Tracing Your Ancestors Through Local History Records: A Guide for Family Historians

Tracing Your Ancestors

by Jonathan Oates

Family history should reveal more than facts and dates, lists of names and places it should bring ancestors alive in the context of their times and the surroundings they knew and research into local history records is one of the most rewarding ways of gaining this kind of insight into their world. That is why Jonathan Oatess detailed introduction to these records is such a useful tool for anyone who is trying to piece together a portrait of family members from the past. In a series of concise and informative chapters he looks at the origins and importance of local history from the sixteenth century onwards and at the principal archives national and local, those kept by government, councils, boroughs, museums, parishes, schools and clubs. He also explains how books, photographs and other illustrations, newspapers, maps, directories, and a range of other resources can be accessed and interpreted and how they can help to fill a gap in your knowledge. As well as describing how these records were compiled, he highlights their limitations and the possible pitfalls of using them, and he suggests how they can be combined to build up a picture of an individual, a family and the place and time in which they lived.

207 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 31, 2020

About the author

Jonathan D. Oates is a historian and prolific author on the subject of the Jacobite campaigns from 1689-1746. His focus is on military matters, the British Army and its commanders, and especially the English dimension of the period. This is his seventh book on the topic and he has also written about thirty articles on aspects of Jacobitism, anti-Jacobitism, and the military campaigns. He has also edited three volumes of relevant material; the memoir of a loyalist Scottish officer, the letters of the Duke of Cumberland, as well as a memoir of an eighteenth century Leeds schoolmaster. There are a number of other similar books in the pipeline, including one on sieges of the 'Forty Five. The author studied History at Reading University in 1988-1991, obtaining a First Class degree with a thesis about the 'Fifteen, and then a doctorate from the same place in 2001, covering responses in north eastern England to the two major eighteenth century rebellions. He has been employed as Borough Archivist for the London Borough of Ealing since 1999. He has also had books published about criminal, local, and family history, especially in and around London.

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

An introduction to local history sources as a means to researching family history, this book contains pertinent details. Although the sources listed really are specifically for the United Kingdom, they are still relevant for most of my ancestors and show how local history can help with understanding the daily life of previous generations.

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jonathan Oates has proven to be a well studied and through writer and his Tracing Your Ancestors series of books is of great value to genealogy researchers. I appreciated his sense of humor and ability to share relevant tidbits from his ancestor's lives. I found this book easy to read and understand the changes that took place from the medieval period on through the different monarchies. I borrowed this book from my local library.