Week 5 – A Breakthrough Moment The Two Elizabeth Appleby’s Genealogy is like detective work. You follow a lead, gather evidence, and sometimes discover something that appears to have been overlooked by others. This is how I proved that some online family trees have identified the wrong woman as the wife of George Washbrook. The …
Week 4 – A Theory in Progress Who is Phoebe Elizabeth Washbrook’s Mother? There is a birth certificate I have been trying to order since November 2025. It is sitting in the General Register Office (GRO) cloud, waiting for me to order it and download it directly to my computer. It holds the answer to …
Week 3 – What This Story Means to Me The distance between here and there Ever since I started my genealogy journey back in the 1990s, I have always wanted to know more about my English family. My parents, brother and I left England in the 1970s to journey to Mum’s birth country, Australia. I …
So, it’s already Week 2 of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. You can read my other 2026 posts here or my 2018 posts here! Week 2 – A Record That Adds Colour Samuel Ernest Stokes – A Tragic Accident Back in the 1990s when I started researching my family history, my Auntie Eileen told me …
I have decided to spend 2026 getting my blog up and running again. A fitting way to do this is undertaking the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge. I last undertook the challenge in 2018, and you can read those stories at 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge. So, here we go with the 52 …
I have decided to start a series called Walking my Ancestor’s Streets where I tell you about some of the streets that were important in my ancestor’s lives. Today we are starting with Coltham Road, Short Heath, Willenhall. Coltham Road runs between Wesley Street and Bloxwich Road North. This small, unassuming street holds many family …
Have you ever wanted to discover your origins and find the stories of your ancestors? Has your grandmother told you family stories that sound a bit too good to be true? Researching your family history is a rewarding journey that connects you to your roots. It provides you with a deeper understanding of your heritage. …
As Henry hit the water its icy tentacles reached out to ensnare him. Drifting further and further into its murky depths he felt at peace for the first time in ages. “Quickly! We’ve got to find him. Someone run and get the constable,” yelled the man as he dove into the canal. Just as the …
Bloxwich is a town located in Walsall in the West Midlands of England with a rich heritage and history. Historically it was contained within the county of Staffordshire but in 1974 it was moved into the newly formed West Midlands county.1 Bloxwich Cemetery is located in the heart of Bloxwich and is full of history serving …
Over the weekend I attended the Waves in Time, Family and Local History Conference held in beautiful Caloundra. I made a family weekend of it and rented a home through Airbnb with my children and their friends spending the days at the beach. In the evenings we went out to eat at local restaurants. It …