7 May 2006 LostCousins Newsletter
Newsletter - May 2006
CONTENTS
* Latest news of the 1911 Census
* Search the 1861 Census index free!
* Adding more relatives to your tree
To visit the main LostCousins site please go to www.LostCousins.com
Thank you to all those who joined in our 2nd Birthday celebrations!
Over the weekend there were nearly a million 'hits' at our website, and 'lost cousins' were being found at a far greater rate than ever before - more than double the previous record!
LostCousins is a true Internet community, bringing together people who share not just an interest in family history, but the same ancestors.
On behalf of all those members who've been lucky enough to find 'lost cousins', we'd like to thank to everyone who has made this possible.
We're continuing the celebrations with a great offer - for the next two weeks LostCousins members will have exclusive FREE access to the 1861 England & Wales Census index at Ancestry.co.uk!
There's great news for everyone with British ancestry - the complete 1841 Census of Scotland is now online at Scotlandspeople, whilst the complete 1841 Census for England & Wales has been added at Ancestry.co.uk
This means that all 7 British censuses from 1841-1901 are now available online - an incredible achievement when you consider that 4 years ago there wasn't a single British census available online!
The information collected in the 1841 Census was less detailed than in later censuses: ages for anyone over the age of 15 were usually rounded down to the nearest multiple of 5 years, and relationships to the head of household aren't shown.
Nor is the precise birthplace given - all you'll find out is whether a person was born in the same county and the same country. But as the earliest census to contain personal information on all inhabitants the 1841 Census is a wonderful resource.
The microfilms of the 1841 Census are difficult to read because enumerators were instructed to use pencil, rather than ink. Fortunately Ancestry have refilmed 80,000 pages to make them more legible - some can now be read for the very first time!
LATEST NEWS OF THE 1911 CENSUS
There have been rumours that the 1911 England & Wales Census returns had been damaged over the years, and concern that this might prevent the census being released in 2012 as planned.
But according to an article in 'Your Family Tree', whilst many of the enumerators' books have not survived, the forms completed by householders have - with less than 5% requiring extensive conservation work.
This is great news - though it's going to be a big project for the National Archives, because compared to the 1901 Census there's 14 times as much paperwork to film and digitise!
SEARCH THE 1861 CENSUS INDEX FREE!
Until Sunday May 21st all LostCousins members will have exclusive free access to the 1861 Census index at Ancestry.co.uk
Unfortunately you won't be able to view the scanned images (they are the copyright of the National Archives) - but there's no reason why you can't note down the census references and look the pages up on microfilm.
What information is in the index? You'll initially see the name, year of birth, birthplace, relationship to the head of the household, and the parish and county in which the person was living at the time of the census.
Click on 'View record' and you'll then see the census references. Click 'View other family members' to see the entire household.
Note: you may be asked to give your email address at this point (this need not be the same address you use when you log-in at LostCousins).
You won't be able to find out the precise street address nor the occupations of the members of the household without viewing the microfilm or subscribing to Ancestry.co.uk - but it's nevertheless a great way to start finding out more about your family tree.
From Monday afternoon you'll be able to log-in at LostCousins then click on the Ancestry logo on our home page. For now please choose one of these temporary links:
http://tinyurl.com/ekesu (for the England 1861 Census index)
http://tinyurl.com/lfj6d (for the Wales 1861 Census index)
http://tinyurl.com/pet5y (for the Isle of Man 1861 Census index)
http://tinyurl.com/n49jj (for the Channel Isles 1861 Census index)
ADDING MORE RELATIVES TO YOUR TREE
As family historians one of our greatest pleasures is adding another name to our family tree.
The information on your My Ancestors page is a snapshot of your family tree, taken on 3rd April 1881 - and every relative you're able to add increases your chances of finding 'lost cousins'.
Over the next two weeks you can use the 1861 Census to find more relatives in 1881 - and here's how:
- pick one of the relatives you've found in 1881, someone who's aged at least 20
- look them up in the 1861 Census index, and note who the other members of the household are
- check whether you've found them in the 1881 Census; if not, search for them in the 1881 Census and then add them to your My Ancestors page
- start again, this time with a different relative from 1881
If you have difficulty finding someone on the 1881 Census we'll be glad to help. But there are a few things you could try first:
- if it's a female relative (who may have changed her name on marriage), try looking her up in the Index of Maiden Names
- use the Index of Incorrect Surnames to find out the alternative spellings and incorrect names that other members have recorded for this surname
- try searching on first name, approximate year of birth, and birthplace alone; don't enter the county unless it's the only birthplace information you have
- try both of the 1881 Census indexes: at Ancestry.co.uk, and at FamilySearch (although based on the same transcript they have different features)
More people than ever before are living to 100 - but what are your chances?
According to researchers at the University of Chicago, who researched census data, the chances of living to 100 are doubled if your mother was under 25 when you were born.
Do you have any centenarians in your family tree? Does what you know about them support the US research? Or do you have a theory of your own? Just email info@LostCousins.com
We've recently been helping Valerie research her family tree, and thanks to us she's well on the way to pinning down one of her most difficult family line.
We used two 'tricks' that you may not have discovered. Both work only with the 1881 England & Wales Census at Ancestry.co.uk (remember it's always free to search the 1881 Census index).
Have you ever felt sure that you knew where someone was living in 1881 - but you just can't find them in the index, no matter what permutations you try? You may even have a birth certificate proving that they were living there!
Here's what you do: type the name of the street into the 'Keywords' box on the Search page, and enter the name of the town or village in the box marked 'Civil parish'. Click 'Search' and you'll get a list of all the people recorded in that street!
When you look down the list you may find someone whose name looks vaguely familiar - in Valerie's case the surname Horrigan had been transcribed as Origon.
The second trick is even simpler - when you suspect that someone was in the workhouse at the time of the census, try typing 'Inmate' as the 'Relationship to head of household'. You can also use this approach to look for boarders, lodgers, and servants.
Another related tip is to look down a long-list of census results focusing on the entries that are different - for example the ones that show 'step-son', 'nephew', or 'grandson' rather than simply 'son'.
When you can't find one of the children with the family (and know that they hadn't died young), this is one of the easiest ways to find them!
WHAT ARE YOUR CHANCES?
Members often ask what the chance is of finding a 'lost cousin'. Suppose you entered just ONE relative from the 1881 Census on your My Ancestors page - unlikely, but it's a useful example.
In that case the chance of an immediate match is currently about 1 in 55 - that's the same as the chance of winning 10 pounds in the UK Lottery if you bought just one ticket.
Of course there's a big difference - if you buy a losing ticket in the lottery, you may as well tear it up. And more important you can enter as many relatives from the 1881 Census as you like at LostCousins, without it costing you a penny!
Once you've entered your relatives on your My Ancestors page we'll try to match your relatives with the relatives entered by other members EVERY TIME you click the 'Search' button. Again, this is all part of our free service.
Most members who have already found 'lost cousins' have entered 100 or more relatives, which is a reasonable target for anyone whose ancestors were mostly living in Britain in 1881.
Always start by entering your direct ancestors and their households. But in fact the relatives most likely to lead to successful matches are the brothers, sisters, and cousins who by 1881 had their own families!
Now's a particularly good time to locate them, since you can search both the 1861 and 1881 England & Wales census indexes free of charge. And always remember - there's help available when you need it, just by emailing info@LostCousins.com
AND FINALLY......
Thanks to everyone who sent us birthday cards last weekend. It was one of those completely unexpected things that made it really special!
The LostCousins Team
http://www.LostCousins.com
info@LostCousins.com
© Copyright 2006 Peter Calver & Lost Cousins Ltd
Please do NOT copy or republish any part of this newsletter without permission - which is only granted in the most exceptional circumstances. However, you MAY link to this newsletter or any article in it without asking for permission - though why not invite other family historians to join LostCousins instead, since standard membership (which includes the newsletter), is FREE?