jotted on the outside indicating what there represented. An example - 1988 Royal Naval HMS Raleigh.

Having done this earlier work, it now means that we can scan and make a digital archive as much of the dating has been done.

21st Century Organised Family Historian - Week 7 - Stock Up & Catch Up!

Continuing the weekly thread organised by Michelle at The Turning of Generations. 


A belated post as I took stock of where I was at in my personal tidying, sorting and culling plans.

My study is at the top of the house, on the third floor. From the study I can access the roof space via a series of eve cupboards. In these cupboards I have a couple of boxes of memorabilia and pieces collected over the years. I enlisted the help of my husband to move the boxes into the study and position them in front of the armchair which sits in the study. I then proceeded to go through the boxes and have a trip down memory lane; reading and reviewing the material that I have gathered over the years. I discarded nothing. I did though sort through and organise the collection of material into the following - 

• Letters sorted into a sturdy box
• Cards sorted and sorted into a sturdy box
• Diaries and journals sorted into a small suitcase that had belonged to my Grandfather
• The rest - large cards, scrapbook of our wedding and a whole pile of other bits re-homed into a large suitcase that had belonged to my Grandfather
• Collection of school reports and alike that I plan to scan sorted into a sturdy small box

The collection of suitcases and small boxes were then placed back into the eves cupboards, where I can access them at any time as I start to catalogue and scan cards and letters.

What would you put in a Time Capsule?

Bill, who blogs over at West in New England suggested a small challenge. You can read his post here What would you put in a time capsule to be opened a year from now?

1. Make a list of what you would put in a time capsule and why you'd choose each item. 
2. What would you use for the time capsule? Where would you have it kept?  

I think it depends on the "market" for your time capsule. As we headed into the new Millennium I did several things. One of which was to keep a year long scrapbook and the other was to create a time capsule which I have placed in the loft for other house owners to find in the future.

In this case, the time capsule contained details about who were were and where we moved from and when we bought the house. It included a copy of the sales particulars. I also included who we had purchased from and other data connected to the house and a copy of the Census information for 1901.

The information was placed in a plastic container which had been lined with archive brown paper. The lid was sealed and then a binding of electrical tape placed securing the seal. Across the top and down the side I wrote
the following information. "Time Capsule, sealed by J & S Goucher January 2000"

We historically think of small vessels to hold time capsules. I would I think use a suitcase or a large firm structure. Cardboard would not be good in case of future dampness. Inclusion would be in two parts about myself and that of my husband. It would include some photographs, copies not originals. There would not be any data discs - everything would be photographic and handwritten copies, as that is pretty much easy viewing. It would include details of hobbies and interests, our jobs and professional life. I am wondering whether to create such an item to be opened on the occasion of my 100th birthday.

This year in the UK is the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. As part of the celebrations there is an opportunity to create a time capsule. You can read the details HERE. Anyone can take part, as long as the memory occurred between 6th February 1952 and 6th June 2012 and is about a Commonwealth Country, any of the 54 of them and can include those Countries no longer within the Commonwealth (Fiji, Hong Kong and Zimbabwe). Or the event could be a World Event and the impact upon a Commonwealth Country. You can follow the project via Twitter and Facebook.

Going forward, I plan to submit an article and photographs to the Jubilee Time Capsule and keep a copy of the information for inclusion within my family archives. I am also going to explore further the details of creating a time capsule to be opened on my 100th birthday. Stay tuned for a likely second post.....

Weekend Cooking - Civil War Era Recipes Compiled by Julia Hutchins

Last week I spotted this e-book available via Amazon. I was intrigued, so downloaded the book.

Contained within the e-pages was a collection of recipes from heritage publications and some great and interesting recipes. Here is one that caught my eye

Salad Dressing (1870)

1 boiled egg
teaspoon of ground mustard
teaspoon of salt
a little Cayenne pepper

beat together until perfectly smooth then add

1 raw egg yolk and stir until the dressing becomes thick and creamy.
Add vinegar to taste. If too much of the vinegar is used then add a small lump of ice.

Originally extracted from "Famous old recipes used a hundred or more years ago in the kitchens of the north and south. Contributed by the descendants 1908.

How on earth do you make ice without refrigeration? I guess it is possible. Other recipes that caught my eye were:

• Creme de menth
• Lemonade to Carry in your pocket (1863 Dr Chase Recipes)
• Civil War Lemonade (1861 Housekeepers Encylopedia)
• Snail broth for obstinate coughs
• Pigs Head
• Bread sauce for birds

At the end of the book was some really useful links to other websites detailing more recipes from this period, Civil War historical documents and Civil War Re-Enactor groups and a link to the author's website, where you can currently subscribe to the newsletter and get a free download of original Civil War recipes. You can also follow via Twitter the author

Taking part in Weekend Cooking hosted by BethFishReads

Beyond the Internet Week 11: Church Archives

Continuing the weekly theme, inspired by Family History Across the Seas.

Over the last few weeks I have spoken about the Parish Chest at Puttenham and the Church Records also at Puttenham. I don't believe that Puttenham is a unique village. There are probably rural communities across the UK where an amazing amount of data relating to early parishioners has survived. Perhaps a curious Religious man who loved his adopted parish, as in the case of Charles Kerry of Puttenham. The Parish Records for Puttenham are fairly generous. Early records exist within the Records Centre and later records are held at the Church for those who wish to visit.

My Grandfather was born in the neighbouring parish of Wanborough, so having spent quite a lot of time in Puttenham and received nothing by hospitality and generosity, I toddled off to the church at Wanborough to seek the details of the Church Warden. I telephoned him and made an appointment to visit and look at the records.

I have to say, this was around 1988 and before the worries of identity fraud had really taken off, so I had, based upon experiences from a parish 2 miles away that I would be met with friendliness and would be welcomed. The was huge reluctance to let me see the registers.

These were not especially modern births, they ranged from 1900 until the 1920s, and at that point, the majority of my Great Aunts and Uncles had passed away, with the exception of 3 of them. There was one chair, so I moved it and sat down with a pencil and my note book to write down the details, the Church Warden hovered behind me then started pacing. I have no idea what his worries were. I suddenly announced that I would be at least 3 hours and that I was more than happy for him to leave me and come back after a time. He did and I breathed a sigh of relief. I continued on my quest and wrote down every single baptism, marriage and burial detail relating to my family names. I had no intention of returning for a while. I mentioned this to my contact in Puttenham who informed me that the Church Warden always behaved like that. I heard a few years later that he had passed away and returned to the parish again, to view the records and meet the then Church Warden. It was a completely different experience.

Regardless, of how I was made to feel, I was adamant that I was not going to be put off looking at the records for my relatives. The moment I saw the entry for my Grandfather in 1908 was a very special one and I was not going to let a stranger spoil it for me. The experience of visiting the Church and simply absorbing the atmosphere, holding the register, looking at the font is a real experience and was well worth the hassle that I had experienced. Time has passed now and the register completed, so the Church have deposited it with the Surrey Records Centre.

The visit was aimed at a completion of seeing the records. I had the data - the names of my Great Aunts & Uncles and when they were born already from the oldest sibling of the family, yet I learnt several new things that day. Firstly, that my Great Grandparents had lost three children, two boys and a girl, all of whom had died within their first year. The little girl had died of convulsions. I also learnt that my Great Aunt who we had all called Doll, because she was christened Dorothy and was so small as a baby that her siblings called her Doll, was in fact not Christened Dorothy, she was formally Christened as Lillian Dorothy.

In the parish of my own Christening, like my Mum and Grandmother before me, I was held, apparently at the font by my Godparents and Christened. I have my original Baptism Certificate which records me as Julie Joyce, which is actually incorrect, although the Baptism record does record the details correctly.  Joyce is the middle name of my Mother, so perhaps it was the same rector who carried out the service.

In these two instances, we have an official record, given to the parents and Godparents that is incorrect, supported by a correct recording in the register along with my birth certificate. We also have family history which conflicted what the official documentation says. Even my Great Aunt, who would have been 15 years old at the time her sister was born was adamant that her sister was christened Dorothy.

We should view the records, both those retained at the church and those given by the church and oral family history in tandem, in this case there is any inconsistencies such as in my case.

New Research Territory.......

In the early 1990s I spent a year living in Australia, using the home of my Mum's first cousin as a base. I was made to feel so very welcome and I do believe, that upon his arrival in Australia in 1946, Mum's cousin had no intention of ever returning to England. It broke my Great Aunt's heart, but she was proud of her son and what he achieved with his new family.

What a family it was, as he and his wife had 10 children! His wife was lovely and although they are no longer with us, I did several times promise that I would research his wife's family, in case at some point in the future their children, Grandchildren or even Great Grandchildren wanted to know about their roots. My Cousins's English roots are well documented here, but his wife had a complex family and over the last few days I have been sitting looking at the small amounts of data she shared with me,and from what research I have done previously in readiness of my trip later in the year.

I am heading much as her ancestors did into new territory, mine initially from within the confines of my home and later the various records offices in Australia, and those ancestors from the depths of Prussia to South Australia. I have spent several hours confused, and so much so that my head is spinning! The research is fascinating, and I so wish that my Cousin's wife was here with me so that she could share the journey of her ancestry, alas that is not to be.

Whilst I was in Australia I did in fact stay with my Cousins's father in law. He was a fascinating man, who I do  not think particularly thought his son in law was good enough for his daughter! He was a lovely chap and we shared several afternoons together talking about the old days. He knew snippets of his family history and shared them with me. He also directed me to a book that had been published in the early 1980s and that his daughter had. I borrowed the book and for the next 6 months or so devoured the contents several times. 

As I  looked back at those early notes I made, I became acutely aware that this side of the family was well known for repeating the names within the family and various female versions of the names. Is it any wonder I am confused? We have already wandered into the territory of 3 siblings with the surname of Hohnberg marrying 3 siblings with the surname of Hartwig. A Google search reveals that there are passenger lists available and I intend to try and focus on these Prussian families for a while.

So, here are the briefest of details - 

Surnames - NOACK, HOHNBERG, HARTWIG, IRMLER, 

Ships - Caesar & Helene (1859), Skjold (1855), Reihersteig (1866), Wilhelmine (1855)

Locations (Prussia) - Sawade, Silesia, Janny, Silesia

Loctions (Australia) - Eden Valley, Maddum both in South Australia and then across into New South Wales - Temora and Coolamon

Religion - Lutheran

As I said, the briefest of details. I have various information and data that I need to place into a visual family tree so that I can become familiar with the names - a real favourite is Johann August and various variations

100 Word Challenge - Week 34

Joining the weekly 100 words challenge for Grown ups. This week the prompt is to use the following prompt with no more than 100 words.

......but I turned it off......

They had just sat down to eat when she felt wetness on the back of her head. When she looked up, towards the ceiling there was a dark brown patch. A further look around and she realised that the dripping had been happening for a while. Suddenly they both rushed from the table upstairs to the room above. When they entered, water was up to their knees and the bath tap was still running.

She turned to look at him and said, “but, I turned it off”

“Apparently not” he replied whilst reaching forward to the taps.

Taking part in the 100 word Challenge for Grown Ups – Week #34

Tuesday's Tip - Index Cards

A recent thread via the Guild of One Name Studies mailing list resulted in my sharing a few comments and then an example of my index cards.

When I started researching back in 1986, none of my records were computerised. Every individual's data was held on an index card, and for a few individuals there data goes across several cards. As time went on, and my skills increased, my genealogical lines became more complex and the amount of surnames grew and grew, I found there was a need for computerisation.

I have the added issue of several lines inter marrying and in some cases the same surname crops up, but on different lines of my family, or with no known connection. I therefore set about thinking how I could cope with the computerised  & paper records. After many, many weeks of agonising here is what I decided on.

• One computer file - called Mainfile. This starts with me and goes back to my earliest ancestor. it also goes sideways, from my husband and then back to his earliest ancestor.
• Paper copies of Main File - mine are referenced Mainfile (JDG) and Mainfile (SPG) for my husbands.
• Electronic copies of Main File - mine are referenced Genealogy> Mainfile (JDG) & Genealogy > Mainfile (SPG). You can read an earlier post HERE
• Things that do not fit into our specific lines of descent are held in a filing cabinet with each surname A-Z
• Things that do not fit into our lines of descent but held on computer are held in a series of document files with the surnames A-Z
• My trusty card index. Every ancestor in Mainfile, including living relatives.

Here is one example of an index card for my ancestor Daniel Butcher. His data currently goes across 2 cards.

The data recorded on the card indexes is replicated in the computerised file and the physical file, which incorporates any documents such as the sale of a property called Biddles in 1755. Whilst, this may seem like a duplication, I like the cards as it enables me to see at a glance a time line of what a specific ancestor or individual is doing. It also takes me back to those early research days!

Beyond the Internet Week 10: Church records – the life and times of a parish and its parishioners

Continuing the weekly theme, inspired by Family History Across the Seas.

I believe that we are only limited on where to look for ancestors and their paper trail, by our imagination of where to look for those ancestors!

Poor Law records for one of my ancestral villages of Puttenham shows very clearly that the Budd girls were often pregnant and husband less! Did there parents shake their head and hold their head in their hands as they were informed of another mouth to feed and another absent father? Some things we shall never know, but is true now and I dare say then, if money, and especially other people's money has to be given to someone then there is probably a trail of paper to support the fact.

Within each parish was a wonderful item called the Parish Chest. Within the walls of the box was kept the documents of the parish and contained therein the hopeful details of our ancestors. This included the Poor Law Records which include Bastardy Bonds and Settlement Records.

Here are the details of the Bastardy Records for Puttenham Surrey
1823 Harriet Budd of Puttenham & Daniel Dolly of Ash
1827 Charlotte Budd of Puttenham & Stephen Hall of Farnham
1827 Harriet Budd of Puttenham & Samuel Harding of Puttenham
1839 Sarah Budd of Puttenham & Henry Nicholls of Aldershot

Also contained within the box would be details of the Parish Clerks, those individuals who were of a certain standing within the village who would ensure that the "right thing" would be done by the parishioners. The Church Warden records and other miscellaneous records relating to the village. 

In 1824, the Village boundaries of Puttenham were walked by various parishioners and this record has survived within the confines of the Poor Law records. The date the boundaries were walked was the 9th April 1824 and I can see that several of my Budd ancestors walked. Richard Budd along with others. They were joined at Pond Head by Richard Budd (Richard Budd's father) and George Budd.

The Curate of Puttenham was a curious and interesting chap, by the name of Charles Kerry. During the time he was Curate, Kerry recorded all sorts of details about the parish, its parishioners and various other historical details in a series of manuscripts. The manuscripts have survived and were returned to Kerry's home County of Derbyshire upon his death. Surrey Records Centre have a microfilmed copy of them and I am lucky enough to have photocopies of the manuscripts.

Here is an example of one of the gems, from within the manuscripts


What is wonderful about this pedigree, written by Kerry is the incidental facts that it mentions. Facts that would otherwise be completely unknown to me and fellow researchers. William Budd is recorded as having been bitten by a snake when he put his hand into a rabbit hole. As a result of the bit, William became crippled. Kerry tells us that he attended Sarah Budd (nee Chalcraft) during her last illness and that Richard Budd, my direct ancestor had a fine tenor voice. I can confirm that sometime in the last couple of hundred years, the fine singing voice has been lost within the family! Who says the dead don't speak?

There might be diaries left by land owners, or jotting parishioners? Perhaps people that do not relate to your specific ancestry, but whose lives would have co existed with ancestors. Are your ancestors written within those pages? 

There are so many places to explore within the parish archives, that perhaps go beyond the official records of the time. Did you ancestor pay a tithe? Did the land owner hold lands in nearby Parishes or Counties? Are there diaries, papers and manuscripts of people in those parishes? Have there been books written about your ancestral parish? If so, look through the bibliography as that might reveal a document or a source that has not been looked at.

What treasures exist in your ancestral parishes?

Japan Vintage Color Prints by Lev Well Parts 1 & 2

I recently downloaded from Amazon this two part pictorial series, of Japanese Vintage Prints depicting life in Japan during the period of 1850-1860.

There is very little in the way of writing within the e-book. There is a brief introduction explaining the type of colour drawings. Each page has a small explanation of the scene before you. I personally would have liked to know where the originals are and the story behind the e-book. I viewed these on a iPad rather than my Kindle so I could enjoy the colour prints. It was a nice relaxing half an hour whilst I looked through and enjoyed the prints, which were produced by woodcut print method.

Part 1 & Part 2 

Sunshine Award

Thanks to Betsy of Remember........a family history blog who gave me the award at the end of 2011.

The rules are quite simple-

1. Thank the person who gave you the award
2. Answer 10 questions
3. Pass the award along to 10 sunshine worthy bloggers

Here are the questions and my answers!

1. Favourite colour - green and blue
2. Favourite animal - Kaola
3. Favourite number - 2
4. Favourite drink - Tea
5. Facebook or Twitter - It depends, but overall I think Twitter
6. My Passion - Several - my family, genealogy and books
7. Giving or Receiving - Giving is best!
8. Favourite Day - Friday
9. Favourite Flower - Sunflower
10. Favourite Foods - Dark or plain chocolate toffees.

I should now pass the award along to 10 worthy bloggers. I have decided that I am not going to pass the award along. There are so many wonderfully informative and fun blogs out there, certainly many more than 10! I follow loads and do not comment nearly enough.

Instead I am going to loan another $25 to the Kiva Project that I have mentioned several times on this blog. I am a member of the Genealogists for Families Team.

Weekend Cooking - Joyful Momma's Guide to Shopping & Cooking Frugally by Kimberley Eddy

I spotted this a week or two ago, available as a free download for Amazon Kindle. I notice today though it has gone back up to £1.30 here in the UK. What drew me to the book was the cover. I know, you should not judge a book by its cover, but sometimes, you just have to! So downloaded the book was and I read using my iPad.

The author is an American, so this is written with an American readership in mind, although that did not matter. The book has some references to the author's Christianity, it was not overly referenced or intrusive. It is written in a very genuine manner and automatically readers share a warmth with the author.

What I found interesting was the apparent differences between grocery shopping in the United States and the UK. The every day things that we take for granted or acceptance within our own lives and way of life. The use of vouchers and really being organised enough to use them before the expiry, something that I rarely do! The author shares her experiences of food parcels - she had in the past both contributed to them for others and received one and her reflections and observations about the types of foods that go into them.

The food parcel references reminded me of when I was at school. Around October time we would have a Harvest Festive. Historically it was about giving thanks for the Harvest that would take families and communities through Winter into Spring. We were encouraged to submit the name & address of someone who was elderly or perhaps would benefit from such a parcel. We would then be tasked to collect a small box - usually a little larger than a shoe box and fill it with groceries. The goodies box then went into school for the assembly and afterwards we were dispatched into the community to deliver the said parcel to the named individual. Some happy memories there.

The author talks about buying fresh meat on sale, making the point of exactly how fresh is it? Taking advantage of those special offers. There were two thoughts that I had whilst reading.

The way we shop today is hugely different to the way our Grandparents shopped and further thinking was even shopping from when I was a kid in the 1970s is different to now. Here in the UK when I was growing up shops were closed on Sundays. The only times they opened on a Sunday was at Christmas. Shops closed at 5.30pm or 6pm and late night food shopping  - well until 8pm happened on a Thursday and Friday. Now grocery shops can be open 24 hours apart from the Sunday trading regulations which prevents this on a Sunday. In Scotland the trading regulations are different on a Sunday.

The domestic equipment we have now impacts on the way we shop. Homes have fridges and freezers,and there availability impacts on how, when and how often we shop. My regular supermarket has offers on fairly regularly. Some meats have little tickets on "2 for £10" these are foods that I regularly buy - mince, chickens and chicken portions, chops, gammon steaks. I tend to select those with the longest shelf dates and put in the fridge, then as the date approaches if I have not used it put it in the freezer. I tend to repackage chicken portions into bags of 2. Not only does that save space but also means I can defrost the two I need rather than the whole pack! Simple things that perhaps are frugal, but also have an historical concept to them.

At the rear of the book are some useful websites, including a link to the author's and some recipes.

I enjoyed this book, not because it has a nice cover! or the content, which despite being in the UK contained useful information, but also because it made me think, reflect of earlier times in my life and consider the changes to past generations.

Taking part in Weekend Cooking, hosted by BethFishReads

Getting ready for Bloggiesta!

Last year I saw the details for Bloggiesta, planned to take part, then promptly forgot all about. So this year I am planning to be organised!

Bloggiesta 2012 takes place over the weekend of 30th, 31st March and 1st April.


For more details and to sign up click HERE.

So having decided to participate, here is some details - This is an opportunity to

• Make some new blogging friends!
• Follow everyone's personal progresses via Twitter and their blogs
• Catch up on those draft posts and do some blog housekeeping!

Sepia Saturday 116 - Hair

This week I am featuring some of my Ellis ancestors - they had a thing about hair!

First up is Job and Lucy Ellis. They lived in the rural village of Elstead Surrey. Job was born in 1848, married Lucy in 1868 and he passed away, aged 89 years in 1937. I love the big bushy beard.

Meet John Ellis

John Ellis was an Uncle to Job. He was born in Elstead in 1817. He married Sarah Turpin in 1842. Sarah worked at Elstead Mill as a lace maker. In 1854, John and Sarah migrated to Geelong Victoria Australia where they had another 4 children. John died, aged 83 years in 1900.

Taking part in Sepia Saturday

100 Word Challenge - Week 33

Joining the weekly 100 words challenge for Grown ups. This week the prompt is to use the following picture with no more than 100 words.

Copyrighted to Julia & was taken at the Eden Project

It stood in the foyer, replicating its true graceful form.  There was something about the almost real like structure that simply made you reach out and stroke its mane and side. All at once, you can envisage it running and frolicking in the fields, enjoying rides and sugar lumps. Or perhaps simply wandering and grazing on grass and the odd daisy and buttercup; even enjoying the sunshine and life.

Suddenly, you are cast back into the here and now and realise that this wonderful structure has never frolicked in a field, munched on grass and flowers or enjoyed sugar lumps.

Copyright J Goucher - July 2011 Taken at Jersey Pottery

Taking part in the 100 word Challenge for Grown Ups – Week #33

Tea Cup Tuesday - Charlton Ware

I have had the following mug about 30 years and was given this by a friend. It hangs from the beam in our kitchen & breakfast rooms, memories of my teenage years.

This mug was part of the "walking range" which gained its popularity from the 1970s. Carlton Ware had been producing china from the 1890s. The firm continued up until the 1980s, when it went into receivership. There were a few later pieces produced in an attempt to make a come back, but this didn't happen. In 1997 the name was purchased by another china manufacture along with some moulds and some pre production pieces.

Taking part in Tea Cup Tuesday hosted by Artful Affirmations & Martha's Favourites

Fearless Females 2012 - Day 5

March 5 — How did they meet? You’ve documented marriages, now, go back a bit. Do you know the story of how your parents met? Your grandparents?


Still focusing on the marriage featured yesterday. How did my 3 x Great Grandparents meet? I have actually no idea. There have been no dairies left to indicate, so I am using a little poetic license to cast a speculative thought out into the ether.

William Elstone was born in Headley across the Hampshire border in 1800. He was married  in Bramshott, a nearby village in 1828. There is consistent movement between lots of the parishioners with these two parishes and the nearby parish of Frensham Surrey and across to Petworth and other parishes, which are just into the County of Sussex. 

His Bride, Eliza Bridger was born in Puttenham Surrey in 1809. Her mother was a native of Puttenham and her father came from Headley in Hampshire. 

The Villages would have been independent of one another, yet in some ways consistent with the image portrayed in the BBC drama, Lark Rise to Candleford, there would have been movement and connections with the surrounding villages. Bramshott, although having a paper mill, was also, like the other parishes rural. Farming and working on the land would have been a major source of income. From this point, enters the concept of market days. 

Puttenham is 4 miles or so from Guildford, which was an essential market town, and a direct route from Winchester to London. Puttenham is also about 4 miles from Farnham in the opposite direction from Guildford and also on route from Winchester to London. Headley and Bramshott are within easy walking distance of Farnham. Farnham to Puttenham is only 6 miles, and probably less walking across the fields. 

The probability was that William and Eliza met at the local market town, I have a gut feeling Farnham, but no specific reason why that would be the case. The other possibility is that they shared a relationship with a third party - a friend or cousin and met through them.

This modern postcard, which I think I have featured before is a good quick reference to establish the locations of the various parishes; I often use it for inspiration!

We often judge distances by modern values, with roads and motorways. We need to think  about walking. What we consider a pleasure; to walk 10 miles our ancestors did possibly daily, not for pleasure, but out of necessity. Our ancestors would have walked across the fields, enjoying the fresh spring and summer airs, but also enduring the wet and cold of Autumn and Winter.

Sunday Salon - Random Reading & Things!

Is it me, or are the weeks simply whizzing by? The last week I have caught up a bit on a few book reviews.

First up was a duo of books about Lilacs. Now, I was probably cheating, as there were only pictures in these books, but they lead me to my Royal Horticultural book on Gardening, so there is a tentative link to a book!

These are two books from a set of four showing some lovely photographs of Lilacs. You can read the review HERE. 

I also did a review on another book, again mainly photographs. The book was called Adam Clark Vroman and the review is HERE . This book contains some lovely photos of Indian life in the South Western United States. What drew me to this book, was the cover image.

The third e-book I read, was more like an essay, written by the daughter of a naval man who was present at the time Darwin was bombed by the Japanese in 1941. It was a small, yet fascinating account of a series of memories that are likely to be forgotten unless recorded. So whilst, it was a quick read in terms of pages, for me it raised some interesting points. I logged a review on Amazon and the author responded and I hope she writes more of these family stories. The book was called Australia: The Bombing of Darwin and One Family's Story by A.A. Gallagher. The review is HERE.

The 1st of March was World Book Day, and unless I have been reading on line with my eyes shut I did not see any posts about the event. HERE are my reflections and memories of my childhood reading.

I also managed to complete two books and those reviews up next week.

• Sew Deadly by Elizabeth Lynn Casey
• The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love by Beth Pattillo

Apart from that I competed the Family History Writing Challenge for the second year. Usually, I post daily and I started this again this year, but decided to write each day and proof read and post later on. I am now working on a theme titled Fearless Women for the whole of March to celebrate Women's History Month. Even if you have very little interest in your family history have a look at the prompts and see how much or little you know about your female ancestors.

For April I am planning to once again take part in the A-Z Challenge and you can read the details HERE. Last year I kept the alphabetical theme vaguely random, yet at the same time linked to me, so I chatted about our pets, deceased family members, or special places. One of my interests was covered under T is for Thyroid and I created an A-Z all Thyroid related.

This year I am undecided whether to use a bookish theme, or a places theme or more of the same as last year. I need to decide soon as I want to get the posts written prior to April and then I can spend April reading  the posts written by other participants.

Finally, It is Bloggiesta time again, although it not again for me, as being somewhat preoccupied last year I completely forgot to take part! The Bloggiesta weekend is 30th, 31st March and 1st April. To read all about it and to sign up click HERE.

Until next week.....

Sunday Stamps - SS Goucher Victory

A few weeks ago I was sent this lovely First Day Cover for the Goucher Victory Ship. From limited research it would appear that these ships, were named after Colleges in the US and were used in the main for returning American troops back to the United States at the end of the Second World War.

Submitted as Sunday Stamps hosted by Viridian's Postcard Blog