The Federation of Family History Societies Public History: Participating with the past FFHS The Federation of Family History Societies is a Company Limited by Guarantee Company Number (England & Wales) - Registered Charity Number Registered Office: Artillery House, 15 Byrom Street, Manchester, England M3 4PF Presented by: Roger Lewry (Archives Liaison Officer)

Why study family history? Intrigued by stories passed down within the family Wanting to know what lies behind an unusual family name Following up a contact from a previously unknown relative Encouraged by growing popularity of family history as evidenced by TV programmes

For me it was a combination of these

Why turn into an amateur historian? To satisfy curiosity  Is there any truth in the stories handed down?  Who were these people?  Where did their names come from?  Why did they die young? To put flesh on the bones  What was going on at the time?  How did they live their lives? What were their occupations? Did they have leisure time?

What resources are helpful? Living relatives!  Beginning with the oldest, talk to them Birth, marriage, death certificates (from 1837) Census records (every 10 years from 1841 to 1911) Parish records (pre-1837 especially) Wills Newspapers (British Library collection) Local History Centres Record Offices Museums and Libraries Internet

What problems arise? Memories are not reliable The internet often contains transcribed data which may not be accurate Newspaper accounts may not be accurate Even BMD certificates may be incorrect Census records, even originals, may not be true

How can museums help? Add background information  Banbury museum has a timeline showing how the area developed over the past several hundred years  Where an area was known for a particular trade, tools and materials may be displayed  There may be examples of typical buildings from different periods; either photos, engravings or models  Living museums such as Blists Hill at Ironbridge and Beamish in County Durham bring to life bygone days  Specialist museums such as the British Postal Museum and Archive, National Railway Museum, etc can be invaluable

The Federation of Family History Societies Public History: Participating with the past FFHS The Federation of Family History Societies is a Company Limited by Guarantee Company Number (England & Wales) - Registered Charity Number Registered Office: Artillery House, 15 Byrom Street, Manchester, England M3 4PF That’s All Folks