In February 2007, the National Archives (http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ ) started putting soldiers’ records online. They started with surnames beginning with A and B. The process was complete by the end of 2008. Because I was searching for Patrick Stanley, I had to be patient. The wait was made worse by the knowledge that there might be…
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Off in the Wrong Direction
According to Patrick’s marriage certificate he was born in 1884. Calculating back from his death certificate suggests 1883. Family folklore has a story that a birth certificate was obtained in order to prove his entitlement to a state pension. This proved that he was older than he thought. He was already past retirement age. Sadly,…
The search begins
Why did I start researching my family history? In common with many people, I knew very little about my origins. For three of my four grandparents, the trail was easy to follow. I found lots of ‘Ag Lab’ (Agricultural Labourer) references spread around Sussex and Kent. Piggybacking on the work of others (an important…