The Family Histories Podcast

... following on immediately from our previous episode - 'The Glassworker', we find host Andrew Martin and guest Lene D. Kottal in the garage, where they've been interrupted by Andrew's old friend Santa. When Santa starts to act strangely, they find themselves fleeing for their lives... - - - Episode Credits Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this seventh and final full episode of Season Ten of The Family Histories Podcast, host Andrew Martin meets Danish professional genealogist Lene D. Kottal. She explains how she got hooked on family history, why she turned professional, and how skills in researching patronymics can help researchers of Danish ancestry. THE LIFE STORY - ANNA MARIA SÖDERLUND Lene has decided to tell the life story of her Great Grandmother Anna Maria Söderlund - someone that she has seen smiling in photographs but has since discovered led a hard life. When Anna's father is fired for supporting a strike, the family fall upon harder times. Lene finds that Anna also worked in a glass factory too, but not within the glass blowing, but in the lesser skilled (and lower paid) jobs - much like her father had been forced into after being fired from his skilled job. The hardship continues as Anna marries and grows older, and with her husband, she ends up living in a convent. Lene likes to imagine that she lived here peacefully and in some comfort. THE BRICK WALL - FREDERIK DRÆBY Lene is trying to find evidence that proves or disproves the paternity of her 2x Gt Grandfather Frederik Dræby, born in 1849 as the reputed son of customs official Frederik Dræby of Silkeborg, Denmark. However, Lene is struggling to find documented evidence, or genetic evidence that either confirms this, or points to a different paternity. Frederik Dræby senior has plenty of other children, and Lene has traced their descendants but has not found them in her matches with MyHeritage. She has yet to take an Ancestry test, but hopes that a paternal match for this branch will prove it was Dræby or will point elsewhere instead. If you think you can help her with a research clue or idea, then you can send her a message via her website, join her Dræby Facebook group, or alternatively you can send us a message and we'll pass it along to her. In the meantime, Lene is happy to accept Andrew's offer of help, but they're interrupted by an old friend... or are they? - - - Episode Credits: Pharos Tutors Advance your research with a family history course from Pharos Tutors. Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this sixth episode of Season Ten, host Andrew Martin meets New Zealand-based genealogist, author, storyteller and 'story listener', Simon Young. He hears how Simon got hooked on family history after a brown envelop was handed to him, and his thoughts on where the genealogy community may go next. THE LIFE STORY - DR. JAMES LIND Simon has chosen to tell the Life Story of his 5x Great Grandfather, Dr. James Lind, who was born in 1736 in Gorgie, Edinburgh, Scotland. By 1766, he'd joined the East India Company as a surgeon, and two years later earned his Doctorate after completing his dissertation in marsh fever (malaria). However, James was somewhat a polymath, and surrounded by other polymaths in Edinburgh at the time. He missed out on a voyage with Captain Cook after asking for too much money, and instead headed to Iceland to study the stars. He also mentored Percy Bysshe Shelley, and this clearly left an impression on Percy who wrote James as characters in some of his work. James was also perhaps an inspiration for Percy's wife - author Mary Shelley - who it's said, was inspired by James when she wrote Frankenstein, after one of James' 'scientific' tricks was to electrocute dead frogs so that they would twitch and jump, as if brought back to life! THE BRICK WALL - WILLIAM and HANNAH SMITH Yes, that's right... Simon is asking you to help him find some ancestors bearing one of the most common surnames from Britain - Smith! Simon knows that his ancestor George Henry Smith was born in Melbourne, Australia in 1859, but he has no further information about his parents William Smith and Hannah Smith (née 'Dardin'). When George Smith marries in the 1880s, his father is named, but the marriage takes place in New Zealand. Simon doesn't know if George's parents were alive, went to New Zealand, or stayed in Australia. Can you help him find the correct William and Hannah Smith, parents of George Henry Smith? If you think that you can offer Simon a research clue or idea, then you can contact him via his website, or alternatively send us message and we'll pass it on. In the meantime... Simon is happy to accept Andrew's offer of help, but has a few questions first.... - - - Episode Credits: Pharos Tutors Advance your research with a family history course from Pharos Tutors. Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this fifth episode of Season Ten, host Andrew is joined by professional genealogist, adoption research specialist - Kathy Wilshaw. She tells Andrew about how she got hooked on family history, the challenges of researching as an adoptee, and her work to mediate for other adoptees and their birth parents. THE LIFE STORY - IVY COLLISON Kathy has chosen to tell the story of her... shhhh.... Great Aunt, Ivy Collison who was born in Northamptonshire, UK in 1893. The problem for Kathy in researching Ivy, is that no-one was supposed to talk about her. Obviously, Kathy had to go rummaging as soon as she could... What Kathy found was, at face value, a woman living a somewhat uneventful life, but then a turn of events leads Kathy to the newspapers... and suddenly Ivy's extravagant and criminal lifestyle began to appear. Ivy was a con artist, a fraudster, and she managed to take large amounts of money from unsuspecting hopeful men, and from those who fell for her schemes. Of course, this landed her in trouble many times and this led her to prison sentences and a host of pseudonyms too. Amongst Ivy's story, Kathy has found what is perhaps a woman who was unwell, or desperately sad and lonely, leaving her wondering who the real Ivy was. THE BRICK WALL - JOHN WILSHAW One of Kathy's longest-running brick walls is in her husband's family - with his 3x Great Grandfather John Wilshaw born circa 1804. Whilst Wilshaw is an unusual surname, it isn't unusual in Staffordshire, England, and Kathy wants to know where her husband's ancestor John Wilshaw was from. Sources seem to point to a birth circa 1804, and there's references to Cheddleton too, but despite there being John Wilshaw in the Cheddleton parish register, they don't appear to be him. Can you help her find the correct John Wilshaw, son of John Wilshaw? If you think that you can help Kathy to break down this brick wall with a research idea or clue, then you can message her via her website or via the email address she gives in the episode. Alternatively, you can send us a message and we'll pass it on to her. In the meantime, Andrew offers Kathy help to break that brick wall... but she chooses a different adventure... - - - Episode Credits: Pharos Tutors Advance your research with a family history course from Pharos Tutors. Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this fourth episode of Season Ten, Andrew once again has two guests… and they’re siblings! Joining him are brothers who as Parra Genealogía, focus on researching family history in Mexico - it’s Roberto and Ramón Parra! THE LIFE STORY - FLORENCIO PÉREZ COMOTO Ramón and Roberto have chosen to tell the life story of Florencio Pérez Comoto - the son-in-law of their 5x Great Grandfather. Florencio was born around 1775 in Cádiz in Andalucía, Spain, and when he graduated from medical training, he headed over to Nueva España (part of which is now modern Mexico) and settled in Veracruz. He worked as a military medical doctor and after arriving he found himself deep in epidemiology. After Edward Jenner's discovery of using cowpox to vaccinate against smallpox, Florencio ended up leading the efforts of vaccination against the spread of a deadly smallpox epidemic in Mexico, and encouraging people to get vaccinated. Florencio's work is a success, but when Mexico gains Independence in 1821, he and his family flee back to Spain. THE BRICK WALL - FLORENCIO PÉREZ COMOTO It's a research brick wall that also surrounds their Life Story choice Florencio Pérez Comoto, that has Roberto and Ramón asking for help. Whilst Florencio and some of his sons were writers, translators, and poets, Roberto and Ramón have yet to find anything biographical about his life during the smallpox epidemic and his family's fleeing back to Spain after the Declaration of Mexico's Independence in 1821. If you think that you can help with a research idea or a clue to help bring their brick wall down, then you can contact them via their Parra Genealogía website, or alternatively, you can send us a message and we'll pass it along. In the meantime, Roberto and Ramón are keen to accept Andrew's offer of help, but it's all a matter of timing... - - - Episode Credits: Pharos Tutors Advance your research with a family history course from Pharos Tutors. Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In today's 3rd episode of Season Ten, host Andrew Martin is joined by tech nerd, un-retiree, and YouTube and Facebook live-streaming genealogist, who is perhaps better known by her award-winning blogging nom-de-plume - it's the wonderful DearMYRTLE! THE LIFE STORY - MYRTLE ELIZA WEISER Myrt has chosen to tell the life story of her much beloved, and namesake, grandmother who was born Myrtle Eliza Weiser in May 1895, in Salt Lake City in Utah, USA. Grandmother Myrtle heads to a strict nursing school. She then gets a job for US $1 a week as a postpartum nurse - involving caring for infants and doing laundry. After marrying in 1917, Myrtle gives birth to her first child amidst the Great Influenza pandemic of 1918-1919 (often called 'Spanish Flu'). DearMyrtle reflects on the experiences that her grandmother must have had as young mother and trained nurse during that flu epidemic, and relates it to her own experience during the Covid-19 pandemic that swept the world in 2020. Moving to Seattle, her kindly ways emerge again - serving as a nurse during World War Two, giving inoculations to servicemen on the waterfront and would bring an occasional young recruit home to have dinner with the family. She also campaigned for children to have shoes. Myrt's fond memories of her beloved grandmother beam from this episode, and has clearly shaped her own life. THE BRICK WALL - HANNAH HUDSON It's a brick wall in Bisham, Berkshire, UK that has Myrt asking for help. Hannah Hudson and her husband Benjamin Sanders take their daughter Zillah for baptism in 1788, but prior to that, remains a mystery. Myrt has searched for Hannah's origins - checking the parish registers for marriages and baptisms, but she can't find Hannah Hudson's parents, nor her marriage to Benjamin Sanders. A record on FamilySearch gives a baptism of a Hannah Hudson of John and Anne Hudson elsewhere in Berkshire, but there's not enough evidence yet to connect her Hudsons to them. If you think that you can help Myrt with a research idea or clue, then you can message her via her Substack page. Alternatively, you can send us a message and we'll pass it on to her. In the meantime, Myrt is enthusiastic about Andrew's offer of help, but maybe she knows more than he does... - - - Episode Credits Pharos Tutors Advance your research with a family history course from Pharos Tutors. Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this 2nd episode of Season Ten, host Andrew is joined by Norfolk-based family historian, churchyard lurker, heirloom re-uniter, and TikTok video maker - Simon Howard. THE LIFE STORY - ELEANOR THORNBERRY SMITH Simon has chosen to tell the life story of his 3x Gt Grandmother Eleanor Thornberry Smith, who was born circa 1822 in Kings Lynn, Norfolk. Simon discovered Eleanor was baptised by her mother Elizabeth Smith, who was unmarried. There was no mention of a father, but that middle name of Thornberry seemed unusual, and would be the clue to help him unlock the identity of his 4x Gt Grandfather. What he found was a man called David Thornberry living a very different life than Eleanor's mother Elizabeth. He was a young engineer working on the sluices and riverways of the area.... and he was also married. As Simon discovers, Elizabeth manages to get David to contribute to his daughter in her early years, but when he discovers that she's not mentioned in his Will, did she ever know who he was? THE BRICK WALL - BERNARD LOWN Simon is looking for help to track down Bernard Lown and his family, who go missing in the Norfolk area of Clunchwarton, Terrington St. John, and Terrington St. Clements. He's been able to find the Lown family - Bernard, his wife Mary, their sons Richard, George, and Bernard, in the 1841 and 1851 censuses, and he's found Mary with a burial in 1867 at Clunchwarton... but that 1861 census remains a mystery. If you think you can help, you can send him a message via his social media channels - Facebook, Instagram, or via the email he gives in the episode. Alternatively, you can send us a message and we'll pass it straight along to him. In the meantime, Simon is curious of Andrew's offer of help, but does he have time? - - - Episode Credits: Pharos Tutors Advance your research with a family history course from Pharos Tutors. Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this first opening episode of Season Ten (TEN?!), host Andrew welcomes family historian, author, RootsTech and TEDx speaker, former CEO of the Society of Genealogists and now the CEO of the Black Cultural Archives - Dr. Wanda Wyporska. THE LIFE STORY - THEODORE JOSEPH PAUL Wanda has chosen to tell the Life Story of her Great Grandfather, Theodore Joseph Paul, who was born in East Stonehouse, Devon in 1888. While she never met him, her grandmother would regularly speak of her father, and this therefore gives Wanda a fondness and curiosity of his life. Theodore was sent off, without his family, at the age of 12, where Wanda has found him at the Royal Greenwich Hospital School in Greenwich, London. Wanda is soon able to trace him through Naval records - of which there are plenty - and she can see that he travelled the world with them, but was drawn back to the UK, where he also became a member of the Freemasons. In 1912, he marries Nellie Mabel Turpin... sparking off a family rumour that the infamous highwayman Dick Turpin was also a relative. Theodore and Nellie start their family which includes Wanda's grandmother. Despite travelling the world with the Navy, there's something that keeps drawing him back to the city of Chester in Cheshire, UK. THE BRICK WALL - RICHARD HOLMES and SARAH NANNY ROGERS We're looking for clues in Barbados to help Wanda solve her Brick Wall, as she looks for the origins of her 3x Gt Grandparents Richard Holmes and Sarah Nanny Rogers. Richard appears to have been born in 1797 and died in 1849, It is believed that Sarah was a freed woman who owned slaves, but in this period, Wanda explains a few scenarios that may have meant that Sarah had enslaved people and Wanda hopes to unravel this story one day. Sarah marries Richard Holmes on 28th September 1844 in Christ Church, Barbados, but Wanda would love to know the origins of Sarah Nanny Rogers. If you think that you can help Wanda with a research clue or idea, then you can contact her via her Twitter account, or alternatively, you can send us a message and we'll pass it along to her. In the meantime.... while Wanda accepts Andrew's offer of help, she's struck by a sense of déjà vu.... - - - Episode Credits Check out our range of beginners to advanced online family history courses at https://www.pharostutors.com/courses Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

It's time for our tenth season! Join host Andrew Martin and assistant Sándor Petőfi as they introduce 8 guests across a brand new batch of 7 episodes! In this season you'll hear stories from around the world about a kindly woman, a physician, an adventuress, a sea-faring young man, a hardworking glassworker, a disinherited daughter, and a pioneering vaccinator. Of course, there will also be a fresh set of pesky brick walls for you to solve too... so get your sleuthing skills ready! Check out our guests, and find out more about what's coming up in these new episodes. Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

It's time for the first of our special BRICKDUST episodes - where one of our previous guests return to the show to give host Andrew Martin an update on the progress of their pesky brick wall. This time, we're welcoming back local historian Pam Smith, last heard in Season One back in 2021. If you've not heard Pam's episode, you can catch-up now by listening to 'The Activist' with Pam Smith. THE BRICK WALL - SIR RICHARD ETHERINGTON It's been four years since Pam asked for help in her episode - where she was trying to find a connection between the family of George Etherington from Driffield, who'd been Knighted after the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, and the family of Sir Richard Etherington of Rillington, who'd been Knighted in 1603. Where these two ennobled men related - if so, how? Has she been able to get her answer about Sir Richard Etherington? Will that brick wall turn to brick dust? Listen now to find out! THE QUESTION We asked our listeners; What's the weirdest or funniest name that you've found whilst researching your family history? We've picked some of our favourite answers from our listeners which you can hear in this episode. If you'd like to submit your answer via email or voicemail, head to our Question page. - - - Episode Credits: Read this episode's Shownotes Join in with All About That Place 2025 from 24th September to 3rd October. Just search on YouTube, Facebook, Substack or Bluesky for #AATP25. Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this short bonus episode, that follows on immediately from 'The Incorrigible' with Karen Cummings, host Andrew Martin is ready to take a long-awaited holiday in post-war 1940's England. However, instead of the 1940's, he finds himself in the 1640s.... and it's witch-hunt season! To make things worse, he's just been accused of witchcraft after making one of the villagers vanish into thin air! - - - Episode Credits Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this final episode of Season Nine, host Andrew Martin meets professional genealogist, scientist, and owner of Pharos Tutors - Dr. Karen Cummings. He hears about how she got interested in family history, her adventures in DNA testing, her thoughts on the future of the genealogy industry, and why even hobbyist family historians should consider studying courses. THE LIFE STORY - JONATHAN HORSLEY Karen has chosen to tell the life story of her husband's ancestor Jonathan Horsley born in Coggeshall, Essex in 1869, who she is amused to reveal was 'a baddun'.. or at least to start with. Jonathan was born in the workhouse with an absent father - times were hard and in 1886 he's up before the courts and being handed 14 days of hard labour where he's noted as 'incorrigible'. As Karen's research continued, she finds a trail of reports of poor behaviour. By the turn of the century, Jonathan has become an apprentice within the booming fishing industry of Grimsby, Lincolnshire, England. However, he resumes his pattern of behaviour, including absconding. After joining the army, he does finally settle down at about the age of 30. Sadly though, after marrying and becoming a father, after a few years working at sea, he is killed when his ship is struck by a mine. THE BRICK WALL - SELL COWLING Karen's choice of brick wall is a DNA mystery waiting to be solved! Her ancestor, Sell Cowling appears on the 1841 census for Ickleton in Cambridgeshire, England, where it states that he was born in Cambridgeshire circa 1775. However, he dies in 1850, and therefore the parish of his birth is not revealed. Karen has checked the parish registers in the area for his name and surname variants... but there's no match. She's researched so much, that she's ended up running a Cowling One-Name Study! Being from the Science community, Karen has turned to DNA testing and is examining DNA matches.... but nothing pointing to hers in Cambridgeshire. Were they connected? Therefore, Karen would like to do a Y-DNA test of a living male Cowling descendant - making this a super-specific brick wall. If you think that you can help Karen with a research clue, or some precious Cowling saliva, then you can contact her via her website or alternatively you can send us a message and we'll pass it on. In the meantime, Karen accepts Andrew's offer of help but witch way will it go? - - - Episode Credits: Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this sixth episode of Series Nine, host Andrew Martin meets genealogist Asad Khabibullin. He hears how Asad got hooked on family history, the challenges he has faced in tracing his ancestors from the Republic of Tatarstan, and his thoughts on how the genealogy community could become a more helpful place for new-starters. THE LIFE STORY - VALIT HALITOV Asad has chosen to tell the life story of his relative Valit Halitov who lived in the village of Olı Mäñgär in the Republic of Tatarstan. The village was being oppressed by Russian authorities, and they had heard rumours that they were to be forced to convert to Christianity - something the local officials didn't deny. When a constable visited and was beaten, Valit was picked out as a perpetrator and beaten under the orders of the Russian Governor Nikolai Skariatin. Whilst Valit was beaten, he and the villagers raised a complaint against the Russian authorities, and surprisingly the Senate at St. Petersburg found that the Governor's punishment was too extreme and it was now he that was punished for his actions. THE BRICK WALL - HASAN-HUSAIN It's a brick wall also in Olı Mäñgär that has Asad stumped for clues. Asad is looking for information about his relative at the top of his tree Hasan-Husain who migrated from the Crimean Khanate. Problem is, there's a tree already, that was kept by the villagers, and the difference between them is that sometimes Hasan-Husain is one person, and sometimes the name is split because they're two brothers instead. If you think that you can help Asad with a clue or research idea, then you can contact him via his Instagram page, or alternatively you can send us a message and we'll pass it right along. In the meantime, Asad is curious about Andrew's offer of help, can Andrew get it to work? - - - Episode Credits Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this fifth episode of Series Nine, host Andrew Martin meets professional family historian, author, and former FamilySearch volunteer, Robin R. Foster and hears about how she got hooked on researching her family history, her drive to help people through online communities like Facebook and Substack, and how she found herself surrounded by sources when she joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. THE LIFE STORY - BEVERLEY VANCE Robin has chosen to tell the life story of her 2x Great Grandfather, Beverley Vance who was born into slavery circa 1832 in South Carolina, USA. While Robin and her mother were not initially searching for Beverley, they found him and his wife Matilda whilst researching her Great Grandfather (Beverley's son, Lafayette Vance) on the 1880 US Census for Cokesbury in Abbeville County, South Carolina. It was here that they were presented with their ancestors' names - Beverley and Matilda for the first time. Robin soon found herself on the research trail, and this led her back into Beverley's life in enslavement, his slave owner's name, and ultimately to reveal the identity of her 4x Great Grandfather - his slave master Samuel Vance! With the American Civil War and the abolition of slavery just a few years beforehand, Robin finds Beverley in 1868 where he testifies to a Senator about the way the Democrats treated him. THE BRICK WALL - MATILDA VANCE Whilst her name was discovered on that 1880 census alongside her husband Beverley, Matilda's origins are less clear. Robin knows that she was born as Matilda Dunlap circa 1841, but there are some questions to answer; If you think you can help Robin with a clue or a research idea, then you can contact her via the email address she gives in the episode, or alternatively, you can send us a message and we'll pass it on to her. In the meantime, Robin accepts Andrew's offer of help, but will it help her to get the answers she needs? - - - Episode Credits: Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this fourth and mid-way episode of Season Nine, host Andrew Martin meets professional genealogist John Boeren and hears about how he got hooked on researching his Dutch ancestry, why he became a professional researcher, and how he ended up being awarded a Knight in the Order of Orange-Nassau in 2018 for services to local history and genealogy. THE LIFE STORY - MAARTEN VAN LEEUWEN John has chosen to tell the life story of his 4x Great Grandfather, Maarten van Leeuwen, who was born in 1795 in a small village near Gouda (yes, as in the home of the cheese) in the Netherlands. When John finds references to a silver shield and medal awarded to Maarten in 1825, it sets him on a trail to discover why he was being called a 'hero' and of the Order of the Dutch Lion. Despite his service in the Napoleonic Wars as a gunner, this was not why he received his medal - that's down to his relationship with fire! THE BRICK WALL - JACOBUS HENDRIKX and JENNEKEN HEIJLIGER JANSSEN John's looking for help to find the earliest ancestors in his Boeren line, except this is during a time where patronymics were being used... therefore 'Boeren' is not the name to find, and this makes it much harder for him. Whilst John knows the names of his brick wall ancestors - Jacobus (Jacob) and Jenneken (Joan), he can't find their marriage nor their baptisms. He can see their children being baptised in villages close to the border between Netherlands and Belgium during the 1660s, but there's no further clues to their identities. Can you help him with; If you think you can help John, then you can send him a message via his website or alternatively you can send us a message and we'll pass it on. In the meantime, John isn't quite sure what to make of Andrew's offer of help... but will it work? --- Episode Credits Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this third episode of Season Nine, host Andrew Martin meets Gary Stanley - a family historian who has researched his Romany roots. Andrew hears about Gary's research web project in which he documents all references in the UK and USA of Roma families, and he explains the challenges of researching relatives, the benefit of baptismal records and newspapers, and how he participated in a DNA test led by Professor Turi King. THE LIFE STORY - ELIZABETH NICHOLS Gary has chosen to tell the life story of one of his Romany relatives Elizabeth Nichols... and it is quite extraordinary! Elizabeth appeared to baptise a child, with the father noted as Antonio Nichols - a Portuguese sailor. Then Gary finds another baptism... then another... except the baptisms spread around the area, and sometimes the details are a little different. Sometimes Elizabeth's surname is Nichols, Nicholas, or Nicholson, sometimes it's Stivery or Twivey. Sometimes Antonio is deceased or at sea. This pattern intrigued Gary, and following the clues and an incredible amount of research, he has found around 600 baptisms during the 1830s! So many, that he even created a website to map them around England and Scotland. It's very clear that Elizabeth did not have 600 children, and the register entries note that sometimes the child is a new-born, or of a few years old. So, did Elizabeth have a few children that could span this age? The question is obviously; Why go to this much effort? Gary believes that in order for Elizabeth to receive parish relief (a monetary benefit paid by the church), the child had to be baptised. Given Elizabeth's Romany heritage, she moved around regularly, and therefore amassed 600 known baptisms for her children, in order to receive relief! THE BRICK WALL - ELIZABETH NICHOLS Connecting directly to the Life Story that Gary has told, is his brick wall. Gary may well have found hundreds of baptisms for her children, but he's wanting to find out; If you think you have a research idea or clue to help Gary with his research, you can send him a message via his website, alternatively, you can send us a message and we'll pass it along to him. In the meantime, Andrew offers Gary some help, but will he be judged on his effort? - - - Episode Credits Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

Host Andrew Martin meets genealogist Helen Brooks for this second episode of Series Nine. Andrew hears how Helen's family history research got started by a button, the importance of writing everything down when your aunt tells stories, and her love of photographs. THE LIFE STORY - GERTRUDE LESTER / SISTER HELENE DU ST. SACRAMENT Helen's choice of life story is her Great Aunt Gertrude Lester who later became a Catholic nun known as Sister Helene du St. Sacrament within the order Les Filles de la Sagesse. Helen uncovered a story of a woman’s rise through her order and her work in Nyasaland (modern-day Malawi), right through to a tragic accident at Croydon Aerodrome on 25th January 1947 which would see Sister Helene make the ultimate sacrifice in a moment of bravery that saved a man’s life. With the aerodrome demolished and the site covered in housing, residents in the 1970s are reported as having seen the nuns had return in a ghostly form… THE BRICK WALL - GEORGE WRIGHT Following directly on from her choice of Life Story, Helen has been researching the other people in the plane crash. She's managed to find information on all of them apart from the most significant one (to her) - the man that Sister Helene saved! He's known as George Wright, and in January 1947 he had been de-mobbed from wartime service. She doesn't know his age but assumes that he's in his 20's, but she does know from newspaper reports that he was catching a later flight to Johannesburg, South Africa to find work. Despite her searches, Helen does not know what became of him after the day of the crash. If you think that you can help Helen with a research idea or clue, then you can find her on Bluesky, or alternatively you can send us a message and we'll pass it along to her. In the meantime, Andrew and Sándor's offer of help results in a dangerous and tricky manoeuvre... - - - Episode credits: Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

In this first episode of Season Nine of The Family Histories Podcast, host Andrew Martin meets Canadian genealogist Ron Williams whose family tree research resulted in him encountering a 57 year old mystery... Understandably, Ron couldn't not investigate and in doing so, uncovered a fascinating story which he then turned it into a book. THE LIFE STORY - ALFRED VICTOR WILLIAMS Ron has chosen to tell the fascinating story of his paternal Grandfather - Alfred Victor Williams - one that involves mystery and intrigue, and 57 missing years. The story sees Ron find just a few clues that hint towards some very different elements of his Grandfather's missing first 57 years - an affidavit, a school photograph of a son, and a letter. Why did Alfred spend years living under the alias Roy Hammond? Ron has turned Alfred's story into a book titled 'The Lost Fifty-Seven - A genealogical journey of discovery, deception, secrets and scandal' (2024). THE BRICK WALL - MARY WILLIAMS It's the identity of his 2x Great Grandmother - Mary Williams - that is causing Ron problems in his research. He knows that she was born in about 1831, and likely in Shropshire (or Salop as it was known back then). After finding a confusing 'Cumberland in Salop' reference, Ron has found further Salop references in her census entries after her marriage to George Williams. As Ron doesn't know the birth name of Mary, he's struggled to find the correct marriage, which he estimates was circa 1853, as the couple rapidly grow a family, starting with his Gt Grandfather in 1854. If you think you have a clue or a research idea, you can contact Ron at his website, or alternatively you can find him on Twitter and Bluesky. You can also send us a message, and we'll pass it on to him. In the meantime, Ron is fascinated by Andrew and Sándor's offer of help... but someone's clearly hungry.... - - - Credits: Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

We're back! It's time for Season Nine of The Family Histories Podcast. Your host - family historian Andrew Martin, will once again be joined by seven guests, for seven more fascinating life stories and of course a load of those pesky brick walls for you to help solve. As usual... as a 'thank you' treat, each guest is given a return trip back in time in Andrew's (shh: secret time) machine, all with the help of his assistant - the 19th century missing Hungarian poet and revolutionary, Sándor Petőfi. Join us right here for Season Nine, which begins on 6th May 2025. Find out more about the new series. Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

For this special ninth episode of Series Eight, we're taking part in Podcasthon 2025 - an annual global event for podcasters to collectively raise awareness of charities they care about. With our guest, we've chosen to support the charity Mind, and you can hear more about their work and access support here: mind.org.uk. If you're outside the UK, you can find international support here. NOTE: This episode contains archaic terminology, and historic references to conditions and treatment methods of people with mental health issues, and refers to suicide. In this episode, host Andrew Martin is joined by Jane Hough - a genealogist, blogger, and former guest (see 'The Laundress' from Series One). He finds out how her research has progressed, her work with Few Forgotten Women, and her love of Wills and studying. THE LIFE STORY - LILIAN MAUDE EVANS For this part of the episode, Andrew and Jane are joined by Kathryn Burtinshaw - genealogist, genealogy tutor, and co-author of 'Lunatics, Imbeciles and Idiots - A History of Insanity in Nineteenth Century Britain & Ireland' (Pen and Sword, 2017). Jane tells the moving story of her Great Grandmother Lilian Maude Evans, who was found wandering the streets in distress, and was arrested. Given the choice of prison or the workhouse, she chose the latter.... and she ends up in a mental health institution. We turn to Kathryn to help us to understand the context of Maude's diagnosis and treatment. THE BRICK WALL - RICHARD and MARY HUTCHINSON This time, Jane has chosen her 3x Great Grandparents Richard and Mary Hutchinson of Huddersfield in West Yorkshire, England. Jane has them on the 1841, 1851, and 1861 censuses in Huddersfield, but cannot find a sure match for their origins. They were both born in the 1790s and there's some Lancashire connections. If you think that you can offer her some help with a clue or research idea, then you can contact her at her website allthosebefore.org.uk or Bluesky account, or alternatively you can send us a message and we'll pass it on to her. Meanwhile, Jane knows how helpful Andrew can be... but will she take his offer a second time? - - - Episode Credits: Support the show Thank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.