April 26, 2009
TRACING OUR
ROOTS
SEARCHING BRITISH ROOTS, A BARGAIN
Brenda Kellow
Every news broadcast or headline carries something about our tight economy. That
affects our research. Finding free sites offering help is necessary.
Searching in local and foreign archives is one of the biggest thrills a
genealogist can experience. In today’s market, a trip can cost a lot. It is just
one more thing that leaves our pockets empty.
We can access many of these records over the Internet. Usually the index is
free, but the actual record may cost. Alternatively, other sites offer a free
month or 30 days of access for a reduced price. Some even offer a few days of
free access over national holidays like Memorial Day, July 4, etc. The sites
that work with us to lessen our finances are the ones we want to use and share
with others. Because of requests for help searching in other countries, this is
about searching the United Kingdom’s free sites.
We used to access British information from the General Register Office (GRO),
www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/. Recently that has changed. Direct.gov
now houses records for England and Wales, www.direct.gov.uk/en/index.htm. Not
only is access free, but the records acquired from this site are cheaper. Once
you get to the home page, at the top right in the blank following ‘Search This
Site,’ type ‘Genealogy.’ From there you will go to the page titled ‘Family
History Research,’ or access it at www.direct.gov.uk/familyhistory.
If you are just beginning the hunt, scrutinize the site, Researching Your Family
History through Direct.gov. It has sites for genealogists: First Steps in
Researching Your Family History; Researching Family History Using Official
Records; and Using the General Records Office to Research Family History. Just
click the hyperlinks to access these topics. Under Frequently Asked Questions
(FAQ), it says that ordering records with the GRO Index Reference are under $15.
To find the cost in dollars, you will
have to convert pounds to dollars, but that information is on Google. Tip for
searching for sites on Google:
__pound to dollars; or, Genealogy Research+United Kingdom.
Another site that lists many places for research information and guidance is
United Kingdom Genealogy, www.cyberpursuits.com/gen/uklist.asp. For land
research and the proper protocol for finding documents, try out UK Genealogy
Archives, http://uk-genealogy.org.uk/. Also, check out vital records at Free BMD,
www.freebmd.org.uk/. Free Census UK, www.freecen.org.uk/, is a central
database available in one place that allows you to search the censuses online
from 1841-1891.
GENUKI, www.genuki.org.uk/, is a reference site to free United Kingdom and
Ireland records. It guides you to the various other sites and genealogical
societies too numerous to mention here. The Federation of Family History
Societies (FFHS) sponsors the English non-commercial site, not to be confused
with the Federation of Genealogical Societies in America (FGS).
Abbreviations are sometimes challenging, but UK Genealogy Common Acronyms and
Jargon offers assistance at www.oz.net/~markhow/acronym-uk.htm.
Logistics World lists alphabetically the
names and abbreviations by abbreviation, counties, and countries,
www.logisticsworld.com/ukcounties.asp. Examples: CHI for Channel Islands, CON
for Cornwall, DON for County Donegal in Ireland, and WAL for Wales.
I have checked each of these websites and several of their links for activity. I
found they are active and updated as recently as April 2009. Use the free sites
first, get your barings, scrutinize the for fee sites, and then buy the
subscription of your choice.
Brenda Kellow has a bachelor's degree in history,
teaches, and lectures on genealogy. Before retiring to publish her family’s
histories in 2007, Brenda held certification as a Certified Genealogist and as a
Certified Genealogical Instructor. Send reunions announcements, books to review,
and genealogy queries to: TraceRts@verizon.net.
