Ancestry.co.uk - Thinking of taking the plunge

[Sir Sidney Ruff-Diamond]

If you sign up for Staffordshire libraries (free/online/can live anywhere) you can currently use Ancestry for free from home. Personally, I find Ancestry a pain as its American and tends to assume you are too. Plus it gives 100's million results per search....or nothing.
A combination of Ancestry/FMP (subscription)/Free BMD and the Mormons free website should cover all bases. Some websites are easier to navigate and search with than others. Over the years I've found lunatics, workhouse inmates, my gramp's illegitimate sister's early life (but not her dad, unsurprisingly) and that we have a real "Sir" in the family. Cant find any connection to the person who raised the Irish tricolour in Dublin nearly 100 years ago, as my mother would insist. Otherwise we'd have IRA in the family, too. Finding out that my great uncle played in the same school football team as Fred Keenor was a high point.

Cheers. I’ll have a look at that. 👍

[Sir Sidney Ruff-Diamond]

If you know name/age/occupation/address then newspaper articles are a good starting point.....and that black and white photo of your great uncle John Lewis hiding an axe behind his back with a few chicken feathers sticking out the corner of his mouth!

😄😄😄

[Sir Sidney Ruff-Diamond]

As has been already mentioned, use FamilySearch [Mormon site] first. Absolutely free and unlimited, has census and Parish records, and whilst you can't see 'originals', the information is all there. Suggest you spend a couple of weeks initially on there before splashing out on one of the pay sites.

Re. newspapers, the British newspaper archive is monthly/annual subscription, but would advise don't go there until you've built up a fairly detailed family tree, which will then give you a lot of 'search' options..

Thanks for that - I shall take your advice. 😊👍

[CCFCC3PO]

I have subscribed to Ancestry for a few years. I have found it very good But I ignore the DNA test emails they bombard me with. As a full subscriber you can do limitless searches within the databases they provide - all the censuses 1841 - 1911, all BDMs since registration started plus loads of other stuff. The next big thing is the 1921 census due next year which, I think, Findmypast has got the contract to put into database form. How access to that is going to work I don’t know but but how Findmypast compares to Ancestry is something other posters on here may be able to advise.

One word of warning. Don't just accept the "potential mothers" or "potential fathers".

I went back to my 4th great grandfather. It offered me my 5th which I accepted, but couldn't find a source other than 10 "ancestry trees" (i.e. trees filled in by amateurs, like me). So, lots of hints are offered, but no real evidence.

I did this on one line and ended back with Edward the Heretic Wightman - the last man burnt at the stake in England for heresy.

The link, in my case, was to a Nicholas Wightman - but when I researched Edward the Heretic on some history sites, he didn't even have a son called Nicholas.

I messaged 3 people asking how they managed to get the link, and each one was quite annoyed that I dare challenge their methods.

But, to go back 6-7 generations has been good. I am fairly confident (through censuses) that what I have is correct. People weren't very imaginative with names back then though so it does take a fair bit of critical analysis.

I found it a bit strange that lots of people were able to trace back to the 1500s, and one chap (same tree as me) went back to 950 - but did he have any sources? Nope.

Once the censuses dry up, it gets tricky. On my part, I have to research the Weetmans of Baddesley Clinton to try to get a link from my 4th great grandfather to my 5th. If I get that link, I can probably go back another 3-4 generations until I hit the bloke burnt at the stake for heresy.

However, my father's grandfather and mother's grandmother sides are just going nowhere.

It is worth doing it, but I will most likely stop in a few weeks because it will not be possible to go back further using the site - I may then try other sources, or just leave it there.

[Des Parrot]

It can become very addictive if you let it. I'm up to 2500 relatives spread across 4 continents. Each branch of the tree fizzles out around 1400 / 1500.

It has allowed me to put my wife in touch with her fathers family who she has never known & set up a Belfast reunion.

My word of warning do not believe or just copy & paste other peoples trees, 90% are wrong, mainly due to Americans grabbing any heritage they can. Do the work yourself and be patient

[Toadstool]

It can become very addictive if you let it. I'm up to 2500 relatives spread across 4 continents. Each branch of the tree fizzles out around 1400 / 1500.

It has allowed me to put my wife in touch with her fathers family who she has never known & set up a Belfast reunion.

My word of warning do not believe or just copy & paste other peoples trees, 90% are wrong, mainly due to Americans grabbing any heritage they can. Do the work yourself and be patient

The last part is so very true!

[A Quiet Monkfish]

The last part is so very true!

Oh yes, and don't tell Danny Dyer but there's a 99% chance [if your white caucasian] that your great grandfather 30x was Edward 1st !!