Ancestry opens records for International Womens Day

Over four billion family history records, including census and military records, will be free to access on Ancestry to mark International Women’s Day.

In a statement Ancestry said: “International Women’s Day is a time to not only celebrate the achievements of women today but to reflect on the progress made by the women who came before us. Many of the incredible stories of women from history are hard to find because historical documents sometimes exclude women’s occupations, and newspapers often recorded women under their husbands’ names; but our research shows that people have a deep desire to learn about their women ancestors.”

Ancestry is offering free access to 59 record sets from 8 to 18 March.

Key free record sets include:

• The 1881, 1911 and 1921 English and Welsh census records
• The 1939 Register for England and Wales
• Over two million 1833-1956 UK rail employee records
• The 1737-1969 UK postal service appointment books
• The 1898-1968 UK and Ireland nursing registers
• The 1904-59 UK midwives roll
• The 1914-23 UK First World War pension ledgers and index cards
• The Second World War Women’s Land Army index cards
• The First World War Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps service records
• The First World War Women’s Royal Air Force service records
• The First World War Women’s Royal Naval Officers’ service records
• The England and Wales civil registration marriage indexes for 1837-1915 and 1916-2005
• The England and Wales civil birth indexes for 1837-1915 and 1916-2007
• The England and Wales civil death index for 1837-1915

Ancestry will also offer free access to its Newspapers.com historic newspaper website.

 

Week 9 (Feb. 26-Mar. 4) Conflicting Clues - #52Ancestors

So often during our family history research we uncover conflicting clues. Stories that don't add up, records that don't match, timelines that prove impossible, hints that are incorrect.  Any new piece of information needs to be checked and confirmed.  Mistakes WILL be made - by researchers, by transcribers and digitizing projects, even by those who originally created records, and they can lead us badly astray in our research and waste valuable research time trying to untangle the conflicting clues.

In an earlier post I listed some of the things to keep in mind to help spot obvious errors and conflicting clues - and I have seen all of these in records and online trees : 

• Children cannot be born before their parents. 
• Children cannot be born to a mother who is 6 years old.  Or 94 years old.  
• Children are highly unlikely to be born to a father who is 89 years old.  While this MAY be biologically possible, it is unlikely and deserves a bit of fact checking. 
• A child cannot be christened 2 months before they are born. 
• A woman cannot marry 3 years after she has died. 
• A man cannot enlist in the army 5 years after he has died.
  

Recently I discovered a transcribed record in an online database that illustrated the conflicts that can occur.  The record for the baptism of Hannah May below leapt out at me when I first located it.  Why??  Check the birth and baptism dates again.  According to this record Hannah was born 17 August 1796 but baptised 6 weeks earlier on 9 July 1796.

Something has been transcribed incorrectly in this record.  Possibly the dates are transposed and Hannah was born in July and baptised in August.  Possibly one of the months was transcribed incorrectly.  With no original image to check, I will need to dig further to find out.  It is clear, however, that a mistake has been made somewhere and has not been picked up in the transcription process.  Another conflicting clue.

Family Tree US Magazine March/April 2026

The latest issue of Family Tree US magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines. 

Inside this month's issue : 

• Web Highlight: RootsTech at Home
• Take your research to the next level!
• AI and Ancestry.com
• MyHeritage Adds Languages Support, DNA Traits
• Old Ancestors, New Tools
• Talkin’ ‘Bout a Revolution
• Digital photo frenzy
• Form-Fitting : Record your research 
• Find Your U.S. Ancestors
• Site Savoir Faire : Say bonjour to French ancestors 
• The Secret Garden : the history of Castle Garden
• Institutional Records
• Finding Swedish Records at ArkivDigital 
• Preserving Religious Artifacts
• Finding Irish Censuses Online
• FamilySearch : Searching Records, Building a Family Tree, & More
• And more... 

Who Do You Think You Are Magazine March 2026

The latest issue of Who Do You Think You Are magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines.

Inside this month's issue : 

• Stoking memories
• RootsTech full online schedule announced
• ‘Extremely rare’ 16th-century Devon map preserved
• Museum buys Oliver Cromwell's watch
• Bona Vacantia back online
• Theresienstadt Ghetto drawings donated to the Wiener Holocaust Library
• Moving Moments : changing address
• Parich Registers online
• Capturing the voices of the past 
• The Gwent Levels
• A hero, a cad and a scoundrel 
• Children's workhouses
• British Army in WW2
• Window-Tax Records 
• Make the most of your research on Findmypast
• Ring in the new : the first telephone call
• And more... 

 

Week 8 (Feb. 19-25) A Big Decision - #52Ancestors

"A Big Decision" made by several of my ancestors was to emigrate to Australia.  What was that journey like for them?  What prompted these families, mostly with young children in tow, to pack up and move halfway around the world?  Two of my immigrant families would settle in one state of Australia, then pack up and move again several years later.  What prompted them to take that leap of faith and travel so far from their homelands, families and friends?  It would have been a huge decision to make.

My immigrant ancestors came from England, Ireland and Germany.  Land in their homelands would have been difficult and costly to acquire, so the prospect of cheap land for farming may have been a big motivator for them.  Many Germans also emigrated for freedom from religious persecution.  Then there are my Irish ancestors, who left Ireland a few years before the potato famine.  Again, I suspect Australia represented the chance for a better life, a chance to own land and improve the family's living conditions.

My great grandfather, James Nicholas Clark, was born in Bristol, England or possibly Launceston, Tasmania around 1856, just as the family emigrated to Australia.  James’s younger sister Annie Amelia Clark was born 31 March 1857 in Port Sorrell, Tasmania, where the family lived for at least 12 years before they traveled across Bass Strait and settled in Victoria.

Carl Friedrich Beseler, known in Australia as Frederick, was born around 1810 in Hanover, Germany.  He was a shoemaker in Germany and a farmer in Australia, arriving in Adelaide on 1 April 1848 on the ship Pauline from Bremen, Germany.  Passengers listed were Frederick Beseler, Shoemaker, Mrs Beseler and 5 children.  The family lived in South Australia for 7 years before travelling overland to Victoria, where they settled near Ercildown.  Several members of the family are buried in Learmonth Cemetery. 

Travel by ship in the mid 1800s from Europe to Australia would have been a long and arduous journey for these families.  Their determination to forge new lives prompted them to travel such distances.  A big decision indeed.

Family Tree UK Magazine

The latest issue of Family Tree UK magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines.

Inside this month's issue : 

• Suffragette’s chief nurse long-lost medal on display
• New fees introduced at The National Archives, Kew 
• DNA Club news 
• Bona Vacantia reinstated 
• View the RootsTech 2026 class preview
• Back to basics : making the most of the record sets
• Confirmation bias in theory
• Case to prove : George Grindle 
• Faithfully restored : The Dudden Hill School War Memorial project 
• How to trace a Regiment
• The life of Bryan : a Family Perspective 
• Your views on DNA testing
• Which branch of the Houstouns went to Ulster?
• And more... 

 

Relatives at RootsTech

RootsTech 2026 by FamilySearch has opened Relatives at RootsTech, its popular annual online family discovery activity. Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to participate globally, with the aim of making new cousin connections. Available through the end of March 2026, anyone can join the experience for free at FamilySearch.org/Connect.

The interactive discovery feature is offered annually as part of the RootsTech conference and enables participants to find and connect with living relatives. Millions have participated since the activity’s inception and have enjoyed how it can strengthen family connections and lead to new discoveries. In 2025, participants discovered nearly 5 million ancestral relationships. 

To join Relatives at RootsTech 2026 online:

• Go to FamilySearch.org/Connect. 
• If you don't have a free FamilySearch account, create one when prompted. 
• Add what you know to the FamilySearch Family Tree. The more relatives you have in your family tree, the greater the probability that cousin connections will be made. 

The feature’s discovery technology will immediately begin using FamilySearch Family Tree information to search for and match any common ancestors with related participants worldwide and show how you are related. If desired, newly connected relatives can message each other through the website. Participants can also see how many relatives have joined the experience and filter them based on location, common ancestor, or family line.

The interactive experience will be available through 31 March 2026.