Who Do You Think You Are?

Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine not only explores the stories behind the popular BBC genealogy TV series, but also helps you uncover your own roots. Each issue is packed with practical advice to help you track down family history archives and get the most out of online resources, alongside features on what life was like in the past and the historic events that affected our ancestors.

Welcome

SARAH'S TOP TIP • Not every digital record on the main genealogy sites is indexed, so browse

CONTRIBUTORS

My mother's war

Letters

Who Do You Think You Are?

What's On • Email wdytyaeditorial@ourmedia.co.uk to feature your event here for free

All About That Place returns • Rosemary Collins reports on the latest data releases and genealogy news

NEWS IN BRIEF

TheGenealogist adds records to mark anniversary of Great Fire of London

CAN YOU HELP?

‘Nationally significant’ wall paintings discovered in house restoration

Findmypast adds Southwark marriage and banns records to its collection

Proof of identity of Joshua Reynolds’ servant found

A CALL TO ARMS! • Alan Crosby revisits his family's heraldic past and dreams up a new legacy

Tyranny in the Workhouse • A 10-year study by Paul Carter and Steven King uses letters written by our pauper ancestors to lift the lid on the cruelty and oppression they suffered under the Poor Laws, 1780–1914

NEW PROJECTS AND VOLUNTEERS • Would you like to be involved in a research project into the Victorian poor?

HOW TO USE THE VOICES OF THE VICTORIAN POOR • This website created by Rosie Morris at The National Archives holds c3,500 letters and petitions from English and Welsh paupers

A POINTLESS INQUIRY • How a complaint led to an investigation but no meaningful change

RESOURCES • Find out more about Poor Law

FROM BURMA TO BANGALORE • Behind every family record lies a fascinating story, but Ross Gowland explains how a conversation with his great uncle Ernest revealed an extraordinary wartime past

WHAT IS A UNIT WAR DIARY?

RESOURCES • Find out more about the Second World War in Burma

‘MY ANCESTORS WERE INVOLVED IN LIVERPOOL'S SLAVE TRADE’ • A family Bible led Ben Shaw to discover two ancestors who were on opposite sides of the dreadful trade that turned Liverpool into a thriving city, he tells Claire Vaughan

Resources • Here are some of the resources that helped Ben's research

Researching Coal Mining Disasters • Jill Clapham from the National Coal Mining Museum for England reveals how to research your coal mining ancestors using lesser-known records of disaster and rescue

John Welsby 1977-1908 • Coal miner and mines rescue team member

EXPERT PICKS • Jill recommends these essential online resources

HM Inspector of Mines Report, 1908 • This report, available at the National Coal Mining Museum for England, includes casualties of the Hamstead Colliery disaster

RESOURCES • Take your research further

Surname research • New tools are making it easier than ever to trace the origins of a surname, says Jonathan Scott

Expert's Choice • Dr Harry Parkin is editor of the Concise Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain (2021)

More great websites • Don't miss these fantastic sites in your research

Monthly Return of Changes • Out-Pensioners of Mercantile Marines in the 2nd Liverpool District, from 1–30 April 1853. It's held at The National Archives (WO 22/48) and on Ancestry and Findmypast

Merchant Navy Pension Records • Paul Blake reveals how an overlooked army pension series can open up valuable new routes into 19th-century Merchant Navy ancestry

RESOURCES...