If you are a member of our great Society don't to forget to vote for its officers before the 14th October. Sign in and go to the web page https://www.nwkfhs.org.uk/agm-voting# Don't forget the Society belongs to you the members and that this gives you an excellent opportunity to have a say in its management. A CV of all the candidates was included ...

The three members interests 'Surname', 'Subject' and 'Place' have been updated today. If you are a member then you can submit your interests and perhaps link up with another member to solve your mutual family, place or subject interests. To have your details added to our web site send them to members.interest@nwkfhs.org.uk with your name and m...

Fear not, is the postal strike delaying your September Journal? Members can read their journal on line at https://www.nwkfhs.org.uk/volume-16  One benefit of the MOA (members only area) is that your Journal copy is available online anytime of the day or night..  On holiday and need something to read, Have a look at some back edi...

Don't forget that the advice at the BDBW workshops can help everyone. So come and hear how we try to solve the 'brick walls' that other members have encountered. Having the chance to discuss the research problems we all encounter may help you solve your 'brick wall' Email workshop.booking@nwkfhs.org.uk to request the link to join us on th...

You will have received your September Journal and know its time to vote for the management committee of the Society. These are all Volunteers who give of their time to organise and make the Society work. Please support them. Please take the time to vote either by Post or digitally. It only takes a few minutes. The closing date is the 14 Octobe...

 Gill Thomas gave a talk at Dartford branch meeting on the 6th August on Creating a One Street Study. Go to 'Resources' on top menu and 'Reserch' then click on 'Workshop Handouts' for useful guide

Do you have the thought that you have seen an article in NWKFHS Journal but don't know when? Did you realise all the back journals for not only NWKFHS but also Tonbridge Wells FHS are on the web site in the MOA. There is also an easy to use search facility to find the article you want. Use the 'Community' menu and click on 'Quarterly and Back Journ...

Have you found your ancestors among these prominent families from Dartford? Phil Taylor one of our members has written a series of articles on these Dartford people. If you want a short article on your ancestor and have not written it and submitted it to our Journal perhaps this is where it could be lodged so they will not be forgotten. See how Phi...

Have you ever purchased a certificate only to discover it is not of your family and does not add to your family tree? Members who have certificates that they don't want have donated them to the Library. These certificates are on the Library open shelves under the IDLocation reference BGR0023 in three volumes. We have listed all these certifica...

The Strays' Index was an inititive by the FFHS back in the pre-2000 years. NWKFHS slips have sat in our library unused since Audrey Rainer stopped being the Strays Co-ordinator. When we were clearing out the cupboards a few months ago the strays were unearthed and it was decided that the slips should be indexed into a digital database. Strays are r...

Do you want to know what is in the Society library? You can go to the Society Library page and there is a button to take you to the Master Catalogue that has been updated on 9th August 2022. There is also a page that gives all the resources in the library, not only the Master Catalogue but also:- Stray Birth Certificates Stray Marriage Certificates...

Please note the workshop starts at 2.30 pm (14.30 hrs) and NOT at 10.30 am. Sorry for the misunderstanding. To book a place in this workshop contact workshop.booking@nwkfhs.org.uk. If you cannot attend this workshop but would like it re-run please contact the workshop coordinator to ask if it can be run on another day at perhaps another time. All w...

You will know by now that tonight we had a problem with members signing onto the talk. The problem appears to be a change and update by Zoom a couple of days ago. It now appears that unless you have the FREE 'Basic' licence or better on your computer you will have problems joining the meeting whether you use the link or you use the ID and passcode....

Bring your research talents and know how to our 'People' and 'Place' Workshop on the 3rd August 2022. Ray Fordham left a number of documents and databases to the Society that he had rescued from the Royal Arsenal Woolwich when it closed. Among the files are WW2 lists of names without source or exact date, but they give addresses within the Arsenal ...

 Ray Fordham worked at the RAW when it closed and among the documents and photographs that were being thrown away he saved some of those that related to local history and family history. He had over his retirement been recording the details into a number of databases, some of which are already on our web site. Now the Society has been given th...

The Federation have issued the latest Really Useful Buletin full of Really Useful sources and advice. Robin McConnell gives us 'Tracing your family history with the whole family' Shropshire FHS explain the advantages of Zoom and how it changed their Society. The Beresford (ONS) Family Society gathering held in May 2022. Dorset FHS follows NWKFHS an...

The 14th of July newsletter for Sevenoaks meeting is now available on the website

At the recent 'Breaking down brick walls' workshop a member said that she thought you had to submit a research problem to attend. Not so.The workshops are designed to explain sources and how you can organise your research to help find that elusive ancestor. Other members' 'brickwalls' can be of help to other family historians as the think...

New workshop video added breaking down brickwalls Example 5 Alexander Duff Calico printer 

New workshop video added  Example 6 "My Incredible Hulkes Mystery"

Catching up with Family Search website Sharon Hintze 

Emma Smith has created an art installation at the Brickworks Museum, Swanwick, Hampshire to remember all those people that were employed in the brickmaking industry. On the 31st May the mayor of Fareham opened the exhibition to the public. The installation consists of thousands of brickettes each made by hand by Emma with the initials of a person t...

In 2016 this blog was written but again cropped up recently when discussing Eynsford Viaduct. Its amazing what areas family historians venture when ancestor hunting. One of our members asked about the temporary camps set up to house the navvies working on the railway in the Sevenoaks area. The answer to the query is given in 'Sevenoaks, an his...

If you have been waiting for the update to the names indexes then today is your day. We are still recovering these indexes but the latest introduction notes and surname index have been added in the MOA (members only area) Enjoy the work of our 1990s Census team. 

The Federation's Bulletine available to all family historians that subscribers see https://www.familyhistoryfederation.com/. The June edition contains an article'The Great Storm of 1703' by Wayne Shepherd. Our area of South East London and North West Kent was damaged. Daniel Defoe mentions that part of the wall to Greenwich Park having been blown d...

During the recent Society Library cataloguing exercise we have found an old Strays slip index (2002). We are trying to get it digitalized for the use of members. We anticipate it may contain over 7000 entries when completed. WHAT IS A STRAY? A stray is a recorded event in which a person is described in the record as being from, or connected with, a...

1851 Census is most important, as it was the first census to give the birth place of one's ancestors. NWKFHS created surname indexes in the 1980s and 1990s when there were no commercial subscription online data providers. While these indexes do not include all the schedule data, they are a finding aid using the piece number with folio number of the...

New recorded workshop talk to Essex FHS by David Cufley on Brickmaking now available to view on Workshops page.

 Workshop handouts and  talk 'Fluctuated Population Numbers' by David Cufley on 4th May has been updated

May 2022 eNewsletter is now available on the website

tinFree bulletin produced by the Family History Federation which provides lead articles on different aspects of family history research. The latest edition No 20 April 2022 features School Records. To subscribe to the RUBulletin go to the federation's web site at https://www.familyhistoryfederation.com/resources-newsletter North West Kent Family Hi...

Ian Waller's talk Family History Frustrations now on website to view log in as member and go to Zoom Talk page

Walter Eves has granted us permission to record his presentation. It is now on the MOA area for members to catch up and learn about Flickr and how it can assist with our family history research by holding documents and photographs that are not in the archives. 

David Cufley has granted us permission to record his presentation. It is now on the MOA area for members to catch up and learn about Trade and Occupation sources and how they can assist with our family history research by suggesting documents and photographs that are in the archives and record offices. One of the Trade Union sources that has c...

The two exercises undertaken at the 23 March workshop have been recorded and are now available on the MOA. The first exercise covering the Barnett family of Tunbridge Wells and Devon connections with Coast guards is on the MOA area for members to catch up and learn about possible research source that could help find the true place of birth George B...

Flickr is a document and photo sharing and hosting service that can be a gold mine for family historians. NWKFHS has had a presence on Flickr since 2009 and Walter Eves one of our Vice Presidents will be leading a workshop on Wednesday 13 April at 10.30 am. He will explain the documents and photographs we have and how they can add to your family hi...

A member wrote to HMCTS (Her Majesty's Courts and Tribune Service) Wills Help desk because of a problem obtaining a Will. The member said and asked, I was searching for GRACE WINIFRED PAILTHORPE who died 19 July 1971 Ninfield, Sussex. The Probate index on Ancestry has the entry but on the www.gov.uk/search-will-probate it returns 'no record found' ...

The intriguing title spotted when a member checked out the day's weather recently. Following the Met Office archives links to view the historic rainfall data for many parts of the UK and, at a local level, was data for Welling, Bexleyheath, Kent, in many of the years of Queen Victoria's reign. In 1861, these were collected by Henry Septimus Hyde Wo...

Its the 1st April and its not a joke when you lose access to the MOA (members only area). No longer can you access the databases, indexes, back journals and the video recordings of the talks and workshops. Whats the solution? Pay your £10 subscription and all will be well again. 

The Parish Chest workshop run on the 16th March's recording is now available on the resources menu to members. If you missed the workshop and want to learn about the records available in the Parish Chest watch the recording. If you would like the Workshop run again so you can benefit from the Q & A session after the presentation email...

Be aware if you have not renewed your membership for 2022 you will lose your access to the members only area (MOA) in the next 14 days. Membership is only £10 per year and in our opinion very good value. Membership is cheaper than a meal out. An advantage is that you can sit at home and not wear a mask to avoid  Covid-19

The Video recordings from the two Medieval Records Workshops are now available online. Sign in to the MOA and go too the Workshop videos to see our archive of recordings including the latest Medieval Records Workshops. 

Updated fully searchable tables of Members Interests have been loaded. These tables are for Surname Interests, Subject Interests and Places Interests. You can also see the latest in the March Journal which came out at the beginning of the month.

NWKFHS was represented on this session of Rootstech by our President David Cufley. Despite a number of technical problems experienced the panel of representatives from five family history societies were able to explain the advantages of joining a Family History Society (FHS). If you could not see the original session and want to its now available o...

Over the years members have donated BMD certificates that they obtained only to discover they are not of their family.  These have been collected at the library in three volumes on the open shelves at BGR0023.  The index to these volumes under the Birth, Marriage and Death headings are available as PDF files to download under the buttons ...

"Did you know that there was a murder in your house?" These words were uttered to me by a cousin. He was wrong, but not by much!In 1956 mum, dad, my sister and I moved into Leahurst Road in Lewisham. Back in 1942 the body of an 11 year old girl was discovered under the floorboards of the housenext door. Much wartime crime, including murder, went un...

A family? ( My family? Your family?)But not The family, or the family of man or even such nebulous bodies as the Commonwealth family. The Oxford English Dictionary defines family as, amongst others, "The body of persons who live in one house or under one head, including parents, children, servants etc. (1545)" (Contentious I know, but who wouldn't ...

Evacustes. You know how a name can lodge in your mind? As part of a NWKFHS writing workshop, I researched Frankwell, Shrewsbury, Shropshire especially the work of artist Evacustes Phipson. He was a prolific British topographical watercolourist in the 1890s and throughout the opening decades of the twentieth century but I couldn't find any that info...

The Family History Federation has organised a panel of Angela Malin, David Cufley Hillary Blanford, Ian Waller and Malcolm Austin at Rootstech 2022. These representatives of some UK family history Societies will explain the benefits of joining a UK family history Society. They will be able to advise how their and other Societies can help your resea...

Query 4 June 2020 Query from Albany, Western Australia. Two members of my family, Aunts Mabel Elsie Wheeler and Beatrice Nial are buried in Bexley. My Grandfather, William Fogarty, could be William Seymour also died in the area around 1948. The two aunts went to his funeral, they were living at 73 and 51 Rowley Avenue Sidcup at the time, we have he...

We have received the first pictures of local Lucy Boxes. This one is in Martin Dene, Bexleyheath. 

  14th September at 7.00 pm the Society presents the zoom talk by Jackie Depelle a family history tutor and speaker. The talk explains the value of using wills, perhaps the most useful resource after certificates & censuses. It is a personal insight into relationships & possessions. Find indexes & associated records. Jack...

Handouts available for researching merchant navy relatives following a talk by Penny Allen at Dartford meeting on the 4th September 2021 Click HERE for link 

 Video of Cloud Recording-DNA Clustering using Excel by David Cufley now available

Only available until 19 March 2022 recorded  talk by Penny Walters searching adopted ancestors Go to page www.nwkfhs.org.uk/resources/all-other/zoom-talk-videos

 The 1917 Daily Mirror had pictures of military figures mentioning their exploits with a picture entitled 'King of the Costers' of Frank Russell who had died, He was a stall-holder on Beresford Square Market, Woolwich and lived in Salutation Alley, a convenient location to store his barrows and move them into the market. He had resided in Wool...

Searchable Journal contents index is available for you to check if your family or a subject has been previously published. The index is now up to date; December 2021; Volume 15 No 12. Our Journal has been published since 1978 and all its editions are online for you to search. Anyone can check the index out. If you want to read any pa...

The Microfiche and microfilm catalogue has been updated after the catalogue session on the 21 January 2022. Our thanks go to the Cataloguing Cadre . There are now 157 pages to the catalogue covering 3155 items. When you consider the GRO index in two large cabinets covers 48 entries you will realise how many fiche and films are included in our ...

Three new workshops added and Medieval Records Pt 1 has been updated

New recorded talks be quick as one only available until 11th March Click HERE to view or join 

A blog gives news, details of events and workshops, talks about research and advice on doing your family history If you want to get regular updates why not subscribe to the blogs to Stay Informed by clicking on the boxes and filling in 'your name' and 'E-mail address'. To get more out of our web site learn about the Talks, Workshops and Discussion ...

Look on the 'Resources' menu for the latest recordings of Zoom workshops that have been added to the site. The page link is https://www.nwkfhs.org.uk/resources/all-other/zoom-talk-videos-2 If you have missed any workshops or talks, all the recordings are available to members on our web site. If you cannot find the subject you want help wi...

The Society has a Scottish Interest Group (SIG) that discusses aspects of researching their ancestors that were born, lived married or died in Scotland. At the last Zoom meeting on the 12th January, we discussed the highland clearances and the families that were affected by them. This raised a question about the timeline for this period of tho...

The Mid January 2022 Society Newsletter is now available on the website click HERE

The Editor is seeking new articles for future issues of NWKFHS Journal. Celebrate your research, challenge readers to solve your brickwalls, share the story of an inherited object or explain about some aspect of our area especially to distant members. Send your article to editor@nwkfhs.org.uk, as a Word file or in the body of your email, Target 300...

Where is a parish located.? The question that we all ask during our research. For many years we have used 'Great Britain, Atlas and Index of Parish Registers' to standardise parish name spellings. It means indexes are all of the same 'parish' field. If you want to map your family using GENMAP when the index database is loaded it gets accepted easil...

 Submit your brickwall by 12th January 2022 if you have booked to attend this workshop. If you are only attending to learn about how to solve research queries then make sure you have booked to get the Zoom link. Contact workshop.booking@nwkfhs.org.uk.

 The Society has a number of second-hand books, both reference and indexes that may be able to help your research. Have a look at the list on the web site https://www.nwkfhs.org.uk/resources/library-catalogues which covers part of our surplus stock. If you want any of these books make a donation and come to the library to pick them up.

There are now 32 (31-12-2021) video recordings of Zoom worshops and Talks. Did you miss one? Do you want to see it? Do you want to see one for advice to breakdown your brick wall? Then go to the members only area to see all the available recordings.. 

At this morning's DNA discussion group, Zoom meeting (22-12-2021) the question was asked about illegitimacy. We were talking about Adam Rutherford's book, 'A Brief History of Everyone who ever lived'. On page 175 when AR is discussing the research for Richard III DNA matches he mentions 'false paternity' (NPE) as 2% out of hundred people were ...

 We have updated the Microfiche and Microfilm catalogue so you can see the extent of fiche and films available at the Library. Look at nwkfhs.org.uk/resources/library-catalogues. All the catalogues are in seachable pdf format. The main catalogue of books and maps is also available online at the same address and can be accessed by selecting the...

The library will open to members who book an appointment by telephoning the Librarian Janet Rose on 01322 384836. Let Janet know what Wednesday you want to attend and the time of the 2 hour slot you would prefer. If you need help then explain it to Janet so she can arrange for the right volunteer to be in attendance.  The Book collection catal...

From 30 November 2021 in line with governmwent instructions ALL members and visitors who attend Face to Face meetings of the Society are asked to wear masks. 

The Society has now submitted over 300,000 burials to Find My Past (FMP) for the National Burial Index. These are burials from our area but the site has other Family History Societies submissions. You can also find details on our web pages such as Ladywell and Brockley  Cemetery.

On the calendar there is a zoom meeting booked for next Tuesday 23rd  November 2021. The talk is by Chris McCooey on Scandals of Kent and Sussex, Sensational, Salacious and Sad, Including HG Wells, Noel Coward, grave robbers and prison hulks. The host will open the zoom at 7pm for members to join, the talk starts at 7.30.&n...

The Really Useful Show  booth for NWKFHS was manned by 7 volunteers who were there to help and answer questions  from the vistors to the show. A glitch with the software running the show meant all the Family History Society booths were effected. Some people did not get to ask their questions of our volunteers. If you were one of...

The volunteers enjoyed meeting and greeting the visitors to our booth in the Exhibition Hall of the Show. They will be available again from 10am to 6 pm on Saturday 13th November. So if you have a question on North West Kent FHS area of Kent come and talk to us. 

Family History Federation's REALLY USEFUL Family History Show 12-13 November 2021 The Exhibition Hall is FREE to access on Friday night Lots of interesting Booths. Come and have a chat with NWKFHS There is something for everyone Just go to fhf-reallyuseful.com and join us on Friday from 6pm - 10pm Talk to a Family Hist...

We have updated the home page today and you will see changes to the Web site in the coming months. If you have any ideas for its future developement write to the us. 

  We are grateful to John Hanson and Jackie Depelle to allow their talks to be recorded and put on our Members Only area. This is for a limited period permission only They will be available from the 15th to 30 October 2021.

Only 24 hours to vote The postal voting for the AGM of Society Trustees and the changes to the constitution following Covid-19 pandemic ends on the 14th October. Please vote now either using the form in the Journal or digitally on this web site https://www.nwkfhs.org.uk/agm-voting Your vote is important and may make a difference. 

The members interests for Surname, Subjects and Places have been updated 12-10-2021 

The postal voting for the AGM of Society Trustees and the changes to the constitution following Covid-19 pandemic ends on the 14th October at Midnight. Please vote now either using the form in the Journal or digitally on this web site https://www.nwkfhs.org.uk/agm-voting Your vote is important and will make a difference.  PLEASE ACT NOW

The postal voting for the AGM of Society Trustees and the changes to the constitution following Covid-19 pandemic ends on the 14th October at Midnight. Please vote now either using the form in the Journal or digitally on this web site https://www.nwkfhs.org.uk/agm-voting Your vote is important and may make a difference. 

The National Burial Index (NBI) project was initiated and produced by the then Federation of Family History Societies; now known as Family History Federation; and their Associates. The aim was that a researcher could look for, and hopefully find, that elusive ancestor in any part of England and Wales. This information meant that the researcher coul...

The talk explained the value of using wills, perhaps the most useful resource after certificates. A member has written to express her thanks for Jackie Depelle's talk on wills. She has been inspired to order a few wills already, with more to follow. She wanted to add some information that may be useful to others. She said if you sear...

The Who Do You Think You Are? magazine in its October's edition the 'Ancestors at Work' series features an article on Brickmakers. The article gives some basic facts about the trade and sources that may help you find your brickmaking ancestors. There is also a short list of resources and link to the British Brick Society.

  On the 19th October Lady Teviot will be talking about the 'Parish Chest' what it is and what it contains. It's a valuable source to use in conjunction with parish registers and shows how people lived, including overseers accounts, settlement and removal orders.

1921 CensusThe 1st October Newsletter is out and you can link to it above in the main banner heading. News of Face-to-Face meetings and their talks, Zoom talks, workshops and discussion groups that you really should not miss. Plus, news of the 1921 census coming in early 2022. 

The editor's team needs a volunteer to help with the emails and their attachments submitted by authors and society taskholders for inclusion in the Journal. If you can use emails and open their attachments received from members and can pass them on to others in the Editorial team please email Chair@nwkfhs.org.uk. This is a new role on the Editorial...

Mike Weeks is leading a Coffee Morning open discussion about family history, the Society and the family history world in general. Got any burning questions or queries come and ask Mike. For the zoom link email workshop.booking@nwkfhs.org.uk

A Talk by Amy Moffat, the Learning & Outreach Officer at the Museum about the history of hospital and its associated sites, the archives and patient records was recently given to the Society. The archives date back to the 1500s and the records of patients for Bethlem from 1670s to 1920s. The patient records are indexed by name on the Findmypast...

Natalie is a full-time professional genealogist, educator and tour guide and am a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG).A native of County Antrim, her company Roots Revealed is based in Ballymena, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The talk examines the history and origins of Irish surnames.If you don't know where in Ireland yo...

This session covers a range of sources, many of them under-used, which help to shed light on the working lives of our rural British ancestors. Help with those elusive Ag Labs. https://thehistoryinterpreter.wordpress.com/ 

'Germans in WW1 London and their experiences. Have your European ancestors changed their surname was it because they were German and had been iving in London for many years. What is the backgound to these families? Join the workshop and find out.

 The Library Catalogue has been updated with the books donated by deceased members families. The catalogue is on this web site and available to view by all family historians. Although the Library is closed at present due to Covid-19 restrictions we have managed to catalogue these books. They will make an interesting day for the volunteers when...

John has been researching family history for nearly 40 years and is a member of the Guild of One-Name studies. A former trustee of the Society of Genealogists for 14 years and has served on many other family history committees.Has lectured on and taught family history for nearly 20 years including at Who Do You Think You Are. This lecture will expl...

Thursday 17 June 7pm for 7.30 - Donna Rutherford DNA (Part 2)- "So you had your DNA results now what? Making the most of your DNA results."Some of you will know that, due to technical difficulties at our end, Donna's part 1 talk started an hour late. Similar difficulties have prevented us uploading the recorded talk to our website for those who mis...

The Society needs a Chairman or Chairwoman to lead us into this changing world of Family History. Out trustees form a friendly and close knit team, but now need a leader to direct and organise them and the Society. It is not essential to be part of the current organisation as we are fortunate in having members who can help and advise as one takes o...

Wanted volunteers to help with the Society web site as part of a team. You need to be fairly computer competent, able to use MS Office and work with pdf files but this does not need specialist web site skills. The role is as easy managing your own computer, emails and writing up your family history. We have excellent web site designers who are ther...

onIf you have taken an awe inspiring photograph that has a connection with our area or family history research send it to chairman@nwkfhs.org.uk to be entered in the 2022 Calendar competition. 

The administration of the web site has been started today and will be done progressively over the next week. If you have lost access to the MOA make sure you renewed your membership for 2021. It should have been done on the 1st January.  

Next FREE talk for all Saturday 1st May 10am for 10.30 Donna Rutherford (Part 1)- "DNA for beginners"  Join Zoom Meetinghttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/81714661579?pwd=VDdrd2ZTaGZ0MnVqT1hmYzhWblFiUT09 Meeting ID: 817 1466 1579Passcode: 973577

FREE talk by 'Elizabeth Barton - the Holy Maid of Kent' talk by Melanie Gibson Barton on Tuesday evening 13th April 7.00 for 7.30.pm Her Talk is about Elizabeth Barton of Aldington. The Prophetess who was executed for speaking against Henry VIII Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/97950252884 - it's a one-click link - no separate password requ...

Join North West Kent Family History Society to ask about our area and the people that lived in it. Our experts are available on the chat line to welcome you and answer your questions. You can come to our stand using the following link https://www.fhf-reallyuseful.com/north-west-kent-family-history-society 

Email request of the Library. The owner of www.Ghostsigns.co.uk contacted the library saying he was writing a book about London's 'ghost' signs and plans to include the one attached, photographed here by my co-author Roy Reed (see below). It is causing something of a headache in terms of dating and referencing of the history which I wondered if you...

Email request of the Library. I was wondering if you could help point me in the right direction to find some information. My step dad and I were walking in beside a stream which ran down the hillside towards Birling. The stream was crossed by two footbridges about a metre wide and three metres long from one bank to the other. One of the bridges was...

Enquiry of the Library, 24 February 2021. I am assisting my brother, Dean Storckmann, with some research into his family history. His Grandfather was held at the Prisoner of War Camp in Swanscombe and went on to marry a local girl. It was known as Ministry of Works Camp, No154, Swanscombe Street, Swanscombe, German working camp. The site is now hou...

An open meeting for family historians to talk and ask about researching family history. Mike our Vice Chairman will co-host the session to moderate the discussions. The idea is everyone is muted and when they want to speak, they can use the 'raise hand' digital button and Mike can call them to speak. This unmuting can be done using the space bar. A...

Ian is a retired professional genealogist with over 30 years experience in English research ,a former Chairman of and a Fellow of AGRA (The Association of Genealogists and Researchers in Archives) and has published several books related to Family research. During a lifetime most people left a large number of records (we all generate about 100 recor...

FindMyPast discount code Did you know that Society members get 15% off FMP subscriptions? The cheapest FMP subs is £79.99 which means a discount of £12, yet the Society annual subs is only £10. There is an even bigger saving if you pay the FMP Plus or Pro rate. To find out the code use this link, which only works for members logged into our we...

 At Wednesday 10-2-2021 workshop one of the exercises to make connections was to compare birthdates of the participants. The calculation to figure out the probability of finding two people with the same birth date in a given group says that the 50% probability requires a group of approx. 23 people. For 100% probability the group needs to be be...

At Wednesday 3rd February's discussion group Victor told of a new activity when you are exercising by walking your local area. Its 'I spy Lucy Boxes', which are street furniture used to house electrical terminals for tramways, electrical street light terminals or as electrical junction boxes. The older boxes are of cast iron. You can...

The original speaker for Thursday evening, at the last moment, is unavailable.  The talk now will be 'Where will we be without Vincent, Keyes, Pam and Mayhew?' The talk will be a journey through London using four authors of Local and Family History sources. The presenter will be the Society President David Cufley. See the 'Home'...

At the discussion group yesterday (Wednesday 3 February) it was mentioned that the same address was mentioned in the parishn registers for a number of entries for both parties to the same marriages. The address quoted was 101 Gosterwood Street, Deptford. Using street view it was seen this building was a small Victorian Terrace house ...

 Dont forget to login to Zoom talk "The Inns of Court" By Ian Bevan on Saturday 6th February 10 am till 12.00 In 2006 Ian successfully completed the City of London Guides course and in October 2017 he was proud to be granted Freedom of the City of London in a ceremony at the Guildhall Join Zoom Meetinghttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/86537312759...

The latest Society eNewsletter for February is now available to download from the website. To view see under top menu Community then click on Newsletters

The Society has been asked by members to provide a recording of the workshops and presentations so that they can be viewed at their convenience. Rather than have to alter their diaries. While the recording will miss the Q & A session it does make them more accessible to our overseas members who live in different time zones. See the members only...

One of our members has contacted the Library to tell us of the success she has had researching her Indian ancestors using the familysearch.org web site. You may need to register on the site, but it is free. The Indian collections include:- India, Death and Burials 1719-1948. India, Births and Baptisms 1786-1947. India, Marriages 1792-1948. By click...

        At Joanna Friel's presentation to the Society on Saturday 16th January 2020 entitled "Chislehurst Characters" in the Q and A session she was asked about Pascall's brickfield on Red Hill now White Horse Hill and if the bricks were used locally. Joanna responded that the brickfield was owned by the Pascalls but an earlier ...

The subject of trade and occuaption sources is vast. David  has previously done the workshop based on the themes 'Family History' and 'One Places'. Now he has prepared one on Rural Life and agricultural trades. While there is some overlap it does use other records.  The guidance notes and the flow diagram on this web s...

On Saturday 5th December the record for the distance a member who attended one of our Zoom meetings was broken. Last month the record had been held by a member from Scotland. On the 2nd December this record was broken by a member who attended one of our Workshops from Vancouver, Canada. The distance to Joydens Wood was 4,718 miles. This r...

The members interest's three pages, Surnames, Subject and Place, are now updated (6 December 2020) and include all the new entries that  were listed in the December 2020 Journal that was published on the 1st December 2020. If you want to add your interests or update your current listing use the submission form on this web site or ema...

Part 1: A look at some online sites with medieval records and information on 2nd December. Followed by Part 2 the use of early Manorial records to overlap the start of parish registers post 1538, a case study of methodology on 9th December. Contact Workshop.booking@nwkfhs.org.uk. 

Handouts for the Trade Sources talk are available on the FHF-RU Show item of the Events menu. All are pdf files that can be downloaded

Imogen Corrigan was due to be presented this talk at our Dartford Branch, The Science & Technology College, Heath Lane, Dartford DA1 2LY. Now Imogen has agreed to do the presentation using 'Zoom' contact the Society to get details and codes. The first 100 members will get access via Zoom to the presentation. 

FHF REALLY USEFUL Family History Show will include 24 FREE Quality Talks, Exclusive Goody Bag, Specialist Vendors, Special Show Offers, Records & Books, Expert Help & Advice, Family History Societies, PLUS Much More … See https://www.familyhistoryfederation.com/ for more details. NWKFHS will be available to give advice during the day a...

In normal circumstances the trustees get the opportunity to talk to members, learn of their interests and of their life experiences. Without the face to face contact this is not possible. If you have an interest or life experience you would like to share with the Society and help with its organisation PLEASE contact chairman@nwkfhs.org.uk 

Three new zoom workshops have been organised Drawing Charts and diagrams by hand as a research tool. 11 November 2020. Thinking outside the Box. This is an exploration of sources both inside and outside the box. 25 November 2020. A discussion group on a theme chosen by the participants. 16 December 2020 Contact workshop.booking@nwkfhs.org.uk t...

The 2020 AGM was cancelled in April due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Now we are holding a postal and digital voting AGM. You can vote online by selecting the 'Voting' button on the members page. PLEASE VOTE NOW.  

The 2020 AGM was cancelled in April due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Now we are holding a postal and digital voting AGM. You can vote online by selecting the 'Voting' button on the members page. PLEASE VOTE NOW.  

The 'Error's Lies and misinformation' part 1 and part 2 zoom workshops will be run on consecutive Wednesdays. Email workshop.booking@nwkfhs to ask to join either or both workshops. Regular face to face workshops were run before the coronavirus shut down. Now we hope to run zoom workshops to make up for the learning experience and help the Society c...

Send your request for a workshop to help your research on any subject and we will try to get one of our expert researchers to lead a workshop.  Email workshop.booking@nwkfhs to ask to join a zoom workshop and tell us what subject you want to be covered. Regular face to face workshops were run before the coronavirus shut down. Now we hope to ru...

Last Wednesday 9th September we held the first zoom Discussion Group meeting on 'Breaking down Brickwalls'. The session dealt with five members queries and the main theme was Irish ancestors. A recording of the session is available, as are the guidance charts that were used. Email workshop.booking@nwkfhs to ask to join a zoom discussion group and t...

To attend this workshop email workshop.booking@nwkfhs.org.uk to obtain an invitation code. Workshop is being held on 14th October from 11.00am to 12.30pm A workshop discussing errors in Official Records and Commercial Search Engines and how to try and spot them. Case studies will be used as part of the discussions Do you believe what your ancestors...

To attend this workshop email workshop.booking@nwkfhs.org.uk to obtain an invitation code. Workshop is being held on 7th October from 11.00am to 12.30pm A workshop discussing errors in Official Records and Commercial Search Engines and how to try and spot them. Case studies will be used as part of the discussions Do you believe what your ancestors ...

The zoom discussion group starts on Wednesday 9th September from 14.00 to 15.30 or longer if required. Members who wish to attend should email workshop.booking@nwkfhs.org.uk to ask for an invitation code. Member who wish to attend should send details of their 'brickwall' so that the moderator can prepare source data pages beforehand ...

The Society is very pleased to announce workshops and discussion group meetings are available to members. Contact workshop.booking@nwkfhs.org.uk with the subject you want for the workshop you wish to attend. If you want to be part of a discussion group then let let us know the topic you wish to discuss. If you are an out of area member or an overse...

The Society is pleased to announce the 2021 Calendars are now available through the Eshop. Order your copies now for an early Christmas present for members of your family, so they know by the highlighted dates what meetings you are attending; Corona Virus regulations permitting. Keep well and safe. 

The editor Pauline asked 'have you had a look at the September issue of the Journal? Members can read it on-line now and many will also receive their paper copy in early September. Subscription to the Society is only £10 pa and includes in the benefits of four quarterly copies of the Journal. Pauline, the editor commented "It has been remarkab...

News for all members that use Zoom we have now run our first workshop (13 August 2020). The trial went well and we hope to be announcing soon the dates and times to all members of other workshops. We need your ideas of what workshops should be the first to be run. We would also like you to say what times and the day of the week&...

 Query from a member 9th August 2020. Is there anyone that can give me a little advice please? I have recently received a death certificate for a 2-month-old boy, it was registered in Croydon 1936. Under the name and surname he was shown as, David Bailey Hopkins otherwise Williams. The surname being researched is Hopkins. Never come up with a ...