The Death of Golding Boggis

One of my more interestingly named ancestors was Golding Boggis.  He was born in 1786 in Bures, Suffolk to George Boggis and Rachel (Davy), and married Sarah Prentice on 11 July 1823.  Golding and Sarah had 6 surviving children between them.

Golding Boggis died quite suddenly at the age of 71, and there were notices of his death in several local newspapers.  While he was quite elderly for his time, the second article makes it quite clear that he was in good health otherwise and that his death was unexpected.  It is also worth noting that while the first article reports his death in the 19th of January, the second says he died on the 20th.

Suffolk and Essex Free Press, Thursday 22 January 1857

This first notice above comments on his long standing in the community, as well as giving me the name of the farm where the family lived.  It is the second notice below, however, that sent me looking for more information.  It refers to a fire that occurred barely a week before his death, the stress of which was attributed to his sudden death.

Essex Standard, Friday 23 January 1857

This second notice of Golding's death immediately sent me looking for more information about this fire, which surely would have been reported in local newspapers.

Berkshire Chronicle, Saturday 24 January 1857

The article above was printed in several newspapers, the cleanest and most legible included here.  Three fires in total were set in stacks on local farms.  The first fire in the sequence took place at Golding's property, the next two impacted his neighbors, with the third almost spreading to a nearby barn.

The newspapers provided me with even more information after Golding's death, with notices advertising the sale of farming stock and household goods being posted by his executors.

Essex Standard, Wednesday 16 September 1857

Essex Standard, Friday 25 September 1857

Both these articles give details about how Golding Boggis and his family lived and worked, and are another wonderful resource.  Although I am still disturbed by the advertising of 'live and dead farming stock'.

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 :  

• Allied Air Force online research webinar series launch
• 65,000 new records opened in the 1939 Register
• A new member of the Local BMD Project family
• FamilySearch announce new records and features for 2023
• Explore the new Your Genealogy website to launch this spring
• Dr Simon Wills - what it’s like solving genealogy problems for TV programmes and big research projects
• How to build a research plan
• Where is Widow Riboldi?
• Some tips on researching the early 1500S &before
• Dos and Don'ts of building an online family tree
• And more
  

UK Military Records

There has been some good news about accessing post-1922 military service records for the United Kingdom.

“From 1 April 2023 it will be free to apply for a military service record from the MOD. You’ll need to pay the £30 fee if you submit an application before 1 April.”

 

Note you will only be eligible for this free service if one of the following criteria is met:

• You’re next of kin to the person in the record 
• The person died over 25 years ago
• You only want basic information about someone who died within the last 25 years e.g. dates of their military service

Records from World War 1 are held by The National Archives rather than the Ministry of Defence (MOD).

If the person you are researching served in World War 1, you will need to request a Freedom of Information (FOI) paid search.  You’ll be quoted a search cost (normally around £25 - complicated searches cost more) and results usually arrive within 20 working days.

Visit the UK MOD website at Get a copy of military service records

WDYTYA Magazine

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 :

• Find your family FamilySearch expert Darris Williams explains how the new 'Guided Research' feature helps you navigate the billions of records available for family historians
• 10 UK records you didn't know were on FamilySearch - All of these collections can be found by searching the catalogue
  
• 1921 Scottish census Jocelyn Grant from the National Records of Scotland shares the most unusual records from the newly-released census
• Methodist Records - John Lenton of the Wesley Historical Society discusses the evolution of Methodism and the resources available for family history
  
• Family Hero Andrew Bradley's 2x great grandfather spied for British intelligence
• Plus: The history of Highland crofters, finding War Memorials, Rootstech, tracing Land Girls and more

Really Useful Podcasts Season 2 Episode 4

The Family History Federation has now launched Season 2, Episode 4 of its new series of Really Useful Podcasts. 

 

This episode is titled 'Historians Collaborate'.  The website describes it : 

Collaboration is incredibly valuable for historical researchers of all kinds. Members of the Historians Collaborate group discuss their activities, why we should all work together and how we might do so. https://historianscollaborate.com

Joe is joined by Else Churchill, Genealogist at the Society of Genealogists https://www.sog.org.uk, Jackie Depelle, family historian and family history teacher https://depellejg.wixsite.com/mysite, Mike Esbester, lecturer in history and co-lead on the Railway Work, Life & Death Project http://www.railwayaccidents.port.ac.uk and Julia Laite, professor of history at Birkbeck, University of London https://www.bbk.ac.uk/our-staff/profile/8009689/julia-laite

Look History in the Eye Episode 8

The Kamarooka panther, episode 8 of the podcast series Look History in the Eye is about the 1907 sighting of a creature known as the 'Kamarooka Panther'.

 The big cat was first spotted by sisters Alheith and Trine Christensen and made headlines from Bendigo to Melbourne, and right across the State.

In this episode, Bendigo Regional Archives Centre's Desiree Pettit-Keating delves into Public Record Office Victoria and Bendigo Regional Archives records to tell the story of the Christensen family, their life just outside of Bendigo, and their strange encounter with this mysterious creature. 

The daughters of Scandinavian farmers, a look in the PROV archives shows that both Alheith and Trine (along with a third sister and a brother) were school teachers. 

Alheith started as a teacher in 1892, becoming certified in 1898; the inspector’s reports (found in the Teacher Records as above) describe her as “most careful and painstaking”, a “very good teacher”, “rigorous” and “thoughtful and intelligent”, while Trine, starting later in 1898, is noted by inspectors as careful and hard working.

They were aged 23 and 29 when they encountered the Kamarooka panther in January of 1907. A sighting taken most seriously since it came from such well-respected and well-educated women. 

Episode 8: The Kamarooka Panther 

Duration: 17min

By Tara Oldfield and Public Record Office Victoria