Every Family has a story to tell……….Welcome to mine
Discover the dark tales of the past in my brand-new series: "Stories From The Grave." Some family history stories announce themselves quietly, while others arrive and take hold of the heart. The story of Little Merrit Beardsley belongs to the latter. It is brief, tender, and heavy with the kind of love that refuses to let … Continue reading When Love Shines Through: The Story of Merrit Beardsley
The Oak Tree Remembers: A Chiddicks Family Story Through the Eyes of the Village Oak Tree I have been standing here longer. than you can remember. My roots run deeper than the graves in the churchyard, and my limbs have reached higher with every passing century. I am the old oak on the village green, … Continue reading The Tree On The Green
History is All Around Us Everywhere we go we are surrounded by history, whether it's your family's history, the history of your house, or just local history, it's there all around us, often going unnoticed and untouched. But have you ever paused to think about the history woven into the buildings, roads, and landscapes that … Continue reading Touching The Past
Sometimes, we discover a story, and sometimes, the story discovers us. This is one of the most remarkable examples of serendipity I’ve encountered in over thirty years of family history research. So sit back, relax, and let me tell you a story..... Being recognised amongst friends and family as the keeper of all things “old,” … Continue reading Unearthing the Past: How an Old Ledger Revealed Hidden Family Secrets
We all have hidden treasures tucked away in the corners of our family homes. These keepsakes passed down through generations are more than just objects—they’re pieces of history, bearing stories and memories that connect us to our ancestors and their lives. These heirlooms serve as silent but powerful reminders of where we come from, linking … Continue reading Hidden Treasures: Preserving the Stories Behind Family Heirlooms
Can you really truly know who you are, if you don't know where you came from? It's a simple enough question and one that I am sure that many family historians and probably many psychologists will have considered at some point. Even to the point of analysing why some people are so passionate and so … Continue reading Do You Know Who You Are?
It's a simple enough question, you have found your family in all the census returns and you have captured every birth, death and marriage for your ancestors, but have you discovered everything there is to find out about them? The census returns only give you a quick snapshot of what the family were doing; in … Continue reading What Did Our Ancestors Do Between The Census Years?
My good friend Kelly Wheaton recently wrote a really thought provoking blog about how she first became interested in researching her family history and the reasons why she started on her family history journey, the link to Kelly's blog can be found here; What Got You Started in Genealogy Kelly also asked her friends to … Continue reading How It Started, How It’s Going……….
For those of you that might have missed these posts, or not seen them all, in the run up towards Christmas, I have been posting online, pictures from my childhood, things that I fondly remember growing up as a kid. It's a mixture of memories and nostalgia based on when I lived at my Nan's … Continue reading Do You Remember……..?
If you follow me online, you will have probably seen some recent posts regarding my recent house move. Over the years we haven't been prolific house movers, in fact as a family, this will only be our second move, so we are hardly experts in the whole moving process. This got me thinking about what … Continue reading Are you a City Dweller or a Townie?
The Chiddicks Family Tree 