Week the First

WARNING: For anyone who hasn't been told already, this is primarily a family history research trip. There will be a lot of genealogy talk and not much sight-seeing touristy stuff.

The Flight - (Air NZ via LA) most enjoyable. Read two Terry Pratchett books and watched the film Philomena. The food was nice, and the service amazing. I ordered a drink & snack on my touch-screen, and it was delivered 70 seconds later! Even LA has improved - the seats are more comfortable, the drinks & snacks were plentiful if not varied (chips, two varieties) and the immigration officer who took my photo and fingerprints was  friendly. Good wifi there as well, even with Kiwi passwords - Timaru and Wanaka.

From LA, we headed NE, passed over the Great Lakes and across Hudson Bay before grazing the southern tip of Iceland, over Northern Ireland and down to London. Most of that trip was in the dark, but since we had a screaming baby on this leg I didn't sleep, so was watching the maps quite a bit. The eastern coast of Canada showed a place called 'Empress of Ireland 1914', which had me puzzled until slightly further on when in the Atlantic I saw 'Titanic 1912'. So as we flew over Ireland I watched for the Lusitania, having a personal interest in her - some of our HARMAN relatives emigrated to America in 1911 on this ship.

We touched down in a foggy London 40 minutes early, even after spending 20 minutes holding, and I have been humming the song ever since. No queues at Customs, got the discount special of $42.00 (I am converting prices to NZ $$ as I go) for the Heathrow Express to Paddington, which was being sold by a couple on the trek out from the baggage collection, and was at the hotel by 12.30 - way too early, so after declining a room on the fourth floor in favour of one only on the second, I went for a walk. Paddington hasn't changed much, the Garfunkel Restaurant is still on one corner, and the Angus Steak-house diagonally opposite, just as they were 20 years ago.

I am staying at the Continental Hotel in Norfolk Square. Good points -
1) Cheap (by today's standards that is - with en suite it is $72 per night)
2) Close to Paddington
3) ... nope, can't think of any more, just very glad I have a sense of humour. Besides, having a bed is the main thing.

My 'Loaded for Travel' card from Kiwibank, full of UK & US money, would not let me have any of it at the machine I tried. It had worked perfectly when buying the train ticket, but one came up with an invalid pin, and the other (officially Lloyd's one, but always good to have a spare), appeared to go through but no money appeared. So a slightly stressful time was had until my wonderful husband thought to reset the passwords, since when they have both worked perfectly. I had $42 in cash on me from my last trip (I had almost used that to pay for the train ticket, thank goodness I didn't, or I would not have eaten that first day!). The card also went through at the hotel, so my bed was safe. Obviously it was fine at places which did not need a pin.

Having done all I could on the money front, I climbed my 51 stairs and was in bed by six pm. 

Wednesday 2 April
Had fun topping up the Oyster card I was lent - swiping it and putting money into the machine is fine, but then all you get is an arrow pointing to cancel ... after trying it a couple of times, a helpful attendant said I then needed to swipe the card again ...  it's sort of like a secret language, really. I wonder what terrible security risk would be taken if they told us to do that on the screen  <g>

Anyway, with brain slightly fogged I got the Underground to the Barbican station & walked up to the Society of Genealogists (SOG). Where, would you believe, I discovered that I brought my old membership card, and not the new one they issued me with last time we were here .... really I am not having the greatest start to this holiday! I decided that I will just get day-cards from reception for this trip, as I will not be here often enough to make it worthwhile to pay for a new card.

I caught up with Nick Fogg, the Lower Librarian, and a probable BRUNT cousin (although we haven't found the connection yet), and then volunteer and indexer Frank Hardy, who has been to NZ often, and shares what he sees as our wacky and relaxed sense of humour. Hmmm, not sure about wacky, but at least I can have a laugh with him and sling off occasionally. Spent the afternoon quietly looking at books, not doing anything too brain-intensive.

On the way home I came out of Paddington at the canal exit, and there in front of me was an old barge selling books. I know I assured Lloyd that this was not a book-buying trip, but really, what can you do when it is shoved in your face like that. At least I was strong enough not to go inside!




The shop is called 'Word on the Water' (the photo is from their Facebook page) and has been going a couple of years. Had a chat with the nice guy who ran it, while I paid for a copy of Michael Wood's In Search of Shakespeare. Hopefully once I have read it I won't feel the need to keep it and bring it home, as I only brought a small suitcase ... although since one of my jandal's broke this morning on the way down to breakfast (that's an extra 22 steps to climb back up to my room, as of course the dining room is in the basement) I already have more space  ;-)

Current Reading: The Religious Body by Catherine Aird (first of the Inspector Sloan mysteries)
Evening reading: Bill Bryson's At Home 

Thursday 3 April
Brain not quite as foggy, so decided to tackle the Royal Courts of Justice. I have walked past them often enough, but now the probate records have shifted here from Somerset House.

 Through the main entrance, bag onto the scanner bed, then a nice girl at Information told me the way - up the back and through the archway, turn left, walk straight ahead until out in the open.. Down the steps, turn right and through another door to Court 38. Whew. The gentleman at the desk insisted on telling me how to find my references, although I said three times that I had them, and only needed the forms to fill out. So I gave up and just listened, and managed to then get some forms. Oh - the form says for wills before 1928 in London I must have the folio number ... so I marked those ones, then - pleased I had listened - found the right books. They remind me of the original index books with the birth, death and marriage indexes, large and heavy. These are slightly smaller, but definitely heavier - unless I have got weaker over the years! Some of the London wills had a number in red which I guessed must be the folio. Although the will indexes are now on Ancestry, I haven't noticed any extra numbers written beside them, so maybe they were filmed from a different copy of the index books.

Having completed four forms - with up to seven wills on each - I was given a map to help find my way to the Fees Office to pay for them. I would not normally spend so much at one time, but we have not yet reached the 21st century here, and are unable to order online from home. So it makes sense to get all I can now. Fortunately, wills between 1858 and 1925 have been filmed by the LDS church, so I plan to read them all when I get to Salt Lake City. God bless the Mormons, that's what I say. They are going to save me a (second) fortune. Found my way back past the entrance hall, across to the other fresh air, down the steps and through the car-park, up the left-hand steps to the first floor, I paid over a lot of money for 22 wills, plus one extra for Margaret, then back to sit in their restaurant for half an hour while I waited for the Probate office to re-open after lunch.



One sheet-full is being posted home (at no extra cost), and the other three which are all for families I will be working on while here will be ready for collection on Tuesday afternoon. It is an excellent service, even if it does involve a lot of walking.

The SOG are open until 8pm tonight, so I headed that way, and immersed myself in books once again.

Current Reading: Wodehouse Spring Fever

Friday 4 April
Emboldened by my successful foray into the Law Courts yesterday, I decided to tackle The National Archives (TNA) at Kew. Kew & I do not have a great history of closeness and warmth together, so there is always a feeling of girding my loins whenever I decide to go there. From Paddington it is only one trip on the District Line - rather better than the three trains I needed when we were house-sitting in Surrey! I found my way there without getting lost (that's a whole other story), renewed my readers ticket - valid for three years, it only expired a month ago, which was a shame. However, I can now dream again about coming back before the next three years are up ... will just need a miracle/lotto win/inheritance from rich ancestor I never met ...

Since the brain is still a little foggy, I was very happy to have a request from a friend to copy a large file on the shooting down of a plane during WW2 by friendly fire. When it arrived I was shown how to use the camera set-up. They have auto-focus cameras set on stands, and a touch-screen pc to take the picture, save or delete it, then email the link to view it to yourself. Up to 25 can be taken at one time, then emailed. If no-one else is waiting for the cameras, you can carry on and do another batch. So I happily sat there and pressed buttons, moving the file each time to align the right part under the lens, and periodically taking a break while some-one else used it. They had only four cameras working, but luckily there were never a lot of people waiting.

After I finished, I had a short browse in the bookshop ... not my brightest idea! Came out with only three small Shire books on genealogy topics - don't panic, darling, I will probably donate them to the NZSG library once I have read them. I know four books in my first four days doesn't sound good, but I'm sure it's not a pattern.

Then on the way back to the train, I was so busy watching the planes - they come over about every 30 seconds - I went the wrong way! (Actually, I think something similar came into that previous story I mentioned). So, back-tracking to where I could see the Archives, I set off again, keeping my mind firmly on where I was going, and successfully arrived at the station. 

Current Reading: the second Catherine Aird, Henrietta Who?

Saturday 5 Apr
Full day at the SOG. And speaking of books, how many visits have I made there already and not even been into their bookshop! See, I really can be strong :-)

Lots of study on army records, and looking at what they have. Found two great-uncles who were POW's in Germany (Ken HOWE & Wilf BRUNT), and more about the Stalags they were at.
Hunted for William ROBBINS dying in the Boer War for a friend who has a family story about him, and found not a trace. I really think he died before that war began, and was at home in England at the time, but obviously more delving is needed. Also looked up stuff on Waterloo - is there anyone who hasn't heard about my CLEAL ancestor who was wounded in the right hand at Waterloo? Only found this out about him a month or so before I left, so haven't had time to do much further research yet, but have a list of things to look up at Kew next time.

Also borrowed two books I have wanted to read for some time, both family histories by Rae Collins. She writes well, first telling the story of her research, then doing a chapter on each ancestor with more background. A friend of hers has done some really good sketches of the places and churches related to  each  person, then further drawings of the men's or women's clothing for that time. Us genealogists would always rather be doing the research than writing the book, so I really admire those who have made the effort to get it down on paper for others to enjoy.

Current Reading: Agony of the Leaves by Laura Childs in her Tea-shop crime series
Evening Reading: swapped to A Journey in Ancestry by Rae Collins