Archive for August, 2010

Andrews Newspaper Index Cards, 1790-1976

Tuesday, August 31st, 2010

The Andrews Newspaper Index Cards, which is part of the Andrews Collection at the Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies, Canterbury, Kent have now been made available on the Ancestry.com website. A quick search for the keyword ‘India’ produces 6,877 results

About the Index

This unique card index was compiled in England from the 1790s until about 1970 and features a collection of notices from newspapers and various official sources, such as the London Gazette. Approximately 250,000 cards include announcements of births, marriages, obituaries, and deaths abroad; notices of wills, unclaimed estates, and filings under the Colonial Probates Act of 1892 (which recognized probates from courts in British possessions); and advertisements for missing persons and people seeking next of kin. The original newspaper clippings on the cards sometimes include annotations referring to additional information from other sources.

The cards can have content on both the front and back. The Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies notes that the index can be “useful for locating information about individuals who seem simply to disappear.”

via England, Andrews Newspaper Index Cards, 1790-1976 – Ancestry.com.

South Asia Research Group – Getting the Most out of Fibiwiki

Monday, August 23rd, 2010

Event

Title: South Asia Research Group – Getting the Most out of Fibiwiki
When: Sat 28 Aug  1.30pm – 3.30pm
Where: 120 Kent Street – Richmond Villa – Sydney
Category: Research Groups & Computer User Groups

Description

Fibiwiki is a wiki where you can read and share information helpful for researching ancestors in India.  It not only contains research guides, but also lists sources, and general background information about the culture, society and history of India during the period from 1600 to 1947. Member Maureen Evers is a major contributor to the wiki and many of us have benefited from her articles.  She will show us how to get the most out of the fibiwiki and also how to edit or add new articles.

Bookings essential:

Members – $8.00 - click to book

Non-members – $12.00 – click to book

Engineering your family history – The IET

Saturday, August 14th, 2010

The following event has been announced on the Institution of Engineering and Technology website.

Date 23 September 2010

Time

13:00 – 16:30

Location

Institution of Mechanical Engineers
1 Birdcage Walk
Westminster
London
SW1H 9JJ

Are you researching a family member who was an engineer? Are you interested in the history of engineering and invention? Three major engineering institutions are holding an open day for family historians at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Westminster, 23 September 2010 from 1pm – 4:30pm. This is an exciting opportunity to talk with the professional custodians of the archives and see the stunning Elizabethan-style library, designed by Basil Slade in 1899.

This event is of interest for those researching the history of civil, mechanical or electrical engineers and the engineering industry, and who would like to take a closer look at the historical records available.  It offers a chance to see some of the archives of the Institution of Civil Engineers, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and the Institution of Engineering and Technology.  The archivists will also be giving short talks on researching your engineering ancestors, the international history of engineering, technical education and engineering in wartime.

Registration

The event is free but pre-booking is essential: please email the IMechE Archives at archive@imeche.org

via Engineering your family history – The IET.

National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations),1861-1941

Thursday, August 12th, 2010

The National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1861-1941 is now available online through the subscription based Ancestry website. A quick search for ‘India’ as a location produces 8,739 entries.

This collection contains summaries of the vast majority of probate cases in England and Wales between 1861 and 1941. It effectively forms an index to wills and probate records for this period.

The records were created by the Probate Registry, which took control of proving wills and administrations in 1858. Before this, four different types of ecclesiastical (church) courts dealt with these cases. A Principal Probate Registry was established in London in January 1858, and several district probate registries were created around the country. From then on, the registries oversaw all grants of probate and letters of administration. This collection is the Calendar of these grants.

The Calendar is separated into a different volume for each year. The entries in each volume are then alphabetised by surname. Information varies across different entries, but each typically includes:

  • Probate date
  • Full name of the deceased
  • Death date
  • Death place
  • Registry where issued

Missing volumes:

Our collection covers 80 years from 1861 to 1941. We currently do not have the books for the years 1858-1860 and there are some gaps for the years 1863, 1868, 1873, 1876, 1877, 1883, 1888, 1899-1903 and 1910-1911. However, we hope to add records for these years as soon as possible.

Ordering wills:

Unfortunately it is not currently possible to order a copy of the will from us. If you wish to order a copy of a will or grant mentioned in this collection, you can do so for a fee from the Principal Probate Registry at First Avenue House or any district probate registry. You’ll need to provide the full name of the deceased, the date of the grant and the registry where it was issued.

For more information, please visit the Probate Registry’s website.

via England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations),1861-1941 – Ancestry.com.au

Service Update

Tuesday, August 10th, 2010

We think that we have solved the performance problems with the fibis database, which were caused in part by bad WebBots and have now been blocked.  We shall continue to monitor the situation and ensure that performance is maintained. We apologise for any inconvenience that this outage has caused.

Training sessions in using India Office Record family history sources

Thursday, August 5th, 2010

The latest dates for training sessions in using India Office Record family history sources at the British Library have been announced.

Every month members of the APAC Reference Services team offer a free, 75-minute introduction to the Department’s family history sources. Anyone is welcome to attend – participants do not have to be holders of a Library Reader Pass. The emphasis is on explaining the background to our holding returns of baptisms, marriages and burials of European Christians from all over South Asia, and providing practical guidance on how to use the name indexes.

The next sessions will be held on:

18 August

22 September

12 October

18 November

14 December

All sessions last from 11:00 to 12:15

To book a place, please contact:

Email: hrs-training@bl.uk

Tel. +44 (0)20 7412 7865

Fax +44 (0)20 7412 7641

via India Office Records: Family History Sources.

Website Problems

Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010

The fibis database and the fibiwiki are experiencing performance difficulties at present, which means that they will responds more slowly than usual and searches often result in ‘Internal Service Errors’. We are working with our hosting company to resolve the situation as soon as possible, and apologise for any inconvenience caused.

August’s Featured Article, Image and Project

Monday, August 2nd, 2010

Every month the fibiwiki moderators chose an article, image and project to feature on the frontpage of the fibiwiki. Fibiwiki is website about British India that anyone can edit.

This month’s featured article, image and project are: