Who doesn’t love a chance to share their enthusiasm, whether steam trains, football or especially family history, with other like-minded souls?
So we in GFHS are absolutely delighted to host another Family History Fair between 10am and 4pm on Saturday 6 September. This is one of the ever-popular monthly Heritage Hub Open Days which will give you the chance to discover something new, whether you are just getting started with your research or want to find more details about your ancestors’ lives or the area in which you live.
Our own volunteers will be on hand to talk about some of the projects we’ve been working on in the last year, especially the Gloucestershire Mariners’ project funded by Lloyds Register Foundation. Led by local historian Tony Conder this project is exploring Gloucestershire’s maritime history and the families involved in it. We’ve researched some of those families unearthing many amazing stories along the way which Tony is using in his display at the Gloucester History Festival later in September. We’ll also be able to tell you about our long-running projects to index the local civil registration records (BMDs) and survey the county graveyards and War Memorials.
Drop into our Research Centre to discover how to get your family journey off to the best start. If you’ve hit a ‘brick wall’ with your research and aren’t sure what to do next – our volunteers will be happy to try to help. If you’ve already done the FH basics but want to find out more about your ancestors’ lives or you’re keen to investigate the area in which you, yourself, are living – just ask us.
No problem if your family isn’t local. Many of the online resources in the Centre cover the whole world and we’re also FamilySearch Affiliate Library which gives access to a huge variety of information.
If DNA puzzles you, make an appointment for a short advice session.
FH Societies from the neighbouring counties – Bristol & Avon, Malvern, Somerset & Dorset and Wiltshire – and other heritage groups will be there to offer their specialist help and advice.
We are also very grateful to the staff from Gloucestershire Archives who will be providing behind-the-scenes tours, advice about preserving family memorabilia and a display of some of the Archives own treasures.
This is a new platform for storing and sharing family and local history research. A chance to learn about the latest developments!
Janet is a family, local and community historian, author and current
President of the Family History Federation, Her talk will offer something new for everyone!